EUREKA HIGH SCHOOL GRADUATE STANDS UP AGAINST BULLYING

It may be hard to guess that Megan Caldwell was ever a victim of bullying if you saw her today. She smiles as she goes through her yearbook and points out the friends she’s made from eureka high school.Caldwell graduated from EHS last year, with friends on every page in her yearbook. But before EHS, she attended Arcata High School, where she was bullied. “I didn't really hang out with anybody,” Caldwell said. “It got really tough cause I didn't want to go to school and my grades dropped.”Caldwell says she started cutting, burning and even attempted suicide. She then she transferred to EHS. “When I thought about ending my life, I found this teacher who told me to join this class that did community service and I came up with this project,” Caldwell said. Her project was to visit schools and tell about her experience, in hopes of helping victims, and prevent bullying.Schools have also taken action against bullying and even have to follow certain protocols. “There's a Section 48900 R which dictates how schools handle when there is a bullying incident,” said Fortuna High School Principal Clint Dewy. “This allows schools to take disciplinary action up to suspension and possible expulsion of students who are doing the act of bullying.”Dewy says they also have other ways of dealing with bullying such as peer mediation groups and bringing in guest speakers like Caldwell. Caldwell will visit Fortuna within the next month along with other schools. Her main goal is to overcome her past and visit Arcata High School. 
“It hurts to even pass by it in the car,” Caldwell said. “If I'm strong enough to go on campus and go back to all the people there, then I’m strong enough to do just about anything.”Caldwell plans to attend College of the Redwoods in the spring to pursue her dream of becoming a police officer.