Covington County Schools Superintendent Shannon Driver said that bullying is something his staff takes seriously.

“In general, as far as bullying is concerned, our staff goes through yearly training,” he said. “They are trained to recognize the signs of bullying.”

Driver said faculty members are trained in the steps to take when someone reports that they are being bullied.

Driver said school personnel recently went through an extensive training on cyber bullying.

“We have no tolerance for bullying whether it is cyber or the traditional form of bullying,” he said.

Combatting bullying can be difficult, he said.

“It is something that is hard to regulate and govern,” he said. “We do what we can.”

Driver said he didn’t think there were more cases of bullying than in the past, but that people are more prone to speak out.

“With social media, people are more apt to speak out,” he said. “I don’t really see a big difference of the amount of bullying. The types of bullying 15 years ago are not the same as today. You didn’t have cyber bullying then, but there have always been bullying.”

Driver said it was pertinent for teachers and administrators to work with students who are facing bullying.

“We want all of our students to feel welcome at school and a safe place to be,” he said. “We try to always be on guard. It’s important.”