Delta Sierra principal seeks to nip bullying problems in the bud

Following concerns about bullying that were brought up at a Lodi Unified School District Board of Education meeting in September, Delta Sierra Middle School Principal Brad Watson spoke on Thursday about the school’s policy for handling bullying.

Mercedes Fernandez addressed the school board during the Sept. 19 meeting at the James Areida Education Support Center, saying that her niece and another student had been the victims of an ongoing bullying problem at Delta Sierra. The bullying lasted from August to September, she said, with at least one physical fight in August. Fernandez said she believed the school’s administration did not handle the situation appropriately. Lorraine Martin, who said she was the grandmother of the other victim, requested a meeting with the middle school’s administration and Superintendent Cathy Nichols-Washer. That meeting never took place, according to Martin.

“I made a formal report to the superintendent in August, and I got a phone call saying that (Nichols-Washer) would speak to (Watson). I said that I wanted to be at that meeting, but they never returned my calls,” Martin said.

While Watson could not comment on the case for confidentiality reasons, he was able to provide some insight into the school district’s disciplinary policies regarding bullying, as well as different programs that Delta Sierra uses to prevent bullying from happening in the first place.

One such program is Momentum, sponsored by the Nextgen Academy — a group that facilitates various leadership trainings for students and adults alike.

The Momentum program encourages students to interact with classmates they otherwise might not have, enabling them to share life experiences and build positive relationships, according to Watson.

“This is our third year with Momentum. They’re great because a team of young people comes in and runs the groups. They came in this morning with some get-to-know-you activities, then, throughout the day, progressing to more and more personal issues where students were able to see how they were able to overcome their fears and make good choices,” Watson said.

Besides Momentum, Delta Sierra teaches students about PRIDE; or the principles of being Present and Prepared, Respectfulness, Integrity, Determination and Etiquette. These principles are intended to govern students’ behavior while at school, Watson said.

When preventative measures such as these do not work, and bullying does occur, Delta Sierra follows the district’s Student Discipline and Intervention Matrix, which sets the standards for how all schools respond to bullying, he said.

“When handling bullying, or any kind of antisocial behavior, we use more than just a one-shot approach, more than just one method,” Watson said.

This matrix classifies most bullying offenses as either Level One, which includes ver-

bal harassment and cyber bullying, or Level Two, consisting of physical fights and threats or harassment of any kind based on race, disability, sex or any other protected group. Suspensions and expulsions are neither allowed nor recommended for these two levels, unless other methods of intervention have failed, Watson said. Even then, students would only be suspended for one or two days, and the police are not contacted.

Level Three or Four offenses, which involve more severe or repeated cases of physical violence, can result in up to five days of out-of-school suspension, although Watson explained that in-school suspension is preferred whenever possible, as it allows students to complete their classwork while under the school’s supervision.

Instead, students who bully their peers meet with counselors or the school’s therapist to resolve the conflict and repair the relationships between the students. Parents may also be involved, if necessary, as Watson believes that a collaborative effort between parents and schools is the best way to ensure the social and academic success of all students.

“At some point, we have to recognize that we all have to work together. The schools work with the parents, the parents work with the schools and the parents and schools work with the students because we all want the same thing, and that’s for our children to succeed,” Watson said.