Growing up, Governor Gavin Newsom struggled with dyslexia. He wrote a children’s book, Ben & Emma’s Big Hit, to share his challenges and spark a discussion. On October 14, in honor of National Know Your Classmates® Day, he read to students at Pacific Elementary School in Sacramento...
Beyond Differences is introducing our new ABCs of Transformative Social Emotional Learning (T-SEL). It outlines 26 important elements of creating a T-SEL space to which educators can refer. This poster shows practices, reminders, frameworks, and programs that we utilize and advocate in our work...
Beyond Differences is pleased to announce that Alyssa Ching has joined their team as the Director of National Programs. Alyssa will work closely with our 9,000+ schools nationwide to manage and expand our three national school-based programs: Know Your Classmates®, No One Eats Alone® and Be Kind...
Last week, 50 educators nationwide joined the Beyond Differences Learning Community with a 3-part series on Restorative Practices led by Don Carney, executive director of Youth Transforming Justice. Participants came away with an introduction to Restorative Justice practices and hands-on ideas for...
Today, July 26th, marks the 32nd anniversary of the signing of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) in 1990. We would like to honor and celebrate the radical, disabled activists who broke the chains of silence and isolation to bring forth this bill and the multitude of anonymous...
My name is Sofie and I joined Beyond Differences because I wanted to help middle schoolers free themselves from the pain of social isolation. I had experienced unseen social isolation throughout my life and knew how devastating it can be. Especially, throughout elementary and middle...
Whenever I opened my Superman lunch box in elementary school, by the reactions of my peers you would have thought I had just unleashed a wave of noxious gas. Every kid within a 15-foot radius of me wrinkled their noses in disgust. “EEEWWWW, what is that smell!” A dozen fingers would then all...
I have been involved with Beyond Differences since 6th grade at my school and jumped at the chance to join the National Teen Board this Spring. I was excited for Activist Academy because I knew I would be able to learn from a dynamic group of young, social justice activists and receive the...
On June 23, U.S. Surgeon General Dr. Vivek Murthy sat down with Jenna Bush Hager at the Coalition to End Social Isolation’s Conversations on Belonging, Connection, & Wellbeing: A Reflection to discuss one of the nation’s pressing health concerns. Dr. Murthy talked about the need for...
Beyond Differences applauds all of the teens who lifted up a boy in Colorado this week. Today.com reported that Cody Ridder, a 12-year-old boy from Westminister, Colorado, told his mom that his 6th-grade classmates would not sign his yearbook. He was so disappointed that so many kids said,...
Allowing students the freedom to be themselves in school is essential. Sometimes a student can be bullied and socially isolated in school for expressing themselves. As an adoptee and as a queer youth, I’ve seen the repercussions of self-expression in the classroom firsthand. Fostering...
The pandemic fueled a rise in xenophobia towards the AAPI community. Every day, more news covered stories about verbal and physical assaults. As a Teen Board member of Beyond Differences, I heard about an opportunity to share my story at a rally to bring awareness to this issue and elevate youth...