Girl turns bullied experience into an initiative

Bentonville 11-year-old’s program seeks to build up victims’ confidence

BENTONVILLE — London Harris knew what it was like to be bullied. Her experience inspired her to do something that might help other children.

Last fall, 11-year-old London launched “CLAP for Confidence,” a program to help victims of bullying overcome feelings of despondency and inadequacy.

London has shared her experience through the program with more than 700 children in elementary school classes, Girl Scout troops and church groups, she said. She also launched a CLAP for Confidence club at Creekside Middle School in Bentonville, where she’s a fifth-grader.

“I wanted to make sure that no other kid had to feel the way that I felt, like low self-esteem and low confidence,” she said.

As for that acronym, she said, “The ‘C’ stands for clarity, having a better understanding or focus on something. The ‘L’ stands for listen, to listen to your heart. ‘A’ stands for action plan, about setting goals and having a positive mindset. And then ‘P’ is positive subtalk, speaking good stuff to yourself.”

London’s club at Creekside Middle School draws about 15 girls to its monthly meetings, which usually combine a guest speaker and an activity, she said. London said the club is for girls only.

Mayor Stephanie Orman spoke at one of the meetings. Orman was so impressed by London’s initiative that she recognized London with a Spirit of Bentonville Award during the mayor’s State of the City address in January. The award, which Orman created this year, goes to residents who “have gone above and beyond to make our city a better place to live, work and play,” according to the city’s website.

London said she was bullied from second through fourth grade. Most of the behavior occurred during extracurricular activities and was in-person bullying, not cyberbullying, according to her mother, Kristian Harris.

Harris declined to provide details about what her daughter experienced, but said it caused London to withdraw temporarily from some of the activities she loved, including dance and pageants.

“It was like she became a different person,” Harris said. “She retreated and was quiet. You could tell she wasn’t sure of herself in situations. She didn’t want to say the wrong thing or do the wrong thing. She became very insecure.”

Harris discovered that a lot of resources were available for parents about teaching kids kindness and not to bully, but not so much about what to do when your child is the victim, she said.

“And as a mom, I felt like, oh my goodness, my child is in this situation and here she is crumbling. How do I help her out of this?” Harris said.

Harris and her husband, Dwight, decided to hire a confidence coach. London has incorporated some of the things she learned into CLAP for Confidence, Harris said.

“It really was through helping her find her confidence that she was able to bounce back,” Harris said.

Chelsea Hart of Bentonville said her 9-year-old daughter, Mia, has been the victim of bullying at school in recent years, mainly because of her short stature. Hart heard about London through a friend who works in the mayor’s office.

London and Mia met over lunch in December, and they “clicked right away,” Hart said. They have met a few times since. Mia’s confidence has increased as a result of their friendship, she said.

“London is so good to her and understands her. She’s helped her a lot. I think Mia has helped London a little bit, too,” Hart said. “I think it’s good for them to have that friendship, for sure.”

The federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and the U.S. Department of Education released the first federal uniform definition of bullying in 2014. The core elements of the definition include: unwanted aggressive behavior, observed or perceived power imbalance, and repetition of behaviors or high likelihood of repetition, according to StopBullying.gov.

The website provides statistics showing nationally about 30% of young people admit to bullying others in surveys, and about 70% of young people say they have seen the behavior in their schools. Most bullying happens in middle school, the website states.

Creekside Middle School uses the acronym SPICE — service, passion, innovation, collaboration and empowerment — to represent its vision. Principal Jeff Wasem said CLAP for Confidence is a “very empowering thing” for London.

London said she doesn’t observe much bullying at her school, but when she does see it, she tries to stop it.

The school works with its students on social and emotional skills development, which means teaching youths how to interact with one another, Wasem said.

“I think students can find themselves in a situation where maybe they don’t know how to find resolution. And so sometimes that can go to something like name-calling,” he said.

“They’re always going to find themselves working with people, whether they’re in middle school or junior high or high school. And so we want to make sure we’re equipping them with the necessary tools to interact in that type of community.”