Schools and City go orange to draw awareness to bullying
Special to the Leader-Press
Preteen Miss Five Hills Dorianna Gilbert looks like an elementary student if you see her at a distance. The S. C. Lee seventh grader is four feet, ten and one-half inches tall. But, her short stature did not stop her when other students were unkind.
“I was once a victim of bullying, but I overcame my fears and stood up for myself and I stand up for others,” Gilbert said. “Students deserve to be safe in school, online, and in the community.”
October is National Bullying Prevention Month and orange is the color that represents anti-bullying awareness. National Bullying Prevention Month encourages communities to work together to stop bullying and cyberbullying by increasing awareness of the prevalence and impact of bullying.
Gilbert is taking advantage of the month by inviting all CCISD schools and the community to decorate in orange which is the color for bullying awareness through her Paint Your School Orange and Paint Your City Orange anti-bullying campaigns.
“I’m very excited to see the orange decorations at the businesses in our community and in our schools,” Gilbert said. “All of the schools signed up and more than a dozen local businesses. You can already see orange all over Copperas Cove.”
Businesses and schools are required to keep the orange décor in place throughout the month of October to draw awareness to bullying. Teams of judges will visit each participating school and business on Friday to score what they have created based on creativity, originality, best use of space, most orange, and awareness message.
Gilbert will award the top business and top school each with a $100 cash prize with money that she raised from her stand during National Lemonade Day Weekend in May. The business winner will be recognized at the city council meeting and the school winner will be honored at the monthly school board meeting.
“This is very important to me,” Gilbert said. “I hope educating others on bullying will help both students and adults take a stand and put an end to bullying once and for all.”
Copperas Cove ISD provides both families with the STOPit Anonymous Reporting System that allows individuals to anonymously report bullying concerns to help others or connect with a crisis counselor to help themselves. All bullying reports are investigated based on Texas Education Agency requirements.