Lawmakers call for passage of ‘Jacobe’s Law’ to ensure schools notify parents of bullying – Saratogian | #childsafety | #kids | #chldern | #parents | #hacking | #aihp

Richard Taras speaks about the passage of “Jacobe’s Law,” as, from left, Pola Sementilli, Isabella Sementilli, Christine Taras, state Sen. Robert Jackson, state Sen. Jim Tedisco, Assemblywoman Mary Beth Walsh and state Sen. Mark Walczyk look on. (Photo provided)

ALBANY, N.Y. — New York State Sens. Jim Tedisco (R, C-44th Senate District), Robert Jackson (D-Manhattan), and Luis Sepulveda (D-Bronx), and Assemblywoman Mary Beth Walsh (R, C-Ballston) on Wednesday called for the passage of “Jacobe’s Law” to require schools notify parents when a child is being threatened by a bully.

The state lawmakers joined with Christine and Richard Taras, the parents of 13-year-old Jacobe Taras of Moreau, who tragically took his own life as a result of bullying, and Isabella Sementilli of Niskayuna, who received a traumatic brain injury as a result of school bullying, to call for passage of bi-partisan legislation.

According to a press release, “Jacobe’s Law” requires that school employees charged with receiving reports of harassment, bullying or discrimination contact the parents or guardians of the students involved – both the bullies and victims — when an incident of bullying or harassment occurs.  “Jacobe’s Law” has passed the Senate in prior sessions.

In 2012, the Dignity for All Students Act became state law as a means to address bullying in our schools.

Although schools are required to report incidents to the state Education Department, the Dignity for All Students Act does not require schools to alert parents when their child has been bullied or is believed to be the perpetrator of bullying. Rather, the law currently leaves it up to each school district to decide whether they will or will not notify parents of children involved in an incident of bullying.

The gap in state law has led to fatal consequences, the release stated.

Bullying is defined based on what’s listed under the Dignity for All Students Act and what incidences schools are currently required to report to the New York State Education Department.

Jacobe Taras’s parents say they were not notified by his school of the extent of bullying he faced. This was not an isolated incident as there are many heartbreaking stories of young people injuring themselves, or worse yet, taking their own lives because of bullying.

“If your child was bullied in school, wouldn’t you want to know?” said Tedisco, Ranking Member of the Senate Education Committee, who served close to a decade as a special education teacher and guidance counselor and has a master’s degree in special education. “That’s the question I’ve asked many times to parents, education officials and my colleagues in the legislature and not a single person has said, ‘No, I’d rather not know.’

“Unfortunately, due to a loophole in state law, many parents are not being kept informed about incidents of bullying taking place in the institutions we trust to educate and look after the safety and well-being of our children each day.”

“As any adult can attest, bullying has existed within the bricks and mortar of our schools for years,” Tedisco added. “It used to be that once a child left school grounds and got off the bus they were largely free from the unforgiving taunts and physical abuse caused by bullies. The prevalence of social media and smartphones have compounded the problem by giving bullies a weapon of mass destruction to harass and torment their victims exponentially 24-7.

“Through ‘Jacobe’s Law’ schools will be required to make parents aware of threats of violence to their children so that a parent or guardian can take action they deem appropriate and have input on decisions of how best to protect their child’s safety and emotional well-being.”

“The death of 13-year-old Jacobe Taras in 2015 due to suicide after bullying by other students is a tragic scenario I hope to never see play out in any other school with any other children,” Walsh added.  “With the passage of ‘Jacobe’s Law’ (A.2231), schools would be required to inform parents of this behavior which would allow them to make an informed decision on how to best protect their bullied child.

“The direction of a child’s health and well-being belongs in the hands of parents, not school administrators.  This bill was not supported by the Assembly Majority; however, I don’t believe any member could truthfully say that if their child was being bullied, they would not want to know.”

“Parents have a right to know what’s going on with their children as our schools should be safe places for children to enjoy learning and not fear for their physical and emotional well-being. Bullying is not ‘kids just being kids,’ it’s abusive behavior that can have devastating and potentially fatal consequences as my family knows all too well,” said Christine Taras, Jacobe’s mother. “If we had known what was going on behind school and bus doors, which was detailed in Jacobe’s suicide note, we know he would still be with us today.

“Now all we have are our broken hearts and memories. We thank Senator Tedisco and Assemblywoman Walsh for their leadership in sponsoring this bill. We hope Jacobe’s story can help lead to positive change and save lives.”

“Bullying has real consequences that can impact people for the rest of their lives,” said Sementilli, now a small businesswoman and anti-bullying advocate. “When I was in 5th grade, a school bully yanked my chair out from under me, causing a concussion, fractured tailbone, and neck and back injuries. The effects of the concussion left me with NDPH and Occipital Neuralgia–two rare and debilitating headache disorders.

“There’s no place for bullying in our schools and we need to make sure that parents and guardians have all the information they need to protect their children so they can intervene and prevent bullying at school from turning into a tragedy. If the statistics and incidences of bullying are important enough to report to the administrators at State Ed, then they are important enough to make parents aware of to intervene to develop a plan of action and potentially help avert a tragedy.

“That’s why passing “Jacobe’s Law” is so important.”

“There is nothing more important than the health, mental health, and wellness of our children,” said Kyle Belokopitsky, NYS PTA Executive Director. “We thank the sponsors of this legislation for their commitment to our children. Parents and families continue worry about bullying, cyberbullying, and the wellness of our children. Family engagement and continued conversations and partnership between school and home is critical.

“We look forward to working with the legislature on a solution on these complicated issues.”