Wednesday, April 25, 20125:00pm – 9:00pm

John Barry Elementary SchoolMeriden, CT

Sponsored by:

Meriden-Wallingford NAACP

Bullying: The Nature of Society or 21st Century Youth

Crisis?

Purpose of Community Conversation

To produce an open, unbiased and non-threatening conversation that examines public views to identify common ground for action on important issues in education.

Community conversations about education provide

opportunities…• for people from diverse backgrounds to speak

openly in a safe environment• to clarify personal views on important

educational issues through dialog and discussion

• to help find common ground for action amongst participants who may approach issues with different perspectives

• to support participants as they explore differences in opinions

Who should participate?

• Representative participants who have credibility within the community (Community leaders, religious leaders, educators, city officials, senior citizens, youth, concerned residents)

• Members who demographically represent Meriden & Wallingford:– Age– Race/ethnicity– Socio-economic factors

Why we are discussing the topic of bullying:

• National trends regarding school and neighborhood violence are alarming

• Meriden Schools are not isolated from incidents of bullying

• School violence is often precipitated by covert signs of aggression and bullying

• The problem is bigger than any school alone can address

• Parents and community involvement is instrumental in keeping students and the community safe

Important Ideas

• Students whose parents remain involved through the K-12 educational process are the most successful

• Programs sponsored by ALL schools would benefit from community support

• Negative youth behavior that begins at home often is brought to school and then spills into the greater community

• High levels of diversity in the community ("celebrating differences" and "tolerance“)

Our Question

How do we collaborate between school, community and family in order to create an emotionally and physically safer environment for children?

Approaches

• Bullying has always been a part of growing up.• We should provide emotional support as children

work through these things themselves.

• Bullying is a school issue.– The school is responsible for teaching children how to

work and play cooperatively.

• Bullying is a national crisis that requires immediate attention.

– The only way to control the increase in school violence is to work together as a community to explore the problem and to provide the supports that are necessary.

Approach

• ATTENTION:– Draw more attention to how many of these issues are societal

and end up in schools!

• COMMUNICATE:– Communicate anti-bullying strategies currently in schools such

as Positive Behavior Intervention Support (PBIS)!

• BUILD:– Build positive school climate!

• RESOURCES:– Give parents information on what resources are currently

available to them!

What results do we want from the Community Conversation?

• Become aware of views and priorities on the issue of bullying

• Find opportunities for parents, school and community members to work together on the issue

• Generate ideas and action steps toward possible solutions

A sincere thank you for taking the time to attend this evening and for engaging

in what we hope will be a lively and productive exchange of ideas.

Also, thank you to: City of Meriden Police Department

John Barry SchoolMeriden Children First Initiative

Meriden Coalition for Educational ExcellenceMeriden Superintendent of Schools/Board of Education

Wallingford Superintendent of SchoolsCommunity Mediation Inc.

William Caspar Graustein Memorial Fund