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On Oct. 2 lower school students and faculty attended a special assembly on bullying. Soren Bennick Productions presented their internationally-recognized presentation in two separate assemblies, one for K-Gr. 3 and the other for Gr. 4-5. In each assembly, the two presenters took on the role of actors who demonstrated different types of bullying. They then discussed how to deal with each situation. For K-Gr. 3, physical and exclusionary bullying were discussed; for the older grades, cyber-bullying was also addressed. For both groups, a final component was that of the role of the bystander, who can perform one of three roles – cheering on the bully, watching or ignoring the situation. Student volunteers took part in this section, which made the assembly not only interactive but enjoyable for the students. In concluding the assembly, a final student volunteer took the stage, donned a superhero mask, cape and gloves, and, looking in a “power of one” box, which contained a mirror, the student revealed that the power to stop bullying lies within each student, who can report bullying so it will be stopped.
All faculty and students then took the Power of One Anti-Bullying Oath, pledging to use their power to prevent bullying at Harker. Each student and teacher on campus will be signing a poster containing the oath over the next week, and the posters will be displayed on campus. Although Harker has always focused on being a safe place for students, this assembly reminded all students of the importance of keeping the campus that way, further emphasizing that bullying is not just limited to physical actions.