Tom Coverly Comes To Gloucester For Bullying Prevention Month

GLOUCESTER TOWNSHIP, NJ — We hope you’ve noticed over the past year that we’ve been focusing on bullying and cyberbullying, a confounding national crisis that turns youths’ lives upside down with unimaginable angst and dread, sometimes with deadly consequences. With each story, we’ve heard poignant stories from Patch readers in New Jersey and others who were bullied and overcame it, but also many who continue to struggle with the damage done by bullies to their self-esteem.

Many common threads emerged in emails from our readers: Teachers and other educators have suggested everything from first-period decompression time to classroom contracts with students on how they’re expected to treat one another. But for all the readers who said schools need to do more to foster an anti-bullying culture, as many said parents should talk more with their kids about bullying and keep closer track on their social media habits.

And in a loud chorus, they said Americans need to stop wringing their hands and work at all levels to create a world safe from bullying.

That’s one of the purposes of National Bullying Prevention Month, observed annually during October to bring attention to the problem and involve people in New Jersey and nationwide in a conversation on how to create a world safe from bullying.

A WEEK OF RESPECT

National Bullying Prevention Month begins with a Week of Respect recognized in all school districts across the state. As part of this week in the Gloucester Township K-8 Public School District, Tuesday, Oct. 4, is Gloucester Township Family Night with special guest, Illusionist Tom Coverly.

He has entertained several celebrities, Jep & Jessica Robertson from the hit TV show, "Duck Dynasty", Rick The Reptile Guy (A&E TV Show "Wild Transport"), i-Shine (TBN), Amber Montana (Nickelodeon TV show "Haunted Hathaways"), Victoria Koloff (Lifetime TV show, “Preachers’ Daughters”) & the entire cast and producers for the "Batman Vs. Superman" Movie, according to the biography posted on his website. He has appeared on major networks and performed for major corporations.

Family Night will be held at the Charles W. Lewis Middle School on Tuesday, Oct. 4, 7 p.m. The event is free and open to the community. Coverly will also perform for the students during various afternoon programs throughout the week.

Each elementary school will also have its own schedule of theme days throughout the week. Below is the Week of Respect schedule for each school:

Erial Elementary School
Monday, Oct. 1: Remember to treat others the way you want to be treated! Wear as much yellow or gold to show you will pledge to follow the Golden Rule!
Tuesday, Oct. 2: Showing respect towards others is heroic! Wear your favorite superhero t-shirt to school. (Please do not wear capes or hats)
Wednesday, Oct. 3: Come to school wearing your silly, crazy, or wacky socks to show you want to sock it to bullying! Our 3rd -5th grade students will also be attending an anti-bullying assembly in the afternoon.
Thursday, Oct. 4: Wear your most mix matched outfit to help us remember not to be mixed up in disrespectful behavior!
Friday, Oct. 5: Wear your favorite team jerseys, shirts, or colors to show you are a team player and vow to respect one another! Together we can respect one another and team up against bullying!

Glendora Elementary School:
Monday, Oct. 1: All classes will read Strictly No Elephants. This story focuses on the themes of friendship and acceptance.
Tuesday, Oct. 2: All students will participate in an activity in which they can demonstrate how to be respectful friends to one another.
Wednesday, Oct. 3: Students are encouraged to wear their favorite mismatched socks as a reminder to respect differences and embrace their unique characteristics
Thursday, Oct. 4: Students are encouraged to wear green and help make their classroom nice and clean!
Friday, Oct. 5: Today is a day to celebrate GLENDORA! Students are encouraged to wear blue and gold to show their Glendora pride

Union Valley Elementary School:
Monday, Oct. 1: Let RESPECT shine! Celebrate by wearing your brightest, shiniest outfit to school.
Tuesday, Oct. 2: Team up against Bullying! Wear your favorite team shirt to show support.
Wednesday, Oct. 3: Be a SuperHERO and help show RESPECT to others. Celebrate by wearing something superhero related. Grades 3-5 will attend an assembly about bullying & RESPECT.
Thursday, Oct. 4: Throw KINDNESS around like confetti. Celebrate by wearing as many colors as you can!
Friday, Oct. 5: Follow Your Dreams! Celebrate by wearing (appropriate) pajamas to school. * Must wear pants - no nightgowns.

Gloucester Township Elementary School:
Monday, Oct. 1: Students are encouraged to wear gold as a reminder of the golden rule, “treat others the way you wish to be treated.”
Tuesday, Oct. 2: Students are encouraged to wear mixed matched socks as a reminder to celebrate and embrace differences in ourselves and others.
Wednesday, Oct. 3: Students are encouraged to dress their best for picture day and to turn on their best self.
Thursday, Oct. 4: Students are encouraged to wear green and help make their classroom nice and clean!
Friday, Oct. 5: Today is a day to celebrate GLOUCESTER TOWNSHIP! Students are encouraged to wear black and gold to show their Gloucester Township pride!

James W. Lilley Elementary School:
Monday, Oct. 1: Wear as much blue as you can to join the national campaign to Stomp Out Bullying.
Tuesday, Oct. 2: Wear your favorite or wackiest hat to show your commitment to helping others.
Wednesday, Oct. 3: Wear your craziest mismatched socks.
Thursday, Oct. 4: Wear your favorite team jerseys, shirts, or colors to show you are a team player and will work to respect one another.
Friday, Oct. 5: Wear as much yellow or gold as you can to remember to treat others the way you wish to be treated.

TAKE THE CHALLENGE

Each of the Black Horse Pike Regional high schools will participate in a challenge day during the first week of October. The Challenge Day program is 6.5 hours. Participants examine the impact that bullying, oppression and other forms of violence has on their lives and the lives of those around them. It aims to build compassion and ignites positive change.

Additionally, several activities have been planned for the high school students during the Week of Respect including positive messaging photo booths and reflective writing prompts in their classes. Timber Creek’s theme for the week is Lead the Charge. All week they will be encouraging students to turn negative peer pressure into positive support. Triton’s theme is Keeping It Real which will focus on “Notice, Choose and Act”. Highland’s theme is the Keys 4 Success – Character, Community, Responsibility, and Academic Achievement.

Highland’s Challenge Day is Tuesday, Oct. 2, followed by Triton’s on Wednesday, Oct. 3, and Timber Creek’s on Thursday, Oct. 4. Following the Challenge Days, the districts will hold assemblies at each school at the end of November.

“Additionally, we have added some year long programs this year that work on changing student behavior such as meditation and yoga in the classroom, as well as a 5-minute reflection exercise in our freshman seminar classes,” Black Horse Pike Regional School District Director of Personnel Julie A. Scully said.

The exercise is called “5 Radical Minutes,” and it aims to build deeper connections and more compassionate relationships between students, their peers and staff.

A PUBLIC HEALTH ISSUE

Once viewed as a childhood “rite of passage” that toughened kids to handle the pressures of adulthood, bullying and its more insidious digital twin, cyberbullying, is seen by many experts as a major public health issue — on par with heart disease, cancer and diabetes — with devastating and often long-term effects like the loss of self-esteem, heightened anxiety and depression.

We want to hear from you. Do you have a story to tell about bullying or cyberbullying, a suggestion about how to stem it or an event to publicize? Comment at the end of the story, or email anthony.bellano@patch.com and copy bullies@patch.com. You can post Bullying Prevention Month and many other events right on Patch.

Statistics vary, but an aggregate of 80 different studies on bullying suggests one in five American students between 12 and 18 is bullied at some point during their middle or high school years. Traditional bullying — name calling, public humiliation, isolation, physical violence and that sort of thing — occurs most often, with 35 percent of kids reporting they’ve been targeted in one of those ways. The studies cited by the PACER Center, which established National Bullying Prevention Month, show that 15 percent of kids surveyed report being cyberbullied.

And though it occurs less often, cyberbullying — which has resulted in a disturbing string of suicides by adolescents and teenagers — is especially hard to stop. While experts say most cyberbullied kids don’t kill themselves, the long-tailed internet makes a taunt live longer than one flung on the schoolyard. Kids can escape traditional bullying in the safety of their homes, but because social media is so intertwined with how kids communicate, they never really escape it.

READ: Bullied To Death: When Kids Kill With Words

And because cyberbullies have the stealth of anonymity, “empathy tends to fade to zero,” NoBully.org founder Nicholas Carlisle told Patch.

He was knocked around 40 or so years ago as an awkward 12-year-old. The torment persisted through high school, but as tough as it was, his experience was markedly different from the torture kids endure today, he says — and it’s not just that he was attacked in a physical as opposed to online space.

“Online, you can’t see the whites of their eyes,” Carlisle said. “If you can see someone, that’s often a break upon people’s aggression — not always, but it does seem to have some break upon crossing the line.”

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The full consequences of bullying on the brain aren’t fully understood, but kids who are targeted by bullies in childhood and adolescence are at increased risk for psychological problems that can stretch into adulthood, according to experts. In the moment, bullied kids may be unable to sleep or suffer a range of stomach issues and headaches. Later on, they’re at risk for depression, anxiety, and alcohol and drug use.

OCT. 24 UNITY DAY

Among the marquee National Bullying Prevention Month activities is Unity Day, observed on Wednesday, Oct. 24, when everyone is encouraged to wear and show orange to send a message that no child should ever experience bullying.

“Orange provides a powerful, visually compelling expression of solidarity,” Paula Goldberg, the executive director of the PACER Center, said in a statement. “Whether it’s hundreds of individuals at a school wearing orange, store owners offering orange products or a community changing a landmark to orange, the vibrant statement becomes a conversation starter, sending the supportive, universal message that bullying is never acceptable behavior.”

Here’s more about Unity Day:

THE BULLY MENACE: WHAT’S AHEAD

During October and beyond, several experts have agreed to answer readers’ questions about bullying, ranging from how to keep their kids from becoming targets to what to do if their kids are the bullies. We’ll also delve into some of the issues surrounding bullying —

Take a look back at some of the stories in our series:

• America’s Shameful Truth About School Shooters And Bullying
• They All Failed Changed Child: Malden Bullying Detailed
• Bullies, Their Targets The Same In A Surprising Number Of Cases
• ‘Everyday, I Wear Your Words,’ Teen Tells Bullies In Video
• Teen’s ‘I Wear Your Words’ Video Inspires Nashville Songwriters
• Bullying Of Mallory Grossman, 12, Spelled Out In Wrongful Death Lawsuit
• Poetry Teacher Helps Bullied Kids Open Their Tortured Minds
• Why These Kindergartners Start Each Day With A Simple Handshake

If you have a question or want to share your story, please email bullies@patch.com.

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