WZAR News - Town Hall Meeting Addresses Bullying in Boyertown Schools

Jesse's memorial page can be on Facebook as well as a memorial video on YouTube.
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/pages/Rest-in-Peace-forever-in-our-hearts-Jesse-Buchs...
YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bNu9MoQJHS4&feature=player_embedded

It's always been a problem, and always will be, but some folks are working together to take the bite out of bullying. After the suicide of Boyertown High School student Jesse Buchsbaum, that is believed to be related to bullying, parents and others in the community met at the Gilbertsville Fire House in a "town hall" style meeting to discuss what's happened and what needs to be done.

The biggest concern put forth was not the fact that bullying is occurring - unfortunately it's a difficult thing to prevent - but rather, it was felt that the Boyertown Area School District was not taking appropriate action against bullying complaints. Several parents claimed that they or their children followed district procedures to report bullying, with nobody coming to the rescue.

In a prepared statement from the Boyertown School District, Superintendent Dr. Dion Betts states, "Until no bullying exists in any of our schools, we will continue to work on the problem." The district is creating a task force comprised of law enforcement, clergy, parents, and more aimed to work closely with parents and students on addressing acts of bullying in all of the district's ten schools.

Additional civic service organizations had a presence at the event in an effort to contribute thoughts and ideas. And the goal of this meeting was just that: not to blame, but to work together to see what needs to be fixed to better help those who bully and those who are being bullied, something that Jesse's parents knows he would have wanted.

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[KMSimmons88]

Thanks Zach