School Board approves anti-bullying resolution, wireless upgrades

Warren County High School DECA Chapter members (L to R: Reina Garnette, Halea Hose, and Brianna Cochran) on Wednesday showed off their ‘Enough!’ t-shirts to School Board members, who unanimously adopted a resolution in support of their efforts to end domestic violence, child abuse and bullying. Photo by Kim Riley. Video by Mark Williams, Royal Examiner.

FRONT ROYAL — A high school anti-bullying initiative, along with almost $80,000 in wireless upgrades and additional cables for local elementary schools, received unanimous approvals by the Warren County School Board during its regular meeting on November 6.

School Board members voted 5-0 to adopt a resolution supporting Warren County High School’s (WCHS) DECA Chapter in its endeavors to promote a culture of zero tolerance for bullying behavior in school.

Every year the high school’s DECA chapter conducts a project and maps out several related activities for the fall. The team also submits its final project for competitions at the state and national levels, said Richard Gardner, WCHS business and marketing teacher and a DECA advisor.

This year, the 50-member WCHS DECA Chapter developed the Enough Project, an awareness campaign to end domestic violence, child abuse and bullying. As part of the project, DECA students have teamed up with The Phoenix Center, a local help center for victims of domestic violence, and joined in the AT&T Later Haters national campaign to promote online positivity and cyberbullying awareness, among other activities.

The awareness poster presented by DECA chapter members from WCHS during the Warren County School Meeting on November 6. Photo by Kim Riley

Three WCHS students are in charge of the Enough Project: Halea Hose, 17, a senior; Reina Garnette, 16, a junior; and Brianna Cochran, 15, a sophomore. They presented information about the project to School Board members on Wednesday and asked for their support.

“Teenagers who are witnessing violence in their families are 50 percent more likely to have an abusive relationship themselves,” Hose explained. “This was a very scary statistic to learn… and we decided we wanted to do something to help.”

The students first unveiled the Enough Project by setting up a stand at football games where they also handed out Phoenix Center resources and other related information, including a hotline number for victims.

As time went on, though, the students chose to expand the reach of the project by teaming up with the Prevent Child Abuse America organization, which in 2008 introduced the pinwheel as the new national symbol for child abuse prevention through Pinwheels for Prevention.

Cochran, who handed out purple pinwheels to each of the School Board members, reminded everyone that “what you say to your child means more than you will ever know.”

WCHS student and DECA chapter member Brianna Cochran on Wednesday handed out purple pinwheels to School Board members to help raise awareness about child abuse prevention. Photo by Kim Riley

Consequently, the students also decided to raise awareness about the significant role that social media plays in modern-day communications as part of their Enough Project.

“The sad truth is that social media opens up a gateway to cyberbullying,” Garnette said. “Cyberbullies use the internet to tear people down and spread hate without having to show their face or take responsibility for their actions.

“What they don’t know is that victims of cyberbullying can experience feelings such as loneliness, isolation, and extreme stress and anxiety,” added Garnette. “Our mission here is to spread awareness and educate our youth on the impact that one single text or snapchat can have on someone’s mental health and self-esteem.”

This year, the DECA team also held an event at Skyline Middle School to help raise awareness about bullying. They encouraged students to sign pledge cards that state: “I believe that everyone at Skyline Middle School has a right to be who he or she is without being bullied or made fun of. I promise to be respectful of others and their feelings. I promise that I will not BULLY or TEASE others. I promise to help others who are being bullied. If I see someone bullying another person, I will go and tell an adult.”

“Domestic abuse, child abuse and bullying all have one thing in common: mental health,” said Hose, who handed out a pledge card to each of the School Board members. “Everyone in this room knows what it’s like to feel alone and we want to make sure that no child has to go through that.”

Going forward, the Enough Project team plans to work with guidance counselors and other DECA chapter members to hold more activities for middle schoolers about healthy relationships.

“Board members, we need your help to say ‘Enough’ to domestic violence, ‘Enough’ to child abuse, and ‘Enough’ to bullying,” Hose said.

School Board members thanked the students for their efforts and adopted the “Resolution of the Warren County School Board Supporting the Warren County High School DECA Club Anti-Bullying Initiative.”

The resolution acknowledges the “pervasive problem” caused by bullying in schools and its negative consequences and states that School Board members support the DECA chapter “in helping to create a student-led culture of intolerance for bullying.”

In other action, members of the School Board voted on two separate, but related wireless items brought before them by Timothy Grant, director of technology for Warren County Public Schools (WCPS).

Grant explained that the district’s elementary schools need upgraded WIFI access since each school is currently outfitted with approximately one access point for every eight classrooms. The upgrade will increase the WIFI saturation to one access point per classroom, he said.

“The funding for this project is coming from E-Rate Program funds and the WCPS technology budget,” said Grant, who noted that federal E-rate funding will pay for 70 percent of the eligible products and services.

The entire cost of the project totals $137,322, Grant said, with WCPS only responsible for $40,181 of the project due to the E-rate discount and a technology trade-in program for the ineligible items.

The board voted 5-0 to approve the $40,181 purchase of wireless products and services for A.S. Rhodes, E. Wilson Morrison, Hilda J Barbour, Leslie Fox Keyser, and Ressie Jeffries elementary schools following a motion by board member Arnold Williams Jr., and a second by board member James Wells.

Grant then approached the board with a request for additional cabling that needs to be installed in each WCPS elementary school to support the upcoming wireless upgrade. This will be done in conjunction with the E-rate wireless project and is required for the new access points to be installed, he explained.

The cost of this project is $39,000, with services and equipment for this project quoted using the Town of Front Royal IT contract, according to Grant.

School Board members unanimously approved the request following a motion by School Board Vice Chairman C. Douglas Rosen and a second by School Board member Donna McEathron.

Watch the Royal Examiner video to see other reports and action by Warren County School Board members, including its approval of both the 2020-2021 school year calendar, as well as the members for the 2019-2020 Career and Technical Education Advisory Committee.