May 14, 2010
May 14, 2010
In radio address, governor says protecting young people must be top priority
LANSING - In her weekly radio address, Governor Jennifer M. Granholm today urged the Michigan Legislature to send her a bill that will help end harassment and bullying in schools. The Michigan House on May 13 passed House Bill 4580 requiring every public school to adopt a policy prohibiting harassment or bullying at school. Granholm first proposed an anti-bullying law in 2006.
"The effects of bullying can be devastating," Granholm said. "The Michigan Association of School Social Workers reports that students who've been bullied have had their education disrupted and sometimes completely derailed by bullying. The fear created by bullies can increase school absenteeism, decrease academic performance and heighten the risk of suicide."
"For students to learn, they need a safe environment," Granholm continued. "An anti-bullying law will ensure that each of the more than 3,700 public schools in Michigan will have an anti-bullying policy."
Granholm said the Michigan House in 2007 passed anti-bullying legislation known as "Matt's Safe School Law." It was so named in honor of Matthew Epling, a young East Lansing student who took his life after being bullied by other students. But the Michigan Senate failed to pass the legislation that would require every public school in Michigan to adopt a policy that prohibits harassment or bullying at school. Matt's Safe School Law was reintroduced in this current legislative session as House Bill 4580.
"We can't afford further delay," Granholm said. "The Legislature needs to send to my desk a bill that will help put an end to harassment and bullying in our schools."
"Protecting our young people must be our number one priority," Granholm said. "It's time for the Michigan Legislature to pass an anti-bullying law for our schools. We must do everything we can to prevent the tragedy of teens taking their lives because they can no longer take the bullying."
The governor's weekly radio address is released each Friday and may be heard on broadcast stations across the state. The address is available for download on the governor's Web site at www.michigan.gov/gov together with a clip of the quote above. The radio address also is available as a podcast on the Web site as well as on iTunes and via RSS feed for general distribution to personal MP3 players and home computers. Links to the audio files and text of today's address follow.
Governor Jennifer M. Granholm
Radio Address - Bullying
Full: http://www.michigan.gov/documents/gov/Gov249Full_321128_7.mp3
Edited: http://www.michigan.gov/documents/gov/Gov249Edit_321129_7.mp3
Quote: http://www.michigan.gov/documents/gov/Gov249Quote_321130_7.mp3
Hello, this is Governor Jennifer Granholm.
School bullying is not harmless. It can have serious, even deadly, consequences.
Last year, a sophomore at Cadillac High School committed suicide. It wasn't until after the teenager's death that it was discovered that he had been harassed and ostracized at school by a small group of students.
And unfortunately, this was not an isolated incident. There are other cases in Michigan and throughout the nation of children who've taken their own lives after being bullied.
Bullying is not an infrequent occurrence in our schools. A recent survey of 200 high school students conducted by the Oakland Schools Intermediate School District found that 84 percent of the students surveyed had witnessed teasing, insults or rumor-spreading about another student.
The effects of bullying can be devastating. The Michigan Association of School Social Workers reports that students who've been bullied have had their education disrupted and sometimes completely derailed by bullying. The fear created by bullies can increase school absenteeism, decrease academic performance and heighten the risk of suicide.
School social workers also say that for the victims of bullies, the serious emotional and social consequences of bullying are not easily repaired, and they can last for years. And the emotional violence of bullying impacts all students by creating a threatening and hostile school environment.
For students to learn, they need a safe environment. An anti-bullying law will ensure that each of the more than 3,700 public schools in Michigan will have an anti-bullying policy.
I first proposed an anti-bullying law in 2006, and Michigan is one of only eight states without such a law.
In 2007, the Michigan House of Representatives passed anti-bullying legislation known as "Matt's Safe School Law." It was so named in honor of Matthew Epling, a young East Lansing student who took his life after being bullied by other students. The law would require every public school in Michigan to adopt a policy that prohibits harassment or bullying at school. But the Michigan Senate failed to pass the legislation.
Matt's Safe School Law was reintroduced in this current legislative session. We can't afford further delay. The Legislature needs to send to my desk a bill that will help put an end to harassment and bullying in our schools.
Protecting our young people must be our number one priority. It's time for the Michigan Legislature to pass an anti-bullying law for our schools. We must do everything we can to prevent the tragedy of teens taking their lives because they can no longer take the bullying.
Thank you for listening.
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