Tony Bushong, Superintendent City View ISD
Wichita Falls, TX: City View ISD announced a partnership with Kidpower International to provide the district with strategic planning and educational opportunities that further assist them with incorporating personal safety skills education and response strategies in everyday activities of the District.
"We are devastated by the terrible allegations we have heard, where past unsafe behavior by a school staff person has affected former students of our District, and we want to assure parents and community members of our District that we continue to be committed to ensuring a safe and secure environment for students to learn,” said City View Superintendent Tony Bushong. “We are making a wholehearted commitment to ensure that our students, staff, and parents have the knowledge and skills they need to prevent this from happening again. We are excited to be working with Dr. Jen Johnson, who is a graduate of City View High School and the founder of The Child Safety Collaborative, host of the Kidpower Texas Center, to bring these tools to our school and community."
Kidpower International is a global nonprofit leader with a 33-year track record of success in providing effective and empowering research-based personal safety skills education for all ages, abilities, and walks of life. Kidpower’s unique Positive Practice Teaching Method coaches participants to be successful in learning and teaching skills for preventing harm such as abuse and bullying - and for developing effective response strategies, as well as safe and strong relationships that protect mental health.
“As soon as I saw the story break in June, I reached out to Mr. Bushong about the need for student, staff, and community education and support, and he got back to me within hours,” said Johnson. “City View ISD has been part of my life since I was 5 years old, and I am deeply invested in the safety and well-being of students in the community where I grew up. Kidpower has transformed schools and communities around the world, and we have developed a long-term plan for the district that includes a culture of safety and support for students, staff, and their families,” said Dr. Johnson.
The first step is professional development for all staff next week, followed by programming for students and parents in the fall. For more information about Kidpower, go to www.kidpower.org.
About Dr. Johnson: Dr. Jen Johnson is an educational psychologist and founder of The Child Safety Collaborative, a collaborative partner of Kidpower International and host for the Kidpower Texas Center. Through the Collaborative, Dr. Johnson supports families, non-profit organizations, places of worship, and schools by designing, implementing, and evaluating the success of customized interventions and training related to child abuse prevention and healthy relationships. Dr. Johnson is also the founder of the Teacher Care Network and best-selling author of THRIVing After Burnout: A Teacher’s Compassionate Guide, which focuses on teacher well-being as a protective factor against child abuse. You can reach Dr. Johnson at jenjohnson@kidpower.org