Just as schools around upstate New York were coming to close for the summer in June, a video came out on YouTube where millions of viewers saw Karen Klein, a bus monitor from Greece, N.Y. be bullied by middle school students. The video went viral and gained Klein international attention. Now she is hoping to use the situation to make a difference.

Over 32,000 people collectively donated over $700,000 dollars through a fundraising campaign originally intended to send her on a "the vacation of a lifetime". They raised so much money however, that Klein announced she would be retiring and taking care of her family. Now Klein says she wants to use some of her donated funds to start an anti-bullying campaign.

The Karen Klein Anti-Bullying Foundation will serve four purposes. It intends to provide funds for anti-bullying counseling internationally, create anti-bullying curriculum, fund existing organizations who bring awareness to the anti-bullying movement, and supporting media outlets to get their message out. One of the existing organizations she is helping to fund is the No Bully 2012 Music Tour which has a concert in Niagara Falls, N.Y. that is to be officially announced in one week according to the website.

Exactly how much money Klein is using to seed these ventures is unknown as her Foundation page reports it to be $100,000, but local Rochester News 8 is reporting that it would be $75,000. However, that money is only intended to be a start, she told News 8.



According to KDSK, Klein plans to make an official announcement about her foundation at the end of the month.