Students throughout the Vernon School District were encouraged to wear pink for this year’s Anti-Bullying Day Wednesday
The annual Pink Shirt anti-bullying campaign is a way to put a focus on bullying and how to stop it.
The pink campaign was inspired by two Nova Scotia high school students, David Shepherd and Travis Price, who in 2007 organized a protest while wearing pink to draw attention to a Grade 9 boy being bullied for wearing a pink shirt to school.
The two Grade 12 students decided to stand up for their fellow pupil. The next day dozens of students turned up at school wearing pink shirts.
At Tuesday’s district board meeting, trustee Perry Wainwright sported a bright pink T-shirt to show his support and superintendent Bev Rundell said students from kindergarten to Grade 12, along with teachers and staff, were being encouraged to wear pink on Wednesday.
“But this is not just a one-day event for us, we look at social responsibility and how we treat each other all year long,” said Rundell.
Deputy Education Minister James Gorman said districts were asked to encourage principals and staff to reinforce conduct expectations in their students and to encourage them to reach out to parents for support in encouraging pro-social behaviours in their children to help make their schools as safe, caring and orderly as possible.
“Schools play an important role in helping children and youth develop positive behaviours, by setting expectations for appropriate behaviour, by teaching healthy relationship skills, and by modeling healthy relationship skills in practice,” said Gorman.
