Fargo North Students Take a Break from Class and Learn Respect

High school is a time for most students to hang out with friends, play sports and think about who’ll be homecoming queen.

Fargo North employees say it’s also a time for the youth to learn important values such as respect, courage and honor.

High school senior Alexis Vannett snaps a picture with her fellow classmates and grabs a piece of pizza.

But she didn’t forget what it was like to be a freshman and that’s why she was ready to help others.

“I just remember being a freshman, being nervous and so many new changes and things that come with high school,” Vannett said. 

Over 250 ninth graders gathered and clapped for Youth Frontiers Retreat Musician Joey Olson, which he hopes struck a chord with students to stand up for others and prevent bullying.

“When you see disrespect happening, not being afraid to stand–up and say that’s not okay. That’s kind of the goal of the day,” Olson said.

Respect, a word they are teaching means more than just respecting others, it means respecting yourself.

“Recognizing that everybody brings something valuable, everybody has something cool and unique about them,” Olson said.

Fargo North staff serves students pizza and say in order to have a positive experience in school, everyone needs to know how to get along.

“The most of it is just respecting people’s differences and so today this is an opportunity to recognize that we have differences within student population,” said Fargo North Principal Andy Dahlen.

Vannett says whether you’re a senior or not, it’s a good event to let loose, meet other students and hang out with friends.

“It’s OK to kind of step out of your comfort zone and get a little crazy and have fun with just their friends. It’s a good day to make memories,” Vannett said.

While the music turns up, students show their dance moves.

Moves that administrators hope will be translated from the dance floor into acts of kindness and respect in the classroom.

Dahlen says the school has been involved with this event for roughly 18 years.

They will be having a retreat for seniors later in the school year.