S.C.R. 1 Enrolled

1

RESOLUTION ENCOURAGING SCHOOL
2 BOARDS TO ADOPT POLICY PROHIBITING
3 BULLYING
4 2006 GENERAL SESSION
5 STATE OF UTAH
6 Chief Sponsor: Patrice M. Arent
7 House Sponsor: Ronda Rudd Menlove
8
9 LONG TITLE
10 General Description:
11 This concurrent resolution of the Legislature and the Governor encourages concerned
12 parents, individuals, and organizations to review and assist in the adoption of policies
13 prohibiting bullying.
14 Highlighted Provisions:
15 This resolution:
16 . expresses concern regarding the impact of bullying, harassment, and intimidation in
17 the state's public schools;
18 . acknowledges the many schools across the state that are already engaged in efforts
19 to prevent bullying;
20 . requests that educators, parents, and concerned individuals and organizations
21 establish a definition of bullying and a system for reporting and responding to
22 school-related bullying incidents;
23 . encourages the formation of a statewide coalition to produce a cohesive approach to
24 target bullying behavior; and
25 . calls on educators, parents, and concerned individuals and organizations to develop
26 a system that identifies and assists victims of bullying and assists faculty and
27 students in seeking safer schools and a more positive learning environment.
28 Special Clauses:
29 None

30
31 Be it resolved by the Legislature of the state of Utah, the Governor concurring therein:
32 WHEREAS, school bullying, harassment, and intimidation greatly reduce a student's
33 ability to both achieve and surpass academic standards in Utah;
34 WHEREAS, school bullying, harassment, and intimidation can directly affect a
35 student's health and well-being and thus contribute to excess absences from school, physical
36 sickness, mental and emotional anguish, and long-term social and mental consequences;
37 WHEREAS, bullying, harassment, and intimidation can take physical, verbal, and
38 written forms, including use of electronic media;
39 WHEREAS, it is long past time for not only society, but also for each community in
40 Utah, down to the individual school community level, to acknowledge that bullying is not some
41 sort of right of passage to be simply ignored or tolerated;
42 WHEREAS, incidents of reported school-related bullying in the state and throughout
43 the nation are ample evidence of the need for intervention;
44 WHEREAS, many bullies eventually end up with criminal records and are involved in
45 abusive relationships because they have not learned appropriate social behavior;
46 WHEREAS, it is within the goals and dictates of the state's public education system to
47 provide a healthy, positive, and safe learning atmosphere for all Utah children in the state's
48 public schools;
49 WHEREAS, many schools across the state are already engaged in prevention efforts,
50 including Utah's K-12 prevention program, Prevention Dimensions;
51 WHEREAS, these programs emphasize assessment of the prevalence of bullying
52 incidents and preventive, early intervention strategies; and
53 WHEREAS, with the help of local school boards, school districts and school personnel,
54 parents, and concerned individuals, school bullying can be effectively addressed:
55 NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED that the Legislature of the state of Utah, the
56 Governor concurring therein, express its condemnation of bullying, harassment, and
57 intimidation in Utah schools.

58 BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Legislature and the Governor urge school
59 districts, concerned parents, the members of the Utah Substance Abuse and Anti-Violence
60 Coordinating Council, and the members of the Utah Education Coalition, which includes the
61 State Board of Education, the Utah Education Association, the Utah Parent Teacher
62 Association, the Utah School Employees Association, the Utah Association of Elementary
63 School Principals, the Utah Association of Secondary School Principals, the Utah School
64 Boards Association, the Utah State Office of Education, and the Utah School Superintendents
65 Association to work together to further define and understand the multiple aspects of bullying
66 and effectively utilize systems for reporting school-related bullying incidents.
67 BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Legislature and the Governor call upon school
68 districts, concerned parents, the members of Utah Education Coalition, and the members of the
69 Utah Substance Abuse and Anti-Violence Coordinating Council to respond to school-related
70 bullying incidents by implementing a program where victims of bullying can be identified and
71 assisted, and perpetrators educated, in order to create safer schools that provide a positive
72 learning environment.
73 BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Legislature and the Governor encourage these
74 groups to come together to form a coalition whose goal would be to bring about, through
75 education and other means, the end of bullying, harassment, and intimidation in the state's
76 public schools.
77 BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that a copy of this resolution be sent to the State Board
78 of Education, the Utah Education Association, the Utah Parent Teacher Association, the Utah
79 School Employees Association, the Utah Association of Elementary School Principals, the
80 Utah Association of Secondary School Principals, the Utah School Boards Association, the
81 Utah State Office of Education, the Utah School Superintendents Association, the Utah
82 Substance Abuse and Anti-Violence Coordinating Council, each public school district in the
83 state of Utah, and the Utah Charter School Association.