Canyons School District is using Bullying Prevention Month to spotlight the safety tools it has added across its 50 schools, including those serving Draper families.
"Middle school is difficult," Albion Middle School Principal Eric Gardner said on the district's Connect Canyons podcast on Oct. 14. "It is difficult to transition, and it's that time in life that you're making new friends, losing old friends, navigating some social things."
Gardner said staff at the 943-student school try to create a positive environment for students every day.
The district has put several digital safety measures in place. Administrators told the board at its June 17, 2025, meeting that the district began using Bark, a monitoring tool that scans student Google accounts for signs of cyberbullying. The district also eliminated Chromebook "free use" time and blocked multiple content categories.
Board members Jackson Lewis, Karen Pedersen and Amber Shill each said at that meeting they had attended a Dignity Symposium at Davis School District. Shill said she was gratified to learn Canyons had already implemented much of the work highlighted there.
For the 2026-2027 school year, all visitors to Canyons schools must present a photo ID at the main office before entering, according to the district's safe schools page. The board also adopted a districtwide cell phone restriction after several schools piloted the approach.
