R. L. Young School Commitment 2011

This year as students returned to school they noticed a new bulletin board in the lunchroom. The board was bare except for the following statements and a handprint representing each faculty and staff member.

R. L. Young School Commitment

I make a commitment to take a stand against bullying.

I will treat others with RESPECT and KINDNESS.

I will have the COMPASSION to not be a bully and the COURAGE to not be a bystander.

It is my RESPONSIBILITY to help others being bullied and to report bullying.

Before the children completed that first week of school, they, too had added their own handprint.  One of my favorite quotes from Helen Keller states, "Alone we can do so little; together we can do so much." Our goal this year is to empower students to unite and help one another when a conflict arises. Often it is the bystander that can truly make a difference if they choose to take a stand. On the side of the school blog there is a new link added just for students to report bullying that is occuring during the school day. It is yet another way we strive to provide assistance to our students.

Also, new throughout the school is a posted definition of bullying: BULLYING is deliberately hurting other people with words or actions. Each Monday Coach Stephens is bringing important information to the entire student body by way of videos. These videos portray children in situations involving conflict. After viewing the videos, a discussion is held to help the children process this new information. Often times children do not know how to handle sticky situations. It is our hope that our students will gain useful knowledge and feel better equipped to know what to do in sticky situations.

As a school, we hope to see an improvement in how our students relate to others at school and home. When children are happy, they learn more and are more productive in school.