The Franklin News-Post
P. O. Box 250
310 Main Street, SW
Rocky Mount, Virginia 24151
540-483-5113
Fax: 540-483-8013
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Monday, February 1, 2010
By JOEL TURNER - Staff Writer
Amid the growing national concern about bullying in schools, a bill has been introduced in the General Assembly that would make it a crime to bully or harass a student.
The bill provides that any person who engages in the bullying, harassment and intimidation of a student on school property, on a school bus or at a school-sponsored activity shall be subject to punishment for assault and battery.
The bill (HB744) was introduced by Del. William Cleveland (R- Roanoke County and Botetourt County).
House Majority Leader Morgan Griffith (R-Salem) is a co-sponsor.
The bill has been assigned to the Courts of Justice Committee.
More than a dozen states have passed laws addressing bullying among school children, and others have considered legislation.
The state laws were triggered in part by the shootings at several high schools in the late 1990s and later reports that many of the perpetrators of school shootings had felt bullied or threatened by peers.
Meanwhile, Benjamin Franklin Middle School and the Gereau Center have implemented a program to reduce and prevent bullying among the students.
The Olweus Program is a comprehensive, schoolwide program for elementary and middle schools. The program is not a once-and-done lesson but rather a coordinated effort by all adults in the school to intervene and supervise when bullying occurs.
As part of the program, students participate in regular meetings to learn about the effects of bullying, what they can do about it and how they can work with adults in the school to stop it. The regular meetings help instill a sense of community among students and teachers. If the students become more tolerant of differences and empathetic to others, there is less likely to be teasing, name calling and exclusion, school officials said.
Another school-related bill that has been introduced in the General Assembly would provide that the Department of General Services would establish procurement procedures to facilitate the purchase of Virginia-grown food products by state agencies and institutions and local school divisions.
The bill also provides that school divisions with an exemption from competitive sealed bidding when
procuring Virginia-grown food products for student consumption. |
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