Colusa County Office of Education designated among ‘Kindness Certified Schools’

The Colusa County Office of Education has been designated as a collection of “Kindness Certified Schools” by Kids for Peace to recognize their ongoing commitment to kindness and their participation in the 10th annual Great Kindness Challenge Celebration Week Jan. 25-29.

“The world can use some extra joy right now and staff and students at

Colusa County Office of Education are doing their part to uplift their community with kindness, compassion, unity and respect,” it was stated in a release issued by CCOE.

According to the release, Kids for Peace is a global nonprofit that hosts The Great Kindness Challenge, a positive and uplifting program that fosters connection, inclusion, appreciation and overall well-being. The annual program – which began in 2011 – continues to grow each year, with

more than 17 million students in 33,000 schools across all 50 states and 115 countries now participating.

“The CCOE team is not just kind, our team is also dedicated and committed to Colusa County families,” said Colusa County Superintendent of Schools Michael West. “The passion in our staff is apparent in everything they do – and this passion is contagious. Needless to say, our students have huge hearts and we are so fortunate to serve them.”

According to the release, participating schools and families are challenged to complete

as many acts of kindness as possible using a kindness checklist while participating in the program. Acts of kindness included on the checklist are smiling at 25 people, giving a friend a high five or complimenting five people.

“Our hearts are bursting with joy knowing that so many students are actively creating a brighter, happier and more positive world for all,” said Jill Mcmanigal, co-founder and executive director of Kids for Peace. “Even during the pandemic, students are finding creative ways to spread love, honor classmates,

show gratitude and offer a helping hand. We are thankful to CCOE for providing this opportunity for their students to practice kindness and we are grateful to their students for demonstrating that kindness matters.”

The School Edition is an annual one-week celebration during the last week of January each year, according to the release, and a Family Edition is also facilitated year-round.

Schools and families may get involved by signing up at no cost.

For more information, visit http:// greatkindnesschallenge. org.