Anti-bullying program underway at Long Island school district

BRENTWOOD, N.Y. (WABC) -- There's a big push to stop bullying at a school district on Long Island.

More than 18,000 students are targeted, starting this semester. It's in a district where at least one student who was bullied committed suicide.

Lawmakers and school officials are working together to try to stop bullying.

"I want to make sure I have everyone's undivided attention," said Jamel Hudson, of "Taking Down Bullying".

And how was he going to do that we wondered? They were wondering too; a room full of third and fourth graders at Brentwood's Loretta Park Elementary School. The topic of the day was how to fight bullying.

Why not fight it with a little Hendrix of course!

And that's not all; Jamel Hudson's "Taking Down Bullying" program is part entertainment, part education for a good reason. Show the audience, this one as young as eight and nine, that all of them can find some inner talent, whatever it may be, because confidence is a major tool to fight bullying.

Suffolk County has certainly seen its fair share.

"Each of you are unique and talented in your own way," Hudson said.

But lest you think Jamel "tap dances" around the uglier aspects of bullying, oh no, he didn't.

"You see that boy right there, the one you just called stupid? Or what about the girl you called ugly? And the boy that you called a crybaby. You'd be crying too boys and girls, if your mother just died," he said.

Awkward? A little, but for some kids who say they've experienced pain at school, Jamel was reassuring.

"That you don't have to worry about being scared to go to school or anything else anymore," said Latoya Lewis, a fourth grader.

"Have you ever felt that way?" Eyewitness News asked.

"Yes," Lewis said.

This is the largest district here in Long Island. Jamel's program, a pilot last year, is now expanding to at least 18,000 students as young as third grade.

"The primary prevention is getting kids while they're young, teaching them about how to interact," said Thomas Croci, the Islip Town Supervisor.

Jamel uses some unconventional methods to get his point across, but seems to be working in this crowd.

In fact, many of them had a great time.

"This was like one of the best assemblies we've ever had," said Cara Bartlett, a fourth grader.

"Jamel's the greatest, he's the greatest, he inspired me not to bully anyone," said Francisco Ayala, a fourth grader.

You can't ask for anything better than that.