South Middle
School
Bully
Prevention
Plan
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Bullying Prevention Implementation Plan
Why is our school developing a plan to redirect bullying behaviors?

It is mandated by Kansas law. K.S.A. 72-8256 requires that every school district
in Kansas train all staff and students in bullying prevention, develop a district
policy on bullying prevention and create a bullying implementation plan by
January, 2008.

Bullying among children is aggressive behavior that is intentional and that
involves an imbalance of power or strength.

Bullying can seriously affect the emotional, physical, and academic well-being of
children who are bullied. Dealing with discipline problems related to bullying
incidents can take a good deal of administrators’ and educators’ time during a
school day.

Bullying can contribute to a negative climate in schools.

Bullying is more prevalent than many adults suspect.

Everyone in the school environment will benefit from implementation of an
effective bullying prevention program.

Before implementing any strategies to address bullying or other violence at
school, we will keep in mind that:
o Effective programs require strong administrative leadership and ongoing
commitment on the part of the adults in the school system.
o Those programs that show the most promise are comprehensive in
approach. They involve the entire school community, including families,
and can take the forms of school-wide interventions, classroom activities,
and individual interventions.
o Bullying prevention efforts should begin early—as children transition into
kindergarten—and continue throughout the children’s education.
o Effective bullying prevention programs should have no “end date” but
should instead become part of the life of your school. Ongoing staff
development is important to sustain bullying prevention programs.
Following are steps we will take to develop an effective bullying prevention program
in our school.
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GOALS / OBJECTIVES TO ADDRESS BULLYING
1. We will publish our bullying prevention policy in our student handbook.
2. We will survey students yearly on their perception of bullying at South.
3. Counselors will teach at least one lesson per year to all students to educate
about school’s bullying policy, reporting procedures, prevention plan, and
consequences of bullying at South.
4. We will survey our teachers to assess their commitment to decreasing
bullying at South. We will educate and empower teachers to respond to all
reports of bullying.
5. On-going bully prevention education will be offered throughout the year via
the Connect with Kids curriculum. This will include small group discussions,
videos, etc. about bullying and bully prevention conducted during advisory.
6. Individual counseling will be available to students experiencing bully behavior
as well as to those who engage in bullying behavior.
7. A process is in place to prevent and follow up with anonymous reported
incidents. Electronic, phone, and anonymous box reporting will be available
for students and parents. South’s “reactive plan” will be utilized when bullying
behavior has been confirmed.
8. Data (such as bullying survey results, major and minor reactive plan violation
numbers, and reporting data) will be utilized in the continuous evaluation and
adaption of South’s Bully Prevention Plan.
BULLYING PREVENTION
Assess bullying at our school and determine our staff’s commitment to address
bullying.
1. A bullying prevention coordinating committee will consist of administration
and the Mental Health Team. Core teacher input will be sought as plans are
reviewed. They will explore the problem of bullying and devise possible
solutions at our school. The Bully Prevention Plan is approved each Fall by
teachers and the CSO. Periodic meeting with core teachers and student reps
for discussion of anti-bullying discussions and implementation.
2. South teachers will administer an anonymous Bully Survey to all grades to
assess the nature, extent, and location of bullying problems in our school.
3. In addition, South will begin to collect data that can be used to identify
bullying behaviors such as:
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a. Tracking “minor” (level 1 or 2) and “major” (level 3) behaviors. See
page 6.
b. Auditing the number of office referrals concerning bullying behaviors
c. Tracking absenteeism and tardiness to classes
d. Monitoring the number of absences due to health concerns
e. Monitor student achievement.
4. All staff members are made aware about their perceptions of bullying at our
school. We will determine their current efforts to address bullying and their
time and motivation to implement a bullying prevention program.
5. We will work with district officials and other schools who have implemented
bullying programs and can share experiences
Raise awareness about bullying at our school
Presentations on cyber bullying, computer safety, and bystander intervention will be
provided to all students throughout the year via the Connect with Kids curriculum.
1.
Counselors will present a bully prevention lesson to all students in
September. The lesson covers the definition of bullying and sexual
harassment, what should be done if a student is bullied or sees someone
being bullied.
2.
Advisory teachers will facilitate small group discussion about South’s Bully
Survey data each Spring and solicit ideas from students as to how to better
prevent bully behavior at South.
3.
Teachers/Administrators will notify parents of bullying incidents involving their
child(ren) as indicated in the bully / behavior intervention plan..
4.
We will incorporate bullying prevention education and South Middle School
behavior expectation guidelines into our small group student orientation
presentations and the all school “Expectation Assembly” for all students.
5.
We will share our school’s bullying program with District officials.
Strategies to reward students for positive, inclusive behaviors.
We recognize that a majority of our students do not bully others. To preserve the
empathy that most students have toward others who are bullied, we encourage
bystanders to intervene on behalf of children who are being bullied. This will be
accomplished by:
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1. Encouraging good citizenship. Teachers will be asked to maintain an
atmosphere in the classroom that fosters good citizenship. The Respect
portion of South’s Behavior Matrix (see below) specifically addresses this.
2. Ecourage use of South’s confidential school safety reporting systems. We will
incorporate:
a. Encouraging students to contact a staff member in person or
electronically.
b. The Cougar Bullying Hotline (330-4321) can be used to leave a
message reporting any school safety concern. This will be confidential
information but students need to tell us their name, how they were
bullied and who is bullying them.
c. Reporting the incident on the Bully Complaint Form where forms can
be collected in a drop box in the Nurse’s Office, Guidance, and the
Library
3. School staff will reward students with Cougar Cash for positive bystander
behavior such as helping a friend who has experienced bullying, blocking
bullying behavior, or walking away from negative interactions. Students
demonstrating exemplary character can be recognized at assemblies and
other special events.
4. Student Council, Cougar Care and Kindness Club will take an active
leadership role in the anti-bullying work from a student voice.
Teach clear expectations about behavior to help prevent bullying.
Bullying prevention research indicates that if bullying behaviors are to be reduced,
students must feel connected at school. Statistically, students stop reporting bullying
behaviors to teachers by fourth grade. In order to reconnect students to staff, we will:
1. Create an atmosphere that fosters connections among students and staff
members through both large and small group discussions.
a. Students will discuss bullying during Advisory through a Connect with
Kids social skills curriculum as part of our CI3T program.
b. Student respectful behaviors and anti-Bullying will be taught in classes
by teachers as they continually reinforce and reteach the Expectations
Matrix.
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From the SMS Expectation Matrix:
Respect
Classroo
m
Hallway /
Locker
- Keep an
open mind
- Be
encouraging
and helpful
- Cooperate
with staff
and with
classmates
- Respect the
physical
space of
others around
you.
- Be
courteous of
other
classrooms
- Be kind
- Be calm and
controlled
- Resolve
conflicts
appropriately
Cafeteria
- Make your
choices
quickly.
- Use table
manners.
- Use
appropriate
voice level.
- Respond
positively to
instructions
and requests
from all staff
Bathroo
m
- Use the
restroom
and return
directly to
class
- Minimize
talking
- Give others
privacy and
respect
personal
space
Arrival /
Dismissa
l
- Respond
positively to
instructions
and requests
from all staff
- Be calm
and
controlled
- Respect the
physical
space of
others
around you
- Arrive with
a positive
attitude
- Avoid
socializing
in high
traffic areas
Bus
- Use kind
words
- Respond
positively
to
instructions
and
requests
from all
staff
Events /
ExtraCurricular
Activities
- Be kind
- Respond
positively to
instructions
and requests
from all staff
Technology
- Be a positive
digital citizen
when using
electronic
devices both in
and outside of
school
2. South Middle School will create a culture and climate that does not
tolerate bullying…
1. We will not bully others.
2. We will try to help students who are bullied when it is safe to do so.
3. We will include students who are left out.
4. We will tell an adult at school and an adult at home when we see someone
being bullied.
BULLYING CONSEQUENCES
Our school will teach rules and sanctions related to bullying. Rules and sanctions
related to bullying are embedded in the South Middle School CI3T Implementation
Manual. This reactive plan will be published in the student handbook and posted in the
building.
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Reactive Plan
SMS Matrix of Inappropriate Behaviors
Level 1
Minor behaviors that
only IMPACT THE
STUDENT
“Teachable Moments”
If these become chronic
move to level 2
Level 2
Minor behaviors that impede
LEARNING or SAFETY (teacher
managed)
“Problem Solving: Tier 2 & 3”
Level 3
Major behaviors that are
HARMFUL, ILLEGAL, or show
DISORDERLY CONDUCT
(office managed)
“Behavior Referral”
Includes Chronic Level 1 Behaviors
Includes Chronic Level 2
Behaviors (On the 3rd behavior:
(chronic =3 within a quarter)
3 of the same behavior or 3
unrelated behaviors in a
trimester)
(chronic=3 in a week per student)






Poking/Touching/Shoving
Spitting on others
Throwing things
Harassment of others
Disrespect to students/staff
Inappropriate
language/gestures






Aggressive
Behavior/Fighting
Bullying
Credible threat to do
injury to person or
property
Verbal Aggression or
Intimidation to
staff/students
Throwing with intent to
harm
Possession or Use of
Weapons, or
manipulation of items to
be weapons
Next Steps
 Redirect student
 Reteach expected behavior in 1:1
conversation as much as possible
 Recognize/reinforce changed
behavior
 If student continues behavior with 3
separate incidents, move to level 2.




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Have student immediately fill out problem
solving worksheet (Minor) in location of
incident. Optional to send home for
signature.
Teacher personally contacts parents.
If student has 3 incidents in a quarter, set up
meeting with student and parent to
determine a support for student using
intervention grids.
If secondary or tertiary supports
implemented with fidelity do not yield
desired outcomes, student support plan
should be developed
After next set of three incidents in a quarter,
complete office referral and principal will
meet with student.
 If Major incident and emergency,
teacher may send student directly to
the office and immediately fill out a
Major Form online.
 If not an emergency, complete the
Major referral online and an
administrator will call the student from
class as soon as possible.
 Administration will contact parents.
 If appropriate, student may be
referred to Mental Health team for
supports.
 Chronic issues will result in SSP.
 Administration will follow up with
referring teacher.
Sanctions related to bullying behavior will be tracked and addressed through a
school-wide system.
Teacher will report “Major Violation” bullying behavior via Office Referral Form in
Skyward. “Major violation” of this nature includes a parent phone call by an
administrator. Consequences of bullying behavior are based on the school-wide CI3T
Behavior Intervention Plan so that clear, consistent, escalated, inevitable, and
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predictable sanctions are in place to address bully behaviors. (see CI3T Behavior
Intervention Plan, specifically the “Inappropriate Behavior Reactive Plan” above).
Counselors, school psychologist, and social workers will keep records of bullying
incidents and report incidents to administrators as deemed necessary.
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