RIH Anti-Bullying Assessment Shows Room for Improvement

In its first annual self assessment of anti-bullying efforts under a new state law, the Ramapo Indian Hills district found that both regional high schools met requirements, albeit with some room for improvement.

The scores do not represent the level of bullying actually occurring at the schools, which according to Interim Superintendent Beverly Mackay remain low.

Under a 2011 law signed by Gov. Chris Christie, districts must annually assess anti-bullying efforts in individual schools, including areas such as staff training, incident investigation and reporting, and information provided to students in the curriculum.

Mackay said Monday night that based on the 25 categories assessed by the district, both high schools earned scores of 56.

The score is based on 25 categories, on which schools earn a score from zero to three. Two points in each category, or a total of 50, indicate that a school has met all of the requirements set by the state, Mackay said.

“A score of 56 is a little lower than we would like to be,” Mackay Monday night. “Obviously our goal for next year is to improve that score, however we did meet requirements.”

Scores are not based on the number of harassment, intimidation and bullying (HIB) incidents that actually occur at the schools, but rather based solely on the programming put in place to counter HIB.

Mackay told Patch that bullying incidents have been steadily low in recent years, and that though the score could be improved, additional programming is not an urgent matter.

“Typically in our district we add programs in response to a need, like if we see a spike in HIB incidents,” Mackay said. “We haven’t seen that.”

She noted that the paperwork required for the assessment is “cumbersome” for the district, and that she expects the score will increase next year now that the district has a better understanding of the requirements.

“Our district is fortunate that we don’t have a significant number of HIB incidents,” Mackay said. “We feel we do a good job of educating our students, teachers and families.”