"Bullying" often refers to verbal, physical, or other acts committed by a student to harass, intimidate, or cause harm to another student.  The behaviors attributed to bullying may include verbal threats, menacing, harassment, intimidation, assaults, disruption of the school environment and associated disorderly conduct, and related behaviors. When discussing "bullying," the focus should be on the inappropriate behaviors rather than a generic, undefined label of "bullying."  

The vast majority of schools in the nation, if not all schools, already have disciplinary policies to address these types of behavioral misconduct.  The policies may not include the word "bullying" in some schools, but the behavior we refer to as bullying is typically addressed in school policies as well as possibly in criminal laws (assaults, threats/menacing, intimidation, disorderly conduct, etc.). Schools nationwide have also implemented prevention and intervention programs to prevent and address this type of behavior, especially post-Columbine.

However, it appears as if we are on the early end of a politically-correct trend of states creating mandatory anti-bullying laws. It also appears as if some in the school safety field are moving in the direction of over-emphasizing bullying as the cause of all school safety threats. Defining bullying beyond the aforementioned behaviors (which are typically already addressed in school policy and other laws) is extremely difficult to do legislatively and it can be argued that many forms of violence could be whittled down to be labeled as "bullying" depending upon formal definitions and those interpreting what is and is not "bullying."

Bullying is an important issue which adversely impacts school safety. But there are many other issues contributing to interpersonal conflicts, violence, and crime in our schools as well.  "He said, she said" rumors, "boyfriend, girlfriend" issues, disrespect, gang conflicts, and many other factors can lead to school violence.  Whittling all of these down to what some would like to describe as "bullying" is a far stretch and an over-emphasis on "bullying" is, in our opinion, an extreme and inappropriate approach to school safety.

Effective school safety planning requires a balanced emphasis on safe schools components ranging from prevention and intervention programs to security and emergency preparedness strategies.  Legislative and programmatic emphasis of one safe schools strategy over the others which make up comprehensive safe school planning may be popular and politically correct, but it is not the most effective approach.  A skewed over-emphasis on bullying issues is no more appropriate and effective than a skewed emphasis on security and emergency planning. 

The vast majority of schools have policies to deal with harassment and disruption of the educational environment.  Fewer schools have funding to develop and implement anti-bullying specific programs --- something not included in most proposed anti-bullying legislation.  While bullying is certainly one issue challenging school safety, unfunded state mandates and an overemphasis on any one component of school safety will likely have minimal impact on school safety and could potentially upset the comprehensive approach to school safe recommended by most school safety professionals. 

For additional information, email Ken Trump.