Did you know one out of every four teenagers experiences some form of bullying? Even more staggering: 70 percent of students are targeted and taunted on the Internet. Chances are, you may have witnessed or experienced bullying yourself. Rest assured you’re not alone; in fact, three FFA members just like yourself tackled bullying by taking up a challenge head on – the Great American ‘No Bull’ Challenge.
Tyler Gregory, Scott Hannah and Zach Veach joined more than 25 million other middle and high school students by participating in the challenge, which is centered around using digital responsibility and social media to make a positive impact on bullying.
“Bullying just stops kids from wanting to chase their dreams,” says 18-year-old Veach, a professional race car driver who dropped out of public school because of the bullying he was facing.
“We’re here to make a change because it’s getting out of hand,” continued Veach. “Because I wasn’t on the football or baseball team, I was different. And different was bad.”
Gregory and Hannah have had their own encounters with bullying too. For Hannah, the issue hit home when his friends began to harass a close acquaintance of his from another school. Their experiences led the trio to learn more about the repercussions of bullying and enabled them to make a difference.
Now, all three are national spokesmen for the No Bull campaign and travel around to leadership organizations like the National FFA Organization to speak and inspire other students to consider the challenge for themselves.
“Everyone knows what bullying is, but no one wants to do anything about it,” said Gregory. “We’re challenging each and every one of you to take on No Bull. All you need is a camera and an idea.”
No Bull Challenge participants submit a short video or public service announcement elaborating on the topic of bullying. Fifty videos are selected and then narrowed down to the top 15 finalists who are invited to attend the Teen Video Awards in San Francisco. Additionally, contestants are eligible to win other prizes including laptops, a new camera and even college scholarships.
For more on how you can make a difference and join the No Bull Challenge, visit http://www.nobullchallenge.org.