The Kindness Rock movement is spreading throughout the world in order to fulfill a specific mission: spreading kindness. GA recently brought this mission to campus by decorating hundreds of rocks with colors and inspirational messages. Afterwards, students placed them around campus, in spots ranging from the Upper School elevator to the Quad.
The official Kindness Rock Project website states that their mission is to “cultivate connections within communities and lift others up through simple acts of kindness.” Various schools and other communities have all joined together to paint and hide rocks with inspirational messages in the hopes of making someone, even a stranger, smile. The rocks vary from colorful images of flowers to quotes such as “spread the love”.
Upper school art teacher Ms. Sara Krupnick-Ritz organized the activity for the Upper School during community time. Students were provided with pre-painted rocks and markers to decorate their rocks however they chose. Ms. Ritz explained how her inspiration came from a quote from the famous television personality Fred Rogers: “There are three ways to ultimate success: The first way is to be kind. The second way is to be kind. The third way is to be kind.”
She explained how, “in a community like GA we are so focused on success. The next test, the next game, you name it. We’re always kind of gunning for success, and it becomes insatiable. You can never satisfy that because once you achieve something then there’s the next hurdle.” She loves how Mr. Rogers tells us, “Wait a second, I know how you can be successful. Be kind.” While it is a simple quote to some, to Ms. Ritz and many others it is “like oxygen in the room.”
All around the school, students and faculty loved the opportunity to get creative while helping the community. Charlotte Baughman ’25 said, “you don’t necessarily realize what kind of impact they have, but if you’re upset or having a bad day looking at one can make you laugh or smile.” Upper school Latin teacher Mr. Adam Leven said how he thinks the project was, “a really simple, elegant, beautiful way of spreading that positive energy around campus.”
Ms. Ritz was overwhelmed by the results of the project. As she walked around campus seeing the rocks covering the George Washington bust, on the 25-year portraits, the elevator, and in so many places around campus she “could not stop smiling.” She believes that keeping the community “amazing” is super important to her. She said, “If I can leave it just a tad bit more awesome through some small act that I contribute, then that’s all I need.”
Ms. Ritz and Lower School art teacher Ms. Jess Killo are working together to organize a similar project in the spring that will involve the whole school for the annual all school art project.