Schools throughout the Halton District School Board have numerous activities and initiatives planned for November 16-20, 2015 to recognize Bullying Awareness and Prevention Week. The goal of these activities is to encourage and promote respect for everyone while increasing awareness and prevention of bullying.
“The Halton District School Board is proud to highlight Bullying Prevention and Awareness Week with numerous events and activities that emphasize the importance of students feeling safe and welcome at school,” says Stuart Miller, Director of Education for the Halton District School Board. “We understand in order to help students achieve success, they need to feel safe and secure in their schools. While we acknowledge the significance of this week, our schools emphasize to students on a daily basis the need to respect and understand each other, and to always be mindful of one other’s well-being.”
Halton Police has launched its 2015-16 Give Respect Get Respect bullying prevention campaign. Grade 6-12 students are challenged to create powerful arts-based public services messages focused on the theme of Promoting Positive Relationships and Positive Mental Health at home, school and in the community. Submission categories include posters, video and original song. Elementary and secondary submissions will be judged separately.
Entries are to communicate positive messages about promoting equity and diversity, personal well-being and self-esteem, healthy relationships, bullying prevention and being an upstander, building a positive climate, and belonging at school and in the community.
Winning entries will be part of an on-going bullying prevention campaign and displayed publicly across Halton region. The deadline for schools to submit their entry is Thursday, March 10, 2016. A recognition gala will be held in the spring.
Events and activities at schools highlighting Bullying Prevention and Awareness Week include:
- Burlington Central High School (Burlington): Motivational speaker Blake Fly will be speaking on Thursday November 19 to address acceptance and having a sense of belonging.
- Sunningdale Public School (Oakville): On Monday, November 16, Duane Gibson will be presenting, Stay Driven, a one-hour assembly that combines speaking with live performances to engage students while delivering a message to educate students on~bullying and violence prevention,~peer pressure, leadership and working at peak performance.
- Milton District High School (Milton): The school is hosting a series of events during the week including posting acts of kindness and positive notes on student lockers.
- Stewarttown Public School (Halton Hills): The school is hosting Errol Lee, a recording artist and motivational speaker on Thursday, November 19. He will deliver a presentation called Be a Hero about the power of caring and how each student can make a difference.
The Halton District School Board’s commitment to empowering students and staff to stand up to bullying and inequity, as well as standing together to build safe, equitable, caring and inclusive environments in all schools continues throughout the school year.