Bullying a Top Concern for New Safe-Schools Chief

To lead the federal effort to keep schools safe, U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan has tapped a Southern Baptist preacher’s gay son who turned a childhood of prejudice, taunts, and harassment into an activist career that’s sought to expand tolerance, safety, and opportunities for gay and lesbian students.

The selection of Kevin Jennings as the assistant deputy secretary in the Department of Education’s office of safe and drug-free schools sends an important signal, experts in school safety and student mental health say, that safety is about more than keeping guns and knives out of schools. It’s also about improving school climate by decreasing bullying and teaching students tolerance.

“How can you perform in school if you’re worried about getting beat up and made fun of?” asked Stephen Sroka, a health education consultant and an adjunct assistant professor at the school of medicine at Case Western Reserve University, in Cleveland. “Violence is more than just physical; it’s...