Bullying is problem all can help solve

The April 11 article “Lombardi will keep coaching, teaching jobs at Washington,” caught my attention. There was little information given to a story that garnered attention in previous stories and spawned several readers to comment online. Sadly, for a story about harassment and bullying, many of the online comments sounded like bullying, too.

Perhaps the missing information is more telling. The story did not say that the Cedar Rapids Community School District found that the formal complaints filed against Coach Tony Lombardi for bullying and verbal abuse were unfounded or false. This infers that he will keep his job with some plan of probation or remediation. That is the untold story.

I am glad that the football players who spoke in support of their coach have had a positive experience with him. It sounds like they are gifted athletes with a future in football. I didn't read about support from those who aren't star athletes.

How brave of the parents and students who stepped forward with complaints. How sad that they had to go to the district level with their complaints because they were not handled within the building. If you know about bullying and don't try to stop it, you are a bully, too. Hopefully, bringing this story to light will give parents and students the courage to see that we are all part of the solution to a problem that has become an epidemic in our country.

Sue Bright

Cedar Rapids