Reports of bullying in Utah increased on SafeUT app over last year
Nov 13, 2024, 6:00 AM | Updated: Nov 14, 2024, 4:44 pm
(SafeUT)
(SafeUT)
SALT LAKE CITY — People are reporting more instances of bullying in K-12 schools in Utah, according to data from the self-reporting app SafeUT.
SafeUT allows people to report safety concerns like suicide, bullying and threats of violence.
The app released its annual report, which looked at data from July 2023 to June 2024.
According to SafeUT, bullying tips made up 26% of K-12 tips on the app for this period.
Rachel Lucynski is the director of Community Crisis Services with the Huntsman Mental Health Institute. She said this was the first time bullying was the top reported tip in the Safe UT app.
The app allows users to report bullying they see or deal with.
“Concerns reported about verbal bullying, harassment, things that are happening in the hallways or in classrooms. And things that are happening in person or cyberbullying, things that are happening online,” Lucynski said.
She said more people are recognizing bullying for what it is.
“Someone who is mean to you in the hallway or on the playground. I think we’re recognizing more and more that those interactions can have really harmful long-term effects.”
Why are there more reports of bullying in Utah?
Lucynski said they can’t tell with certainty why the number of reports increased. Some factors that might have contributed to the increase include more awareness of bullying, more people using the app or more instances of bullying.
SafeUT also recently changed the way it categorizes the tips.
Lucynski said the reports are helping the community keep schools safe and encouraging students to come forward with concerns.
“I think we’re also recognizing that people know more than ever what the signs of bullying are and what the effects of bullying are. And so they’re standing up to that and saying ‘we really shouldn’t be treating each other this way, we have to report these concerns and really improve the culture or our school.”
Lucynski said they’ve also seen increased rates of depression and anxiety, both of which could be a result or cause of bullying.
