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Peace Center outlines bullying-prevention and youth programs to Bucks County commissioners
Summary
Danny Thomas of the Peace Center presented the organization's school- and community-based programs aimed at bullying prevention, social-emotional learning and youth mental-health supports, and thanked the county for longstanding support.
Danny Thomas presented the Peace Center's prevention and social-emotional programs to the Bucks County Board of Commissioners during the Jan. 22 meeting, thanking the county for "decades long support." He said the Peace Center works in schools and communities to reduce conflict and bolster social-emotional wellness.
Nut graf: Thomas described multiple programs aimed at different age groups — STAR (bullying prevention for grades two through four), "Celebrating Me, Celebrating You" (grades four and five), Boy Meets Self (tween and teen boys), Girls Unlimited (middle school girls), and Thrive (high-school life-skills) — and said the programs teach empathy, conflict resolution and decision-making skills.
Details: The presenter emphasized growing mental-health needs among children and adolescents, citing increases in depression, anxiety and self-harm in youth since 2019 and the American Academy of Pediatrics' declaration that children's mental health is a national emergency; those data points were presented in a video shown during the presentation. Thomas asked for continued county support and noted the commission helped launch the county's bullying prevention resource center; he said the Peace Center hopes to "reach back out to you all for more support." He also introduced Connie Keener, a board member who attended the meeting.
The commissioners thanked the Peace Center presenters. During public remarks later in the meeting an official commented that county staff had been informed earlier that day of a Bucks County elementary-school student death by suicide; that notification appeared in the public record but was not attributed to a named presenter in the meeting transcript.
What was not specified: The presentation included a general discussion of program scope and a video with national and regional statistics; the Peace Center did not present detailed, itemized budget requests in the public record during this meeting.
Ending: Thomas urged residents to use available resources and provided a QR code directing viewers to the Peace Center's website for program details and adult programming.
