If a berry smoothie smeared across Alex Morris’s windshield wasn’t enough to infuriate him, the gobs of spit on the back of his car was.

Alex stopped his car in between two crosswalks in the parking lot at Lake Washington High School, where he is a junior. He watched in his rear view mirror as a group of students spit on the back of his car and laughed earlier this year.

The incident – led by one student in particular – was just one of many that Alex has had to endure almost daily since sixth grade, when “cliques” began to form, he says.

“I am completely fed up,” Alex says on a recent afternoon, sitting on a bench in front of the purple and white entrance of the school that beams Kangaroo pride.

In the narrow hallways inside Lake Washington High School, where 1,076 students bustle between classes, the alleged bully has “shoulder butted” Alex many times. Alex says the student mocks him during class and throws things at him, calls him names like “retarded,” and even keyed Alex’s car, causing more than $1,500 in damages during his sophomore year.

“I’m completely done with going to the principal and doing what the administration tells me to do and just going and talking to them,” said Alex. “I’m tired of just sitting there while they tell me, ‘well, we’ll take care of it’ and having weeks go by with absolutely nothing happening.”

Alex is one of many students district wide who have stepped forward to report harassment since Washington state enacted anti-bullying laws in 2002 and mandated school districts to implement anti-harassment policies in 2003. Bullying became a national issue after 12 students and one teacher were killed by two seniors in 1999 at Columbine High School in Colorado.

The number of bullying incidents that students have reported within the Lake Washington School District has grown 31 percent since since the 2004-05 school year, according to data from the district’s Executive Limitations report.

Students reported 54 incidents of harassment district wide during the 2004-2005 school year. The district has seen a surge in that number each year, with 173 incidents reported last year.

For students like Alex, the rise points to an increasing problem with bullying district wide.

Alex said LWHS touts anti-harassment during its announcements or on posters hung in the hallways.

“Honestly, I look at these and I hear it and I think it’s a joke because every time there is a real problem that’s going on, they (school administration) never fix it,” said Alex. “They have told me, ‘oh, we have a strict anti-bullying policy at this school and there’s zero tolerance for any kind of bullying’ and I’m sitting there blowing my brains out, like are you out of your mind? This has been going on for years and years and you guys aren’t doing anything about it.”

But for some LWSD administrators, the increasing reports of harassment are a good sign.

“Our anti-bullying and anti-harassment programs promote prompt reporting of harassment and have increased knowledge and awareness of what constitutes harassment among the adults in the system,” said Kathryn Reith, communications director for the LWSD.

Dr. Cindy Lundvall, director of students services, also sees the increase in the number of incidents reported as positive.

“What we’re seeing in our data over time is the number of incidences of harassment being reported after programs increases because students get more information on how to report such incidences,” said Lundvall.

She said LWSD has a clear policy that prohibits bullying and other types of intimidation and harassment, including physical, sexual, verbal harassment and cyber bullying. That policy is disseminated to staff, students and parents every school year.

Appropriate disciplinary action is administered to students who violate this policy.

The district also offers programs to reduce incidents of bullying, such as teaching students the definitions of harassment and encouraging prompt reporting to school staff.

In addition, all district elementary schools implement the “Steps to Respect” anti-bullying program. This year, several schools have also implemented the Olweus Anti-Bullying Program, one of the few programs identified by the federal government as an evidence-based program that shows significant improvements in school culture and a solid reduction in bullying behaviors.

“We do not want students being intimidated in our schools and we’re working very actively to try to reduce the amount of harassment and intimidation,” Lundvall noted, adding LWSD’s policy has been used as a model by other districts.

Lundvall said students who are being harassed are asked to tell administrators so the incidents can be investigated.

However, Alex said he has told school administrators of the bullying on several occasions. His mother, Shirl Hollingsworth, has also spoke with school staff and LWSD Superintendent Dr. Chip Kimball.

Kimball was not available for comment.

“I’m tired as a parent of getting lip service from the school,” said Hollingsworth.

On several occasions, she was told it is her son’s word against the bully, she said. In the case of Alex’s car that was keyed, the incident happened off school property and out of the school’s jurisdiction.

Hollingsworth said last year she spoke with Kimball, who told her he’d look into it.

“He didn’t get back to me or Alex,” she said, adding, “I want the school to step up and pay attention because this happens across the country. If one parent lets it go, that’s a bad message to send. If a parent knows their child is being abused at school, we owe it to our child to stand up and say this is unacceptable.”

LWHS Principal Brad Malloy said the alleged incidents of harassment are “disappointing to hear. We all know that if a student does not feel safe at school, this can negatively impact (his or her) attitude about school and/or their ability to achieve.”

Malloy also noted the high school hasn’t implemented a follow-up procedure with bullied students or bullies to determine whether or not the bullying has been resolved. He says such a mechanism “might be worth consideration.” There is also no quantification of harassment complaints on campus. Each complaint is handled on a case-by-case basis.

After years of trying to deal with the school bully, Alex says he is running out of options.

“A restraining order is my last resort. It costs a lot of money for court fees, money I don’t have,” he said.

More information

For more information about harassment, intimidation and bullying, visit the Washington Superintendent of Public Instruction Web site at www.k12.wa.us/SafetyCenter/HarassmentBullying/default.aspx.

Lauren Burnes, a journalism student at the University of Washington Bothell, contributed to this report.