Tina Farbizo
School Counselor
Diley Middle School in Pickerington

My main focus for the past two years and has been on the topic of bullying. When students come into middle school they automatically “assume” there will be bullying. One of my main goals was to make sure that we had programs in place to help bring awareness to bullying, so students would reduce/eliminate bullying type behaviors. Starting off I had the students fill out a Google Docs survey, which asked students questions about bullying. Questions included, where does it happen, how often, if they get bullied and if they know someone getting bullied or bullying. Since Google Docs organized the data, I could see immediately the trends and the areas that needed addressed. From there, I created a student group called “Stand Up Against Bullying.” The first year that I started the group, we had about 12 students. However, last year we had over 35 students! The students met twice a month and talked about ways to help the school with bully awareness. Several ideas were created out of the student- led group. Students discussed ideas on in house website for students to access for resources, stories and assistance; a school wide newsletter and designated library displays that highlighted books on the topic of bullying. They also discussed having designated Stand Up Against Bullying days in which students would wear pink shirts saying the “DMS STOOD UP to Bullying.

Our main event was a Dial up Awareness against Bullying day. We partnered with the Ohio University Lancaster Communication students and they spent the entire day facilitating activities with our students teaching them about tolerance, acceptance, problem solving, and anti-bullying behaviors. Cabot Rae, for NBC4, was our keynote speaker. Pickerington Local Central School students and members from our Parent Teacher Organization (PTO) also played an intricate part in making this day meaningful for our students. We have done this day for two years now and plan on doing this as annual event. Students feel that this day is valuable and learn important strategies and lessons against bullying. This has helped make Diley Middle School a safe place to learn. This is a great partnership between the school and the community.

Google Docs has been a crucial instrument in helping me become an effective and efficient School Counselor. The benefits of Goggle Docs are endless. I would encourage you to explore, play around, and think of ways you can use technology to enhance your school counseling program and support student success!