for the News-Tribune

KEYSER — Rachel’s Challenge will give a presentation for the pubic on Thursday, Sept, 24, from 7-8 p.m. in Keyser High School’s auditorium.  This event is a culminating activity to three days of Rachel’s Challenge assemblies for students and teachers at Keyser and Frankfort high schools.
The Rachel’s Challenge presenter for Mineral County will be 2004 Olympic record-breaker Shane Hamman, who is known as  the strongest man in America and the first American to lift over 900 pounds. 
Hamman has retired from Olympic weightlifting and works full-time as a national spokesman for Rachel's Challenge.
These assemblies are sponsored by Mineral County Schools as a response to information gathered during the spring of 2009 in which students in Grades 6, 8, 10, and 12 completed an anonymous PRIDE Survey. 
PRIDE is used by 49 states to gather data on student tobacco, alcohol, illicit drugs and behaviors; Mineral County has been using data from this survey since 2003. 
The PRIDE results and a discipline summary of Grades K-12 revealed the following information:
2009 Pride Survey of Students in Grades 6, 8, 10, 12
32.6% responded that they threatened a fellow student
20% responded being afraid at school
20.1% responded that they were afraid of being hurt at school
2009 County-wide Discipline Summary of Recorded Incidents
58 incidents of harassment or bullying
4 incidents of racial, religious, ethnic, or sexual harassment
47 incidents of a threat of injury or an injury
In order to address these issues and promote a positive school culture, Mineral County Schools has contracted Rachel’s Challenge, a nonprofit organization, for a three-day event which focuses on the life of Rachel Scott, the first person killed in the Columbine High School tragedy on April 20, 1999.
Rachel left behind an amazing legacy through the contents of her six diaries and a
simple challenge to anyone who will accept it — treat others with kindness and compassion and you just may change the world you live in. 
This award-winning program, based in Littleton, Colo., and founded by Darrell Scott, Rachel’s father, has reached 11,000,000 people in 50 states and six countries. 
It has prevented numerous suicides, drastically reduced bullying, and in three known instances in 2007 alone prevented a planned school shooting.
The presentation is given without political, religious, or profit motives; the primary emphasis is kindness and compassion for others. It is emotionally charged and motivates students to positively change the way they treat others. 
Questions may be directed to Linda Miltenberger, coordinator of middle/high school curriculum for Mineral County Schools, at  304-788-4200 Ext.130.