North Bay students say No to bullying

Students and teachers at École publique l'Odyssée were in pink Thursday to promote Non au Bullying.

Starting out the day’s event, North Bay Mayor Al McDonald asked students to take the Onepledge step. On behalf of students at l'Odyssée, Rachael Robertson and Cassidy Villeneuve, took the pledge to speak up against domestic violence in our community.  

Police Chief Paul Cook and executive director of Transition House, Janine Lafreniere, explain that North Bay Police receive 3 to 4 emergency calls daily to respond to incidents of domestic violence.

The lead teacher for Non au Bullying, Sylvie Vannier, says she was bullied and felt helpless as a teen. About 5 years ago, distraught students approached her after a bullied North American teen committed suicide.

“This is an ongoing work that has turned into a school culture. The special ‘pink days’ are reminders of how to behave every day. Students here are mindful of how they act and the words they use. And our school feels safe and inclusive for our LGBTQ students.”

Vannier talked about teens making strategies for having healthy relationships."If your boyfriend texts you 200 times in a day, it might not be because he loves you. It might be about control. It’s important for teens to realize the difference."

"We have to talk about mental health as well because those that are being bullied can feel isolated and become depressed.”

A filming team from the University of Queens is at the school producing webcasts and doing research for http://www.prevnet.ca, an authority on bullying. Vanier says PrevNet has been following École publique l'Odyssée. “One of the leads for the Institute of Education was a staff member on our board and knew of our ongoing awareness with Nonaubullying.

Anti-bullying week wraps up November 22^nd. To read about bullying and the law please click on: http://northbaypolice.ca/newsroom/news-releases/1276-17-november-20142