It's what the Maquoketa School District is doing to stop bullying in its tracks. A survey from an anti-bullying association says nearly 90-percent of kids and teachers across the country have witnessed some kind of bullying, and almost half say they've been victims.
Now Maquoketa educators are trying to end that statistic.
In the week before school starts, Maquoketa teachers from elementary up to high school are crowding into the Voy Theater to watch a movie, but it's not just any film. The movie is called ‘Bully,' and it shows the good, the bad and the ugly from both students and teachers.
An educator in the movie tells concerned parents this about the children who've been tormenting their son a school bus: "I've seen those kids on that bus, they're as good as gold."
"Sometimes we hear things like they'll grow out of it or kids will be kids, but that's not true," District Equity Coordinator Cindy Wiese says, "Kids have kind of changed over time; bullying has always been going on in schools, but it may look different today."
The Maquoketa School District is using the film to start up discussions and do workshops on a very real subject in schools. They're doing it with everyone in the district, from students and teachers to bus drivers, cafeteria workers, and custodians and beyond.
"We're not trying to do it in the schools anymore, we want to involve the community," Wiese says.
Sending a positive message comes with a hefty price tag. It cost the district almost $4,000 to allow every student and teacher in the district to see this movie here for free, and most of it was all raised through private donations.
"We felt it was one of the best investments in both time and money we could make," Superintendent Dr. Kim Huckstadt says.
For now, the district is using it to train staff, and get ideas on how to stop the problem, such as using high school students as mentors for younger ones.
"It doesn't make any difference to me, if it's one percent, or ten percent, or fifteen percent," Wiese says, "All of us need to care about those students because they come to us; they should feel good about coming to school."
Kids in grades 8 through 12 will be watching and discussing the movie in school next week. Parents are invited to watch the film at the Voy Theater in Maquoketa starting August 24th.
