By Barrett Roberson.
The Foundations Committee issued a reminder to students about how to report bullying and the importance of doing so.
“The process of reporting bullying is that we have a link on our website that you can go to,” school testing coordinator Tori Sturgeon said. “Once you do that, we take every single report very seriously.”
To report instances of bullying, students should go to abileneisd.org/abilene-high, click the “For Parents” tab at the top of the screen, and then select “Bullying Report Form.”
“The district has a really clear guideline of what constitutes bullying, and I think the main thing is power,” Sturgeon said. “When we look at bullying that’s something that is really important that comes into play.”
This process is not just for in-person bullying but also any form of cyber bullying, including emails, messaging, and social media.
“It is completely anonymous unless you want to say who you are,” Sturgeon said. “Students feeling welcome and safe in our building is really just the biggest thing for us.”
This is not just if a student is being bullied, but also if anyone sees a separate instance of bullying.
“We definitely incourage that if you see something to say something,” Sturgeon said. “That is our priority, taking all reports seriously, whether its for you or something you see.”
Bullying can make a student not feel safe and can prevent them from learning, which is why it is very important to report when you see it.
“Student safety is number one,” Sturgeon said. “When students don’t feel safe they can’t learn, and that’s not the community we want here at Abilene High. We want a community of support and safety.”
