St. Cloud Schools Try to Address Bullying of Somali Students

ST. CLOUD (AP) - St. Cloud Technical High School has been scrambling to address criticism from some Somali students who say they've been harassed over their race and religion.

The school district has hired almost a dozen new staffers who speak Somali and are intended to act as liaisons between the administration, students and their families. St. Cloud school officials also plan to provide additional cultural awareness training to teachers and add leadership groups to give students more of a voice.

In March, about 100 students walked out of St. Cloud Technical High School after a photo circulated of a Somali girl labeled as a member of the Islamic State group.

Somali students account for about 20% of the school's population.