Rising above bullying

The anti-bullying campaign will be in the curriculum.
By HAROLD GWIN
VINDICATOR SHARON BUREAU
HERMITAGE, Pa. -- Tom Clyde has experienced bullying firsthand, and he doesn't like it.
"It's happened to me, and I've seen it happen to others. It's not right," he said.
Clyde, a senior at Hickory High School, was one of about 2,400 Hermitage School District pupils who spent Monday at the high school football stadium as the district kicked off an anti-bullying campaign.
Police closed a section of Pa. Route 18, the busiest road in Mercer County, around 9:30 a.m. to allow about 900 elementary pupils, all wearing their red "Stop the Sting of Bullying" T-shirts and led by the high school marching band, to walk from their three buildings to the high school.
A group of tiny cheerleaders entertained the walkers, repeating the chant, "We are Hick-ry, We don't bul-ly," as pupils and staff clapped in time.
Met older students
The walkers were met at the stadium by pupils in grades seven through 12 and paired off with older students for the rally.
There's bullying in all schools, said Superintendent Karen Ionta, who came up with the plan last year to add an anti-bullying curriculum to the district. It's not any worse here than in any other school, but Hermitage is doing something about it, she said.
Schools need to teach kids to consider others' feelings, she said, calling bullying one of the social issues in this country.
"I have said over and over, if I had a magic wand, I would stop kids from hurting," Ionta said. "I think, today, we're starting to build that magic wand."
Deandra Evans, a Hickory senior, said she thinks the program is a good idea, especially for younger children. She doesn't like bullying and said she will do what she can to stop it.
More at risk
Clyde agreed that younger children are more prone to bullying, both as victims and as bullies themselves.
Denny Daoust, another senior, said he sees bullying every day in the form of teasing.
"It should stop," he said, adding that it's important for younger children to have positive role models.
"You have to be role models for them," agreed Eric Reynolds, a ninth-grader, as he shepherded his young counterpart to seats in the bleachers.
He's pleased that Hermitage has taken a positive approach to the problem of bullying. "I think we have a really cool school," Reynolds said.
Diane Brest, the head teacher who chaired the anti-bullying committee that put the curriculum together, said the program is getting a major push this week, starting off with the daylong rally.
The program will be worked into the regular classroom during the remainder of the year, she said, explaining it focuses on such issues as character, how to identify bullies and victims, how to motivate bystanders to interfere when someone is bullied, and developing social skills like honesty and friendship.
Ionta said the district needed about $10,000 to launch the program but has received donations and pledges totaling $14,000 with more money coming in.
Even the bag lunches provided for everyone at the stadium Monday were donated, she said.
Monday's rally featured entertainment by the high school band, the cheerleaders and majorettes and a band called Rudy and The Professionals. It also offered advice from motivational speaker and self-styled "recovering bully" Andy Tomko of Grand Rapids, Mich.
Tomko offered three "strategies to victims of bullying: Make friends and hang out with them; don't give the bullies ammunition to use against you; and act confident.
"You do not have to become someone else's opinion of you," Tomko said.
gwin@vindy.com