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NATCHEZ — Fourth-grade students at McLaurin Elementary and fifth-grade students at Morgantown Elementary are the first to participate in a new pilot program that reinforces anti-bullying messages with animal helpers.

This pilot program called “No More Bullying!” is conducted by a collaboration between the Adams County Sheriff’s Office and Hoofbeats and Pawprints Rescue, a nonprofit agency that receives pets from shelters and individual rescuers and cares for the animals at its shelter in Adams County until placement opportunities are found, either by local adoption or by relocation to no-kill adoption centers in other areas of the nation.  Each year HPR helps with the placement of more than 1,800 homeless pets.

“We know that we can transport unwanted pets until we run out of gas, but it’s not going to do any good until we educate people,” said Jay Fitch, Ph.D., who is one of the directors of HPR and a Special Deputy Sheriff of ACSO. “What the data teaches us is that children who abuse animals tend to have issues later in life. What we want to try to do is educate folks early on.”

Fitch is an instructor in this program assisted by retired teacher Dana Dent and Morgantown Elementary alumni Kati Poole, who now works at HPR.

No More Bullying! is a social-emotional learning program designed to reduce bullying, prevent violence, and teach compassion for animals and people.

The program is being taught in 22 schools in the Kansas City area, but this its first time being offered in any school in Mississippi, Fitch said in a presentation to the Natchez Adams School District Board of Trustees.

Presented in 5 one-hour sessions, participants complete core value lessons along with engaging worksheets and activities. A special dog from HPR helps reinforce the lessons.

The program focuses on five core values and encourages students to live by these values every day, including responsibility, compassion, being humane, self-control and integrity.

Why does an animal shelter care about bullying?

According to HPR President Kathy Fitch, “Hurt people hurt animals and people. One of HPRs strategic cornerstones is educating future generations about how to care for animals.”

Sheriff Travis Patten, an enthusiastic supporter of the program, said “The core values taught in the No More Bullying! program can help shape students’ perspective both in school and throughout life.” He added, “National studies indicate that 63% percent of aggressive criminals are known to have abused animals during their childhood.”

The star of the class is Ms. MableLee, a trained dog at HPR.

The program teaches students that dogs are good for protection and for companionship.

Students who are afraid of dogs may have the misconception that all dogs of a certain breed, like a Pitbull mix, are dangerous. However, they see for themselves how calm and gentle the dogs can be and start to think differently about the animals.

Each child involved in the lesson with MableLee has a permission slip signed by a parent, allowing their child to be in the room with her for the lesson.

According to Morgantown Principal Dr. Toni Martin, “Social-emotional learning is the process through which children can learn improved attitudes about self, others and schools. Our hope is that the innovative approach HPR is using to teach these important values and skills will benefit students throughout the school system.”