A seventh grader walks into school already anxious. He is quiet, awkward, and not well liked. During lunch the week before, a classmate told him to “leave me alone.” It hurt, but it ended there.
That night, someone submits an anonymous bullying report.
By second period the next morning, he is pulled out of class. He does not know why. Teachers are cautious around him. Friends stop sitting nearby. By the end of the day, rumors have filled the silence. His parents are called late, with few details and no clear answers.
Weeks later, administrators conclude there was no bullying. No discipline is issued. No apology is made. But the label sticks. The student no longer feels safe at school. He learns a painful lesson early: accusations travel faster than the truth.
That is not hypothetical. That is what systems like this create.
HB 957 establishes a statewide anonymous bullying tip line run by the Department of Education, shifting reporting away from trusted adults and into a distant, anonymous pipeline. It encourages accusations without accountability, action without clear standards, and intervention without guaranteed protections for the accused.
Bullying is real. Students deserve help. But anonymous reporting without guardrails invites misuse, retaliation, and confusion, especially among children still learning how to navigate conflict. When identity and intent are stripped away, context disappears. Fairness disappears with it.
This bill centralizes sensitive student data at the state level, gives contractors broad discretion to share information as they see fit, and says nothing about timely parental notification or due process. In trying to protect students, it risks traumatizing others and eroding trust in schools.
Safe schools are built on relationships, not hotlines.
Students deserve protection. They also deserve fairness.
Oppose HB 957 as written and insist on a better approach.
A seventh grader walks into school already anxious. He is quiet, awkward, and not well liked. During lunch the week before, a classmate told him to “leave me alone.” It hurt, but it ended there. That night, someone submits an anonymous bullying report. By second period the next morning, he is pulled out of class. He does not know why. Teachers are cautious around him. Friends stop sitting nearby. By the end of the day, rumors have filled the silence. His parents are called late, with few details and no clear answers. Weeks later, administrators conclude there was no bullying. No discipline is issued. No apology is made. But the label sticks. The student no longer feels safe at school. He learns a painful lesson early: accusations travel faster than the truth. That is not hypothetical. That is what systems like this create. HB 957 establishes a statewide anonymous bullying tip line run by the Department of Education, shifting reporting away from trusted adults and into a distant, anonymous pipeline. It encourages accusations without accountability, action without clear standards, and intervention without guaranteed protections for the accused. Bullying is real. Students deserve help. But anonymous reporting without guardrails invites misuse, retaliation, and confusion, especially among children still learning how to navigate conflict. When identity and intent are stripped away, context disappears. Fairness disappears with it. This bill centralizes sensitive student data at the state level, gives contractors broad discretion to share information as they see fit, and says nothing about timely parental notification or due process. In trying to protect students, it risks traumatizing others and eroding trust in schools. Safe schools are built on relationships, not hotlines. Students deserve protection. They also deserve fairness. Oppose HB 957 as written and insist on a better approach.