Where Does North Dakota Sit As One Of The Most Bullied States?

I write this article with a heavy heart. 

It's truly a sad situation when your children don't feel safe at school or in any situation for that matter.  It was brought to our attention on our station Facebook page that an apparent bullying situation may have led to a suicide case at a North Dakota school this week.  We do NOT have confirmation from authorities at this time on that tragic situation.  Our thoughts and prayers go out to that family and community.

I have a son who's a senior at Bismarck High School. 

One of my biggest fears for him on his very first day of Kindergarten was bullying. It's something that I asked him about repeatedly over the years.  To the point where he became annoyed when I asked him about the subject.  Not only did I ask him about bullying, but I made sure he was not engaging in such despicable actions.  It's something we still talk about today, even as a senior in high school.

The funny thing is, high school never really ends.

Something else I will have to teach him.  Unfortunately, bullying continues even in the workplace at some places of employment.  I've known people who have experienced it and I've seen it myself.  I'm sure you have too.

Bullying is one of the worst traits we have as humans.  I believe schools have come a long way when it comes to bullying.  However, there are too many cases that virtually nothing is done to curb it or it's swept under the rug completely.

I did a little research to see how North Dakota stacks up against the rest of the country when it comes to bullying.  What I found is a mixed message.  One set of data from 2019 has North Dakota as the LEAST bullied state in the United States.  You can read about that from Background Checks here.  This is based on several categories and per capita.  To be honest, I have a lot of doubts when it comes to the accuracy of this information.

However, another study done by WalletHub in 2018 paints another picture of North Dakota and bullying.  It has North Dakota as the 6th most bullied state in the country.  This sounds a little more accurate to me.

Unfortunately, there is not a lot of new data when it comes to bullying in schools.  2019 was the newest information I could find.  I'm guessing the COVID-19 is to blame for that.  Parents, it all starts at home.  Talk to your kids about bullying and make a difference.  Don't just bury your head in the sand and say, "kids will be kids."