To the editor:
As a parent in the Shawano community, I am concerned about the bullying issues families have been bringing forward and how our school district is responding. I brought this concern forward to the school board on Oct. 26 during the monthly school board meeting.
During a recent interview on WTCH’s Breakfast Club on Oct. 28, our superintendent, Kurt Krizan, stated, “If I call him stupid every single day, that still doesn’t fall under bullying.”
I believe this statement deserves serious consideration.
What happens to a child who is called stupid or dumb every single day? Over time, those words can wear down a child’s confidence, damage their self-worth and make them question their own abilities. They may begin to believe what they are being told, dread going to school, withdraw from friends or feel like they don’t belong.
Repeated humiliation can take an emotional toll that isn’t always visible to the adults around them. Just because there are no physical injuries doesn’t mean a child isn’t being hurt.
Research shows that bullying victimization is associated with depression, anxiety and other lasting mental health difficulties. The National Academies of Sciences, Engineering and Medicine addressed these effects in its 2016 report, “Preventing Bullying Through Science, Policy and Practice.” Research published in “Archives of Disease in Childhood” in 2015 also examined the long-term effects of bullying.
Federal guidance from www.stopbullying.gov recognizes name-calling and teasing as forms of verbal bullying. Not every insult automatically meets the definition of bullying, but repeated name-calling should not be dismissed without considering the circumstances, pattern of behavior and impact on the child.
This is not about labeling every disagreement as bullying. It is about ensuring repeated harmful behavior is taken seriously, investigated appropriately and addressed consistently.
Children deserve to feel safe at school. Parents deserve confidence that their concerns will lead to meaningful action. Bullying prevention should be about protecting children, not finding reasons why their experiences don’t qualify.
Shawano School District, do better.
Stephanie Raddant, Shawano
