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Kennedy High teacher honored for violence prevention
She helps students aid their bullied peers at the Cedar Rapids school
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CEDAR RAPIDS — A Kennedy High School teacher in Cedar Rapids is the first recipient of a statewide award that recognizes efforts to curb bullying, gender violence and sexual harassment among students.
Jenny Wagner, a special-education teacher at the school for about two decades, recently received the inaugural Dan Marburger Mentors in Violence Prevention Advocacy Award for an individual. The award is set to be bestowed annually by the University of Northern Iowa.
Marburger was a principal of Perry High School who was shot and killed by a student last year. Gov. Kim Reynolds recently said Marburger was "a hero who gave his life to save his students." He died along with a sixth-grade student and the shooter, a 17-year-old boy who reportedly had been bullied for years.
UNI's Patricia A. Tomson Center for Violence Prevention also this year recognized a three-person violence advisory panel at Perry High School with a team award.
Wagner has led the Mentors in Violence Prevention program at Kennedy since its inception in 2017. It is meant to empower students to speak up for their peers.
Q. What is the MVP program?
A. MVP, or Mentors in Violence Prevention, is a violence prevention program centered on peer leadership and the power of effective bystander intervention. Through student-to-student conversations, the participants are able to establish shared language around violence prevention, evaluate scenarios to better recognize concerning behavior that could escalate to harm and explore options we have if we are a bystander to potential violence. The program raises awareness about unhealthy behaviors and relationships and empowers students to stand up to or for someone who may be in danger.
Q. How do students participate?
A. Our student leaders, called mentors, lead conversations through planned lessons with our freshmen in homerooms once a month. Students in grades 10 to 12 serve as our mentors and join the team through staff recommendations as well as initiated by their own interest. Students in ninth grade receive the program as our mentees. In the early fall, our seasoned mentors lead the training to help transition new members and build cohesion among the group. Beyond the homeroom sessions, our students have participated in other ways such as leading lessons in our middle schools and worked with other (Kennedy High School) student groups to develop content.
Q. How has the program helped create a safer school environment at Kennedy?
A. Now that our program has existed long enough for every student to have a full year of MVP, it's built accountability to one another for that learning. While we don't expect one lesson to be sufficient for everyone to fully learn what behaviors are considered "red flags," enough people have enough understanding so that students can say to someone: "Hey, that's not OK." To address those times where someone may not (intervene) in a potentially harmful interaction because they don't know the right thing to do, MVP empowers our students with options so they can do something.
It also creates a safer environment because our mentors facilitate MVP lessons modeling an open mind and dialogue. The mentors know that if someone's comment doesn't immediately reflect their own position and they respond contentiously, the conversation is shut down. Our students have learned to have curiosity, consider different perspectives, and look for ways to promote respect even when the conversation feels clunky or intimidating. The thoughtfulness of our mentors in vulnerable conversations have made it safe for everyone to be honest and make space for growth.
Q. Why did you get involved to lead the program?
A. I was fortunate to participate in the district training in 2016. I imagine many of us recall a time we knew someone who needed someone else to speak up for them or to bring awareness that something wasn't quite right, but we missed the opportunity because we didn't feel confident in knowing exactly what to do. I am passionate that MVP makes it OK, and provides the vocabulary to talk about behavior that could lead to abuse or violence and gives structure to safe and effective bystander intervention. I also got involved because MVP insists this is a program led by students for students. When adults de-center themselves and trust the power of our youth, it unlocks limitless potential! This award really belongs to all the student mentors who've led MVP since 2017. I also got involved because I'm organized and don't give up on things I care about despite the challenges.
Q. How significant is the award for your program?
A. This is the third award our MVP team has received since 2017 and I couldn't be more proud of the students. Our students meet with their freshmen homerooms once a month and it can be hard to discern in those 40 minutes if the conversation makes a difference for young learners. That nagging feeling of "are we doing enough?" can be discouraging! Earning recognition, and sustaining the support at our school, validates that the students' efforts matter.
Q. How might the program evolve in the future?
A. That's a great question and one I can't answer with any authority. Since it's a peer leadership model, I would only want MVP's evolution informed by our students' voice. Professionally, I am led by the directors of the Patricia A. Tomson Center for Violence Prevention at the University of Northern Iowa, who awarded us with this incredible honor, and we will continue to work closely with that team as the program evolves.
Comments: (319) 368-8541; jared.strong@thegazette.com
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