While the gym rafters at Gabrielino High School echoed with the usual sounds of squeaking sneakers and whistles this week, the atmosphere felt different, marked by a planned shift toward empathy.
In the middle of a high-stakes boys basketball senior night, senior Preston Diaz was not just focused on the scoreboard. He spent the lead-up to the game selecting meaningful gifts for his teammates, aiming to make their final home-court appearance unforgettable.
“During the Week of Kindness, what I did was buy gifts for my friends’ senior nights,” Diaz said. “I got them all nice and meaningful gifts for one of their last basketball games.”
Kindness Week is designed to spotlight these moments, encouraging students to step outside their social circles and academic pressures to support one another.
For senior Chayse Hoang, that support took the form of academic work during a particularly stressful week of coursework.
“This week, although I did not really do much, I helped my friends with some of the hard homework we had for English,” Hoang said.
Hoang views the designated week as a necessary intervention against global negativity. “I believe that Kindness Week is pretty important. There is a lot of hate in the world, and this week is a step to make the world more loving,” Hoang said.
Not everyone on campus agrees that a specific calendar week is the best way to create a positive culture.
Diaz expressed concern that the event might actually create a ceiling for student behavior. “I believe it is not important,” Diaz said. “We should not have to make a week to be kind. We should be kind every day of the year.”
He noted that the temporary focus can sometimes lead to insincerity. “A lot of the time, people are fake and just pretend to be kind,” Diaz said.
Adults on campus, however, see the week as a vital reset button for the student body. Bryan Chao, math teacher, noted that the structured activities help break down social barriers that exist during the rest of the year.
“It provides a framework for students who might be shy to reach out to someone new,” Chao said. “It sets a baseline for how we expect our community to function.”
When it comes to how kindness should actually be practiced, the consensus among students leans toward simplicity over grandiosity.
“Being kind is not about trying to do the biggest act of kindness; it is just doing simple things like complimenting someone or even just talking to them in a friendly way,” Hoang said.
Diaz echoed the sentiment that authenticity is the most important factor in any interaction. “Being kind is very simple. Just say and truly mean the nice things you say to people,” Diaz said.
As the posters come down and Kindness Week concludes, the Gabrielino community is left to decide which habits will stick.
