Highmark Healthy High 5 HALT!

A bullying prevention program

Additional Information

Sites to help you prevent bullying

In addition to HALT!, for more information about the Highmark Healthy High 5 initiative to prevent bullying, please see:

• Highmark Healthy High 5 Bullying Prevention Institute
• PA CARES
  PA Center for Safe Schools
  

Windber Research Institute

Highmark Foundation has partnered with the Windber Research Institute to promote bullying prevention and to make programs available to select schools throughout the Highmark Foundation's 49-county service area.

Highmark Healthy High 5 HALT^®! — A Bullying Prevention Program is being conducted in partnership with the Center for Health Promotion and Disease Prevention at Windber Research Institute and is designed to build upon advancing the nationally recognized, evidence-based Olweus Bullying Prevention Program.

The goals of Highmark Healthy High 5 HALT! are to:

• Reduce and prevent bullying-related problems among school children
• Bring effective bullying prevention strategies to schools and communities
• Educate students, parents and faculty about the components of bullying
• Enhance the school environment toward a more pro-social, civil model
• Enhance the effectiveness of teacher and parent intervention when bullying behavior arises
• Provide additional resources to all schools in the targeted areas to enhance existing bullying prevention efforts

A major element of HALT! is the continued implementation of the Olweus Bullying Prevention Program, which has been used for more than 25 years and has had significant results in decreasing bullying behaviors among children grades K-10.

The Olweus program is not a curriculum, but rather a school-wide approach that focuses on changing behaviors that lead to an improvement in school and a reduction in anti-social behaviors.

The four main components of the Olweus program are:

• Individual interventions
• Classroom interventions
• School-wide interventions
• Community interventions.

In addition to using the Olweus program, HALT! uses the following services:

• Surveying students to identify issues unique to each individual school
• Middle school retreats that focus on pro-social interaction between students
• A high school component that focuses on issues that are relevant to this student population, including relational aggression, harassment and cyberbullying
• A speakers bureau consisting of experts who present pertinent information to participating schools
• A bullying hotline/referral service

Learn more about Highmark Healthy High 5 HALT! — A Bullying Prevention Program.