Students at Crestview Middle School have been learning about unity, diversity, and acceptance and it’s all thanks to one 8th grader who had the courage to start that conversation.
It takes a special kind of maturity and knowledge to get kids to listen and learn about some of the harder topics to tackle in life, and that’s why Maddie Hutson formed “Unity 2.0” at her school.
“We all go through the same types of things,” says Hutson. “Even though it might not be exactly the same, we go through the same things. Old or young.”
Every two weeks, a group of about 80 middle schoolers get together during their study hall period to meet for Unity 2.0. It starts with a game or quick team exercise, then Maddie goes right into the important lesson of the meeting like acceptance, bullying, and racism.
Although Maddie leads these talks, she said it wouldn’t be as impactful to her peers if they weren’t part of the discussion.
She says, “I feel like having a group of students come together and do it is 10x more impactful having more than one person there, and having an opinion on it and having more than just one idea on it is the best thing.”
Even aside from the important lessons that the group talks about, principal Trent Kreischer has seen a change in kids from just having a positive environment for the different grades to interact with each other.
Kreischner says, “We have 8th graders standing upfront here playing a game and they’re fist-bumping 6th graders, kids that they would not normally talk to in the hallways and you just see that boost of confidence in the younger kids getting to be with some of the older kids in the middle school.”
Maddie says she even notices the change she’s able to make. “I feel like its kind of life-changing and kind of cool in my eyes because I’ve never had that before and I feel like what I’m doing right now is really impacting kids in my grade and younger, and I feel like I can really make a change right now,” says Maddie.
Maddie’s courage even caught the attention of the Van Wert YWCA, a group who empowers women and promotes peace and justice. They have been recognizing her efforts and showing support along the way.
Kelly Houg, the director of advocacy at the Van Wert YWCA says, “The voice of change is with our youth, with our students, and I just think her impact on her peers and what she’s teaching through examples is just so impactful.”
The YWCA will be continuing to work with Maddie and even has plans to include her in their “HER Story Matters” series.
