State Senator Wilhelm wants more work on bullying

State Senator Mary Jo Wilhelm of Cresco says she is looking forward to working with the Governor's Office and with state legislators to address bullying in schools and to provide assistance to school officials to effectively handle the problem.  The State Senate has passed a bill that gives school officials more power to handle bullying problems in the schools.  
 
Wilhelm says the state legislature voted in 2007 to require all school districts to have anti-harassment/anti-bullying policies, to make complaint forms available to the targets of bullying or harassment, to put investigative procedures into place, and to collect and report data regarding bullying and harassment.  Says Wilhelm, "Seven years later, this policy has not been fully implemented in some schools, and across the state, inadequate resources have been invested in prevention and training. "
 
Wilhelm supports doing a better job of enforcing anti-bullying policies, as well as improving teacher training and parent involvement in reducing bullying behaviors.