Office of Prevention and Olweus Partnership to fight Bullying

As part of the Broward County Public School’s efforts to keep our district safe and respectful, Student Support Services’ Office of Prevention applied for and received the Olweus Bullying Prevention Program (OBPP) award, allowing one staff member to become a certified Olweus trainer as part of the Florida Bullying Prevention Initiative – an award valued at $3,900! The honor was given to the Office of Prevention Program’s Prevention Specialist, Aimee Wood. She will attend the upcoming Olweus Bullying Prevention Program’s Training of Trainers in Orlando, FL on February 24-26, 2009, along with approximately 30 other trainers from Florida school districts. After she becomes a trainer, Ms. Wood will provide services to the two Broward County schools that applied for and received the Olweus Schoolwide Training award: Attucks Middle School, Fort Lauderdale, and Horizon Elementary School, Sunrise. Although the Florida Bullying Prevention Initiative was only able to fund two schools this year, having the Office of Prevention staff trained in the Olweus Model opens the opportunity for additional schools as funding increases in 2010. As part of the Olweus Bullying Prevention Initiative, Ms. Wood will work very closely with these schools for three years – enough time to effectively imbed a culture of respect and safety amongst the staff and students.

This opportunity was created through a unique partnership aimed at addressing the tremendous problem of bullying. The Florida Association of School Administrators (FASA), the National Association of Elementary School Principals (NAESP) Foundation, and the Hazelden Foundation make up the Florida Bullying Prevention Initiative whose goal is to get OBPP in as many as 25 schools in Florida, with the possibility of expanding to more schools in the near future.

“We’re proud to be a partner with these organizations to bring OBPP to Florida schools,” said Nick Motu, Hazelden publisher. “We know that schools that have implemented the program have found reductions of 50 percent or more in student reports of being bullied and bullying others.”

Office of Prevention sees great opportunities for Broward County Schools arising out of this award, because OBPP is recognized by the Center for the Study and Prevention of Violence as one of only eleven Blueprints Model Programs and by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) as a Model Program-two of the highest honors a prevention program can attain.

“Besides bullying, the Olweus program has been shown to reduce other antisocial behaviors, such as vandalism, fighting, theft, and truancy,” according to Amalio Nieves, Coordinator of the Office of Prevention. Nieves said, “It has shown improvements in classroom social climate and more positive attitudes among students toward schoolwork and school, all the elements are perfectly in alignment with our goals of prevention for Broward County Public Schools.”

To find out more about the Olweus program, please visit thier webiste at: http://www.clemson.edu/olweus/

Stay tuned for more information about this exciting partnership!