A Tipton mother who became an activist against bullying and her son, who was a victim, will speak in Jefferson Saturday, Feb. 21, at the launch of the Bully Project In Greene County, or BIG.
Tania McAtee is the regional leader-Iowa for The Bully Project. When she learned what her high school son was subjected to by classmates because of his sexual preference she used the expected channels and got no where. She went to the Tipton board of education and, still not satisfied, she started a Facebook page, Tipton Against Kids Being Bullied, and has become a blogger. Her son Jake Stallman, who twice attempted suicide to escape the bullying, will also speak.
Dr David Ohrt, a licensed therapist and a Greene County school board member, will also speak.
The BIG launch will begin at 1 pm with a showing of the G-rated version of the documentary Bully. The speakers will follow. The day will finish after a showing of the PG-rated version of Bully. The event will be held at the Elks lodge in Jefferson.
Cheryl and Dave Dideriksen of Scranton are partnering with Greene County sheriff Steve Haupert and other concerned residents in promoting a local affiliate of The Bully Project.
When an elementary child told Cheryl Dideriksen of being bullied on the school bus to Scranton, to the point of her glasses being broken, Cheryl and her husband Dave saw it as a call to action. They decided there’s a need for more community awareness. Cheryl explained, “Let’s make anti-bullying a community-wide effort. It will include schools and athletics, activities, workplaces, and government.”
They talked with Haupert, and he had some workbooks for elementary children, but the Dideriksens knew this problem needed something more comprehensive.
“The sheriff’s office has always purchased materials for youth projects, such as gun safety or stranger danger,” said Haupert. “We have a good selection of booklets on bullying that parents and children can share. I showed these to Cheryl, and then we talked about bullying prevention, whether it’s children or in the workplace. It has evolved from there.”
An online search of anti-bullying programs led them to The Bully Project, a national program designed to raise awareness of the cause and effect of bullying at the local level. But with no Iowa affiliate in the program, they decided to start one in Greene County.
The Dideriksens sent letters to city, school, and county officials, as well as state elected officials, asking for their support and inviting them to the Feb. 21 launch. Dave is also making the rounds of local meetings.
“We’re having the kick-off event in February to make the community aware,” he told the Jefferson city council. “This isn’t a thing that we’re going to bring to Greene County and then dump it on the school…this is going to be a community-based thing where we can work in conjunction with the schools, but not necessarily add to the teachers’ curriculum or add classes because we don’t want to burden them. We want it to be a community thing.
“The other issue with bullying is that it’s not just the school. It’s in the street. It’s in business. It’s in government. It’s in union labor negotiations. Bullying is an incessant picking, pestering to get an edge, and the victim feels like they can’t get away from it and they have no recourse,” added Dave. “What we want to try to do is create a positive atmosphere in our community so that we don’t have to worry about that.”
The steering committee for the BIG project includes the Didericksens, Haupert, Deb Taggart, Emily Gannon, Teresa Lansman, Wendy Pittman, Coltrane Carlson and Mary Jo Koch. The committee welcomes additional community members to join them. For more information about BIG or to volunteer, please call Dave or Cheryl Didericksen at 712-652-3310. ~with Lora Koch, The Scranton Journal
