Back to School
Mayors in 170
Cities Nationwide
Pledge Support
Backpacks for Rainier
A
s part of a major
new national initia-
tive, The United
States Conference of May-
ors has announced the
launch of a new partnership
with The BULLY Project -
the Mayors’ Campaign to
End Bullying - to develop a
series of evidence-based
responses to combat the epi-
demic of bullying in school
districts nationwide. As part
of the new project, more
than 170 mayors from
around the country signed
on in the Campaign’s first
weekend, pledging to raise
awareness, foster safe
school climates, and work
with educational experts
partnering with The BULLY
Project to create customized
not only the potentially trag-
ic effects of bullying, but
also the many real ways that
school climate impacts how
our schools perform and
innovate,” said Sacramento
Mayor and USCM Presi-
dent
Kevin
Johnson.
“Developing and imple-
menting
long
term
anti-bullying initiatives that
engage top level community
stakeholders
including
superintendents,
law
enforcement and philan-
thropic leaders is critical for
the health and safety of not
only our children, but all
our residents. We are proud
to stand in partnership with
The BULLY Project on this
historic Mayors campaign
in order to end bullying
‘Bullying has an impact on
children’s achievement in
school all the way to the
personal tragedy of suicide’
plans, rooted in Social and
Emotional Learning (SEL)
practice - to address bully-
ing in their local school
districts.
“As community leaders, it
is the responsibility of may-
ors to raise awareness and
educate city residents about
once and for all in the
nation’s cities.”
The Mayors’ Campaign to
End Bullying - which
launched on Saturday, June
21, at the 82nd Annual U.S.
Conference of Mayors
Meeting in Dallas - has
already gained the support
PHOTO BY SUSAN FRIED
New partnership between
the U.S. Conference of
Mayors and The BULLY Project
Seattle university Women’s Basketball players Cydnee Ceballos and Jasmine Johnson help pass out
backpacks at the 11th Annual Rainier Back 2 School Bash, Saturday, Aug. 9, at the Plaza at Rainier
and Henderson. Hundreds of families showed up for an afternoon of free activities that included a
free backpack and school supplies. The event was sponsored by nine organizations including The
Rainier Beach Community Empowerment Coalition, an alliance of local businesses, organizations
and community members.
from more than 170 mayors
nationwide, with nearly 70
percent of The U.S. Confer-
ence of Mayors attendees
signing on in the first few
days to tackle the issue of
bullying in their local
schools during National
Bullying Prevention Month
in October.
“Bullying has an impact
on children’s achievement
in school all the way to the
personal tragedy of suicide.
As Mayors, we have the
convening power to be able
to bring our constituents
together and talk to them
about how we can prevent
bullying, how we can pro-
tect our kids who are being
bullied and how we can
challenge our educators and
schools to become schools
where all kids feel connect-
ed and welcome. I am
honored to lead the Mayors’
Campaign to End Bully-
ing,” said Houston Mayor
Annise Parker.
Mayors in more than 150
cities, including: Little
Rock, AR; Mobile, AL;
Phoenix, AZ; San Francisco
CA; Sacramento, CA; Talla-
hassee, FL; Orlando, FL;
Des Moines, IA; Louisville,
KY; New Orleans, LA; Bal-
timore, MD; Boston, MA;
St. Louis, MO; Kansas City,
MO; Raleigh, NC; Cleve-
land, OH; Columbus, OH;
Philadelphia,
PA;
Charleston, SC; Nashville,
TN; Houston, TX; and
Madison, WI have already
signed on.
As part of the initiative,
mayors will have access to
technical support from a
team of education special-
ists at the University of
Illinois in partnership with
The BULLY Project. The
experts will provide partici-
pating mayors with advice
and research on program-
matic approaches to ending
bullying, so that solutions
developed through the ini-
tiative are based strongly on
recognized best practices
and have a sustainable
impact that lasts beyond
National Bullying Preven-
tion Month in October.
The BULLY Project will
also provide participating
mayors with screening
resources, including the
See BULLY on page 6
Back to School with Asthma? Here are Tips
P
reparing kids to start school can be a
challenge- even more so if your
child has asthma. The American
Lung Association’s Back-to-School with
Asthma Checklist offers easy-to-follow
steps to help you child start the school
year healthy, confident and ready to learn.
Nationwide, 9.3 percent of children under
age 18 live with asthma.
Step 1 – Learn about Asthma
The American Lung Association has
many free resources to help children and
their guardians learn how to keep asthma
well controlled- the key to helping your
child stay healthy and active.
• Visit www.lung.org/asthma to learn
about asthma and asthma management.
Be sure to watch the short animation to
learn what happens in the airways dur-
ing an asthma episode.
• Asthma Basics is a 50-minute online
educational tool for people living with
asthma or anyone who provides care for
someone living with asthma. It teaches
how to recognize and manage asthma
symptoms, how to identify and reduce
triggers, how to create an asthma man-
agement plan and how to respond to a
breathing emergency.
• If you have a child with asthma, Lung-
tropolis is the website to visit together.
You’ll find action-packed games
designed to help kids control their asth-
ma, plus advice for adults.
Step 2 – Talk to the School Nurse
A visit or phone call to the school nurse
should be your next step.
• Ask the school nurse to explain and pro-
vide all of the required forms you and
your child’s healthcare provider need to
sign and complete.
See ASTHMA on page 7
August 13, 2014 The Portland and Seattle Skanner Page 5