Challenge Day positively impacts students

By Jonah Welch, HMS Student Website Reporter

Challenge Day is a day when all the eighth graders go into the gym. They try to help solve some common school problems like bullying, put-downs, and other ways of picking on people. They also try to look through the perspectives of others and know how they feel.

Maks Moses, an eighth grader who did Challenge Day, is one of the many who doesn’t regret going.

“I’d like to say I’m nicer. I think through the other person’s perspective now, but it is still hard to be nice. Challenge Day really does have an effect on people.”

Ms.Mayberry, the ASB advisor, participated at Challenge Day.

“It made some people closer because they knew what people were really. You could also tell because they let out a lot of emotion and maybe it will eventually bring them closer together. It made them realize the damage they were doing to people and they needed to be nicer.”

Mr. George is the principle of Henkle Middle school and a big supporter of Challenge Day.
“Challenge Day definitely changes people, and you can tell by how they act afterward. We don't want to just have Challenge Day and end it there; we have to keep the message alive all year.”

Principal's note: After Challenge Day, eighth graders took a survey. The results indicated that the event did leave a big impression. Over 80 percent of the eighth graders indicated that they were "more aware of the effects of teasing," "likely to speak up when I see someone being bullied," and "hopeful that a school where people treat each other with respect and acceptance is possible." Nine-eight percent of the students responding to the survey said they'd recommend Challenge Day to their friends or family members.