As violent bullying incidents continue to make headlines, nationally known anti-bullying experts will provide school officials and parents with the tools and information they need to combat bullying at a Jan. 20 conference at DePaul University.
 

“Educational professionals, parents and communities must make concerted and intentional efforts to address bullying behaviors in innovative and forward-thinking ways in order to keep all students safe and able to learn,” said Melissa Ockerman, assistant professor in DePaul’s College of Education, one of the speakers at the conference.

“Professional development opportunities such as this anti-bullying conference, where experts can come together to share best practices, are vital,” Ockerman said.

The conference is being organized by the Ceceilyn Miller Institute for Leadership and Diversity in America and co-sponsored by DePaul’s College of Education, with Asst. Professor Erin Mason serving as liaison. It will be held Jan. 20 from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. in Room 120 of the Student Center at DePaul’s Lincoln Park Campus, 2250 N. Sheffield Ave. The cost to attend the conference begins at $105 for advanced registration, and $129 for on-site registration. The conference is open to the public, and continuing education credits are available. For more information, visit http://antibullyingconference.com/il-schedule.html.

“The Ceceilyn Miller Institute is very excited about hosting the conference at DePaul,” said Christopher Irving, CEO and executive director of the institute. “Conference participants are going to be exposed to some of the best research-based approaches to bullying prevention in the country.”

Speakers include:

● Charisse Nixon, national anti-bullying expert and associate professor of psychology at Penn State Erie, whose research focuses on covert aggression, including prevention and intervention efforts. Nixon trains educators nationwide, integrating research with practical strategies to help educators create learning environments that optimize student development. She is co-author of “Girl Wars: 12 Strategies That Will End Female Bullying” (Fireside 2003) and is currently conducting a national study on the effectiveness of anti-bullying strategies from students’ perspectives.

● Judith Springer, vice president for curriculum and programming for the Ceceilyn Miller Institute for Leadership and Diversity in America. A licensed psychologist with several decades of experience working in and with schools, Springer recently co-authored a book on youth suicide prevention and intervention.

● Michael “Mykee” Fowlin, actor, author, psychologist and keynote speaker. Fowlin has given presentations on the issues of race, discrimination, violence prevention and personal identity.

Ockerman will co-facilitate a workshop titled, “From the School Yard to Cyberspace: A Pilot Study of Bullying Among Middle School Students.” Ockerman along with Constance Kramer and Michelle Bruno of Indiana University of Pennsylvania, will discuss the implications of a research-based study on bullying and cyberbullying that was conducted in four middle schools in Pittsburgh, Pa., and Chicago. They will discuss the study and best practices for addressing cyberbullying in middle schools, as well as next steps for future research. They will also explore the challenges and successes of these research endeavors, as well as recommendations for training school counselors.

The College of Education’s graduate counseling program is currently the third-largest counseling program in Illinois and one of the most sought-after master’s programs at DePaul. School counseling is the largest of the program’s three tracks, which also include community counseling and college student development.

DePaul’s School of Education is one of the largest schools of education in Illinois. For more information about the school counseling program, please contact Ockerman at (773) 325-8646 or mockerma@depaul.edu.