'We have to continually work on this': Bullying a 'prevalent topic' for area school leaders; policies focus on education, discipline

Mar. 29—JOHNSTOWN, Pa. — Conemaugh Valley School District Superintendent Shane Hazenstab said the main goal of school administrators, faculty and staff members is making sure students can attend school, learn and feel safe while doing so.

Bullying is in direct opposition to that goal, and so school officials say they do their best to mitigate bullying situations through policies that highlight education and disciplinary actions — with a clear outline of how to investigate reports.

"For the entire course of my career, bullying has been a prevalent topic in schools," Hazenstab said.

Part of the discussion around that issue, he said, is attempting to define what bullying is.

Conemaugh Valley's policy is adopted from the Pennsylvania School Board Association. It lists bullying as "an intentional electronic, written, verbal or physical act or series of acts directed at another student or students, which occurs in a school setting and/or outside a school setting that is severe, persistent, or pervasive and has the effect of" substantially interfering with a student's education; creating a threatening environment; and/or substantially disrupting an orderly school.

'Outside of expectations'

Many area school districts share the same PSBA policy, which is reviewed every three years for changes or updates and lists a range of disciplinary options following proper reporting and thorough investigations.

Discipline could include a meeting with the accused student and his or her parents, a loss of school privileges, detention, suspension, counseling, expulsion, transfers or referral to law enforcement.

"It's all really based on the severity of the incident," Hazenstab said.

A key aspect of the Conemaugh Valley policy, Hazenstab said, is education.

If an issue develops between students, administrators discuss the accused student's actions with the individual, making sure the student understands why the matter was reported and how those behaviors are "outside of expectations" for the district.

Hazenstab said some students don't realize what they're doing is wrong and it's important to educate them on how to act properly and interact with their peers correctly.

During that conversation, district leaders may suggest the accused student speak to an in-school counselor about the matter.

Conemaugh Valley has a litany of supports for students, Hazenstab said.

At the elementary level, regular classroom guidance lessons are offered. Hazenstab described those lessons as talking to students about their emotions and how they deal with them.

The district also has a student assistant program, a school psychologist, a school social worker and a school resource officer.

High school students have identical resources, including a guidance counselor.

Both buildings also have access to individual REACH (Reaching Educational Achievements with Clinical Mental Health) counselors and the Safe2Say Something reporting system.

Bullying prevention

Westmont Hilltop School District Superintendent Thomas Mitchell echoed the mission of having students feeling safe when they come to class.

"We have to continually work on this to make sure kids have a really good experience when kids are in school," he said.

He said that's why Westmont Hilltop also has a comprehensive bullying policy — and, at Thursday's board meeting, adopted the Olweus Bullying Prevention program.

Mitchell said the district has used this framework in the past, but in recent years hadn't purchased it. With new counselors coming on board, the Safe Schools Committee recommended the program be brought back. The cost to the district was $3,925.

A March 12 report from the committee said Olweus is focused on a long-term solution.

"The program has been found to reduce bullying among children, improve the social climate of classrooms, and reduce related antisocial behaviors, such as vandalism and truancy," the report said.

Mitchell described Olweus as a good system because it highlights the importance of reporting bullying — whether a student is the target or a bystander. He added that students need to have trusted adults they can talk to and tell about any issues.

Forest Hills School District takes all reports of inappropriate behavior "with (the) utmost seriousness" and investigates them, officials said. That district has recently received an outpouring of community input on bullying following the death of a student.

"Our approach to investigations is tailored to the specific circumstances of each case, employing a range of methods and involving different individuals to address the issue effectively — counselors, parents, REACH (counselors), principals, (school resource officer), bus drivers, support staff, teachers, coaches, etc.," Forest Hills Superintendent David Lehman said.

"Due to the nature of these incidents, complexities may arise, particularly when evidence is scarce. We may utilize peer-to-peer mediation, organize family meetings, no contact agreements, change school schedules, safety plans, and collaborate with guidance counselors as part of our resolution process."

Law enforcement may also be involved, if the situation calls for it.

As for discipline, Forest Hills follows similar guidelines to neighboring districts. Students may face detention, suspension and — in repeat offender cases — possibly alternative placement.

Educational or therapeutic responses through the Navigate 360 program are also options.

"This program helps the students identify their behaviors and affords opportunities to mitigate poor behavior," Lehman said.

He added that in light of recent events, "we are particularly vigilant and actively working to enhance our programming and responses for the benefit of our students and community."

Social media brings another hurdle for schools and parents to deal with.

Thomas Smith, Bishop McCort Catholic High School principal and chief academic officer, said social media is a complication because so many people can be involved and misinformation can spread rapidly.

He said that in the past five years, he hasn't experienced an increase in reports of bullying, but the instances have escalated because of social media.

Prior to the influx of social media platforms, students could separate from each other outside of school. That's not the case anymore.

"They don't get away from it," Hazenstab said. "It's a new layer of challenge."

There's also the issue of school district jurisdiction regarding social media bullying.

Administrators have to determine if a message or post has an impact on school operations, and whether it was sent during school hours or using a school device.

Smith said that during his tenure as an administrator at local public and private institutions, bullying has been the "toughest thing to deal with" for school officials.

He recognized that the issue is difficult for students and parents first, but noted that an investigation is complicated.

That ranges from texts and hearsay to social media's impact in and out of school settings.

At Bishop McCort, any report of bullying is first dealt with by calling the Johnstown Police Department, in addition to the launch of an internal investigation.

"In my opinion, we can't go wrong by calling law enforcement and putting it on their radar," Smith said.

Smith said that in some cases, administrators aren't dealing with repeat offenses, but the severity of bullying could lead to extreme circumstances.

School leaders often discuss the topic with students to make sure they understand that bullying isn't tolerated at Bishop McCort, Smith said. The school's policy states that no "employee, volunteer or student associated with this school shall be subjected to any type of bullying."