When Susan Guess of Paducah, KY learned that her 8-year-old daughter was being bullied by a classmate, she was devastated.
“I’m a 37-year-old mom, with a very close and open relationship with my child, yet she kept that information private from me,” she said.
Guess asked her daughter Morgan what was going on and was finally told the truth about being bullied at school.
“This was an eye opening experience about how little I and the school knew about bullying,” Guess said. “There was so much ignorance.”
Guess became increasingly concerned about her child and other children who suffer in silence, so she and Morgan decided to open the conversation about bullying and share their story.
Guess met with school leaders to raise awareness about the growing problem of bullying at their school. She also launched an anti-bullying campaign that would raise money to bring the film Bully and Director Lee Hirsch to their town.
elementary school
We here at Not In Our School would like to thank all of the students who submitted short films to the 2012 Not In Our School “What Do YOU Say?” Video Challenge. As an organization that produces and distributes documentary films, we were excited to see so many talented young cinematographers coming together to stand up against discrimination in their schools!
Two videos stood out for their original depiction of Not In Our School’s message of inclusion and respect. We are excited to award these students from South Carolina and Wisconsin for their films that positively encouraged students to be upstanders in the face of bullying.
How can we show you that you are not alone?
Written, produced, and filmed by Emily Marciniak, John Karolus, and Ben Wihelm, Grade 11, Antigo High School, Wisconsin. What Do YOU Say to Bullies?