Cypress Falls High School students joined other schools in the CFISD district under a new organization called CFISD Unite and are taking action against gun violence by giving a theme to each day to bring awareness to the violence and the tragedy that occurred at Columbine High School on April 20, 1999.

“CFISD Unite stemmed off of March For Our lives,” Courtney Pham (11) said. “[The leaders of CFISD Unite] wanted to make something more local and organized for our district.”

The week of April 16 consisted of different events, lectures and videos that can go into preventing a shooting.

MONDAY: Students and staff were provided with post-it notes to pass onto others to show kindness and prevent bully-like behavior.

TUESDAY: Students were lectured on the importance of being aware of mental health, and were encouraged to speak out if they needed help of any kind because CyFalls is not just a school, but a support system.

WEDNESDAY: Students and staff were reminded of the first highly publicised mass shooting at Columbine High School and wore orange in memoriam.

THURSDAY: Students were encouraged to reach out to officials in ways that include voting, writing letters to congress, or calling representatives to make the change they want to see happen. A QR code was also posted around school that brought students to a survey to describe changes they’d like to see and how they felt about the school’s environment.

FRIDAY: A sit-in was organized to remember the victims of gun violence and the lives that were lost in the Columbine shooting.

Well aware of the walk-out planned for Friday, students prepared to exit the school and protest outside, but Principal Becky Denton recommended that students remain inside due to safety concerns and participate in the events happening in the Commons.

“Walking out just to walk out isn’t going to be effective,” Principal Denton said. “Inside, we’re going to do some social media things with hashtags and write to our senators and politicians.”

This is the first gun violence protest act of the year for the CFISD school district, and it was student organized with the help of Principal Denton, Kyle Parsons, Associate Principal, and other teachers and staff. This week was an opportunity for students to showcase their beliefs in a safe space and stand up for what they believe in.

“Our voice is impactful in the community,” Pham said. “We need to make student’s voices heard in politics or we won’t see the change we want to see.”