Pupil safety: bullying.

Existing law establishes the School Safety and Violence Prevention Act, a statewide program administered by the Superintendent of Public Instruction, pursuant to which funds are allocated to school districts serving pupils in any of grades 8 to 12, inclusive, for the purpose of promoting school safety and reducing schoolsite violence, including, but not limited to, providing conflict resolution personnel, providing on-campus communication devices, establishing staff training programs, and establishing cooperative arrangements with law enforcement agencies. This bill would express the intent of the Legislature to encourage school districts, at their discretion, to establish programs, to be integrated into the regular curriculum during National Bullying Prevention Month and throughout the year, to reduce bullying through training with appropriate activities and best practice methodologies involving collaboration among pupils and school staff. The bill would declare the intent of the Legislature that the training encouraged by the bill should help pupils identify different forms of bullying behavior, and should create a school environment where pupils know that reports of bullying will be properly handled and that the confidentiality of their statements will be respected. The bill would also express the intent of the Legislature that training include school administrators and teachers, and cultivate positive behaviors that can create a bully-free learning community in each school.