Podcast 53: How Can You Establish A Bully-Free School?

Is it possible to create a bully-free school?

Our 52nd interview is with Tina Owen-Moore, founder of the Alliance School of Milwaukee, the first school in the United States to be created with a core mission to address bullying – The Alliance Way – and receive national recognition. 

Listen to Tina and Teacher Toolkit Founder, Ross McGill:

• Reflect on her military school education and challenging adolescence
• Describe the change Tina would like to see in education and some tips to achieve it
• Explain what made her look up a university in the phone book and apply for a place
• Discuss how Tina got into teaching and what motivated her to start her own school
• Dip into why Tina sees her book as a ‘philosophical guidebook’ for other schools
• State the importance of sharing “proposing practices” amongst schools
• Hear what she hopes to achieve in the future 
• How, as a teacher, research will always play a part in that
• Rebuke the idea that women have to be tough in their approach to be leaders
• Explain why a school that shows love to its students whilst still challenging them aren’t mutually exclusive and,
• Highlight the parallels in education for women in the UK and the US.

Remember, our podcast is available on iTunes!

Recommend Book

The Alliance Way illustrates how creating a safe, inclusive, and academically challenging environment goes beyond a programming approach that targets bullying to a more holistic one in which building relationships takes centre stage.

The book explains the core tenets adopted by the school’s staff and students, including the importance of shared power and authentic work; the role of relationships and joy in preventing harm; the need to prepare staff to support LGBTQ students and students who have experienced trauma; and systems for reporting and repairing harm when it occurs.

Tina also recently graduated and received her doctorate from Harvard’s Education Leadership Programme. 

You can find out more about Tina on Twitter and Linkedin, discover more about her books on Amazon and her research story on the Harvard University website.