By: Elma Abdic

Words can hurt.

Hershey High School’s first Community Day on April 29, 2016 was an opportunity for students to chose a session that sparked their interest and grow as a community. One of the sessions given was Spread the Word to End the Word for handicapped students. The session exhibited a blank placard to display the phrase, “Spread the Word to End the Word,” where students would step into design the card of their choice.

Alys Stets, a special education teacher, arranged this session to show the consideration for the mentally disabled to “end the word.” She emphasizes her love and devotion for the children she works with daily. “The ‘r’ word is easily thrown out and shows disrespect,” said Stets. Stets believes the act of expressing a word as an insult that offends the mentally impaired is contempt.

When being asked what she thought about the idea of Community Day, she said, “I think it’s a fabulous idea!” Stets thinks that collecting students together for this session makes an awareness to the derogatory of ‘retard.’

After the session, Stets was satisfied with how it went and was thankful for the assistance provided by the few students who attended.

When being asked if she wishes for Community Day to take place another time, she replied with an eager, “yes.” Although she is not sure where her poster will go, she hopes the word goes beyond.