After a survey found that students didn’t feel safe in their Pueblo, Colorado community, the Safe Haven for Pueblo Bullying Victims Project stepped in to make a difference.
El grupo de Escuelas seguras/alumnos sanos obtuvo ayuda de más de 700 alumnos para diseñar afiches para denunciar el acoso. Luego se comunicaron con los dueños de empresas para que colgaran los afiches en sus ventanas y mostraran así su apoyo al proyecto. Los afiches indican a los alumnos que estas empresas les darán refugio si son acosados o se sienten inseguros. Los propietarios de los negocios aceptaron ayudar a los jóvenes a pedir que alguien pasara a recoger a cualquier estudiante que fuera víctima de acoso y dejarlos esperar allí hasta que encontraran una forma segura de trasladarse. Los propietarios también están educando a su personal sobre el acoso escolar y cómo ayudar a los jóvenes afectados.
To help spread the word, the group enlisted its community partners as project sponsors and then pounded the pavement to engage new businesses through local TV, radio and print media.
The response from business owners has been overwhelmingly positive. Approximately 200 businesses in the Pueblo City Schools area, as well as in the neighboring Pueblo District 70, have joined the project. Maria Fieth, Especialista en Programas y Planes de Estudios, explicó: "Los niños quieren sentirse seguros. And somehow those posters all over town have destabilized the idea that bullying is the norm. Los niños sienten que recuperan el control."
The team produced a four-minute video that describes the project and how to use the Safe Haven resources. The video has been viewed by more than 23,000 students.
Over the first three years of the program, the number of students who reported bullying another student two to three times per month or more in the past couple of months decreased by 34% in the elementary schools, 18% in the middle schools, and 10% in the high schools. In addition, the number of students who reported that they "try to help the bullied student" when asked how do they usually react, increased by 21% in the elementary schools, 42% in the middle schools, and 21% in the high schools.
Students have a right to be safe at school and in their community, and if students do not feel safe at school, learning is affected,” said Fieth. “We consider it our duty to help students, staff, families, and the community understand the impact of bullying behavior and violence in schools.”
Leer el informe: Bullying Prevention and Intervention: Snapshots from Safe Schools/Healthy Students Initiatives