News Item
Students embrace the challenge to treat
others with kindness
and compassion
October 2010
With the challenge before them to be
kinder to others, share a positive attitude and to celebrate life,
more than 800 students from
Monticello
High School and Robert J. Kaiser Middle School pledged to work as
student leaders and continue the work of Rachel Scott.
Rachel was the first student killed by the two gunmen in the
Columbine High School shooting in 1999. Her father has kept his
daughter’s legacy of compassion for others alive by creating
Rachel’s Challenge, which is an outreach program to students around
the nation to be a part of “a chain reaction” of kindness.
Rachel’s Challenge was presented to students and the community in
early October and included hard-hitting testimonials by the many
people whose lives Rachel touched. Monticello students
volunteered to create a Friends of Rachel (FOR)
organization in the
district as a way of instilling a more positive culture within the
schools. Part of
the focus of the new student groups will be to end
bullying, welcome new students to school and implement community
service projects to help
others.
The program was sponsored by the RJK PTA and is supported by the
EPIC Parent Center. For more information or to join one of the
clubs, please contact Robin LaFountain at 796-3058, ext. 20098 or
via e-mail at epic@k12mcsd.net.
RJK students Veronica Bonar, Demi
Dabbraccio and Demitra Bowen are committed to the idea of creating a
friendlier school environment. The trio expressed that they were
“deeply touched” by Rachel’s story and now want to make their school
a “better place.”
Students outlined their hands as a pledge to reach out to others in
kindness. A Rachel’s Challenge banner was signed with messages from
students who wanted to share their experiences and memorialize the
loved ones they have lost.
Rachel’s Challenge presenter Ken Scheible of Oakland, California was living in Denver, Colorado at the time of the Columbine tragedy. As a result of that experience, he was deeply moved to dedicate his life to educating and inspiring teenagers. He has since spoken to thousands of young people across the United States and Canada delivering a message of hope and empowerment.
For more information about Rachel’s Challenge, visit www.rachelschallenge.org.