Mount Prospect schools target bullying

Fairview Elementary School will host a parent information night outlining Mount Prospect Elementary School District 57 policy, expectations and programs that have been implemented to help students and staff recognize and deal with bullying.

The meeting is at 6:30 p.m. on Tuesday, May 10, at the school, 300 N. Fairview St., Mount Prospect.

Starting this fall, Fairview School launched a full-scale effort to educate its students about the devastating effects of bullying and help them understand what to do if they are targeted or see bullying taking place. It will also help students as they head into middle school, said Principal April Jordan.

“We have had students talk to teachers when they have thought someone was being bullied,” Jordan said. “It is very rewarding to see how kids are looking out for each other. Fairview feels like a safe and positive place.”

Thirty-two percent of students ages 12 to 18 have reported being bullied during the school year, according to the National Center for Educational Statistics. More than 19,000 children attempt suicide every year due to being bullied, and a child commits suicide as a result of bullying once every half-hour, according to “Bullycide: Death at Playtime,” a book by Neil Marr and Tim Field.