MOORE, Okla. — Monday marked the third anniversary of the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting that left 20 students and six staff members dead in Connecticut. It also marked the day that a student group at an Oklahoma high school was recognized for its efforts to prevent such a tragedy in the future.

Moore High School students Colton Crick, Noah Ramos and Jordan Cotton are part of the Say Something committee, a group committed to a proactive approach to school safety.

The committee’s video project caught the attention of Sandy Hook mother Nicole Hockley, the director of Sandy Hook Promise, a group that focuses on raising awareness and creating safer schools. Hockley visited Moore High to deliver a $10,000 check Monday to the Say Something committee to help fund future efforts.

Ramos said hearing her speak was impactful and gave them a “deeper connection that we take with us.”

Hockley lost her son that day, but she said she will never stop fighting for a better future. Crick said dealing with the issue is no longer optional.

“It’s something we have to do now,” he said.

Every Moore High student currently enrolled began their scholastic pursuits in the shadow of the Columbine High School massacre. Since 1999, U.S. school shootings have claimed more than 200 lives and destroyed many others. 

“We live in a scary time where you don’t know whether you’re going to see your child after school,” Cotton said. “That’s what I carry with me. But getting to hear her speak gave me great comfort. Terrible things have happened, but people are trying to change the world and make a difference.”

“Whenever it comes to fighting situations like these, it is the norm now,” Ramos said. “We have to make sure that we’re preventing it from happening, rather than just targeting people who are at risk. If we just become more sociable and focus on becoming better citizens, we can connect with people and prevent that from ever becoming a thought in their mind.”

The Say Something movement is the fruit of that learned responsibility. Its mission is encapsulated in the name.

“It means exactly what it says,” Cotton said. “If you see something that is weird or just see a kid who is sitting by themselves at lunch and never really talks to anyone, go talk to that person.”

Sandy Hook school district Superintendent Joseph Erardi Jr. said he is encouraged by what groups like Sandy Hook Promise and Say Something are trying to achieve.

“It’s perseverance and hard work,” he said. “The network that Sandy Hook Promise has now created over the past three years exists because of their unwavering drive and willingness to make a difference. That’s the reason why Connecticut has adopted a number of their programs. They’re strung about in pockets of the nation … They continue to do exceptional work for students across the country.”

Moore High Principal Mike Coyle said students took the initiative to create the committee and that’s an underlying theme of the project, as he sees it.

“We are empowered to do certain things and measurably impact our schools,” Coyle said. “The national statistics show that in 7 out of 10 instances of school violence, there was at least one other individual on campus that was familiar with the event and its impending occurrence.

“So, the story, the challenge, the message is to make sure that we are doing everything we can as a school community … That’s very empowering. Rather than a victimization mindset, it’s taking initiative.”

Speaking out about irregular, warning-sign behavior is part of the mission, but reaching out to the disenfranchised and lonely is a big component.

“It’s much bigger. It’s a way to keep the school safe, but it’s also a way to connect with everybody in the Moore High School community,” Cotton said. “It was really exciting for us when we found out, because it proves that we’re making a difference and that Moore High School is the community we say we are.”

The Say Something committee is planning to use the funds in conjunction with a May event.

Burke writes for The Norman (Okla.) Transcript