April 22, 2025 – BILLINGS, MT – This week, seventh and eighth graders at Castle Rock Middle School in Billings joined the nationwide movement to build safer, more connected school communities through Rachel’s Challenge.
During the recent workshop, students brainstormed creative ways to spread kindness on campus, including starting a “chain link of kindness” and sharing compliments on social media. “It’ll help people feel noticed,” said seventh grader Elliana Walsh—capturing the heart of the program in one simple sentence.
Rachel’s Challenge CEO, Kristi Krings, emphasized the program’s deeper mission: empowering students to build empathy, compassion, and meaningful human connection. “We just focus on empowering young people to do what any of us can, which is to be kinder, more compassionate, more empathetic, more connected human beings,” she shared.
Castle Rock counselor Shannon Toney summed up the shared goal: “We want a place where our students feel safe and comfortable to learn. We want them to grow into adults who will treat others well and be successful.”
Read and watch the full story from KTVQ.
At Rachel’s Challenge, our goal is to end school violence by getting to the root causes. Get in touch to learn more, bring Rachel’s Challenge to a school, partner with us, or donate.
