Bullying in faculties is continually a warm subject matter among students, parents, and faculty staff individuals alike.

During the 2016-17 faculty year, Washington County Public Schools suggested 240 bullying incidents related to 269 alleged victims.

The numbers have been better than the 12 months earlier, which pronounced 182 incidents with 197 alleged sufferers and 2014-15, in which 229 incidents with 248 alleged victims had been recorded.

WCPS policy prohibits bullying, harassment, and intimidation, defined as “practical behavior, including verbal, bodily, or written behavior or intentional digital communique that creates an adverse academic environment using interfering with a scholar’s educational blessings, possibilities, performance, or with a scholar’s physical or mental well‐being.”

In the lead-up to the November 6 election, the 4 applicants for the three Board of Education seats were requested numerous questions regarding bullying and WCPS handling bullying incidents. Early voting starts in Maryland Thursday.

Incumbents Jacqueline Fischer, Mike Guessford and Linda Murray, and challenger John Krowka replied through e-mail between Oct. Four and nine. Their solutions were shortened for area and clarity.

Jacqueline Fischer

Overall, Fischer wrote she believes WCPS “is doing an honest process of dealing with bullying and teaching kids suited individual developments,” however delivered there are new programs to be had which promise to provide better effects.

Fischer wrote bullying is a discovered response and is not unique to faculties, but as youths spend a huge portion of their time there, “it is natural that this is where a great deal of bullying occurs.”

She wrote WCPS is like several faculty systems and has skilled an accelerated amount of bullying, due largely to the verbal exchange era and social media sites.

“WCPS has followed some of policies, policies, reporting forms, and consequences to deal with bullying both on a student degree and on the worker level,” Fischer wrote, adding the objects may be discovered in scholar handbooks, board regulations, on the internet site, and from faculties and the significant office. “As an end result, tons of the bullying incidents that arise are dealt with as it should be and with wonderful results.”

Fischer wrote bullying is hardly ever achieved in the presence of adults, “and the ensuing ‘he stated, she said’ facts makes it hard to recognize the entire, authentic situation.” She additionally wrote that bystanders are frequently reluctant to come ahead, and these elements can “complicate the research of the incident, sometimes resulting in inadequate information for a truthful and honest dedication of the real incident. Without clear records or proof of bullying, a field cannot be meted out.”

Parents need to be a child’s first trainer and position version, she wrote and advised WCPS form a committee of instructors, administrators, and dad, and mom to have a look at packages and expert improvement offerings on man or woman improvement and preventing bullying, which might then make suggestions to the BOE.

“Though I even have by no means skilled or witnessed bullying in my own life, I am sometimes contacted my mother and father regarding bullying incidents,” Fischer wrote. “A Board member’s position is to aid the parent or sufferer in finding substances or advising him/her as to which employees can offer help. Board participants’ involvement is constrained to coverage advent and the approval of programs and/or materials that deal with the overall bullying problem.”

Michael Guessford

Guessford wrote he does not accept as true with WCPS offers with bullying nicely sufficient, but “mother and father want to carry the weight too. It’s up to dad and mom to train kids to admire authority consisting of them, the figure. With giving respect comes to admire. If mother and father can’t manipulate their kids, why should our faculties deliver a full load of obligations?”

He endorsed teaching children to appreciate others early and keeping them liable for their movements, saying, “Children can be horrible to each other due to variations every has. This incorporates the painting’s place and in our regular living after the faculty years have handed.”

Guessford wrote that he does not feel bullying will ever be removed in colleges “while mother and father don’t determine.”

He wrote he would really like to see bullying reviews come to a 3rd celebration, in all likelihood to one of the board committees, to peer when incidents arise, alongside the quit result. He advised having the major, mother and father, and student logs off on the record.

Along with one or parents attending a board meeting and “many popular remarks in character approximately bullying,” Guessford wrote that he had, in my opinion, received emails about 3 separate incidents.

He also wrote that he had seen or skilled bullying in his very own existence but did now not problematic.

John Krowka

Krowka wrote he believes WCPS desires to do higher in coping with bullying, announcing many incidents that move unreported. He wrote the effects can be devastating for sufferers and their households, and bullying can also have adverse results on different college students.

“The perpetrators frequently retain to showcase disruptive behaviors in schools and later in lifestyles. Thus, the popularity quo is clearly not correct sufficiently,” he wrote.

Krowka wrote maximum educators and college personnel are “very concerned about bullying and comply with-thru to make certain that it does now not retain. However, a few mother and father file that their issues were downplayed by using the very adults who’re charged with maintaining schoolchildren secure and/or stay unresolved.”

He cautioned adding extra oversight to principals and others accountable for investigating and resolving these incidents and additional counselors. In addition, he wrote there must comply with-up with the scholars who’re doing the bullying to help them apprehend and stop the behaviors and preserve better track of how students and mother and father feel their worries had been resolved.

Better communication with college students, mother and father, teachers, and other college personnel, Krowka wrote, is important to prevent bullying, and “tolerance and recognize need to be woven into the fabric of training for all students.” Parents also need to be better informed approximately guidelines and reporting, and there are higher training faculties.

Krowka wrote that he has been “often contacted approximately bullying through mother and father who sense annoyed that the WCPS has now not carried out sufficient to assist their children,” and “Parents frequently inform me that they experience helpless and feature nowhere to turn.”

If elected, Krowka wrote, he would pledge to work tough to alleviate bullying and preserve his door open for all who’ve concerns about WCPS.

He also wrote he once in a while skilled bullying and harassment “as a self-admitted technological know-how-nerd who was no longer mainly athletic,” pointing out it becomes no longer severe or lengthy-lasting.

“I’ve visible that bullying can occur for even the slightest of perceived variations and can have a vast spectrum of intensities and consequences,” Krowka wrote. “We want to promote a subculture of know-how and recognize for all.”

Linda Murray

Murray wrote that WCPS has tried to be alert to instances of bullying during her opinion, pointing out cameras were installed in colleges and on buses to assist display student behavior. In addition, resource officers are assigned to various colleges, and bullying policies are in the area.

“Students are going to have disagreements, but while bullying occurs, the students and mother and father must straight away document a file with the administration so a full investigation can be completed,” she wrote. “The individual who has committed the offense need to face the consequences while college students who are bullied have to experience at ease coming forward and be capable of believing that the issue might be treated correctly.”

Murray wrote she has witnessed teachers’ efforts to train college students’ collaboration and kindness closer to others. WCPS has packages inclusive of positive behavior interventions and assists, Olweus and restorative practices to encourage fantastic behavior in colleges.