Did you know about the Bullying Report Form? Here's how it combats bullying

OPELOUSAS, La. (KLFY)-- Bullying impacts many people everyday.

“Bullying in Louisiana is number one," Shauna Sias, a bullying prevention specialist with The Bully Box Passion Project, said. "While we are number 50th in education, we have that backwards and we have to fix that.” 

She said her organization showed students the importance of documenting as well the parents because sometimes a child is not of age to actually fill out the form in its entirety. 

“We actually tell our parents how to report the bullying," Sias said. "Going up to school and talking to somebody that's fantastic. Calling up to the school, that's also amazing but until it's documented and someone has to actually respond to it it's not going to do anything."

With the Bully Report Form, once it is filled out and sent to the school office then an investigation has to begin in ten days. Shanetria Williams volunteered to created a program called C.E.A.S.E. that would help Sias to offer tools to students who are being bullied in schools and offer resources to parents as well to be able to support the students. 

“There's a gap in knowledge and so parents are going to the schools and they're saying, my child is being bullied and when the school doesn't identify it as bullying, the parents feel helpless because they feel like they aren't getting the help they need," Williams said. “We're helping them to identify what bullying is and how to respond appropriately using the forms that are in place, but also working with the schools to work with students when it's not bullying as well because again, those behaviors do need to be addressed.”

There are three different forms including a bullying report form, a witness statement form, and there's also a stay away agreement. 

“That stay-away order is pretty much within schools the same thing as a protective order outside in the real world and it's an agreement between all of the parties to stay away from each other and it kind of gives comfort to the child being bullied because now they at least know someone is aware of it,” Sias said.

The program teaches children what those forms are, when they should complete them, how to complete them, and they give them opportunities to practice completing them in the program. 

“I don’t want a parent to think that just because you turn it [the report form] in, it will be investigated and deemed bullying," Sias warned parents.

She said there are three components of bullying. The first one is there must be a power imbalance. The second thing is it has to have intent, meaning they are intentionally doing it to the person.

The third thing is habitual. There has to be a habit, and it has to go on every day. 

“Currently, under Louisiana law, there's zero tolerance," Sias said. "The zero tolerance is actually not bullying. Zero tolerance is the response to bullying. No one is addressing these microaggressions. No one is teaching the child who's being bullied or the bullied themselves how to deal with whatever is going on at that time."

However with C.E.A.S.E bullying prevention curriculum it helps offer a chance to actually teach students not just the definition of bullying, but teach them about the components.

“There are so many players in bullying and once by the time we get to module five, they are actually recognizing issues within their own behavior and then they in turn make the changes that are necessary because now they have a guidebook,” Sias said. “But, we're expecting them to change their behaviors, whether they be violent or not. They're not going to be able to change their behavior until you give them an alternative behavior and sending them to an alternative school is not the answer because they're still not getting bullying intervention.” 

“You can not continue to expect different behavior from either parent or child unless you give them the education that's needed," She contuined. "They're expected to know when not to bully or run away when that's not probable. That's not practical in the children's world today. We teach them to tap into that feeling right before they want to pop off, right before you want to do something violent, what are you feeling? Then take three seconds and ask yourself, is it going to harm me? Is it going to help me or is it going to take away my freedom? If you don't have answers to those, you need to go sit back down and recalculate.”  

A message to students Sias said “responding to bullying, even when you know that the person picking on you is wrong. Your response is what will change the entire trajectory of the solution. I know that you want relief right now because bullying hurts and there's no time limit on it and it hurts for adults so imagine a child enduring it but I'm telling the children the answers that you all are using right now, they're taking away your ability for tomorrow to get better. There is help and we can help you, but we have to know.” 

If you are interested in implementing the C.E.A.S.E bullying prevention curriculum contact the Bully Box Passion Project at 337-308-8564. 

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