What is bullying?
Bullying is defined as aggressive behavior involving a real or perceived power imbalance. The behavior is repeated or has the potential to be repeated, over time.

Signs your child may be being bullied:
Unexplainable injuries, lost or destroyed clothing, books, electronics, or jewelry, frequently feeling sick or faking illness, changes in eating habits, difficulty sleeping or frequent nightmares, declining grades or loss of interest in school, sudden loss of friends or avoidance of social situations, feelings of helplessness, decreased self-esteem or self-destructive behaviors. 

Signs your child may be bullying others:
Gets into physical or verbal fights, has friends who bully others, is increasingly aggressive, gets sent to the principal’s office or to detention frequently, has unexplained extra money or new belongings, blames others for their problems, and does not accept responsibility for their actions.

Bullying prevention lessons in Mukilteo School District:
At the elementary level, school counselors and Elementary Support Specialists deliver the Bully Prevention curriculum from Second Step. There are four lessons at the elementary level that teach the three R’s – Recognize, Report, and Refuse. Children are taught to recognize what bullying is, given tools for reporting bullying, and taught how to be an ‘upstander’ versus a ‘bystander.’ Additionally, they learn assertiveness and refusal skills. In fourth and fifth grade, lessons expand to cyberbullying.

With middle school students, staff reviews the definitions of bullying with an emphasis on empowering students to report incidents and stand up to bullying while feeling safe and supported. There are additional lessons on the power and potential damage of social media. 

In high school, the conversation continues and focuses on relationship building and also reporting any bullying on behalf of themselves and for others. Students also receive suicide prevention and intervention lessons that tie back into bullying and harassment, and students are encouraged to ask questions, show care and tell an adult. Counselors emphasize with students that they are not just academic counselors but also provide social and emotional supports along their high school journey.

Staff training on bullying:
Staff receive annual training on harassment, intimidation, and bullying policies and procedures so they understand the staff role. They review how to be attentive to what’s going on in the school, how to use the district incident reporting forms to make sure we are documenting incidents of concern, how to assist students with bullying concerns, and how to have conversations with students about bullying.

Reporting bullying:
When an incident is first reported, staff investigate what happened – most often with the administrator in the lead with support from counselors and deans. In that process, participants and witnesses are interviewed, and their statements are documented using that district incident reporting form. Families are informed of the information that is discovered in that process and then appropriate consequences based on the student conduct handbook, the school board policies and current laws, which may differ by age, are appropriately handed out to students. Teachers and staff are informed on a need-to-know basis about the conduct of the students. 

As the parent or guardian of the victim, you will not know what the individual consequence for the bully due to privacy laws, The Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act, or FERPA, prohibits schools from disclosing information about a student's record to a third party, including the parent of the victim.

Student discipline:
Student discipline has an instructional component, and a culturally responsive component, and consequences are based on our policies and guidance from the Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction. We believe students can learn to manage their own behavior and grow their understanding of appropriate behavior.