The headlines are shocking, often shining a light on a social crisis that isn’t taken seriously enough until tragedy strikes.

A Rutgers University student killed himself after two classmates used the Internet to taunt him and share personal videos with the world.

A 13-year-old Texas middle school student shot himself after years of being tormented for his perceived sexual orientation.

Perhaps the most famous case is that of the 13-year-old girl from Missouri who committed suicide after being harassed online by a middle-aged woman pretending to be a teenage boy who became friends with her but then began verbally abusing her.

According to the National Crime Prevention Council, 52 percent of students report experiencing bullying at least once a week.

The key to eliminating bullying from our schools is to first acknowledge that there is a problem.

The Dawson-Bryant School District and others should be commended for the efforts to take this problem seriously and take steps to address the behavior behind it.

The district is trying to create more discussion and promote tolerance.

But, perhaps the biggest opportunity to stop bullying is within the home.

Parents must do more to ensure that they are setting the correct examples and looking for signs that their children are the victims of bullying. Or even the bullies themselves.

Until we dispel the stereotypes and the misconceptions that bullying is just “kids being kids,” this problem will never go away.

Acknowledging the problem is the first step toward correcting it.