Cyberbullying focus of conference

Cyberbullying will be the focus of the annual conference to be presented by UB’s Alberti Center for Bullying Abuse Prevention on Sept. 19 in the Millennium Hotel Buffalo in Cheektowaga.

“Understanding and Addressing Cyberbullying” will address current research and potential solutions to a problem that has become a nationwide concern.

Leading the conference is Sameer Hinduja, co-director at the Cyberbullying Research Center and associate professor of criminology and criminal justice at Florida Atlantic University. The program also will feature a cyberbullying panel discussion moderated by Eileen Buckley, assistant news director for WBFO 88.7 radio, which includes New York State Police, a school attorney, school and district administrators, a school social worker and an administrator for the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children.

The conference, sponsored by The Western New York Foundation, begins 8 a.m. and concludes at 3 p.m.

“Results of our needs assessment revealed that educators and other professionals in related fields wanted to know more about cyberbullying,” says Amanda B. Nickerson, director of the Alberti Center. “This can be an especially troubling form of bullying because of it can occur around the clock and anonymously.

“Bringing together a noted expert in cyberbullying and our distinguished panelists to address educational, mental health and legal perspectives, and approaches to prevention and intervention, will give participants greater knowledge and tools to address this issue within their schools, families and communities.”

The conference will offer the latest knowledge and best practices for recognizing and responding to cyberbullying. Professionals working in education, mental health, law enforcement, social service and other youth-centered fields will gain new information and skills they can put into practice to successfully intervene and respond to incidents of cyberbullying.

Registration is $75 per person for professionals or $550 per table. Students can attend the conference for $35 per person. Register by Sept. 14 at the conference website . Questions about the conference can be directed to Rebecca Ligman, program and operations manager at the Albert Center, at 645-1532 or albertcenter@buffalo.edu.

Since its start in 2011, UB’s Alberti Center has worked to become a national and international resource for the latest research and advice on bullying. Center researchers are dedicated to leading a national conversation about the problem, which they call a form of child abuse. High-profile bullying incidents have led to new legislation, including this year’s New York State Dignity for All Students Act, and the recently passed cyberbullying amendment to the Dignity Act that will go into effect in July 2013.

The Alberti Center was established from the generosity of UB alumna Jean M. Alberti, a Chicago-based clinical and educational psychologist, and former local elementary teacher who in 2010 gave the UB Graduate School of Education the largest gift in its history. The mission of the center is to reduce bullying abuse in schools and in the community by contributing knowledge and providing evidence-based tools to effectively change the language, attitudes and behaviors of educators, parents, students and society.