[Congressional Record Volume 166, Number 209 (Thursday, December 10, 2020)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1133]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




             HONORING PENNY BISIGNANO AS IOWAN OF THE WEEK

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                           HON. CYNTHIA AXNE

                                of iowa

                    in the house of representatives

                      Thursday, December 10, 2020

  Mrs. AXNE. Madam Speaker, October was National Bullying Prevention 
Month. As such, I rise today to ask my colleagues in the House of 
Representatives to join me in recognizing Penny Bisignano for her 
efforts in bullying prevention in our schools. She has played a key 
role in supporting anti-bullying training and programming for teachers, 
parents, and students in Iowa. In fact, our Senate colleagues may 
remember Penny's 2012 testimony on the issue of bullying.
  In 2018 alone, there were more than 835,000 reported incidents of 
bullying among students ages 12 through 18. As a parent, these numbers 
are deeply concerning. While the act of bullying is nothing new, the 
rise of on line communication, social media, and smart phones has 
provided new and highly accessible environments for aggressions to 
occur. As a result, bullying has become more subversive and difficult 
to recognize. Thankfully, we have people like Penny who have coached 
teachers, students, and parents on what to look for and how these 
incidents can be prevented.
  While working with school counselors, Penny began to see concerning 
trends in the way children were treating each other. She realized she 
wanted to help people better understand the seriousness of bullying and 
how difficult it can be for children to talk about. In 2004, she 
decided it was time to act and set her sights on championing bullying 
prevention statewide.
  For years, Penny ran the Olweus Bullying Prevention Program in Iowa. 
The Olweus Program has a comprehensive approach to creating a positive 
and safe environment in schools. The program's goal is to not only 
reduce the number of bullying incidents in schools, but also improve 
relations between students. By addressing antisocial behaviors, this 
programming has been found to reduce bullying among students as well as 
truancy and vandalism. Iowa is fortunate to have not only quality 
programming available, but also so many dedicated organizations working 
to keep all children safe.
  A longtime education consultant, Penny has participated in the Iowa 
Safe and Supportive Schools Grants Team, focusing on prevention and 
intervention. She's provided training and networking statewide and 
facilitated various projects for the improvement of schools and 
teachers' roles in bullying prevention. Penny also expanded her 
expertise beyond Iowa by dedicating five years to the Board of 
Directors for the International Bullying Prevention Association. She 
eventually founded her own small business, Bisignano Consulting and 
Coaching, to work on several projects including a study observing 
possible links between bullying and chronic health conditions.
  Penny remains passionate about bullying prevention. In fact, she's 
come out of retirement three times to continue her work. That speaks 
volumes about Penny's character and rings true for so many Iowans: if 
there's a job to do, they won't rest until it's done well. She's now 
enjoying her fourth (and hopefully final) retirement while still 
offering expertise whenever asked. Penny hopes her fellow Iowans 
continue having conversations about bullying so children and adults 
alike can learn how to better care for one another, and I couldn't 
agree more. It is my honor to recognize Penny Bisignano as our Iowan of 
the Week.

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