Hawaii Department of Education to Release Bullying App

Hawaii Department of Education to Release Bullying App

The Hawaii Department of Education is fighting bullying with a smartphone application and more.

  • By Sydny Shepard
  • September 21, 2018

The Hawaii Department of Education is making steps to fight bullying on campuses in the state with the use of a smartphone application made specially to prevent and report bullying.

The smartphone application will be designed to allow kids to anonymously report bullying incidents when they see them on campus. The DOE has not announced an official release date for the app, but says it is going to be rolled out soon.

The decision comes as the DOE finds itself facing lawsuits filed by parents who say the department isn't doing enough to keep students safe from bullies. An investigation completed by the U.S. Education Department Office of Civil Rights found that nearly one in three Hawaii public school students said they had been victims of bullying or harassment in the academic year of 2014-2015.

The investigation found that the 10th largest school system was struggling to handle bullying and harassment and was failing to take steps to protect victims or follow up. It also found tens of thousands of student were victimized again after reporting an incident of bullying.

In addition to the smartphone reporting app, Hawaii DOE pledged to hire more Title IX coordinators to more swiftly address bullying in schools, revise its policies for handling harassment complaints, bolster training and prominently display its non-discrimination and anti-harassment policy online and in printed handouts.

 

About the Author

Sydny Shepard is the Executive Editor of Campus Security & Life Safety.

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