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By Allison SherryThe Denver PostWASHINGTON — President Barack Obama hosted a first-of-its-kind conference on teen bullying here today, thrusting an issue usually confined to the school house into the national spotlight. Obama joked that as "someone with big ears and the name that I have," he wasn't immune to bullying as a child. He added that the purpose of the conference was to dispel the myth that bullying is harmless, or an inevitable part of growing up. "Bullying can have destructive consequences for our young people," Obama said. "And it's not something we have to accept." The conference, which Sen. Michael Bennet and Rep. Jared Polis used to push their agendas on bullying, grew out of a spate of deaths last year involving young people who killed themselves because they were -- or were perceived to be -- gay. "We were all saddened, profoundly saddened,
office pro 2010 key, by those reports," said Melody Barnes,
office 2010 Home And Student activation, White House domestic policy adviser. Polis, D-Boulder,
microsoft office 2010 64bit, who in 2008 was the first openly gay man elected to Congress, has introduced the Student Non Discrimination Act with Sen. Al Franken, D-Minn. "Barring swift action, this discrimination will continue to bring shocking headlines and devastate families from across this country," Polis said. Polis and Franken's bill would give a legal vehicle to people like Wendy Walsh, whose 13-year-old son, who came out when he was in sixth grade, hung himself from a tree in their backyard last year after he was relentlessly teased. Walsh said Thursday she pleaded with her California school officials to intervene and no one did enough. One teacher actually joined in on the bullying, she said. "I'm in Washington to honor my son, Seth," she said. "As parents, it breaks our hearts to think that any child feels afraid every day in the classroom, or on the playground,
office 2010 Standard serial, or even online," First Lady Michelle Obama said. "It breaks our hearts to think about any parent losing a child to bullying,
microsoft office Professional 2010 activation, or just wondering whether their kids will be safe when they leave for school in the morning." White House officials also talked about how to encourage schools and parents to monitor so-called cyberbullying — when kids get teased online because of comments or pictures posted. Representatives from Facebook and Disney participated in that discussion. Colorado's state lawmakers are taking up the issue, as well, and pending legislation at the state capitol would increase statewide efforts to curb bullying in schools, and create a committee to study the problem and a fund to fight it. Sen. Bennet, D-Colo., has legislation he hopes to fold into the reauthorization of No Child Left Behind that would give schools freedom to use federal dollars to put into place a program that rewards positive behavior. "It's not about bullying particularly, but it's about making sure we catch kids early," who misbehave and have problems, he said. Asked whether the focus on testing and accountability has moved schools and teachers away from cracking down on bullying, Bennet said it's "catch as catch can." "Those decisions are going to be made, as they should be made, at the local level, and we can give encouragement from here," he said. "No child should be scared of going to school." Allison Sherry: 202-662-8907 or asherry@denverpost.com