Chester County Junior High hosted Rachel’s Challenge Monday, Sept. 30, 2024. Using the remarkable story of Rachel Scott, the first victim of the Columbine High School tragedy, Rachel’s Challenge awakens individual hope and purpose, which in turn promotes safer, more connected school communities. A Rachel’s Challenge staff member shared Rachel’s story with the students, faculty and visitors Monday at the CCJHS gymnasium.
Speaker, author and publisher, Meichelle Gibson, of Murfreesboro, presented Rachel’s Challenge to sixth, seventh and eighth grade students. This included many stories, videos and experiences of Rachel Joy Scott, the first Columbine High School massacre fatality on April 20, 1999. On that day, 13 victims, 12 students and one teacher, were killed by two school shooters.
During the presentation, video footage of the massacre along with Scott’s drawings and writings were shown. The five challenges from Rachel’s Challenge included: look for the best in others, dream big, choose positive influences, speak with kindness and start your own chain reaction. This was Rachel Scott’s own “code of ethics” that created her legacy to this day.
Using the remarkable story of Scott, Rachel’s Challenge awakens individual hope and purpose, which in turn promotes safer, more connected school communities. Dr. Robert Marzano, respected education researcher and author, states, “Rachel’s Challenge is the most powerful intervention I have seen in 40 years of working in education.” Rachel’s story unlocks the desire for change. Its program works alongside the existing efforts of the school to sustain a culture where harassment, violence and self-harm are reduced, where teachers are free to teach and students are empowered to learn.
Rachel’s Challenge is an organization that works to reduce school violence, bullying and teen suicide. It is a non-religious, non-profit, non-political organization led by Darrell and Sandy Scott. Using appropriate age programming for K-12, Rachel’s Challenge schools have reported up to 84% reductions in disciplinary referrals. As many as 150 suicides are averted annually, as reported by students themselves. In a pre- and post-attitudinal survey of 9,991 students from socioeconomically and demographically diverse schools across the US and Canada, respondents reported a 282% increase in the number of students feeling safe at school after participating in Rachel’s Challenge.
In just over two decades of social-emotional and mental health training, Rachel’s Challenge has reached over 30 million students, educators and community members. Rachel’s Challenge continues to work hard to turn the ideals of kindness and compassion into actionable strategies that help promote a safe and productive learning environment.
