Bullying and mistreatment of students has evolved with the rise of Facebook, Twitter and other social media. No longer is the school bully limited to using brute force and intimidation but that does not mean those problems don’t exist.

Tisha Marina Bernard, of Community Matters, helped students in the program at Fairfax High learn how to prevent bullying. (photo by Rafael Guerrero)

Fairfax High School held the Safe School Ambassadors program this week to teach students how to prevent mistreatment and violence against their peers. The program was provided by Community Matters, a non-profit organization founded by Rick Phillips, a former Fairfax High student.

More than 40 Fairfax High students participated in the program, undergoing two days of training in communication through videos, reading and role-playing. Students were asked to write down situations they would encounter in school, such as bullying, harassment, or name-calling. The students then worked out solutions to the problems in groups or through role playing. One scenario had a student posting a rumor about another student on Facebook.

“Bullying in my day was a bigger, older kid beating you up and taking your lunch money,” Phillips said. “Bullying today is younger and meaner and different in so many ways. Today a bully is a 12-year-old girl who, with the stroke of a keyboard, can send a message to thousands and destroy a reputation.”

Tisha Marina Bernard was the trainer assigned to Fairfax High School and said the program emphasized teaching students the appropriate ways to contact authorities at school when they see a form of bullying.

“The importance is empowering the students and letting them know there is help out there,” Bernard said. “We help the kids understand there are ways to talk to adults without making themselves the target, like slipping a note under the principal’s door.”

The students who participated in the program were all chosen by teachers or other faculty members and were selected for showing leadership qualities amongst their peers. Chris Carcamo, a junior, was one of the students who participated. He learned to attempt to befriend others who seem lonely or depressed because it would benefit both parties by allowing them to meet new people. He learned other skills as well and was thankful the program showed him different ways to help his peers.

“I learned to approach someone who has been bullied and talk to them,” Carcamo said. “They may feel sad but if you go up to them and talk to them about how they are feeling, it could help them a lot.”

Other students learned the importance of students possessing the communication skills to deal with certain situations.

“We, as students, are ninety percent of the school’s population,” said Ridwan Hakim, a junior. “We are more likely to be able to intervene in certain situations.”

Phillips also stressed the importance of students possessing the necessary skills and information to deal with bullying and harassment.

“Students are in the position to intervene because they usually know what’s going on long before adults ever do,” Phillips said.

Students were not the only beneficiaries of the program. Joyce Kleifield, a community representative for Fairfax High, also participated in the program as a volunteer. She was trained as a volunteer ambassador and was assigned seven to nine kids to counsel. She was pleased with how the students responded to the program.

“I was blown away by the kids’ reaction to the program,” Kleifield said. “I was very proud of our kids.”

Erik Travis, another adult volunteer, is the lead teacher of the Academy of Media and Performing Arts at Fairfax High and was thrilled about the program coming to the school.

“This is awesome,” Travis said. “We have relatively few incidents compared to other schools, but few are still too many. It’s like night and day (with these kids). I’ve seen some light bulbs go off in their heads and they are really starting to connect with compassion and caring.”

Safe School Ambassadors began in 2000 as a response to the Columbine High School shootings in 1999. Phillips said that incident removed the illusion that school was a safe haven for children, and the program was founded to help students deal with bullying and other situations.

“We wanted to wake up the courage of these students to speak up when they see their peers participating in bullying or any other type of mistreatment,” Phillips said. “If we can equip these students with the communications skills to do so, it can only help.”

The program is held at more than 900 schools in 28 states and targets students in the 4th through 12th grade. The program has trained more than 60,000 students and 5,000 adults.