Almost a dozen middle schoolers file into an empty classroom at Timberlane Middle School just before 8 a.m. on a Wednesday. As their classmates make their way to English and math class, they make room for one another around a table.
But this is not study hall or class time. These students have agreed to share their experiences with bullying and racism — and how they’re fighting it at their middle school.
Many of them come to this work with personal experience. Jennyliz De La Cruz, a Plaistow eighth grader who identifies as mixed-race, said her classmates’ racial slurs have had a lasting impact.
“I've always had a thing about not liking myself or the color of my skin,” De La Cruz said. “And I've always wished I was, like, lighter and a lot better, so I didn't have to experience this stuff because I hated it — dealing with this.”
Schools across America have increasingly become a focus of culture wars over curriculum, book bans, and DEI initiatives. The Trump administration has threatened to withdraw federal funding from schools that pursue those efforts. And in New Hampshire, Republican lawmakers have pushed in recent years for limits in how issues around race, equity and gender are discussed in the classroom.
But at Timberlane Middle School in Plaistow, it’s the students who are taking a lead role in fighting back the racism and intolerance they say is prevalent among their peers.
Students like Juliette Rodriguez, another Plaistow eighth grader, say casual racism is a regular part of their school day.
“I'll get called names on a daily basis about being Hispanic,” she said. “One major one is probably 'border hopper.' ”
And here’s what Tori Lombard, a Sandown seventh grader who identifies as Black and Latinx, has heard from kids: “ 'You look like chocolate,' or like, 'you're a monkey' or something like that.”
As blatantly racist as these remarks are, the students said they’re often unsure how to respond — especially as many of the perpetrators laugh off the insults as jokes.
“A lot of that stuff is just racial tiptoeing, trying not to get caught,” Lombard said. “And then once getting caught, not feeling bad.”
Such problems are not unique to Timberlane Middle School. What’s different is the way the school district and students are responding. Timberlane’s superintendent, Justin Krieger, hired the Center for School Climate and Learning in Candia to help tackle the problems at the middle and high schools. As part of the deal, students had to lead the effort.
School administrators purposefully turned to students like De La Cruz, Lombard and Rodriguez, because their personal experience with racism gave them unique insight.
The middle school team named itself the House of Representatives and started a second group, named Hearts United, because so many students wanted to join.
Eighth grader Micah Bertolino of Danville said he signed on because he likes helping people.
“I think you're going to school (and) sometimes it's hard enough,” Bertolino said. “And it's just good to know that people are supporting you.”
The students began their work by surveying their classmates. The eight-page questionnaire asked, among other things, if students have enough academic support, receive hurtful text and social media messages, and have an adult in school they trust.
The results revealed that some of their peers felt excluded, and some felt bullied. Some liked coming to school; others hated it.
The responses surprised some of the students, including Joanna Willette, a Danville seventh grader, who has felt targeted because she receives special education services. But Willette and her peers also saw an opportunity.
“It . . . gives me the chance to help people who are being discriminated against, like with the racism, with different special needs and how people look and how people live their life,” Willette said. “It helps me change . . . people's mindsets.”
With the endorsement of teachers and administrators, the students have initiated a few changes. They’ve placed suggestion boxes throughout the school with hopes their classmates will feel more connected if they feel heard.
Those boxes have led to small changes — like getting salt in the cafeteria — and bigger ones, like allowing students to plan spirit week themselves.
The students also introduced “positivity mailboxes” to give classmates and staff a way to say the kind words that often go unsaid. Teacher Jamie Blanchette keeps her letters. One student remembered that Blanchette wouldn’t let her give up. Another thanked her for always being kind.
“To get one of those letters is so heartwarming because the students really pour out their hearts, and they really talk about specific reasons why you've impacted them or what they appreciate,” Blanchette said.
The letters between students are equally heartfelt, she said.
“When you come to middle school, you're interacting with many different people that have identified different things or that are different races,” said Ralph Clough, a Danville sixth grader. “And I try to (and) most people do . . .look at everybody as, you know, everybody's a kid here.”
Thursday, the students will take their story to the Timberlane Regional School Board. Some of what they say will be familiar. Lombard and her twin brother shared their experiences with the board in November.
Board members committed that night to supporting them and their classmates. The students hope to hear that again Thursday.
