INTERNATIONAL POLICY
AND RESEARCH CONFERENCE
ON SCHOOL VIOLENCE AND BULLYING
SEPTEMBER 5-8, 2008

AGENDA
INTERNATIONAL POLICY
AND RESEARCH CONFERENCE
ON SCHOOL VIOLENCE AND BULLYING
SEPTEMBER 5-8, 2008
2

ORGANIZATION
Policy and Cross Cutting
Programs
Center for School
Preparedness
Secretary of Education
Rod Paige
Deborah A. Price
Deputy Undersecretary
Bill Modzeleski
Associate Deputy Undersecretary
Camille Welborn
Chief of Staff
Executive Officer
Drug Violence Prevention
State Programs
Drug Violence Prevention
National Programs
Health, Mental Health, and Physical Education
Character, Civic &
Correctional Education
INTERNATIONAL POLICY
AND RESEARCH CONFERENCE
ON SCHOOL VIOLENCE AND BULLYING
SEPTEMBER 5-8, 2008
3

OSDFS OVERVIEW - MISSION
•
Financial support for programs;
• Policy;
• Interagency partnerships and collaboration;
• Research and evaluation, and;
• Publications.
INTERNATIONAL POLICY
AND RESEARCH CONFERENCE
ON SCHOOL VIOLENCE AND BULLYING
SEPTEMBER 5-8, 2008
4

OSDFS OVERVIEW - PROGRAMS
Programs Fiscal
Year
2004
$ 435,275,835 State Programs (Formula Grants)
National Programs (Discretionary Grants)
• Alcohol Abuse Reduction
• Alcohol and Other Drug Prevention Models on College Campus
• Physical Education Program
• Cooperative Civic Education and Economic Education Exchange Program
• Elementary and Secondary School Counseling Program
• Emergency Response and Crisis Management
$ 28,316,770
$ 384,283
$ 69,587,000
$ 2,961,660
$ 33,799,400
$ 27,715,796
INTERNATIONAL POLICY
AND RESEARCH CONFERENCE
ON SCHOOL VIOLENCE AND BULLYING
SEPTEMBER 5-8, 2008
5

OSDFS OVERVIEW - PROGRAMS
Programs (cont.)
National Programs (Discretionary Grants)
• Mentoring Programs
• Partnerships in Character Education
• Project SERV (School Emergency Response to Violence)
• Safe Schools/Healthy Students
• State Data Grants
Fiscal Year
2004
$ 48,305,000
$ 23,456,906
$ 428,454
$ 94,439,500
$ 5,040,467
INTERNATIONAL POLICY
AND RESEARCH CONFERENCE
ON SCHOOL VIOLENCE AND BULLYING
SEPTEMBER 5-8, 2008
6

SCHOOL SYSTEM SCOPE
• 53 million students in public and private schools (K-12).
• 3 million teachers in public and private schools (K-12).
• 15,000 public school districts (from 100 to 1 million students).
• 113,000 schools (K-12).
•87,000 public
•26,000 private
• Diverse school populations across several school districts.
INTERNATIONAL POLICY
AND RESEARCH CONFERENCE
ON SCHOOL VIOLENCE AND BULLYING
SEPTEMBER 5-8, 2008
7

GOVERNANCE OVERVIEW
No National
School System
Exists
INTERNATIONAL POLICY
AND RESEARCH CONFERENCE
ON SCHOOL VIOLENCE AND BULLYING
SEPTEMBER 5-8, 2008
8

GOVERNANCE OVERVIEW

Ensure Equal Access to Education for All.
 Support Research, and Collect and Disseminate Statistics and
Information.
 Focus National Attention on Major Issues and Challenges in
Education (NCLB).
 Administer Aid Programs that Support Educational
Improvement and Help Students Attend College.
INTERNATIONAL POLICY
AND RESEARCH CONFERENCE
ON SCHOOL VIOLENCE AND BULLYING
SEPTEMBER 5-8, 2008
9

GOVERNANCE OVERVIEW
Generally, states:

Establish Curriculum Guidelines.

Administer Statewide Assessments.

Provide Additional Funding and Technical Assistance.
 Regulate Teacher Licensing.
 Set the School Calendar.
INTERNATIONAL POLICY
AND RESEARCH CONFERENCE
ON SCHOOL VIOLENCE AND BULLYING
SEPTEMBER 5-8, 2008
10

GOVERNANCE OVERVIEW
Generally, school districts oversee:

Teacher Hiring, Salaries and Training (in service).

Building Construction and Maintenance.

School Transportation.
 Interpretation and Application of State Curriculum Guidelines.
 Teaching and Learning.
INTERNATIONAL POLICY
AND RESEARCH CONFERENCE
ON SCHOOL VIOLENCE AND BULLYING
SEPTEMBER 5-8, 2008
11

PROBLEMS IN OUR SCHOOLS
Bullying
Fighting and Gangs
Alcohol and Drug
Use
Weapon
Carrying
Sale of Alcohol and Drugs
Unruly
Students
Attacks on
Teachers/Staff
Drop Outs
Domestic
Violence
Sexual Abuse
Truancy
INTERNATIONAL POLICY
AND RESEARCH CONFERENCE
ON SCHOOL VIOLENCE AND BULLYING
SEPTEMBER 5-8, 2008
12

BULLYING: WHAT IS IT?
•
INTERNATIONAL POLICY
AND RESEARCH CONFERENCE
ON SCHOOL VIOLENCE AND BULLYING
SEPTEMBER 5-8, 2008
13

BULLYING: WHAT IS IT?
“Bullying is a specific type of aggression in which:
1) the behavior is intended to harm or disturb,
2) the behavior occurs repeatedly over time, and
3) there is an imbalance of power, with a more powerful person or group attacking a less powerful one.”
Source: Bullying Behaviors Among Us Youth:
Prevalence and Association with Psychosocial
Adjustment, JAMA, April 25, 2001 – Vol. 285, No. 16
INTERNATIONAL POLICY
AND RESEARCH CONFERENCE
ON SCHOOL VIOLENCE AND BULLYING
SEPTEMBER 5-8, 2008
14

BULLYING: IS IT A PROBLEM?
4
3
2
1
0
9
8
7
6
5
Percentage of students ages 12-18 who reported being bullied at school during the previous 6 months, by sex: 1999, 2001, and 2003.
9
5
8
7
5
8
5
7 7
1999
2001
2003
Total Male Female
Sex
Source: U.S. Department of Justice, Bureau of Justice
INTERNATIONAL POLICY
Statistics, School Crime Supplement (SCS) to the National
AND RESEARCH CONFERENCE
Crime Victimization Survey, 1999, 2001, and 2003.
SEPTEMBER 5-8, 2008
15

BULLYING: IS IT A PROBLEM?
Percentage of students ages 12-18 who reported being bullied at school during the previous 6 months, by grade and school sector: 2003.
16
14
12
10
8
6
4
2
0
7
To ta l
14
13
9
7
3
4
2
7
5
6th 7th 8th 9th 10 th
11 th
12 th
Pu bl ic
Pr iv ate
Sector
AND RESEARCH CONFERENCE
ON SCHOOL VIOLENCE AND BULLYING
Source: U.S. Department of Justice, Bureau of Justice Statistics,
School Crime Supplement (SCS) to the National Crime
Victimization Survey, 2003 16

BULLYING: IS IT A PROBLEM?
U.S. Department of Education, U.S.
Secret Service Safe School Initiative

1974 – 2000:
• 37 incidents of “targeted school shootings.”
• 41 attackers.
• Finding: Almost three quarters of the attackers felt persecuted, bullied, threatened, attacked or injured by others prior to the incident (n=29).
INTERNATIONAL POLICY
AND RESEARCH CONFERENCE
ON SCHOOL VIOLENCE AND BULLYING
SEPTEMBER 5-8, 2008
17

BULLYING: ANOTHER PERSPECTIVE
“I have been bullied a lot at school. If I tell the teacher it only makes it worse. What should I do?”
“The teachers here don’t do anything. After I tell them what happened, they tell the bully ‘Just don’t do it again.’”
Letter from a student to President Bush, dated January 6, 2004.
INTERNATIONAL POLICY
AND RESEARCH CONFERENCE
ON SCHOOL VIOLENCE AND BULLYING
SEPTEMBER 5-8, 2008
18

BULLYING: ANOTHER PERSPECTIVE
“I, as a concerned parent, is [sic] in need of help. This letter is in regards to our local school and my boys and their friends being threatened and bullied on a daily basis. I have been to my children’s school…and our police department. …I don’t know where else to turn. If the schools and the police aren’t going to protect them who is? So far my children have tried many things at school to get this problem to stop. They have moved where they hang out, walked away and even reported the problem with no help from school officials. They have things thrown at them, called names, hit and constantly threatened. I know, first hand how these other kids work, because my oldest child was jumped thirty on three. He ended up with six staples in his head, while his friends [sic] got six stitches in his eye and the other one a broken wrist. This took place at their home. Yet, my other two sons and their friends get stuff thrown at them in class and throughout the day. My youngest yells in his sleep nightly. They are followed after school. …I, is [sic] a parent, am doing everything to protect my children, but I can’t always be with them. So where does this all stop?”
Letter from a parent to President Bush, dated April 26, 2004.
INTERNATIONAL POLICY
AND RESEARCH CONFERENCE
ON SCHOOL VIOLENCE AND BULLYING
SEPTEMBER 5-8, 2008
19

BULLYING: ED’s PHILOSOPHY

Must be dealt with in comprehensive approach; it cannot be ignored.

Should be a part of a variety of activities engaged in by schools; e. g., approach it directly and indirectly.
INTERNATIONAL POLICY
AND RESEARCH CONFERENCE
ON SCHOOL VIOLENCE AND BULLYING
SEPTEMBER 5-8, 2008
20

BULLYING: ED’s PHILOSOPHY
 Decisions about what programs, policies, and practices to adopt are made at state and local level.
 Decisions need to follow ED’s Principles of
Effectiveness, e.g., use of scientifically based programs.
INTERNATIONAL POLICY
AND RESEARCH CONFERENCE
ON SCHOOL VIOLENCE AND BULLYING
SEPTEMBER 5-8, 2008
21

BULLYING: ED’s RESPONSE
Safe Schools/Healthy Students
National Drug Prevention and
School Safety Coordinator Program
HHS/ED Partnership
Mentoring Program
National Center for Education
Statistics/Bureau of Justice
Statistics Collection Efforts
Challenge Newsletter
INTERNATIONAL POLICY
AND RESEARCH CONFERENCE
ON SCHOOL VIOLENCE AND BULLYING
SEPTEMBER 5-8, 2008
22

BULLYING: ED’s RESPONSE
Safe Schools/Healthy Students
• Joint Project of ED, Health and Human Services (Center for
Mental Health Services), Justice (Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention).
• Funds provided to school districts ($1M-$3M/year for 3 years) to create safe schools and healthy students.
• 190* sites funded since inception in 1999.
• Bullying addressed directly through programs like Oleweus, and indirectly through change in school climate and culture.
INTERNATIONAL POLICY
AND RESEARCH CONFERENCE
ON SCHOOL VIOLENCE AND BULLYING
SEPTEMBER 5-8, 2008
23

BULLYING: ED’s RESPONSE
Mentoring Program
• Grants are used to support mentoring programs for students in grades 4-8.
• ED provided $17.3 million in FY 2002, $17.4 million in
FY 2003, and $48.3 million in FY 2004.
• ED will award 195 grants in FY 2004.
• Approximately 16,000 mentors were hired over a threeyear project period (2002 grants).
INTERNATIONAL POLICY
AND RESEARCH CONFERENCE
ON SCHOOL VIOLENCE AND BULLYING
SEPTEMBER 5-8, 2008
24

BULLYING: ED’s RESPONSE
National Drug Prevention and School Safety
Coordinator Program
• Provided (since FY 99) $117M to support hiring of Drug
Prevention and School Safety K-12 coordinators.
• Funds used to hire over 1280 coordinators.
• Coordinators help school districts translate “research to practice.”
• All coordinators have been trained on bullying issue.
• Web course developed – Exploring the Nature and Prevention of Bullying (February 2004). www.k12coordinator.org
INTERNATIONAL POLICY
AND RESEARCH CONFERENCE
ON SCHOOL VIOLENCE AND BULLYING
SEPTEMBER 5-8, 2008
25

BULLYING: ED’s RESPONSE
National Center for Education Statistics/Bureau of Justice
Statistics Collection Efforts
• Information regarding bullying and other issues related to violence and violent behavior collected by ED, Justice and CDC.
• The National Center for Educational Statistics and Justice’s Bureau of Justice Statistics collaborate on “Indicators of School Crime
Report.”
• ED/OSDFS provides support to National Center for Educational
Statistics to conduct survey of school principals and students.
• Information regarding “bullying” collected as part of BJS’s School
Crime Supplement to the Victim Crime Survey.
INTERNATIONAL POLICY
AND RESEARCH CONFERENCE
ON SCHOOL VIOLENCE AND BULLYING
SEPTEMBER 5-8, 2008
26

BULLYING: ED’s RESPONSE
HHS/ED Partnership
• ED partners with HHS’s Maternal and Child Health Bureau on a national campaign to prevent bullying.
• Campaign theme -
Take a Stand Lend a Hand: Stop Bullying Now is a multi-faceted media campaign designed to increase awareness about the problem of bullying among the “tween” population (ages 9-13).
• Campaign offers information and resources for parents, educators, and public affairs officers.
• Campaign offers web-based animated story featuring a cast of young people who deal with bullies in middle school.
• www.StopBullyingNow.hrsa.gov
INTERNATIONAL POLICY
AND RESEARCH CONFERENCE
ON SCHOOL VIOLENCE AND BULLYING
SEPTEMBER 5-8, 2008
27

BULLYING: ED’s RESPONSE
Challenge Newsletter
• OSDFS dedicated edition of “Challenge
Newsletter to bullying.
• Challenge distributed to 40,000 teachers and administrators.
• Challenge promoted development of scientifically based bullying prevention programs.
INTERNATIONAL POLICY
AND RESEARCH CONFERENCE
ON SCHOOL VIOLENCE AND BULLYING
SEPTEMBER 5-8, 2008
28

TOOLS
Tools to Assist Schools, Parents and Communities
• U.S. Department of Education, Office of Safe and Drug-Free Schools www.ed.gov/osdfs
• Exploring the Nature and Prevention of Bullying – www.k12coordinator.org/onlinece/onlineevents/bullying
• HHS/ED National Campaign – www.StopBullyingNow.hrsa.gov
• Challenge Newsletter – www.thechallenge.org
• New Jersey Cares About Bullying Campaign – http.njbiascrime.org/njcab.htm
• Center for the Study and Prevention of Violence – www.colorado.edu/cspv/
INTERNATIONAL POLICY
AND RESEARCH CONFERENCE
ON SCHOOL VIOLENCE AND BULLYING
SEPTEMBER 5-8, 2008
29

CONCLUSION
Deborah A. Price deborah.price@ed.gov
202-260-3954 www.ed.gov/osdfs
INTERNATIONAL POLICY
AND RESEARCH CONFERENCE
ON SCHOOL VIOLENCE AND BULLYING
SEPTEMBER 5-8, 2008
30