October was National Bullying Awareness month. The Peer Educators and Project SPECTRUM at Sachem East, led by teacher Erin Regan-Gearns, participated in many activities that aimed at encouraging students to stand up to bullying.
Project SPECTRUM is run by 11th and 12th grade Peer Educators and stands for Sachem Promotes Equity Cooperation Tolerance Respect Unity Mediation.
East hosted local author and Sachem parent, Patty Blount, to discuss her new novel Send. Mrs. Blount met with students throughout the day to discuss the inspiration for her work as well as her personal experiences as the mother of a victim of bullying and the negative impact bullying has on the families of both perpetrators and victims. Students and teachers alike were moved by Mrs. Blount’s presentation and are excited to read her novel, which is available on Amazon.com.
Mrs. Gearns secured funding through a partnership with Donors Choose.org and The Bully Project: 1 Million Kids, for her students to have a private viewing of the documentary Bully at Loews in Stony Brook. Bully, released in March of last year, received much media attention as it provides a shocking and painfully realistic look into the lives of several young people who have been bullied, two of whom took their lives in response to the harassment they endured. The Peer Educators were so moved by the stories and experiences portrayed in the film that they have begun working on ways to encourage their peers and younger students to stand up to bullies and give a voice to those who may be unable to stand up for themselves. There are many projects in the works to deliver these messages at East, other buildings, and the community over the next few months.
Peer Educators also attended the Unity Day Conference, sponsored by The Suffolk Center on the Holocaust, Diversity & Human Understanding together with the Suffolk County Human Rights Commission and the Suffolk County Anti-Bias Task Force. Students in attendance learned about topics such as cyber bullying, bullying legislation on the national and local levels, and strategies to raise awareness in schools. All of the activities that the Peer Educators participated in during October have provided them with the foundation necessary to educate others on the impact of bullying. Their goal is to encourage others to stand up, rather than stand by, when they witness bullying.