Video: Anti Bullying Meeting Attracts Area Educators

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TUPELO, MISS. (WCBI) – The video is shocking, a 14 year old student in Yazoo City pulls a gun on her school bus, claiming bullies drove her to take the drastic action. The teenager didn’t fire the weapon, but was arrested and charged with numerous felonies.

The clip was shown to educators attending an informational meeting at the Family Resource Center. FRC staffers spend a lot of time in schools talking with students about the dangers of bullying.

“Bullying is rampant and is high in our communities,” said Sheila Davis of FRC.

October is national Bullying Prevention Month, and the Family Resource Center wants to spark discussion about the problem and how educators and parents can be proactive.

Nationwide, statistics show that one out of 4 kids are bullied. And 77% of students are bullied mentally, verbally and physically.

While experts say not all teasing or name calling is bullying, there are ways to tell when students cross the line.

“We often say, teasing, they are teasing me, but when it gets to a point where it’s not a tease anymore. Tease, we make light and make joke of, but bullying is not joking. We are belittling, hurting, lowering our kids self esteem and hurting our kids, to the point where they’re committing suicide,” Davis said.

Local educators say their campuses aren’t immune to the problem, no matter the size or location of the school. Jason Potts is principal at Thrasher Attendance Center. He attended the meeting to learn how bullying impacts students.

“There is teasing, but once it reaches a critical point and students sense of self is diminished, and they feel like they’re being bullied, we do take it very seriously,” Potts said.

The Family Resource Center wants the entire community to know more about the timely topic, so this Saturday, they will host a Busting Bullies Rally here at Fairpark. The event will feature experts who will share valuable information on bullying, how to recognize it and also how to prevent it from happening.