About

Bullying is pervasive in our social media culture and can have devastating impacts. Three locals share their experiences with bullying and offer advice on what can be done to help prevent it and limit its impacts. Storytellers include: Robbie Patla, 16, is a junior at Animas High School. At age 12, Robbie began experiencing social exclusion. In high school, his struggles increased. As a sophomore, he began to seek positive peer relationships, quality mentors, trusted adults and pro-social activities and he grew to become a leader for his peers. Suzie Null was bullied in the eighth grade. The bullying increased from name-calling to threats to a physical altercation in front of an entire class. While Null stood her ground, everyone else stepped back. Now an associate professor of teacher education at Fort Lewis College, Null will discuss how those actions, or lack of action, by others affected her. Shane Nelson, a humanities teacher at Animas High School, has tasked himself with helping the youth of La Plata County. In 2018, he created Project Basecamp, a school-based suicide-prevention and character-development program designed to prevent mental crises, encourage students to advocate for themselves and build strong bonds between students. Sponsored by Kroegers Ace Hardware