School climate matters. In 2000, the Secret Service said that in 81 percent of the cases of school violence there was someone who knew about the potential of the incident playing out prior to the event. Ten years later that number has certainly increased, said Nancy Andress, presenter at SAANYS’ recent bullying prevention workshop attended by nearly 80 Long Island educators on August 15.
What can educators do to change the actions or inactions of bystanders? How can schools get to the heart of underlying bullying issues in the first place? Andrews was joined by fellow administrator Jim Dillon, and together they discussed how to change these statistics and open the doors for dialogue and action using the components of the widely acclaimed OLWEUS Bullying Prevention program. Both Andress and Dillion are certified OWLEUS trainers and explained how the program focuses on education, staff development, prevention, and moving students from bystander to defender.
Said one participant, “I am walking away with at least five ideas I will implement immediately.” After the interest in and success of this workshop, SAANYS is currently planning additional bullying sessions around the state. In the meantime, members can download SAANYS’ Vanguard magazine entitled, “A Special Issue on Bullying” at http://www.saanys.org/newsroom/. In addition, Andress and Dillion suggest the following resources:
- http://www.stopbullyingnow.org/
- The Respectful School by Stephen Wessler
- For more information on OLWEUS: http://www.olweus.org/public/index.page
SAANYS Blog 
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