Every day, kids experience bullying. That’s why the Girl Scouts of Eastern Missouri joined with local schools to teach kids how to intervene. Transform UR Future equips students with tools so they can be more than just a bystander and it’s working at Festus High School, where Girl Scout Outreach Program managers Kelsey Horne, Libby Kindle and Jillian Richardson led a group of 25 high school-aged students, or Transformers, through the Project Anti-Violence Program.
A key TUF component is the Transformers, who learn the PAVE curriculum, classroom management and presentation techniques to needed to deliver three PAVE sessions to elementary school students. Transformers act as peer mentors to the younger students, helping to transform their attitudes about violence and bullying.
Lindsay Burch and Taylor Noll, two new Transformers, explained why they joined.
“I wanted to reach out to the younger grades so they feel comfortable talking about bullying and so they have someone to communicate with,” Burch said.
“I know people who have been bullied,” Noll said. “I wanted to hear about TUF and see what it is all about.”
Earlier this month, Festus High students led their first PAVE sessions at Festus Elementary School. They worked with kindergarten through third-grade students on conflict resolution. Horne said the younger students were prepared, listened well and were excited to participate.
TUF focuses on a trio of schools within a district – a high school combined with an elementary and a middle school. The schools work together to implement PAVE and other Girl Scout anti-bullying programs.
TUF expands upon PAVE, which is designed to help students – kindergartners through high schoolers – deal with aggression and violence and to teach healthy relationship and leadership skills.
“This is the kind of program that helps kids deal with some of the worst things that can happen to them in school and in life, being bullied,” said Bonnie Barczykowski, CEO, Girl Scouts of Eastern Missouri.
Examples of PAVE topics include – bullying, cyberbullying, Internet safety, conflict resolution, peer pressure, inclusion, diversity and healthy relationships.
Program funding comes from the generosity of our community partners. It is important for Girl Scouts to raise money so programs like PAVE can be offered to schools and organizations at no cost.
PAVE launched in 2000 as a pilot project in Girl Scout councils nationwide as part of a National Institute of Justice grant. Since its inception, Girl Scouts has served more than 300,000 young people through PAVE programs in eastern Missouri.
Ninety-seven percent of teachers in PAVE report that students follow classroom rules better and 98 percent report students have better control of their tempers in class.
