Brockton Public Schools outlines expanded bullying-prevention strategy, screenings and community partnerships

Brockton Public Schools administrators described a multi-pronged approach to bullying prevention and student mental health at a meeting of the district’s Mental Health & Well‑Being Subcommittee, highlighting expanded screening, classroom curriculum, peer mediation and community referral services.

School officials said the work matters because it ties district-wide social-emotional learning (SEL) data to targeted interventions and outside referrals for students identified as at risk. The district said it will resume a scheduled review of its bullying prevention and intervention plan, solicit community feedback, and present updated screening results and staffing status in the coming months.

District leaders described three main pillars of the approach: classroom instruction and recurring lessons tied to a health curriculum; districtwide SEL screening used to identify students for extra support; and linkages to outside providers for care coordination. “Our responsibility with bullying is to provide the educational piece, help the students identify what bullying is,” Dennis Genich, director of health for Brockton Public Schools, said. “If you are the victim of bullying, how to deal with that, how to get help, how to recognize it and talk to either a trusted adult.”

Curriculum and classroom work: Officials said Health Smart is the district’s primary health curriculum and that Character Strong provides a research-based tier‑1 SEL program used across grades. John Snelgrove, who leads SEL programming, described Character Strong as “the premier tier‑1 curriculum in the country” and said teachers are encouraged to use modules at least 30 to 45 minutes weekly. Staff emphasized that bullying content is not delivered as a single unit but is reinforced across topics (nutrition, body image, team sports) and grade levels.

Peer mediat…