Irene van der Zande, Kidpower Founder and Executive Director, Author at Kidpower International

A Forever Grateful Mommy

by Irene van der Zande, Kidpower Founder and Executive Director | Oct 2, 2011

A mother of a student in our Colorado center sent us a letter about how her daughter used Kidpower skills to avoid an assault and keep herself safe.

Reaching Thousands of Kids … The Kidpower Movie

by Irene van der Zande, Kidpower Founder and Executive Director | Oct 2, 2011

Kidpower is teaming up with Storytellers For Good to create a compelling and beautiful video, entitled One Million Safer Kids, telling some of the amazing stories of people who have used Kidpower skills to keep themselves and their families safe, and teaching some of those skills to anyone who watches.

Jamey Rodemeyer – What Might Have Made a Difference?

by Irene van der Zande, Kidpower Founder and Executive Director | Sep 28, 2011

Once again, the news is filled with the tragic story of a teen suicide from bullying – this time of 14-year-old Jamey Rodemeyer who lost hope after being bullied repeatedly and took his life. How does something like this happen? And, what can we do to prevent another tragedy? Progress is being made, but the best anti-bullying laws, policies, and programs in the world won’t work if adults don’t notice and intervene in the moment when bullying occurs – and if kids don’t have skills for managing their emotional triggers, staying in charge of what they say and do, and being persistent in getting help.

Poelleke Power! – Kidpower Lessons from a Chicken

by Irene van der Zande, Kidpower Founder and Executive Director | Aug 31, 2011

“SQUAWK! SQAWK!” One afternoon last week, Poelleke, an Ameraucana hen who faithfully lays an egg a day, suddenly sounded the alarm by raising a ruckus. Her humans came running out of their house to see a bobcat that had climbed inside their six-foot wire fence, stalking Poelleke and the nine younger hens.

Bullying as True Drama – What Adults Need to Know About Communicating With Teens

by Irene van der Zande, Kidpower Founder and Executive Director | Aug 26, 2011

Bullying as True Drama, a New York Times Op-Ed article by social science researchers Danah Boyd and Alice Marwik, describes what needs to change in order to make anti-bullying programs more effective in order to prevent tragedies like the suicide of 14-year-old Jamey Rodemeyer.