ROCKINGHAM — Monday kicks off the start of Red Ribbon Week at the Richmond County Ninth-Grade Academy.

From Monday through Friday, students, faculty and staff will engage in several activities aimed at deterring bullying and drug use and raising awareness of the peer pressure local teens face.

Monday’s morning announcement will be “Respect Yourself,” and the theme of the day encourages everyone to wear orange shirts with regular uniform pants. The corresponding activity will be students signing the Respect Yourself banner in the school cafeteria during their lunch block.

Tuesday’s announcement, building on the foundation of Monday’s, will be “Respect Yourself — Be Drug Free.” Tuesday is called “Tie Down Drugs Day” and students and staff are encouraged to wear their “craziest” tie to school.

On Wednesday, students will be reminded that “Kindness Counts.” The theme is “Stick Together” and the activity is for everyone to write an encouraging word on a sticky note and place it on an orange silhouette created for that purpose.

Thursday’s announcement heralds a strong message about bullying awareness, and it’s theme is “Team Up Against Bullying.” Everyone at the school is encouraged to wear a team shirt or pullover with their regular uniform pants. The activity, “Crumpled Heart,” will be done in regular second-block classes.

Friday wraps things up with a final October reminder that this is the month for breast cancer awareness — a day for everyone to wear pink. The theme of the day will be “Raiders Tackle Cancer.”

Reach reporter Melonie McLaurin at 910-817-2673 and follow her on Twitter @melonieflomer.

By Melonie McLaurin

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