A message about kindness that’s been spreading across the nation was shared with students by students at Berner Middle School in the Massapequa School District. On Nov. 12 and 13, members of the student council presented lessons from last year’s Rachel’s Challenge assembly to sixth graders.
The impactful anti-bullying assembly, which took place in March, shared the inspiring message of Rachel Joy Scott, the first victim of the Columbine school shooting in 1999. Motivated by her journals, Rachel’s family continues her mission to spread kindness and make a positive difference in the world.
Recognizing that current sixth graders didn’t get to hear the message, the student council decided to host classroom presentations. Over two days, the latter coinciding with World Kindness Day, they reached more than 500 students in MS 101 classes.
The students leaders worked with advisers Denise Robertson and Teresa Ferreira to craft the presentations. Each group designed slides consistent with the message and at the end of every session, the student leaders and sixth graders together brainstormed ways to put Rachel’s Challenge into action in their school.
One action plan was already developed and put into place. Following last year’s assembly, student leaders attended a workshop to explore how the message of Rachel’s Challenge could be implemented at Berner. They decided to distribute kindness cards to all students and created a promotional video encouraging students to place these cards in their ID badges as daily reminders of kindness. Those kindness cards were distributed to sixth graders as part of this year’s presentations.
Eighth grader Jake Hillkewicz, treasurer of the student council, was one of the leaders who visited classrooms to give the Rachel’s Challenge presentations. He said the goal was to create a chain reaction of kindness at Berner.
“It’s an important lesson because students need to learn how such a small, kind gesture can make such a positive impact on Berner,” Jake said, adding that the presentations gave sixth graders meaningful suggestions on how to put kindness into action in their daily lives.
The five pillars of Rachel’s Challenge are look for the best in others, dream big, choose positive influences, speak with kindness and start your own chain reaction. Ms. Ferreira said that this mindset will be nurtured throughout the year at Berner, building up to the next Rachel’s Challenge presentation in March 2026.
Santopietro received kindness cards to put in their ID holders. Photo provided by Massapequa School District
