All of the schools in Tulare and Kings counties have made the decision to implement Sprigeo into their school systems, an incredible commitment that we are so excited to share this news with you!
The director of prevention programs with the Tulare County Office of Education, Adam Calencia, and our very own, Joe Bruzzese first met at a meeting in Sacramento. Since meeting, they have made the easy decision to adopt the system, because of the flexibility, and relative pricing that Sprigeo offers.
This has been such a big decision, that we are confident in saying; Tulare and Kings Counties will thoroughly enjoy the positive results that Sprigeo brings to their schools.
Tyson Baker from Tulsa, Oklahoma, who was a victim of bullying when he was a child, started a company with the initiative of ending bullying…through t-shirts! Reach Clothing is based on an experience Tyson once had when he saw that a t-shirt had the power to restore confidence within children. “It started after I heard about a child being bullied for wearing the same shirt to school everyday.”
Tyson can sometimes be seen selling his shirts at schools. He says for every shirt sold, he gives a free one away. Baker’s goal is to take his t-shirts and messages worldwide one day!
This is an excellent example of how people who are affected by bullying can stand up and make a change to spread the word about children and safety! As well, recognition and confidence against bullying may be found in the places where we least expect; lets stand together and find all the ways that we can end bullying!
“Bullies, beware. For the past three years, Goleta Valley Junior High School has been using an online system that lets students report incidents of bullying that take place on campus and on social media sites.”
One of our very own local publications, the Independent has put together a great article on our Online Reporting System.
The number of schools that are taking a stand to prevent bullying and school safety threats, is constantly growing. In particular, Goleta Valley Junior High students and staff have been proactive about preventing bullying with the Sprigeo system for the last three years. The principal of Goleta Valley Junior High is noticing a significant amount of reports coming in from students, who are worried about their classmates being bullied. The principal makes a quick move to find out what exactly is going on behind the reports she receives.
It’s wonderful to hear students are feeling very comfortable, and are able to be very honest with the use of our system to help their classmates in bullying situations.
A middle school child was arrested recently for cyber bullying in the Central California area. The student, who was being bullied, reported multiple incidents to the police, which is something we don’t see most children do.
In this specifc situation, the bully asked some students to smoke marijuana with him, and they declined, and this is when the bullying began. One particular student was bullied on Facebook several times, and then through text messages, and also in person. Cyber bullying can be done in several different ways, which include; through social media platforms, and with texting. Cyber bullying is sometimes harder to track, but also can leave hard evidence, like a text or Facebook post on someone’s wall.
Kids and teens are faced with bullying everyday, and unfortunately a lot of the time it is not reported to administrators, teachers, or the police. Implementing Sprigeo’s anonymous online incident reporting and tracking platform empowers victims, and bystanders, to act against offenders in an effort to create a safer school environment. Anyone with access to the web can use the reporting form on the Sprigeo website to submit an anonymous online report that instantly reaches the school principal, through either email or text message notification. Sprigeo’s platform reduces bullying incidents and school safety threats. Kids and teens trust Sprigeo and the people at their school sites who receive their reports.
Sprigeo stands out among the current methods of reporting because of the due diligence expended in creating a reporting form and follow up mechanism that are user friendly for targets, reporters, bystanders, administrators, and those in leadership positions within a school setting. The platform features are truly invaluable for monitoring compliance, audits, and statistical reporting. According to Sprigeo CEO, Joe Bruzzese, “Over the next few years, the impact of bullying incidents will continue to grow. Providing students with a safe way to report bullying and school safety incidents strengthens the relationship between students, schools and families. Everyone has the right to feel safe at school.”
In a recent article, Randy Nathan, the President and CEO of Project NextGen announced their partnership with Sprigeo. Randy, better known as coach Randy, is a professional of anti-bullying, national trainer, and an expert in the NY area.
The partnership will help to promote positive solutions for responding to bullying incidents including proactive measures like the Sprigeo online reporting system.
Recently our CEO, Joe Bruzzese got the opportunity to interview the Director Of Student Services, from the DeForest area School District, in DeForest Wisconsin. Not to mention, Mr. Perrodin was also the first recipient of the National Sprigeo Award for excellent and Social Change.
During the interview, David tells us it is hard to define what exactly is bullying. He shares with us that everyone needs to be educated about the difference between bullying and conflicts, and that is an important start when identifying what’s going on.
David, who is a very appreciative, caring, and hard working man, is constantly taking steps forward to help spread the word about bullying and school safety. We are very excited to share this interview with you, and hope you are able to appreciate David’s work as we do.
Please check out the full interview with Joe Bruzzese and David Perrodin
School safety incidents like those in Connecticut and more recently in Taft, California remind us of the importance of developing a close partnership between students, staff members and parents. Working together to create safe schools requires an ongoing conversation about effective safety measures. Recently, Sprigeo CEO Joe Bruzzese had an opportunity to talk with an expert on school safety and crisis preparedness. David Perrodin is the Director of Student Services for the DeForest Area School District in DeForest, Wisconsin where he oversees special education, counseling, nursing, social work services and crisis preparedness and response.
During the video interview, David answered the following three questions:
1. What questions are school officials being asked by teachers, parents, community members and the media regarding school security and crisis preparedness – and how are you responding to those questions?
2. How can school officials effectively communicate the status of the safety school of environment, safety audits and school connectedness to teachers, parents, community members and the media? Also, to what extent should this information be shared with students?
3. What is known about active shooter situations and active shooters?
In addition to the video interview David offered the following set of documents that may be used by schools and parents as tools for an ongoing discussion about school safety.
Download these Crisis Preparedness and Response Documents
This document was developed as a quick-view reference of some of the key things that our counselors and school staff do at each grade level to promote school connectedness – which aligns with the 2009 CDC report on School Connectedness – Strategies for Increasing Protective Factors Among Youth. Virtually all of these activities also prevent or address bullying!
This is a talking points document for administrators and teachers relative to the physical environment school security, safety audits and school connectedness.
This is a talking points document for administrators and teachers designed to communicate research-supported, objective information about active shooter situations and also how certain measures taken by schools can counter some of the most statistically relevant characteristics of students who may decide to attack schools. This document is useful in addressing myths (many of which promote stereotyping) about the profiles of school attackers and active shooter situations.
Popstar’s are some of kids and teens biggest influences today, and one of the biggest names out there, Lady Gaga, is taking a stand with anti-bullying! In a recent article written by the leader for breaking news in Connecticut, WTNH News 8, we are told that Lady Gaga and a Yale expert by the name of Dr. Brackett, have teamed up to promote anti-bullying. The article points out that Lady Gaga is using her popularity to help stop bullying and suicide.
Lady Gaga has a mobile bus with “Born To Be Brave” written on the sides, that will be making stops around the country, Connecticut being one of thirty. This bus offers plenty of information about anti-bullying, and preventing suicide. The popstar is known for singing about loving who is she, and wanting others to love and accept her for exactly who she is, which she is trying to spread to her fans around the world.
If one person can make such an impact, shouldn’t more of us start standing up, have a voice, and help one another!
It’s now 2013: meaning a new year, and new resolutions! In a recent article on UPI.com, Canadian researchers are saying that kids who are kind to others are happier, more accepted, and therefore, bullying is reduced. There are little things that can be done or performed to increase kid’s acts of kindness, for example hugging your family members or even smiling at a stranger you pass. Students from this article were asked to perform similar tasks, and the results came back positive, with happier kids!
With the New Year here, lets make a point to be kind to one another, lend a helping hand, and spread positivity!
With the Internet, social media, and the use of cell phones being so prominent in today’s world, we cannot forget about cyber bullying. Cyber bullying is something not to be taken lightly, and is harder to control than bullying in the school’s system. In a recent article written on Cyberoam NetGenie, cyber bullying is discussed; how fast, easy, and often it happens.
This article makes a very good point, “…the Internet provides the freedom to assume a different identity and harass the other with anonymity.” This statement is very true in the way that people, who might not normally be a bully, are able to become a no-name bully, under disguise, and most of the time gets away with it. There are steps shared that help in the elimination of cyber bullying, and that starts inside children’s households with the parents coaching their kids about basic online practices.
Sprigeo has been working diligently interviewing many experts in the field to compile a set of best practices and discussions that can be learned from. Check it out at Sprigeo
The holiday has gone and past: a time for family, sharing, and Broadway plays! It only seems appropriate to share this recent article. Stomp Out Bullying, and The Musical, A Christmas Story have teamed up to put together an Anti-Bullying Writing Contest. Participants of this contest were middle schools students who submitted an essay about how bullying has affected them in their personal life, either that they witnessed, or have been directly affected.
The winner of the contest, Ahmed Shayef, was announced, and was able to appear in The Musical, A Christmas Story, on December 27. The runner-up, and third place winners also got to attend A Christmas Story.
A Christmas Story, The Musical
During this time of the year, it is always great to hear touching stories, and events, or contests in this situation, reaching out spreading the word about how kids can be heard! Bullying can be found in many forms, and what better way to get kids involved in spreading the word, than to tell their own stories for others to hear!
Report Bullying with Sprigeo 