District officials have replaced administrators at a Moreno Valley middle school where a boy died after being assaulted by two other students.

The Press-Enterprise reports Thursday that the Moreno Valley Unified School District is replacing Principal Scott Walker and Assistant Principal Kamilah O’Connor at Landmark Middle School.

The new principal, Rafael Garcia, was the district’s coordinator for child welfare and attendance.

Principal Scott Walker and Assistant Principal Kamilah O’Connor are out; Rafael Garcia named principal

Moreno Valley Unified has replaced both top administrators at Landmark Middle School, where a boy died after being assaulted by two other students in September.

Replacements for Principal Scott Walker and Assistant Principal Kamilah O’Connor were announced at the Tuesday, Oct. 29, school board meeting. O’Connor’s name was listed a day earlier in a legal filing that alleged that she ignored a complaint of bullying that led to the death of eighth grader Diego Stolz last month.

Superintendent Martinrex Kedziora and the school board “want to provide students with the best academic, social and emotional experience while they are in our schools,” a Moreno Valley Unified School District statement released Wednesday said. “They understand that each school has unique needs, and we want to better address those needs at each school.”

Starting Wednesday, Landmark’s new principal is Rafael Garcia. He had been the district’s coordinator for child, welfare and attendance. Before joining the district in 2016, Garcia worked for the Val Verde Unified School District, including jobs as an interim and assistant

 September 26, 2019 at 1:29 p.m. PDT

A 13-year-old California boy has died more than a week after being punched in an attack by two boys that was caught on video.

The middle school teen — who has been identified only by his first name, Diego — was pronounced clinically dead on Tuesday night, the Riverside County Sheriff’s Department said in a statement. Diego had been hospitalized since the Sept. 16 attack at Landmark Middle School in Moreno Valley, Calif., roughly 65 miles east of Los Angeles. The sheriff’s department said Diego’s family will donate the boy’s organs “to transform this tragedy into the gift of life for other children.”

Students confront superintendent after Calif. boy dies after school beatingDiego, 13, died outside his Moreno Valley, Calif., school on Sept. 16 after being punched during a fight. Students and parents confronted the superintendent. (Moreno Valley Students Matter/Facebook)

Families in the 33,000-student Moreno Valley Unified School District reacted with grief and outrage after the attack. Parents and students gathered last Friday in a “Ditch for Diego” protest that went from a nearby community park to the district’s registration office. Diego’s death Tuesday night prompted more memorials, vigils — and heated confrontations with district officials whom some parents and students accused of mishandling what they call a pervasive bullying problem.

Days before he was fatally attacked at his middle school in September, 13-year-old Diego Stolz told an administrator that he was being bullied by other students.

Diego Stolz is seen in a photo tweeted out by a family member.

But Landmark Middle School officials did nothing, and the boy was assaulted and killed by the same classmates at the Moreno Valley campus, according to an attorney for the victim’s family.

A legal claim against Moreno Valley Unified School District was filed last Friday by Juan and Felipe Salcedo, Diego’s aunt and uncle who raised him from the age of 1 following his mother’s death.

On Tuesday, attorney Dave Ring announced the claim, a precursor to a wrongful death lawsuit.

The family of a 13-year-old boy who was fatally injured during a confrontation with two classmates on a Moreno Valley middle school campus announced today they’re suing the Moreno Valley Unified School District for wrongful death and civil rights violations, alleging their pleas to address bullying of the teen were largely ignored.

“This family did all the right things. They went in and complained and did everything right. But the school failed them,” attorney David Ring told reporters during a news briefing at the Mission Inn Hotel & Spa in Riverside. “The administration could have prevented this from happening, and they blew it.”

Ring, who was retained by the legal guardians of the victim, Diego Stolz, filed a tort claim in Riverside County Superior Court, seeking damages and “equitable relief” -- policy changes -- from MVUSD.

The damage award being sought, which Ring acknowledged is an unsettled figure that will likely change, is $100 million.

uana Salcedo, aunt and guardian of 13-year-old Diego Stolz, cries as she sits next to the family’s attorney David Ring during a press conference in Riverside Tuesday, Oct. 29, 2019. One of the defendants in Diego’s death was released to home custody Friday, Nov. 1

mber 1, 2019 at 6:06 pm | UPDATED: November 1, 2019 at 6:06 pm

The two defendants in the deadly assault of Landmark Middle School student Diego Stolz were released to home custody Friday, Nov. 1, attorneys say.

Attorneys for the two 13-year-old boys say Riverside County Superior Court Judge Roger Luebs weighed factors including family support, an “exceptional” behavior report for his time in Juvenile Hall, and the absence of any prior juvenile offenses.

Prosecutors charged the two with voluntary manslaughter and assault by means of force likely to produce great bodily injury after saying one of them suddenly punched Stolz, who had been standing with his hands at his side, and knocked Stolz’s head against a column. Stolz fell to the ground, but the two continued attacking him, a video shows.

Ontario-Montclair School District family & Collaborative Services Clinical Supervisor Jose A. Gonzalez speaks during a suicide prevention workshop for parents and students at Hill Auditorium in Ontario on Wednesday, Sep 11, 2019. (Photo by Terry Pierson, The Press-Enterprise/SCNG)  

By Beau Yarbrough | byarbrough@scng.com | Inland Valley Daily BulletinPUBLISHED: September 23, 2019 at 6:00 am | UPDATED: October 1, 2019 at 10:17 am

Sep 09, 2019 · INDIANAPOLIS -- September is National Suicide Prevention Month. In Fox59's Kids First segment this month, we are learning how you can help save the life of a young person. Sadly, 1 in 5 …

By Sandra Emerson | semerson@scng.com | September 3, 2012 at 12:00 am

Special Section: Safe Schools

Four teachers in the Chino Valley Unified School District have been involved in sexual relations with students in recent years, according to documents provided by the district. 

Three of the four teachers allegedly involved in sexual relationships with students were arrested, and two of them pleaded guilty to criminal charges. 

There were 10 documented cases of teacher misconduct of all kinds since the 2005-06 academic year. 

Eight of the 10 teachers resigned and one temporary teacher was released. The 10th case is ongoing. 

The school district provided the documents in response to a Public Records Act request made by the Inland Valley Daily Bulletin, The Sun and Redlands Daily Facts. 

The newspapers are compiling a Safe Schools special report, requesting documents from 19 school districts concerning complaints of teacher misconduct. 

The district redacted the teachers’ names in the records provided to the Daily Bulletin, but the records of two cases match those of two Chino Hills High School teachers who pleaded guilty in 2011 for having a sexual relationship with a student during the 2009-10 school year. 

One of the cases involved Chino Hills High School science teacher John Hirsch, who pleaded guilty in March 2011 to unlawful sexual intercourse and committing a lewd act upon a child. 

The student involved with Hirsch filed a lawsuit against the school district in June 2011, which is still ongoing. 

Sandy Thornton looks at some of the dozens of  silhouetttes that represented young people who committed suicide because of bullying.  The Ability Awareness Project held an event at Main Beach, Laguna Beach on Oct. 7.  On display were dozens of images of children who lost their lives due to bullying. 

A new national report focusing on women’s and children’s health has found a 34% increase in teen suicides among California youth between the ages of 15 and 19 over the past three years — significantly higher than the national increase of 25% — and a 29% surge in infant childcare costs during the same period.

The report, titled America’s Health Rankings 2019, was released by the United Health Foundation, a philanthropic nonprofit that aims to expand healthcare access.

While this report has been published for 30 years, researchers have taken a deeper dive into women’s and children’s health over the past three years, said Dr. Janice Huckaby, chief medical officer for maternal-child health strategy at Optum Healthcare Solutions in Baltimore.

The 34% increase in teen suicides over the past three years in California is “deeply troubling,” Huckaby said.

The state is spending $10.8 million over three years on the project

This month, California launched the first statewide mental health line. The peer-run line based in San Francisco will get $10.8 million over three years to expand across the state.

Approximately 1 in 5 adults in the U.S. – 43.8 million – experience mental health challenges per year. This month, the state signed off on funding for a call center based in San Francisco to cover the whole state. The California Peer-Run Warm Line offers free nonemergency emotional support and referrals via phone or instant messaging. Its toll-free number is 855-845-7415 and it operates 7 a.m.-11 p.m. Mondays-Fridays, 7 a.m.-3 p.m. Saturdays and 7 a.m.-9 p.m. Sundays.

Mark Salazar, executive director of the Mental Health Association of San Francisco, says, “The call center is scheduled to ramp up to 24/7 service by the end of the year and expects about 25,000 calls a year. San Francisco has operated a similar service since 2014.”

When Salazar described the service, he said, “Our goal is to offer accessible, relevant, nonjudgmental peer support to anyone in the state of California who reaches out to us. Having readily available access to support and human connection helps people avoid getting to a crisis point later on.

“Callers consistently reach out to the Warm Line for multiple, often related, reasons. Someone who calls feeling isolated, for example, may also be experiencing underlying mental health challenges that create barriers to employment and accessing stable housing. We regularly see examples of the cycle of trauma being perpetuated in this way, often putting people in danger of reaching a crisis point without ongoing support.”

   By   Suniya S. Luthar Ph.D., published   November 5, 2013 - last reviewed on June 9, 2016 

It is widely accepted in America that youth in poverty are a population at risk for being troubled. Research has repeatedly demonstrated that low family income is a major determinant of protracted stress and social, emotional, and behavioral problems. Experiencing poverty before age 5 is especially associated with negative outcomes.

But increasingly, significant problems are occurring at the other end of the socioeconomic spectrum, among youth en route to the most prestigious universities and well-paying, high-status careers in America. These are young people from communities dominated by white-collar, well-educated parents. They attend schools distinguished by rich academic curricula, high standardized test scores, and diverse extracurricular opportunities. The parents' annual income, at $150,000 and more, is well over twice the national average. And yet they show serious levels of maladjustment as teens, displaying problems that tend to get worse as they approach college

They require plans for kindergarten through 12th grade, online posting of anti-bullying policies and money for a suicide-prevention fund

ED: October 15, 2019 at 6:00 am | UPDATED: October 15, 2019 at 9:58 am

Gov. Gavin Newsom has signed all three bills passed by the California legislature this year aimed at reducing bullying and teen suicide.

“As responsible adults, we must be sensitive to the difficulties young people face and provide assistance as they navigate adolescence,” Assemblyman James Ramos, D-Highland, is quoted as saying in a news release issued Thursday, Oct. 10, after Newsom signed Ramos’ Assembly Bill 1767. “Offering age appropriate suicide prevention education is one of the ways we can connect the community and create a culture of positive mental health outcomes.”

The newly signed bill builds on AB 2246, approved in 2016, which required school districts to have a suicide-prevention policy that addresses the needs of their highest-risk students in seventh through 12th grades. Former Gov. Jerry Brown signed AB 2639 in 2018. That bill required districts to update those policies every five years. Ramos’ new bill requires districts serving kindergarten through sixth grades to create suicide-prevention policies.

AB 1767  was the second of two suicide-related bills Ramos introduced this year.

AB 34, the first bill he introduced as an assemblyman, attempts to tackle one of the issues youth face that experts have linked to suicide – bullying. It requires school districts to post bullying prevention policies online as well as information about cyber bullying. Newsom signed it Sept. 12.

On Wednesday, Oct. 2, Newsom signed AB 984, authored by Assemblyman Tom Lackey, R-Palmdale. The bill allows taxpayers to send their excess tax payments to a new Suicide Prevention Voluntary Contribution Fund. The fund would award grants and help fund crisis centers that are active members of the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline.

https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov › faces › billNavClient › bill_id=2015201...

Jul 15, 2015 - HR-28 (2015-2016). 

  Sections 233.5 (part of the Hate Violence Prevention Act) and 60042 of the Education Code require instruction in kindergarten and grades 1 to 12, inclusive, to promote and encourage kindness to pets and humane treatment of animals; and  

WHEREAS, Humane education, such as that involving wildlife, the animals’ place in the overall environment, and the negative impacts humans can have on them, including death and extinction, can disrupt the cycle of animal and human abuse by decreasing a child’s potential to be abusive or neglectful toward animals and, consequently, to promote prosocial behavior toward humans; and

WHEREAS, Humane education programs seek to prevent violence by teaching empathy, compassion, and respect for all living beings and help children develop into caring, responsible citizens; and TEACHING EMPATHY THROUGH DOG THERAPY (SEL) OFFERS GREATER OUT COME TO STOP BULLYING IN  CONJUNCTION WITH ONLY A FLIP PHONE NO SMART PHONE.

 BRADMAN UNVERISTY SEL DOG THERAPY SCHOOLS (pdf)
 

• 1 Feb 2019, 21:19
• Updated: 3 Feb 2019, 0:09

PLEASE NOTE THE BRIGHT  WHITE EMITTING LIGHT

SWITCH OFF   Blue Light Awareness Day by speaking to the health hazards posed by extended exposure to blue light from digital devices, in conjunction with World Sight Day.  

 https://sd06.senate.ca.gov › news › 2019-10-09-dr-richard-pan’s-scr-73-es...

CHILDREN should be limited to just two hours-a-time on social media – new official advice will declare next week.

In the first formal guidelines ever, the Chief Medical Officer will pile huge pressure on web giants to introduce a cut-off for under-18s.

Kids should then take “exercise breaks”. The move comes amid growing alarm at a generation hooked on social media.

Campaigners are likely to demand the crackdown – to be unveiled by Dame Sally Davies next Thursday – goes even further.

Research earlier this week found under-fives spend four hours and 16 minutes a day glued to screens - including online, ,gaming and TV.

Seven in ten of those aged 12 to 15 took smartphones to bed.

And a fifth of children aged 8-12 are on social media – despite supposed bans on under-13s. The new guidelines revealed by James Forsyth in today’s Sun follow an official request from Health Secretary Matt Hancock

The Tory high-flyer last weekend demanded social media giants remove suicide and self-harm material from their sites after the father of a 14-year old teenager blamed Instagram for her death.

October 9, 2019

SACRAMENTO – With more than 80 million electronic devices with digital screens in the state of California, and average screen time exceeding 9 hours per day, exposure to blue light has become a serious concern for public health. Dr. Richard Pan (D-Sacramento), Chair of the Senate Health Committee kicks off Blue Light Awareness Day by speaking to the health hazards posed by extended exposure to blue light from digital devices, in conjunction with World Sight Day. 

“The impact of high energy blue light emissions on children is a significant health concern,” said Dr. Richard Pan, pediatrician and State Senator. “The resolution, passed by unanimous and bi-partisan support in both the Senate and Assembly, demonstrates that when it comes to protecting public health and educating around emerging health concerns, California will take the lead.”

Today’s announcement comes on the heels of the California State Legislature’s passage of SCR 73, a resolution which outlines the growing body of evidence and scientific research related to the long-term health impacts of extended exposure to blue light from digital devices.  Those devices include: computer monitors, phones and tablets, that, absent blue light reducing filters, project high levels of toxic blue light into consumers’ eyes. With the passage of SCR 73, The State of California encourages all its citizens, particularly children whose eyes are still developing, to consider taking protective safety measures in reducing eye exposure to high-energy visible blue light.

California State Senate and Assembly Health Committees began looking at the issue of high energy blue light emissions from digital devices and screens in 2018, and in particular, the increased usage of, and access to, digital devices by young children and adolescents whose eyes are particularly susceptible to long-term damage from blue light.

https://sd06.senate.ca.gov › news › 2019-10-09-dr-richard-pan’s-scr-73-es...

Oct 9, 2019 - With the passage of SCR 73, The State of California encourages all its citizens, particularly children whose eyes are still developing, to consider taking protective safety measures in reducing eye exposure to high-energy visible blue light. 

 The findings, published in the JAMA Paediatrics, suggest increased viewing begins before any delay in development can be seen, rather than children with poor developmental performance then going on to have more screen time.  https://time.com/5514539/screen-time-children-brain/ 

When young children are observing screens, they may be missing important opportunities to practise and master other important skills.

In theory, it could get in the way of social interactions and may limit how much time young children spend running, climbing and practising other physical skills  

The American Association of Paediatrics' (AAP) guidelines on screen time say:

• For children younger than 18 months, avoid use of screen media other than video-chatting
• Parents of children 18 to 24 months of age who want to introduce digital media should choose high-quality programming, and watch it with their children to help them understand what they are seeing
• For children ages two to five years, limit screen use to one hour per day of high-quality programmes. Again, parents should be watching it with their children.
• For children ages six and older, place consistent limits, making sure screen time does not get in the way of sleep and physical activity.

The Canadian Paediatric Society goes further, saying screen time for children younger than two is not recommended.- although they may still eventually catch up.

 PLEASE NOTE THE GIRLS FACE IS ILLUMINATED FROM BLUE LIGHT SCR 73 CA STATE WARNING OF EYES HARM,SLEEP ISSUES,TO MUCH SCREEN TIME ANYTHING OVER TWO HOURS PER ANY IN PREVENTING SUICIDES Resolution SCR-73 sponsored by Dr. Richard Pan, Chair of the California Senate Committee on Health was introduced on August 21, 2019 for the purpose of bringing public awareness to the growing body of evidence coming out from the medical community regarding the impacts of extended exposure to artificial high-energy visible (HEV) blue light emitted from consumer electronic devices. In addition to unanimous passage by the California Senate, the Blight Light Awareness Resolution for October 10, 2019, was ratified by the California Assembly on a vote of 70-0.  https://sd06.senate.ca.gov/news/2019-10-09-dr-richard-pan%E2%80%99s-scr-73-establishes-october-10th-blue-light-awareness-day-california 

59% of U.S. teens have been bullied or harassed online, and a similar share says it's a major problem for people their age. At the same time, teens mostly think teachers, social media companies and politicians are failing at addressing this issue.

BY MONICA ANDERSON

Name-calling and rumor-spreading have long been an unpleasant and challenging aspect of adolescent life. But the proliferation of smartphones and the rise of social media has transformed where, when and how bullying takes place. A new Pew Research Center survey finds that 59% of U.S. teens have personally experienced at least one of six types of abusive online behaviors.1

The most common type of harassment youth encounter online is name-calling. Some 42% of teens say they have been called offensive names online or via their cellphone. Additionally, about a third (32%) of teens say someone has spread false rumors about them on the internet, while smaller shares have had someone other than a parent constantly ask where they are, who they’re with or what they’re doing (21%) or have been the target of physical threats online (16%).

Frank Gluck, Fort Myers News-PressUpdated 12:56 p.m. PDT Aug. 22, 2019

Content warning: This story references incidents of self-harm.

Trouble started, as it often does, with a romantic rivalry.

One teenage boy, a student at Charlotte High School in Punta Gorda, warned his schoolmate, Solan Caskey, to stay away from a certain teenage girl in a series of Sharpie-penned messages on the school’s bathroom wall. Solan, being a teenage boy himself, impulsively responded with his own graffiti, including:

"Mother f---er try me," "She's mine, bitch" and "I accept to fight..."

The exact details of what happened immediately after this 2017 exchange are uncertain. But a day later, a police report shows that the school resource officer and a school psychologist concluded Solan was suicidal and possibly wanted to kill other students.

Solan denied this at the time (and still does), but the officer forced him to the ground and handcuffed him before taking him to Charlotte Behavioral Health Center in Punta Gorda for a potentially multi-day forced stay. 

There, he got a mental health examination under the state's Baker Act — making his case one of a record 32,763 such evaluations of Florida children that year.

0:001:29ADSolan Caskey was Baker Acted twice and released as soon as his case was reviewed“They want to use the Baker Act for any behavioral problem — anything they don’t like," Hilary Caskey said.AMANDA INSCORE, AINSCORE@NEWS-PRESS.COM

Such mental health checks have been outpacing child population growth statewide — and in regions like Southwest Florida, by leaps and bounds — for nearly a generation. 

In the last 10 years alone, they have more than doubled in Lee, Collier and Charlotte counties, far outpacing population growth. There are now more than 2,200 such cases involving children every year in this region.

Many see this as a sign of increased awareness of mental illness in children at a time when data show that suicidal thoughts and actions among those younger than 18 are increasing. Their increase also tracks with the rise of mass shootings in the United States, and a heightened awareness of that threat, particularly in schools.

But some parents, counselors and other mental health experts say the rapid increase in such forced examinations, which are designed for only those likely at immediate risk of harming themselves or others, suggests that the law is being used more as a disciplinary tool than a mental health aid.

And, they argue, taking kids into custody who are not actually suicidal or credibly threatening others’ lives – often in handcuffs and in the presence of their peers – may worsen conditions like chronic depression and anxiety.

Read more in this series: Explore the mental health crisis faced by Southwest Florida's kids

Read our editorial: How to address the rise in juvenile Baker Act committals in Florida

In Solan’s case, medical records show that a psychiatrist interviewed him the next day and determined he was not a threat.

District spokesman Michael Riley, citing federal student privacy regulations, refused to discuss this particular incident. He responded via email only to say that children receive Baker Act referrals at school to "protect the child from doing harm to themselves or others." 

Solan’s mother, Hilary, doesn’t buy that. And she remains livid.

“They want to use (the) Baker Act for any behavioral problem — anything that they don’t like," Hilary Caskey said. "If you have any kind of outburst, if you have any kind of emotion whatsoever and you are not just an order-following automaton, they will Baker Act you.”

The Florida Mental Health Act of 1971, commonly referred to as the "Baker Act" in reference to the law's original sponsor, allows for voluntary or involuntary mental health evaluations of up to 72 hours for people who have mental illnesses and are considered an immediate threat to themselves or others.

The law and its many amendments over the decades were designed to bring a consistent process to treating individuals with mental illness and to set forth —and, thus protect — their civil rights.

But some question whether the nearly half-century-old law is living up to its original intent, particularly as it relates to children.