Cabrillo Unified Schools Stand Against Bullying

The aims to counter bullying head on as educators make advancements with the district’s proactive anti-bullying campaign.

According to the National Center for Education, approximately 160,000 students miss school each day due to bullying.

“It’s a hugely important issue,” said CUSD Superintendent Robert Gaskill. “Students who don’t feel safe suffer in many ways.”

Each CUSD school site has several strategies to combat the harmful effects of bullying, Gaskill said, and the district's anti-bullying efforts have served as a model for several San Mateo County schools.

“At Hatch we’ve always had this philosophy,” said Principal Mark Loos. “This reaffirms and confirms what we’ve been doing.”

Last month, students of Hatch took part in Soren Bennick’s Power of One campaign and signed an anti-bullying oath.

The oath reads, “I will not bully others, I will not stand by while others are bullied, I will report and deal with bullying whenever I see it because I have the Power of One.”

The oath is displayed in the school’s cafeteria so students will be reminded of their pledge, Loos said.

“They see that every day,” he said. “It really sets a great tone.”

Hatch also uses a reward system to encourage students to utilize 16 positive life skills.

These life skills include: caring, common sense, cooperation, courage, curiosity, effort, flexibility, friendship, initiative, integrity, organization, patience, perseverance, problem solving, responsibility and sense of humor.

Teachers, staff and even students can nominate students for displaying one of these sixteen life skills that help prevent bullying and encourage camaraderie among students, Loos said.

The discussion of bullying is essential in elementary-aged students, Loos said, before students become older and issues become larger.

“It has to be proactive,” he said. “It can’t be reactive.”

Future anti-bullying plans for Hatch include implementing a conflict-resolution group for fifth graders.

“A lot of that 'he said, she said' stuff they can learn to work out themselves,” Loos said.

According to Barbara Nuckols of the CUSD School Linked Services Counseling Program, early intervention is also important because bullying is beginning at younger and younger ages.

“We are teaching children a vocabulary so they can talk about bullying,” Nuckols said.

Students are taught four fundamental terms: bully, victim, bystander and ally.

“They are not aware that by being a bystander you’re supporting the bully,” Nuckols said. “But instead they can learn to be an ally to the victim.”

By creating a support system within the student population, students not only resolve the issue but also gain a sense of empowerment, Nuckols believes.

“They can feel the power shift,” Nuckols said.

According to Nuckols, a student support system is much more beneficial to the victim than a parent complaint to school officials, which may bring unwanted focus back to the victim.

Nuckols said parents could assist their children by beginning a conversation about how to work cooperatively with other students to overcome bullying.

“Kids begin to feel more comfortable talking about it because they don’t feel like they somehow caused it,” Nuckols said.

According to Gaskill, Director of Personnel/Pupil Services John Corry is in the process of developing a district-wide task force to define systemic CUSD anti-bullying strategies.

“I’m proud of the work we’re doing,” Gaskill said. “But more work has to be done.”

To receive news feeds about Half Moon Bay and the unincorporated Coastside between Montara and Pescadero, visit Half Moon Bay Patch on Facebook and "like" us here. Follow us on Twitter here.