Anyone can be a hero

Posted: 6/2/2019

“Anyone can be a hero” is the motto of the student-led bullying prevention presentation given to the entire freshman class at Lincoln High School in Portland, Ore. Caleb, one of the students strongly affected by the presentation as a freshman, took on a leadership role in the bullying prevention program and is leading by example in his school and his community. (Read his story in Students Taking Action)

During the program, students are educated on the types of bullying and the effects of bullying, and they become motivated to be upstanders rather than bystanders. Student engagement is high because the presentations are given by peers, and the videos shown are of Lincoln High students talking about their own experiences with bullying and personal advice on how to overcome it.

The presentation also includes NCT, which stands for “Name It. Claim It. Tame It.” Scenarios accompany class discussion, and the students sign a “Be a Hero” pledge that says: “I am willing to stop bullying at Lincoln by saying something when I see it and reporting it when I need to.” The signed pledges are placed around the school as visual demonstrations of Lincoln’s ongoing commitment to motivating others to be an upstander when it comes to bullying, a person who recognizes that something is wrong and acts to make it right. 

Another valuable part of the program is that feedback is gathered from the freshman about what they learned, what was most effective, and what could be improved to make more of an impact. Feedback from students is really positive and includes statements such as “It changed my life,” “I now feel I have the courage to stand up against bullying,” and “I now know that I don’t have to fight bullying alone.”

“Since the student-led bullying prevention presentation has been implemented,” Caleb says, “we have seen the rate of bullying dramatically go down and countless lives touched.”

We thank Lincoln High School for being a leader in bullying prevention!