NSU Horizons Fall 2011

By Michelle F. Solomon 5 horizons Florida middle-school student considered suicide because girls from her school had created a Facebook page to spread rumors about her. In a nearby city, a high-school sophomore was teased on his school bus by classmates who made antigay slurs and threatened several times to beat him. These are just two of the numerous bullying incidents taking place daily. As a top research university, NSU is home to experts on various forms of bullying—from students who are targeted to cyber and workplace bullying. Their work has made NSU a nationally known resource for school administrators, educators, parents, students, employees, human resources directors, and law enforce- ment. NSU experts frequently speak to groups or are asked to directly deal with bullying situations. The two Florida victims of bullying mentioned recently partici- pated in Students United with Parents and Educators to Resolve Bullying (SUPERB), an interactive program that began at NSU to teach students how to deal with bullying. SUPERB’s mission is to reduce, and, ultimately, prevent bullying. Among the services SUPERB provides are a hotline for students to call for help and methods to try to stave off the bullies and the confrontation. bullying A