Schools

Is Your Child a Cyber Bully? Or a Cyber Victim?

The suicide of a Primghar teen who'd been bullied after he said he was gay has elevated public discussion of the problem of cyber-bullying. Ames school policies dealing with cyber threats are currently under review.

The suicide of a 14-year-old Primghar boy who endured weeks of bullying in school and on the Internet after he came as a gay teen has elevated public discussion of cyber-bullying.

Des Moines Register columnist Kyle Munson has been following the story since Kenneth James Weishuhn hanged himself in his family's garage last weekend.

Weishuhn, who before he came out had been a popular teen at South O'Brien Community School in Paullina, was taunted in the hallways, was vilified on Facebook and received threatening messages on his cell phone, said his family.

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His school's administrators confirmed one incident, but said they weren't aware the bullying continued and Weishuhn never filed complaints. School Superintendent Dan Moore told Munson, "The biggest battle we fight is with cyber-bullying."Β 

What can/should schools do to combat cyber-bullying?

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Weishuhn's death comes at a time when the documentary "Bully"Β is showing in Iowa theaters. The film tells several stories of bullying victims, including a 12-year-old boy who lived in Sioux City at the time the movie was filmed.Β 

The film is not playing in Ames but it opens Friday at the Fleur Cinema in Des Moines.

You can read a compilations of videos and reactions to the teen's death here.

The Ames school district has an anti-bullying policy that says bullying of and by students will not be tolerated. The policy is in effect when students are on school grounds or at school events or under the supervision of school personnel. The policy doesn't mention cyber-bullying but it does include electronic communications.

The district is currently reviewing many of its policies including those that deal with computer use at school. Drafts of the policies say that students are not allowed to use social media sites like Facebook with school computers or the school's network and that they are always supposed to use good digital citizenship and "communicate in ways that are kind and respectful."

While those policies are under review, Rep. Beth Wessel-Kroeschell, D-Ames is looking into setting up an anti-bullying hotline in the state prior to the end of the legislative session according to a report by the Des Moines Register.

Local Editor Jessica Miller contributed to this report.


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