With social media being accessible with a push of a button how are schools resolving online harassment and cyberbullying disputes?
In the last decade, middle and high school students have become connected to the internet in more ways than ever before. As more teens have social media at their fingertips, cyberbullying has become progressively worse. Resolving online harassment and cyberbullying disputes at school is possible, but it can be difficult.
Spreading lies, posting embarrassing photos or videos without consent, creating fake accounts to impersonate someone, sending threats—these are all forms of cyberbullying.
One-third of U.S. teens between the ages of 13 and 17 have experienced cyberbullying just in the last month. According to the Cyberbullying Research Center (CRC), they have collected data from middle and high school students since 2002. Throughout that time, they surveyed approximately 38,000 students.
Two-thirds of those victims came forward and asked for help from a parent while being harassed online. According to the CRC’s 2025 report, this was an increase from their 2016 data. 52% of victims of cyberbullying would disclose their experience to adults.
Proctor Schools’ Superintendent Tim Rohweder says in his own experience as a parent, it’s important to know what social media your child uses.
“Cyberbullying impacts students on a daily basis. I had kids of my own. A lot of times I’d ask them to show me their phone, show me your apps, show me, just so I could see what they’re on and what they’re experiencing,” Rohweder said. “So that was opened up the conversation that we could have about what they’re experiencing online.”
Some of the most common cyberbullying victims are older teen girls. Data from a 2022 nationwide survey of thirteen-hundred students with the Pew Research Center shows older teen girls are more likely to report online abuse, because of their appearance. Despite cyberbullying numbers increasing in the U.S., The Proctor School District has seen fewer instances of online harassment.
Superintendent Rohweder says in recent years, students have been more forthcoming in reporting online harassment both during school hours and outside of school.
“In the past, we’ve employed an app called Stop It, which was an anonymous reporting tool. People could send reports that would notify administrators and counselors of things that they’re seeing online and in the cyber world,” Rohweder said. “Whether that be students maybe threatening to harm themselves, students cyberbullying someone else or threatening violence in some way.”
In the Proctor middle school Brandon Delacey, a counselor, says whenever there is a student struggling with a bully, either in person or online, there are teachers and staff trained to help.
“Reach out to your favorite adult on campus. Even the student who doesn’t like school, there’s always one adult on campus that they like. Start with that one person you trust,” Delacey said. “They may not always have the answers, but they know who to connect with. No matter how far down the hole you are with cyberbullying, we’re there to pull you back out and help out.”
Resolving online harassment and cyberbullying disputes at school can be difficult, but not impossible. The proctor school district provides resources for the victim, in addition to counseling to understand why a student may be harassing their peers. Delacey says it all starts with addressing wellness.
“Are you sleeping, are you eating, are you taking care of yourself? Because if you take care of yourself, all that bullying stuff kind of typically goes away, not completely,” Delacey said. “But happy people are happy towards each other. That’s kind of the main goal that we go for. There’s a reason why people are bullying in the first place.”
Superintendent Rohweder mentioned there are QR Codes around the school to use the stop it app for reporting any instance of online harassment. As middle and high school students become more interconnected, they can also be more supportive towards each other to prevent bullying of any kind. Also for more information about Proctor School’s policy on Cyberbullying you can read more here.
