In 2019, the US Department of Education collected statistics of bullied students from the latest pool of data it had at the time, which was 2017. Based on the statistics reported, and using the definitions outlined in each state’s statutes, it concluded that nearly 20% of all public and private school students experienced bullying [1]. The total number of students in the study was 24,650,000. Of them, 4,986,000 were bullied in some way. They may have been victims of rumors, been threatened with harm, insulted, physically hit or spat upon, tripped, excluded from activities, coerced into doing something they did not want to do, or their property may have been damaged.
Statistically, males were equally liable to be bullied as females. Whites made up 52% of the population of bullied students, but were half as likely to be bullied. Blacks made up just 13% of the population, yet were almost twice as likely to be bullied. Hispanics made up 17% of the population, but were slightly less likely to be bullied. Asians made up 6% of the population, and were slightly more likely to be bullied.
Statistics did not disclose the racial identity of the bully, or whether the bully was a peer or an administrator.
It helps to understand what bullying is, but it can vary from state to state. The fed does not have laws on bullying, it only mandates that states must have policies to address it. Some states are so relaxed that while they have a policy to address it, they don’t actually define it (for example, Arizona as of July 2020). Others are extremely pervasive (New Jersey, for example, has some of the most explicitly broad definitions as to consider nearly anything said to be an act of bullying) [2].
As a result, it’s hard to discuss bullying without knowing what it is, because each state is different. Generally, the threshold for bullying has to include something about a characteristic, such as race, gender, color, religion, sexual orientation, etc. It does not need to be a characteristic of a protected status. It could be because of the person’s weight or height, color of hair, a birthmark, etc.
In some cases, the victim’s reaction may nullify [4] – or cement [5] – the incidence of bullying. In New Jersey, it requires that an element of the victim’s physical (or perceived) characteristic be the object of the bullying [2], but in Alabama, no such requirement exists [3]. New Jersey, unlike most other states, bullying can occur from just a single instance [2], whereas in most all other states where bullying is well defined, there must be a pattern of incidents. Thus, New Jersey can seem very tough on bullying, just for this reason alone.
If there was a definition of bullying that can transcend most states, it would be this: the unequal application (imbalance) of force or influence over another person. This should equitably separate bullying from conflict. Conflict is different because two students could have an argument over something, and say or do really mean things to each other, yet their actions do not necessarily rise to the level of bullying [7]. Their actions may nevertheless land them the same punishment, but their actions would not necessarily be labelled “bullying”. Bullying generally involves a target’s characteristics – something they cannot change. The victim cannot change the color of their skin, or their religion, gender, or weight. Attacking someone’s characteristic, therefore, is usually a necessary element of bullying (again, this is a broad definition; not all states require this.) And still, context is important. [6]
The effects of bullying can be broad. Physical harm or destruction of property of course is one result. But the emotional scars last forever – and can be mortal. Bullying can lead to tardiness, truancy, or low school attendance; or psychosis, suicide, anxiety, low self-esteem, depression, sleeplessness, eating disorders, loss of relationships, substance abuse, delinquency, low school grades, dropping out of school altogether, and can become a bully. In fact, if any of these conditions can be attributed to being bullied, it can rise to the “not fully available for school” test when considering whether or not a student’s rights were substantially disrupted [4], which in some states is a necessary element in establishing whether or not bullying occurred.
When school administration steps in and resolves the problem properly, there can be an opportunity for learning and healing. The bully may change his or her ways, and may even become friends with the victim. The victim’s responses to being bullied go away. And there is less negative impact on the school function, since resources are not being absorbed into handling the case anymore. Strangely, there are no studies on this; this is therefore a logical conclusion I came to.
Of course, the bully may not necessarily change his or her ways, and so other steps need to be taken. In some cases, suspensions are necessary, while in others, expulsion is needed. And in egregious cases, law enforcement and the judicial system is needed to step in.
Sometimes, a simple act of bullying can be remedied with counseling – perhaps the “bully” wasn’t aware that his or her actions were offensive. This is often the case with younger students who are just learning about peer behavior.
There are also cases where schools simply fail to deal with bullying, despite federal and state mandates to handle it.
There are resources for victims, bullies, schools, parents, and even peers. Each state has resources dedicated for each of these groups, and since most school systems are required to handle it, most will have resources available through their websites. If your school seems to be remiss here, review another school’s resources, or your state’s Commissioner of Education website, or another state’s bullying resources. Additionally, you can use Stop Bullying [8] or Bully Police [9] as excellent resources.
So how does the process work?
The process depends on the state, but there are some minimum mandates from the federal government. In New Jersey, the school must perform the initial investigative work. It’s the school’s job to investigate, and to do so in a timely manner. If there is a suspected case of bullying, the school investigates and determines whether or not the criteria defined by the state applies.
If the school determines that bullying has occurred, then the consequences for bullying are applied to the accused, and then other relevant remedies are applied.
If the accused disagrees that bullying has occurred, then he or she has a right to appeal the decision – usually to the Board of Education.
If either the accused or the victim does not agree with the Board of Education’s decision, then the case is taken to the state level – in New Jersey, that would be the Department of Education. That’s the Commissioner of Education’s office, who decides whether or not the school’s Board of Education has made a mistake. If there are facts which are in dispute, then the matter is first handed off to an Administrative Law Judge to resolve those disputes, and who then forwards an initial decision back to the Commissioner, who will weigh that decision along with the undisputed facts, and then render a final decision.
If either party disagrees with the Commissioner, then they can take it up with the state’s Appellate Court, and then onto the state’s highest court (in New Jersey, this is called the Superior Court), and then onto the Supreme Court of the United States.
It can be the case that the system gets it completely wrong, and I’ve documented a New Jersey case from beginning to end when that happened.
[1] Student Reports of Bullying: Results From the 2017 School Crime Supplement to the National Crime Victimization Survey
https://nces.ed.gov/pubs2019/2019054.pdf
[2] N.J.A.C. 6A:16, Programs to Support Student Development
https://www.state.nj.us/education/code/current/title6a/chap16.pdf
[3] Code of Ala. § 16-28B-3 (2018)
http://alisondb.legislature.state.al.us/alison/codeofalabama/1975/16-28B-3.htm
[4] D.D.K., obo Minor Child, D.K., v Board of Education of the Township of Readington, Hunterdon County, and Barbara Sargent
https://www.state.nj.us/education/legal/commissioner/2016/nov/397-16.pdf
[5] A.J., obo Minor Child, D.J., and W.G., obo Minor Child, J.M. v Board of Education of the Pinelands Regional School District, Ocean County
https://www.nj.gov/education/legal/commissioner/2018/dec/392-18.pdf
[6] N.M., obo Minor Child, H.M v Board of Education of the School District of the Chathams, Morris County
https://www.nj.gov/education/legal/commissioner/2018/nov/380-18.pdf
[7] R.A., obo Minor Child, B.A. v Board of Education of the Township of Hamilton, Mercer County
https://www.nj.gov/education/legal/commissioner/2016/jun/223-16.pdf
[8] Stop Bullying
http://www.stopbullying.gov/
[9] Bully Police
http://bullypolice.org/