Shawn and Melissa Deloatch said their son Mason is having a hard time at school because of daily bullying, and that the worst of it happens first thing in the morning on the bus.

"These older kids are sitting on the younger kids," Melissa Deloatch said. "They're smacking them. They're biting them. They're tripping them in the aisles."

"Kids are making fun of them because they dress differently," Shawn Deloatch explained, "and their shoes aren't Jordans."

Mason said that when he would report violence or harassment to teachers, "my friends would make fun of me" because they would be able to figure out who made the complaints.

The procedure for students to report bullying has been taken online, in an effort to comply with New York State law, and to give students and parents the option to file reports anonymously.

The program is called the DASA (Dignity for All Students Act) Incident Reporter. Students and adults can fill out several fields, detailing where the incident happened, which students were involved and which school should be contacted.

Submitting photo and video evidence is also encouraged. The program also works on smartphone web browsers.

Students who are not even involved in bullying might even speak up more often if they can stay anonymous. District officials said most Newburgh students who report bullying are not targets, but just concerned bystanders.

DASA requires school districts to document all instances of bullying and compile a report for state education officials at the end of each term.