Students Celebrate ‘Kindness Week,’ Hope it Spreads Into Community

A student-driven campaign to create a “culture of kindness” that spreads into the community took off recently as Newport-Mesa Unified School District high schools celebrated Kindness Week, officials announced in a Dec. 6 message.

All NMUSD high schools celebrated kindness on their campuses and in the community by participating in a variety of themed activities, workshops, assemblies and collaborating on a district-wide beach cleanup.

Other activities included: Kindness themed games at lunchtime; hosting gratitude breakfasts and lunches for staff; assemblies with motivational speakers; kindness wristbands for students; blood drives; providing reusable water bottles; and personalized kindness grams for students and staff that were hand-delivered throughout the week.

The kids also posted personalized “kindness hearts,” signs, and messages all over campus.

“Meeting the social and emotional needs of each student requires an environment that prioritizes a climate of kindness — not just for students but for our entire community,” Director of Student Services Dr. Phil D’Agostino said in the prepared statement. “We strive to be the place where students feel safe, valued and encouraged to develop a global sense of community.”

Kindness Week was an opportunity to help students make a connection between their actions and the consequences of those actions, as well as what impact they have on the world around them, NMUSD officials explained in the message.

“Seeing our students excited about being involved in spreading kindness in everything they do is inspiring,” Corona del Mar Teacher and Activities Director Michael Dobyns said in the prepared statement. “It’s a reminder to our schools that anyone can make a positive change or difference in someone’s life.”

According to the NMUSD message, students were pleased with the beach cleanup turnout and are excited to see how the initiative develops and grows in years to come.

School district officials ended the message with a challenge to the rest of the community.

“In continuing with the commitment to kindness we challenge each of you to join our District by simply posting your acts of kindness on social media using #Kindness1Billion in support of the Orange County Department of Education’s One Billion Acts of Kindness initiative,” the announcement reads.

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