Vilsack pushes for anti-bullying law
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By Todd Dorman | Wednesday, October 11, 2006 |
DES MOINES — Iowa politicians who remain split on the issue of school bullying were called out Tuesday by Gov. Tom Vilsack with an election looming.
Vilsack sent a letter to “education leaders” urging them to take measures to counter bullying. But his words also were aimed at candidates and Iowa voters who pick a new governor and Legislature next month.
Vilsack, a two-term Democrat, has tried and failed during the past several years to get legislative approval for a bill that would require schools to adopt a model anti-bullying policy. Vilsack is not seeking re-election this fall.
The measure Vilsack backs has stirred controversy at the Statehouse because it specifically targets harassment tied to a student’s sexual orientation.
“All students have a right to feel safe from bullying. Sadly, this is not the current reality,” Vilsack wrote.
The governor cited results from a 2005 Iowa Youth Survey in which 43 percent of students said classmates don’t treat each other with respect. The survey shows that 15 percent of students do not feel safe at school and 16 percent have “verbally threatened to physically harm someone.”
The survey is conducted every three years by a group of state agencies led by the Iowa Department of Public Health. More than 98,000 sixth, eighth and 11th-graders participated in the 2005 survey. Only 22 percent of 11th-graders felt that teachers and adults “almost always” step in to stop bullying.
In a debate last week, the two major party candidates for governor were split on the need for a state mandate. Democratic hopeful Chet Culver supports the same anti-bullying bill backed by the Vilsack administration.
“I was a teacher and a coach ... I didn’t tolerate any bullying in my classroom then and I won’t tolerate it as governor,” Culver said during the debate.
Republican nominee Jim Nussle said he wants anti-bullying rules to apply to all students. He and many other Republicans oppose laying out a list of protected categories, such as sexual orientation.
“You can’t tell me that the only children that are bullied in Iowa are children that for some reason you know to be gay or lesbian,” Nussle said. “Kids that are being abused or attacked on our playgrounds and our schools and our communities are all shapes and sizes. They’re all colors and creeds.”
While the political debate continues, school districts have moved on their own to combat school violence.
According to a 2005 survey by the Iowa Department of Education, 327 out of 361 Iowa public school districts already comply with at least portions of the model policy. That includes 147 districts with policies that specifically mention sexual orientation.
“I think we’ve got some pretty clear indications that kids who are openly gay and have come out probably are abused more than other categories of students,” said Jeff Berger, the department’s legislative lobbyist. “We are clearly with the governor on that one.”
And there are signs of a bipartisan compromise once the dust settles from this fall’s election.
Senate Democratic Leader Mike Gronstal of Council Bluffs and Senate Republican Leader Mary Lundby of Marion jointly signed a letter last month pledging to take action on anti-bullying legislation when lawmakers return next year.
Todd Dorman can be contacted at (515) 243-0138 or at todd.dorman@lee.net.
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