General Meeting Minutes

TEHACHAPI ABC

(ANTI-BULLYING COALITION)

GENERAL MEETING

OCTOBER 18, 2010

Village Grill

The meeting, scheduled for 5:30 p.m. at The Village Grill, was called to order by Chair Kathleen Ryan at 5:41 p.m. No printed agenda was available.

The first order of business was preparing for the School Board meeting next Tuesday, October 26, at 6 p.m. at the old Jacobsen Middle School (doorway to enter is at the corner of Snyder and F Streets). Most of the meeting discussion centered around this item. Persons attending should arrive by 5:45.

Dick Best agreed to prepare and distribute to Coalition members a flier inviting people to attend the Board meeting to support the Board, support their local school, and support TABC.

It was reported that a Rainbow Coalition and a GSA (Gay-Straight Alliance) have each been formed at THS (Tehachapi High School).

It was suggested that a “No Bullies Zone” needs to be created to give kids a safe place to go outside of school, as bullying does not stop at the school boundaries.

Having anti-bullying programs at the high school and middle school levels is important, but the programs also need to be in place from kindergarten and elementary school levels up, as bullying starts early.

It was discussed as to who the speakers should be. Changing somewhat from last week’s discussion it was decided that Jamie Phillips would lead off with a statement on our mission and purpose, to be followed by student speakers, one each from THS, Monroe and JMS. The secretary got the names of Megan Smith and Fiona (?), but missed the third student name. Perhaps Kathleen will finish off with comments on how we want to work with and for the school board, etc., in dealing with bullying. Students involved will write their speeches and give them to (?) for editing at the Thursday TABC board meeting.

Maryann Hester introduced herself. She is a volunteer police officer who wants to work with us. Liz Madrigal is also on the volunteer force. They each have a PD contact through Alexia (?), the administrative assistance for evidence collection. There was discussion of at least the board members initiating the backgrounding and fingerprinting process as an organization.

Possible meeting places? For the Board meetings, Chicago Title & Trust conference room is available after hours; Debbie Hand has volunteered Fiddlers’ Crossing meeting space; Tehachapi Valley United Methodist Church has sufficient space in its social room for either the board or the full group. Some people have expressed discontent at meeting in a church. Kathleen will be out of town Thursday through Monday. Robin will convene the Thursday board meeting. (NOTE: Board meeting time this Thursday at CT&T at 5:30 p.m. has been confirmed by the secretary.)

There was a mention that someone who wanted to be on the board is possibly registered as a sex offender. That possibility is being checked out quietly; we do not want to make false accusations, but we also do not want a registered sex offender in this group.

The secretary was asked to send an updated list of the board to all group members. This will be done.

Kim Schank was added to the list of board members.

Suggestion raised: We establish a phone tree so that when it is reported that a teacher or an administrator is not backing up a student making complaints of being bullied, a number of folks can call or email the administration requesting an investigation. It was noted that we have to be careful that we don’t put ourselves in the position of being bullies in following this process. Or can a board member show up for a parent meeting? If so, we would need to be careful to deal with privacy issues, especially the privacy of the students involved.

There were several people venting about treatment they or their children had received in the past from teachers and/or administration personnel. The unfortunate generalization was made that “Teachers don’t care for the students like they used to ten years ago.” The speaker meant “Some teachers,” but the qualifier was omitted. One person new to the group became upset, saying that from her perspective the group was disrespecting teachers and hoping to act like bullies with the school board, and left. (NOTE: Further communications later did not appear to resolve this issue for this person, but an attempt was made.)

TEHACHAPI ABC

(ANTI-BULLYING COALITION)

October 11, 2010

General Meeting

The Village Grill

Chair Pro Tempore Kathleen Ryan had prepared a suggested agenda. Before moving into that, she asked for a report on the candlelight vigil for Seth Walsh last Saturday night. Yvette and some others set it up. There were ~150 in attendance. Fiona and Jessica, two teens, spoke well. It was originally organized by Bakersfield LGBTQQ+, but the theme was changed from anti-gay bullying to anti-bullying in general. There were 800 fliers passed out in 36 hours. Many people in town want to help and are supportive of our aims.

I. What shall be the name of this organization?

Someone suggested “Tehachapi ABC,” and others added “For Safer Schools” or “No Place for Hate.” It was decided to adopt “Tehachapi ABC,” using some means to clarify that “ABC” stands for “Anti-Bullying Coalition.”

II. What is our mission statement, or what shall it include?”

Suggestions included “Create Awareness,” “Supply a safe haven,” and others. More work on this is needed.

III. What is our purpose?

At least one is “To work alongside of and assist the school district in (creating and?) implementing effective programs and strategies that will have tangible, lasting results in the prevention and intervention of bullying in our schools.” Suggestions were made that the scope needs to be broader than just the schools. It was noted that teachers say they are aware and they do speak up, but it’s what the administration and the school board do with it that is lacking. Another purpose is to “Support engaged teachers and counselors.”

What existing organizations and agencies can we get involved?

Suggestions included Tehachapi Wellness Center and College Community Services (someone from the latter was at the vigil.) Training teachers and adults is important, but it is perhaps even more important to train kids to confront bullies, speak out, and handle conflict – i.e., assertiveness training.

IV. Online Resources:

Amy mentioned there are online seminars for free.

What are some of the online resources?

Shauna Rushing listed an MTV program, “If you only knew me.”

Judy Trujillo submitted http://rachelschallenge.org/educators/programs. Note: their main web server has been down since 10/6/10; they are moving to a new server but

presently have limited capability. Try http://www.rachelschalleng.org to see how much is presently available.

Clifford Crowe mentioned K. A. B. S. (Kids Against Bullying in Schools). Note: This is a Facebook page; the url is http://www.facebook.com/KABS.NC.

Alicia O’Beirne offered www.ancomm.com’s “Talk about it” program. Their website describes it this way: “Developed by AnComm, 'Talk About It ®' is the nation's first and only anonymous online and text based reporting and emergency notification service for schools. Easy-to-use and implement, 'Talk About It ®' is a preventative solution focused on bridging the communication gap between students and faculty to foster a safer, more comfortable learning environment.”

Evie Campbell-Best discovered www.eyesonbullying.com, which includes a 43-page workbook on how to deal with bullying.

Dick Best listed www.thetrevorproject.org, which includes suicide resources and a suicide hotline.

Other resources include hotlines, assemblies, red ribbon week, etc.

V. Next TUSD Board meeting:

Debby Hand will be reporting school board materials to Tehachapi News. She suggested that we field 3 people speaking 3 minutes each, as the total time allotted would be 9 minutes regardless of number of speakers. Kathleen suggested herself, Matt’s daughter, and one more, to say what our purpose is. After discussion, it was decided that Jamie Phillips would be the adult spokesperson (with script to be provided by Kathleen) and teen speakers would include Kendra Bennett, Megan Smith, Marrissa King, and Anthony Espinoza (who is a member of the Explorers’ Police group). Per School Board agenda for 10/12/10, the Board meets at 6 p.m. at the old Jacobsen Jr. High School, 126 Snyder St. In re comments (note there is no 9-minute limitation cited but “may allot time” gives the president leeway) the agenda states: “Public comments will be allowed. The board chair will recognize any member of the audience wishing to speak on items NOT on the agenda but directly related to school business. Pursuant to Board Bylaw 9323, the Board may limit comments to no more than 3 minutes per person. Public comment will also be allowed on each specific action item prior to Board action. The president may allot time to those wishing to speak, but no action will be taken on matters presented. If appropriate, the president or any member of the board may direct that the matter be referred to the superintendent’s office for placement on a future agenda.”

Steven Vogel has been asked to make a short presentation at the Board meeting 10/12/10. Following his presentation, Holly Hart will move to put the question on the agenda for the 10/26/10 meeting. It is reported several board members will be absent from the 10/12 meeting because they fear community response following the Walsh suicide. For the 10/26 meeting we need to get as many people as possible, both adults and teens, to attend.

Should there be a handout to take to this meeting?

Monroe has a program for all years. “NO on Bullying” – like the Red Ribbon week? Bracelets? Signs for teachers to place on doors? Push the zero tolerance policy, make it enforced?

VI. Media:

The national media is making it all about gay bullying. It needs to be broader, to encompass all bullying. Locally we will look to Tina Ford, reporter for The Tehachapi News; Lois Henry, of the Bakersfield Californian; and channels 17 and 23. We can do podcasts on the new Tehachapi radio station (see Debbie Hand). Claim: The school district needs to back up anti-bulliers. When playground superintendents report bulliers, the parents claim “You’re picking on my child” and the administration backs down. Can we establish an Anti-Bullying task force to provide volunteers to assist campus security, playground supervisors, and others in deterring bullying? There are restrictions if people are on campus more than one hour per week, including fingerprinting, background checks, etc. There are various fees for doing these things at various locations.

Claim: TPD is very unhelpful (although another parent reported immediate response by Chief Kermode to a situation involving her child).

Shauna Rushing passed out material from Dr. Phil, including a sample anti-bullying letter, an anti-bullying pledge, and warning signs of bullying. (Does Dr. Phil employ bullying in dealing with some of the individuals on his show? Opinions differ.)

VII. Core group:

Six people were picked to be the core group for this coalition:

Kathleen Ryan, Steve Vogel, Jamie Phillips, Shauna Rushing, Marilin Smith, and Evie Campbell-Best.

The Coalition will next meet a week from today, 10/18/10, at 5 p.m. at The Village Grill.

Respectfully submitted,

Dick Best, Secretary Pro Tempore