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Safe Schools Group Applauds Committees for
Protecting Kids |
January 25, 2007 |
Iowa Safe Schools, a coalition of
educators and civil rights advocates, applaud the Senate
and House Education Committees today for voting to
protect all Iowa students from bullying and harassment.
The legislation (SSB 1048 and HSB
12) is specifically designed to insure that all children
are protected from bullying and harassment. The
bill protects children based on real or perceived
age, color, creed, national origin,
race, religion, marital status,
sex, sexual orientation, gender
identity, physical attributes, physical or mental
ability or disability, ancestry,
political party preference,
socioeconomic status, or familial status. The
legislation also creates further accountability for
schools and bullying prevention plans.
All statewide education groups have
already recognized the seriousness of bullying and
harassment in Iowa schools. School Administrators
of Iowa, Iowa Department of Education, Iowa State
Education Association, and Iowa Association of School
Boards are all on record supporting safe school policies
to protect all students from harassment and bullying.
“Name-calling and harassment are
serious problems in our schools,” said Brad Clark,
Executive Director of the GLBT Youth in Iowa Schools
Task Force. “Sissy, geek, and homo have become
every-day language for our youth. Immediate action
is necessary to ensure every student is free from
bullying and harassment.”
“Everyone should agree that safe
schools are a priority, Republicans and Democrats
alike,” said Clark. The bill received bi-partisan
support as Senator David Mulder, Senator Brad Zaun, and
Representative Scott Raecker, all Republicans, joined
with their respective Democratic colleagues to pass the
bills out of committee. The bills were managed by
Senator Mike Connolly and Representative Roger Wendt,
and received support from every Democrat on the Senate
and House Education Committees.
Bullying and harassment is a widespread problem
facing young people today, specifically gay and
lesbian students and those perceived to be gay and
lesbian. The 2005 Iowa School Climate Survey
released by the Iowa Pride Network illustrates the
amount of harassment faced by gay and lesbian
students in Iowa:
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92.3% reported hearing homophobic remarks frequently
in their schools.
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83.3% reported being verbally harassed because of
their sexual orientation.
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61.2% do not feel safe at school because of their
sexual orientation.
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33.6% reported some incident of physical harassment
(being pushed or shoved) because of their sexual
orientation; while nearly 18% (17.8) of students
reported some incident of physical assault (being
punched, kicked or injured with a weapon) because of
their sexual orientation or gender expression.
The environment created by bullying
and harassment has a demonstrable impact on school
achievement levels, school absenteeism, future college
aspirations, and drug and alcohol abuse. In fact,
there is a 10% achievement gap (GPA) between students
who are bullied and harassed and students who are not
bullied and harassed. Also, bullied students are
twice as likely not to go on to higher education and
have missed at least one day of school in the last
month.
GLBT Youth in Iowa Schools
Task Force
P.O. Box 1797
Des Moines, IA 50305-1797
(515) 243-1221
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