Over 100 students and educators attended ADL Mountain States Region’s first interactive summit to increase understanding and awareness about the growing problems of cyberbullying, bias-motivated behavior and online hate activities.

With today’s increasing access to online technology, the Internet and other electronic media are a big part of most students’ lives. While there are many positive uses of electronic media, unfortunately they have also become a vehicle for social cruelty and for spreading hatred.

Dr. Sameer Hinduja, Associate Professor in the School of Criminology and Criminal Justice at Florida Atlantic University, and Co-Director of the Cyberbullying Research Center, delivered the morning keynote, focused on helping to create informed cyber-allies who understand the importance of behaving responsibly and respectfully online and who are motivated to challenge cyberbullying in their schools and online communities.  The Summit also included breakout sessions for middle and high school students to explore the issues presented by Dr. Hinduja, and a workshop for educators on how to address cyberbullying in their school communities.