APPLETON, WI (WTAQ-WLUK) – Many school districts began the new year this past week in Northeast Wisconsin, the Appleton Area School District among them.
Assistant Superintendent Sheree Garvey says that’s why schools in Appleton have a new way to fight bullying.
“We take bullying very seriously,” Garvey said. “In every situation.”
It’s called the Speak Up Speak Out App.
“It’s a way that they can report it in a way that we can respond immediately,” said Garvey. “Respond back to them, and work through those situations.”
Students can submit a tip anonymously, find their school, select bullying, and put in where the incident occurred.
Whether that’s in person or over social media.
School staff are able to see the reported incidents in real time.
“Each of our site teams will have a team, an administrator and other staff members that will receive those tips,” Garvey went on. “Then we have a process of how we respond to those tips, so there’s a team at each site who will receive those tips.”
Still many parents find it difficult to find out if their child is being bullied.
Prevea Health Licensed Family Therapist Lisa Tutskey is here to help.
“I always encourage parents to look for any change in their child’s behavior,” Tutskey said. “If you’re child is very outgoing, is sociable, likes to go to school, is happy to go to school and then all of the sudden is not, that’s a huge red flag.”
She says to ask children questions like what was something that made them happy, and something that made them upset.
It offers a chance for a discussion, rather than a closed ended answer.
Tutskey says parents can tell their kids this.
“First of all, it’s not ok to be treated that way, that’s just not ok. The fact that this is happening is not ok, and they’re gonna help, this is a grown up issue, it’s not a kid issue,” said Tutskey. “So as a parent, as an adult as a guardian, you’re going to go to the school and discuss this, and do the best you can to keep your child out of the middle of that.”
She says it’s up to the parent to work with the school and make things happen.
The Speak Up Speak Out app has been out since 2020, and is available for both iOS and Android devices, as well as Chromebooks.
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