GRPS works to prevent online bullying

GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. (WOOD) - Social networking sites such as Facebook allow people to share personal stories and photos -- but they can serve as a platform for students to bully and harass, as well.

The Grand Rapids Public Schools district has seen an increase in online bullying, and school officials are taking steps to ensure cyber incidents don't escalate into students getting hurt.

The school board's existing policy on bullying and harassment was a topic at Monday night's meeting.

Although the policy is up to date and meets all new federal guidelines, school officials still said there has been an increase in cyberbullying.

School officials warned students: they have ways of watching what goes on online.

"We try to keep our eyes and ears open, and use all the resources we have to see if some of the going back and forth is going to have an impact on our school -- and quite frankly, some of it does," said Larry Johnson, the director of security for GRPS.

It's a team effort to keep up with what students are discussing online, he added.

"The best resource is our parents though, and other students who have access to, and friends on these social network sites," Johnson said.

The board Monday addressed how some forms of bullying can lead to civil rights violations and even criminal charges.

The district has trained and educated more than 15,000 students on the dangers of bullying through its summer Teaching Educating And Mentoring, or TEAM program, Johnson said.

But when it comes to cyberbullying, the district is keeping some prevention methods under wraps.

"Yeah, I don't want to give away the trade secrets, because I don't want everyone out there to know what we're doing," Johnson said. "We're not violating anybody's rights or civil rights, but we are taking advantage of social networking sites to monitor what they're doing."

Teacher's Union President Paul Helder suggested the board look at ways to address adults being bullied in the school system, as well. He recently spoke with a teacher who felt he or she was being bullied by another staff member, Helder said.

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In a unanimous vote Monday, the board agreed to the sale of the former Vandenberg Elementary School building to the Grand Rapids Child Discovery Center. District spokesman John Helmholdt said the charter school's offer of $490,000 was below the asking price, but GRPS agreed to the deal in order to pay off some operational debt.

The building is located near the corner of Wealthy Street SE and Lafayette Avenue.