Halsey Students Pledge 'Chain Reaction of Kindness'

Long after the last bell rang at Stephen Halsey Junior High Monday night, students and parents were lined up at the door to the school's auditorium.

Residents were on hand to participate in the second portion of named for Rachel Scott, a victim of the Columbine High School shootings in 1999.

The program urges students and parents to change their attitudes toward other people in the community to start a “chain reaction” of good deeds, based on the philosophy the group says their namesake lived by.

During a presentation at the school, students are asked to sign a banner pledge to treat others with respect and kindness.

During the evening program, which is open to parents and community members as well, viewers get a different experience, with a retelling of the tragic events of Columbine and a biography of Rachel Scott.

The group is not affiliated with any larger religious organization, and says it reaches out to public and private schools alike.

Adam Northam, a Rachel’s Challenge coordinator who presented the program to students and parents on Monday, said that while the group claims to have met more than 17 million people, places like New York City have been tougher to reach with their message.

“I’ve been here twice, to a couple of different schools,” Northam said. “Cities are tough shells to crack for programs like this one.”

He added that the crowd of around 100 people in the Halsey auditorium Monday night was fairly typical of the kind of participation that the program sees.

Principal Vincent Suraci said he had seen the presentation in another district and felt compelled to bring it to students and parents at Stephen Halsey Junior High School.

“The experience was profound, the presentation was very moving, what they spoke to the boys and girls about was very important in regards to how we should live our lives, respect for each other respect for others, and I thought that this was just what we needed here,” Suraci said. “Because it challenged students to really treat each other with respect and to really be conscious of their words and their deeds on a daily basis.”

He said that the program’s message goes perfectly with New York City school’s “Respect For All” week, which is ongoing.

“Our boys and girls, having been part of the assembly today, really set up a beautiful message that they were able to take and put into action immediately with some of the workshops we had this afternoon,” he added.

More information about the Rachel’s Challenge program is available at the group’s website.