We were immediately aware of the situation on Friday afternoon. If you listen to the audio on the video, you can hear our Campus Supervisor giving stern directives to the students as he rushed to the incident to break it up. Our Assistant Principal was there seconds later. To put it in perspective, we had staff on the scene within 15 seconds of the incident.
On Friday afternoon, the Eureka Police Campus Resource Officer was contacted and the instigator was disciplined appropriately. While I cannot get into the details of what we did, I can say that we are doing everything within our power. I can say as a parent of three Eureka City Schools students, two of which are alumni of Zane, last year and three years ago, I am satisfied with consequences.
We were not aware of the video until this weekend. Today, we are investigating to determine who was taking the video and the student will be appropriately disciplined. "
Oh good grief. ECS is a load of bull crap. I went ti Zane in the 90s and it was just as bad then. Only difference was that we didn't have social media!! This whole story brings back emotional turmoil from years of being bullied there. I hope that the young lady can hold her head high and get past this. What really sucks is her tormentor's mother is vilifying the young lady and not placing the own blame on her and her daughter's own laps.
ReplyDeleteThink carefully about how you handle the student who took the video. Posting it may have been a bad decision - I don't claim to know the details. But making a video of a crime in progress is probably a service to the community and may be a protected act of journalism, even in a school.
ReplyDeleteI don't pretend to know anything...but it appeared as though the one filming it knew what was going to happen.
DeleteFred Van Fleck is an idiot. He has not handled bulling in the past worth a damn. All he cares about is "kids need to attend school or the schools loose $". Exactly what we were told. He needs to be fired. He will make all kinds of claims, waste tax dollars on "more training for the staff", and put out media coverage to cover his ass
ReplyDeleteYep. He cares so much about keeping that gravy train going, he went after the charter schools for poaching students (under 100 total from all of ECS) and took $6.5 million in settlement money from them. But God forbid some kid films an incident of bullying. That student will get in more trouble than the actual bullies. ~TMOB
Deletedisciplined appropriately... what a joke. most likely didn't even get suspended, more like her hand was slapped
ReplyDeleteWhy was she at school today then? I've seen comments saying she was at school today. This needs legal action not just a slap on the wrist. Come on!! So glad my kids will never step foot into Zane or any ECS!!!!!
ReplyDeleteThe kid who filmed it will get in more trouble then the girl who did the assault. ECS cares more about someone showing what a terrible school system they are then the facts getting out , letting people know just how bad they are. My kid went thru bulling. The school did nothing. The superintendent pushed it off to the useless resource cop, who was busy at home taking care of his sick wife, but even when he is there he does nothing. it is all about the money. no kid at school= no $
ReplyDeleteEureka City schools does not suspend; it makes the numbers look bad. All they do is tie the teachers' hands and the kids know it.
ReplyDeleteSo do the parents. I'm one of them that have had to deal with this hand washing by school officials. Anything they can do to keep the schools from looking like battlegrounds, only to be foiled by social media. TMOB.
DeleteThe one who filmed the episode may not have been aware it was going to happen but knew that the bullier might attack someone at any time, so was prepared.
ReplyDeleteThere is NO moral high horse for authorities to say the film shouldn't have been shared with the media. Guilty conscience, more likely, because the film shows what the attacker was already known to do.
Were I the victim's mother I would try to find legal aid to get a restraining order against the bully.
Also: "15 seconds" Here's an online clock that counts down seconds. The usual 'thousand and one, thousand and two...' won't work. The clock is faster. It would take someone almost 15 seconds to become aware that something was happening (unless they watch the bully ('just in case') all the time.
http://liveclock.net/
Watch the clock and decide for yourself. And was he watching his watch to know it was 15 seconds or was he actually DOING something?
Perhaps the school needs security cameras?
Or maybe some big Humboldt charity group could fund a full-time person to be at the school and make an actual difference? Instead of spending money on outside agitators to tell people in Humboldt outsiders need protection from the locals?
The damage done by bullying is long lasting and should not be allowed AT ALL in any school. How about a ZERO tolerance policy?
I'm glad there's the film because now the parents can't claim it didn't happen.