Teachers have a lot more to do than just teach in the age of school violence, mass shootings and, much more common, bullying.Schoolyard bullies have existed as long as there have been schools. Bullies now, with access to smartphones, the internet and social media, have more weapons, school officials said.News reports dating back 10 years confirm that teens have been bullied to death, or humiliated to committing suicide.Cyberbullying is a real problem for kids and at schools nationwide, where related behavior problems are being mediated on a daily basis. It’s happening locally, too.“The kids aren’t understanding the dangers of the social media choices they’re making. They’re not seeing the reaction of the person they’re interacting with,” said Lisa Pirrung, principal of Black Hawk Middle School.At Black Hawk Middle School, Warrenton, students are required to store away their cellphones. They can be used during passing periods and lunch.“Most of our issues come from cyberspace and are from the night before,” Pirrung said.Bullying is a learned behavior. It can be unlearned. Yet the problem doesn’t seem to be going away.Pirrung, with the help of some local friends, hopes to improve the situation here before it gets worse. She has formed a committee with about 20 people from law enforcement, county government, nonprofit organizations and social services. They will identify areas where they can work together and ultimately take steps toward its long-term mission to help quash bullying throughout the community.Pirrung said the word bullying means different things to different people. The first task for the group was to define key words:• Rude is when someone says or does something unintentionally hurtful and they do it once.• Mean when someone says or does something intentionally hurtful and they do it once.• Bullying is when someone says or does something intentionally hurtful and they keep doing it, even after you tell them to stop or show them that it’s hurtful.“If kids are not getting help, we’ll see the negative effects in their life,” said Pirrung.Tina Churchill is a therapist with Churchill Family Counseling in Warrenton. She said being bullied is emotionally draining.“It kicks our fight or flight reaction into gear and kids are exhausted when they have to always be on guard,” she said.Signs of being bullied that parents should look out for include unexplained injuries, changes in appetite, frequent sick days, missing personal items, declining grades, loss of sleep, self-harm, and increasing isolation and avoidance or changes in usually typical activities.“Individuals who have been bullied as children experience long-term consequences. The pain and isolation they feel can last throughout their lifetime,” Churchill said. “They have greater chances of developing anxiety, depression and having agoraphobia, a fear of places that may cause feelings of panic and helplessness.”Victims of bullying tend to isolate themselves and they can experience low self-esteem, poor academics or work performance.As bullies grow up, she said, some recognize their behavior and change it. The ones who don’t have their own life and relationship challenges.“(They can) grow into authoritarian-type roles in life: a bossy executive who can’t relate to co-workers, an abusive parent, a worker who can’t get along with others and argues or fights with co-workers,” Churchill said.Rather than allow children to grow up with these emotional struggles, whether the bully or the victim, the modern approach is to try to correct the behavior early or prevent the behaviors from ever occurring. This is what the school group hopes to accomplish.In the meantime, Pirrung offers advice to students.“Tell an adult. Use the bully hotline or come to the office to fill out a statement,” she said.Students can call or text the hotline at 636-352-1803.“I tell kids ‘Have confidence in who you are and what you do,’” she added.Anti bullying