Bullying is an issue that schools and communities are contending with nationwide. To effectively prevent and address it, the help of a community is needed, including having students at school who embody anti-bullying principles. One anti-bullying organization rewards students who help address this issue at their school with college scholarships. The application window runs from March 1-31, 2024.
"Bullying prevention takes a group effort, and we want to reward some of the students who are actively addressing bullying at their schools," says Kirk Smalley, co-founder of Stand for the Silent. It's not easy for teens to actively engage in anti-bullying campaigns, so they deserve to be recognized and rewarded for their efforts."
While they would love to reward everyone helping the cause, they will reward numerous people through two scholarship programs. They have national and state scholarship opportunities for anti-bullying advocates to apply for. The number of applications for each scholarship is limited to the first 50 received. Those applying must be graduating high school seniors in the 2023-2024 school year and are planning to or are attending a college or educational institute in the country.
The national scholarship awards eight people per year with a $5,000 scholarship each. There are four given out in March and another four awarded in October. Two of the scholarships are in the name of Ty Smalley, who took his own life at age 11 due to the ongoing bullying he endured. The other two are in memory of his mother, Laura Smalley, who died tragically in 2020. Ty's parents founded the organization to address bullying nationwide and help prevent more children from such tragedies.
There will also be 32 state scholarships, each worth $2,500, with 16 given out in March and another 16 awarded in October. They will be awarded to students in the states where active fundraising is taking place to help the cause. The scholarship applications are limited to the first 50 submitted in each participating state, and the application deadline is March 31, 2024. The states (and one city) participating include Alabama, Arizona, California, Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Texas, (Dallas, Texas), Utah, and Virginia.
"We look forward to reading the scholarships and learning about how teens are helping to rid their schools of bullying," adds Smalley. They are making a difference, and we want to make sure some are awarded and can go on to help others in the future. We encourage teens, schools, teachers, parents, and communities to take an active role in preventing and addressing bullying."
More details about the scholarships and how to apply can be found online: https://standforthesilent.org/scholarships/
Smalley and his wife, Laura, started the organization following their 11-year-old son, ending his own life due to bullying. They turned their pain and loss into a mission of helping others. He travels the country giving presentations about bullying to schools, providing bullying prevention, giving out scholarships, offering intervention strategies, and more. Those interested in getting involved can start a chapter of the group in their area, obtain a free K-2 bullying prevention curriculum or cyberbullying handbook for parents, host a presentation at their school, intro of how all started video, and donate to help support the cause. To get more information, visit the site at: https://standforthesilent.org/
