Good afternoon,
Parents and members of our AHSTW Community, we need your help. Recently, we have been made aware through reports from students and parents regarding inappropriate/harmful/hurtful social media accounts, primarily on Instagram. It appears that students are creating multiple accounts within their profile, creating private groups, or creating anonymous AHSTW accounts designed to publicly shame others, disclose embarrassing information and spread rumors.
At this time, we are working to find ways to have the accounts taken down. However, we are fearful that other accounts will soon appear and replace the removed pages. Some of the sites only have a few followers, but other accounts that we may not be aware of may have more viewing and anonymously posting content.
So, at this time we are asking for your help!
What can parents do to help?
• Let your child/ren know they can always come to you to talk about what they are experiencing online.
• Have conversations with your child/ren about their social media usage. Check their phones and their social media usage.
• Remind your child/ren that what they post on social media never really goes away. Sites can be shut down or images removed, but people's lives and feelings can forever be affected and harmed.
• Encourage your child/ren to report any inappropriate accounts to Instagram and have them block the account on their social media.
• Teach your child/ren that if they wouldn’t say out loud to you what they post online, they shouldn’t be posting it.
And to our AHSTW students – we know that you are better than this. You also have a role to help solve this problem. Stand up for those that are being bullied. Report these accounts yourself to Instagram, or even better yet don’t be a follower of these accounts. You can always unsubscribe from following an account and we would suggest this would be a great option. Words can hurt for a lifetime. We are above all of this and should spend our time promoting the positives that are happening for our school, students, peers, staff, and community! At this time, we ask that you individually STAND UP for each other and continually strive to be better.
Collectively, we can make a difference and promote kindness and connections for all!
Respectfully,
Mr. Darin Jones
Superintendent
AHSTW Community Schools
