Bisons battle bullying

Athletes bring anti-bullying message to kids

Vuthana Suon Staff

Members of Bison sports teams are making strides in tackling an important issue facing today’s youth: bullying.

As a pervasive and seemingly everyday facet of society, the effect that bullying has on children has been brought to the forefront in recent years. It is no longer shocking to hear news reports of kids hurting and harming themselves after enduring the endless taunts of bullies.

The sad reality is that kids will continue to be picked on no matter how much is done to help. But if the “Bisons Against Bullying” campaign can help steer one child from being a bully, their work will have paid dividends.

“Kids really look up to a bunch of athletes like ourselves, so it gives us a platform to speak out and influence them [positively],” said Bison hockey player Rob Smith.

The student-athletes work in teams of two to four people and spend roughly two one-hour seesions in each school or class, devoting the first session to explaining the basics of bullying — looking at what it is, who does it and productive responses to take if students see others being bullied. The second session is meant to be a lighter affair, however, as the athletes put on skits. This session also allows the Bison athletes the opportunity to chart the kids’ progress, as well.

The curriculum for the program was developed with materials from the department of education and other various sources of information. Before heading into the classrooms, the Bison student-athletes undergo a training session facilitated by Cheryl Collins, a retired teacher.

“We’ve had a lot of requests from schools to come in,” said Smith. “The response from the kids has also really been great so far.

“It’s a little bit of a change of pace for the kids to see some young athletes trying to teach them something.”

Much of the anti-bullying campaign can be credited to former Bison hockey player Jordan Little, who was the winner of CBC’s 2004 docudrama Making the Cut. Little, who is currently playing in the East Coast Hockey League, set the wheels of the anti-bullying campaign in motion, but it was the Bison Athletes’ Council, which consists of representatives from each of the Bison teams, that jumped on the bandwagon and implemented it.

“We wanted to focus on something that we thought could make a meaningful impact,” said Smith.

Of coure, in society at large, negative associations are often made between sports and bullying. Many might resent jocks, due to the perception that athletes are at the top of the school “food chain.” These Bison athletes hope to dispel those misconceptions.

“We can maybe break that stereotype of jocks as bullies,” said Smith. “The kids can see that we care about what we’re talking about.”

Experience working with kids’ camps and hockey camps has keyed Smith into his love of working with kids. To that end, he and the other student-athletes embrace the campaign. It affords them the opportunity to be involved outside of school and sports, but also to have a voice in the community, giving them the ability to make a long-lasting, positive impact on youth.