Canyon Vista Middle School Principal Barbara-Jane Paris had to take a break from her vacation in England this summer — to speak before Congress about cyberbullying.
Ms. Paris joined TV talk show host Dr. Phil McGraw in speaking before the House Subcommittee on Healthy Families and Communities about the rising safety concerns associated with students using the Internet, social networks and other interactive technology. The hearing discussed the role schools, students, parents and communities must play in keeping students safe.
Ms. Paris feels strongly that schools must take the lead in this discussion, since what happens outside of class directly affects what happens inside.
“School leaders must understand that cyberbullying is an aggressive and prevalent threat to the learning environment” she told House members, “and that even if it did not happen at school or on a school computer, it can directly affect the educational process and the school environment and must be taken seriously.”
Ms. Paris pointed out that Texas received a grade of C- from BullyPolice USA for its laws protecting kids in cyberspace. Ms. Paris has worked with State Rep. Mark Strama (D-Austin) and the Texas SafeSchools Coalition to improve these laws, but she called on the federal government also to get involved.
“At the federal level, we need the government to stop passing the buck to the state,” she said in a press statement. “As they look at reauthorizing Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA), formerly No Child Left Behind, we want to see money put back in the Safe Schools pot to allow schools to develop effective protocols to manage this issue.”
Ms. Paris sits on the Board of Directors for the National Association Secondary School Principals, which flew her from England to Washington, D.C. for the day so that she could testify before the subcommittee on the group’s behalf.
If you would like to read Ms. Paris’ entire statement, please visit ParentWiseAustin.com.
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