LUMBERTON — While most of the adults discussed concepts during a forum on student safety in Robeson County’s public school system, the only student panelist brought it home.
“Everything comes from social media,” said 17-year-old Mahlea Hunt, who attends Purnell Swett High School. “They (students) tend to degrade each other a lot. Social media is the root of every problem in school and I truly believe that.”
She was the single student among a 12-member panel made up of law enforcement, politicians, social workers and Robeson County administrators at the Public Schools of Robeson County Forum on Student and Well Being, which took place at Robeson County Community College. Cyber bullying and its connection to school safety dominated the conversation. Sheriff Burnis Wilkins was scheduled to appear, but could not because of an emergency.
State Rep. Charles Graham said legislators are trying to approve legislation that will get the help students need to deal with emotional or mental issues before it gets out of control.
“You hear about school violence, and all those things are tragic,” he said. “We’re looking at this as being proactive rather than reactive. We have to put more resources in the schools and give them someone they can talk to when they have interpersonal conflicts.”
A lot of students cannot get the help they need because they have no insurance, Graham said.
“I want to expand Medicaid to all children so they can get to school-based therapy and other services,” he said.
Montressa Smith, 45, of Lumberton, has a 8-year-old son who has attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder.
“If I had not been an advocate for him I wouldn’t know where we would be,” she said. “I really struggled to get the resources he needed.”
Her son often had to leave school because of his ADHD, she said. Although he was a good student, missing school on a regular basis can become a problem.
“He got a lot of suspensions for two to three days at a time,” Smith said. “Take a top tier student and with the suspensions he becomes a low performer.”
Leon Burden is head of Colors of Life, which deals with gangs and anti-social behavior. He said adults have to reach out and lead by example.
“We (adults) must get ourselves right,” he said. “Let the students know that we love them.”
Matthew Scott, who will be Robeson County’s district attorney starting in January, said students with ADHD and similar issues that have gone without the proper attention end up locked up.
“If we are not careful and do not provide the funding for mental health issues, we are going to be a school-to-jail pipeline,” he said.
Scott said school district administrators are doing the best they can with the resources they have for the district’s 23,000 students. The school district has 29 social workers, 10 student advocates and 67 student counselors.
Jadell Dial Hawks, the director of Student Support Services for the schools, said counselors aree geared toward dealing with academic issues, but they are there to help students with their issues if needed..
Mahlea Hunt believes it may take a while for that to happen because her peers are too busy on their cell phones.
Scott said parents have a key role to play in ending cyber bullying.
“It’s dangerous,” he said. “Children mimic adults and they are looking at adults being irresponsible. A fifth-grade student shouldn’t be worried about being bullied but worried about the next exam they are going to take.”
Panelists agreed students shouldn’t be afraid to speak up if they are being bullied. Otherwise a potential for violence in the school circulates among students through social media.
Hunt said she hopes her fellow students understand they can take these steps.
“Mental health issues are at their height here,” she said. “It should be addressed at a higher priority. Social media and peer pressure are at its highest.”
Issues regarding school bus safety and school district programs such as Teen Court, Parenting Wisely, substance abuse prevention and the district’s Code of Conduct also were discussed.
