OXFORD, Miss.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--With the escalation in school violence, administrators across the country are looking for ways to prevent tragic events in their own schools. One of the best ways to reduce such violence is to encourage students to report threats of intimidation or harassment, but students are often reluctant for fear of retaliation.
Recent Legislation passed in Ohio to have the State Board of Education develop a policy to prohibit harassment, intimidation, or bullying, gets a helping hand through a new online messaging service, Talk About It.
Talk About It is designed to bridge this communication gap by allowing students to anonymously report issues and engage in safe dialogue with school personnel. Using any computer with Internet access, students can communicate threats of violence or personal problems to school personnel, who help to create positive connections and safely resolve threats before tragedy strikes.
The Ohio Legislation, signed into Law on 12/29/06 was designed to assist districts in developing their own policies on bullying and harassment. “Talk About It really helps districts comply with the provisions of the new legislation. The ability to reveal the user’s identity in the face of an immediate threat is key” said Carter Myers, president of AnComm. “The reporting features allow the school, even the district to see what is going on in the school system."
An early adopter of Talk About It in Ohio was Bellevue City Schools, where the service will be implemented this week in both the Junior and Senior High School.
“We know that students are the best source of information for what is happening in schools – the key is to create a forum where they feel safe to share that information,” said Myers. “Today’s students prefer to communicate through familiar mediums – e-mail, instant messaging. Talk About It allows them to reach out through a comfortable, safe environment where they don’t have to be afraid that someone might see them making a report or seeking help for a problem.”
“The product allows faculty members to respond in real-time to new messages, so they can provide immediate help to the student,” Myers said. “Unlike one-way messages sent through telephone tip lines, Talk About It allows students to open up a dialogue with a school official.” Students have reported a variety of issues through the system, including cyber-bullying, cutting, drug activity, fighting, pregnancy, abuse at home and suicide,” Myers said.
About AnComm
AnComm is a leading provider of anonymous messaging and communications solutions to the education market. Easy to implement and affordable, ‘‘Talk About It®’’ opens two-way lines of communication between students and school administrators. For students, ‘‘Talk About It’’ gives students a web-based tool to communicate their troubles, breaking the code of silence through anonymous communication. For schools, administrators and counselors are newly empowered with information so that they may take proactive steps to communicate, intervene and resolve school violence before it occurs.
AnComm was founded in 2005 and has offices in Houston, Texas and Oxford, Mississippi. To learn how your school or educational institution can benefit from AnComm’s ‘‘Talk About It’’ anonymous online messaging service, visit our web sites at http://talkaboutit.ancomm.com or http://www.ancomm.com or call (866) 926-2666. |
