EDUCATION
PAGE 16 | FEBRUARY 2017
WEST JORDAN JOURNAL
Hawthorn Academy students rescue classmates from bullying By Jet Burnham | j.burnham@mycityjournals.com
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The students who are working to earn a Buddy Bench for their school: Amanda Bullock, Grace Beazer, Ciceley Brentel, Jadiah Costello, Ivy Pullan and Jayda Alverson (Keesha Brentel)
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egan Cox has been bullied in the past and wants to make sure it doesn’t happen to anyone else, so she started an Anti-Bullying Committee, or ABC, at Hawthorn Academy in West Jordan. “Some people think that they’re not a bully, but if you watch their actions, they are,” Regan said. Having been a victim, she knows it when she sees it. Her mother, Melanie Cox, said the school has a strict policy against it, but bullying still happens. She is proud of her daughter. “She is tender-hearted and doesn’t like to see people hurt or uncomfortable,” Cox said. Regan’s committee is comprised of like-minded seventhand eighth-grade girls. Their goal is to make sure everybody feels safe and has a friend. “We have a big part in school to be all connected in a good way,” said Regan. Regan’s ABC is not all talk either. The spunky seventhgrader actually stopped a playground fight. While other kids watched a boy get tackled, Regan and her friend Melanie intervened. “Something kind of clicked off in my head— ‘I need to go,’” said Regan, when she saw the commotion. She was a small seventh-grader, standing up to eighth grade boys, but she believes, “No matter how small you are or how big you are, you can stop it.” Administration, students and teachers were impressed. Regan said when the school’s Peer Leadership Team heard about what happened they said, “That seventh-grade girl is a hero!’” Regan and Melanie were rewarded for their heroic actions by being allowed to wear everyday clothes to school. The two seventh-graders stood out that day in a school that requires uniforms. “We knew people were looking at us and saying we were heroes and thinking ‘we should have done that,’” said Regan.
Salli Robinson is the school counselor and adviser for the committee. She believes the charter school has a different dynamic than neighborhood schools. Most students arrive at Hawthorn not knowing any other kids there. “A lot of bullying comes from not understanding people around us,” said Robinson. “Once you know someone, they don’t seem that different.” The ABC believes they can prevent bullying by encouraging students to widen their circle of friends. Committee member Sabrina Taylor said lunch was a particularly hard time when adjusting to her new school. “I was sitting with people but was still by myself,” said Sabrina. The committee came up with Nobody Eats Alone Days to create awareness of including others. On these days, they encourage kids to sit with someone new at lunch. In February, the committee will also host lunch activities and games to help kids get to know new people. The goal is clear: “To make sure everyone has a friend,” said Regan The committee meets weekly in Robinson’s office. “It is very self-directed,” said Robinson. “They want to make sure everyone feels safe.” Meetings are spent discussing how the committee can broaden its scope. The committee performs skits for school assemblies, educating students about what bullying is and what to do when they see it happening. They’ve also made posters to remind students to stand up and speak out when they see bullying. They hope their education will help students monitor each other’s behavior and help them be able to spot bullying and stop it quickly. continued on next page…