Rye Neck MS Named Gold Star No Place For Hate School

MAMARONECK, NY — Rye Neck Middle School was designated as a Gold Star No Place for Hate School by the Anti-Defamation League for the fifth consecutive year. A small group of students, along with sixth-grade school counselor Meegan Lawlor and art teacher Trisha Appel, accepted a banner during a ceremony in New York City on May 29.

“This recognition shows that our school is actively working to create a more inclusive environment,” Lawlor said. “The No Place for Hate program has provided a structure for what has always been one of the most important parts of middle school counseling. It’s wonderful for the students to attend the recognition ceremony. We all came back inspired and feeling rewarded.”

Throughout the year, sixth- through eighth-graders participated in a variety of activities as part of the school-wide No Place for Hate program, designed to increase student awareness about respect, create an inclusive and tolerant school community and empower students to reduce bullying, according to a district spokesman.

After reading Nora Raleigh Baskin’s book, “Anything But Typical,” which highlights the importance of acceptance, not just tolerance, the students welcomed the author to their school to discuss the inspirations behind her books and participate in a writer’s workshop. In addition, sixth-graders created a diversity quilt to learn about the importance of community and participated in a workshop that taught them how to prevent online bullying.

During No Name-Calling Week, sixth- and eighth-graders learned that their words can affect others, and seventh-graders discussed the power of the bystander and how important it is to move from “bystander” to “upstander” or ally. In addition, each homeroom throughout the school focused on an attribute that would make their middle school a safer and kinder place to be, such as kindness or open-mindedness, and created a chain of examples of things they could do in their individual lives to make Rye Neck Middle School a No Place for Hate school.

“These activities help students to take ownership of their environment and realize how incredibly powerful each student is,” Lawlor said. “When a group of students truly believe that their voices can make a difference, it helps to create a positive, inclusive school environment. The No Place for Hate program doesn’t guarantee that there will never be conflict, but that we are committed to addressing it.”

Photo caption: Rye Neck Middle School counselor Meegan Lawlor (left), art teacher Trisha Appel (right) and a group of students accepted a banner during a ceremony in New York City on May 29. Photo credit: Rye Neck Union Free School District.