Teacher inspires kindness among students after personal tragedy: "They're gonna save the world"

Following a personal tragedy, a Philadelphia area teacher is inspiring her students and beyond to spread kindness.

In 2014, Kristina Ulmer's sister died in a car accident. When she and her parents went to the scene of the accident, they wanted something of hers to hold. 

"In her wallet, she had a stack of cash because on the side … as like, just like a side job, my sister was a waitress, so she had all of her tips and I wanted to do something with the money, but I didn't know what to do with it then," Ulmer said.

Her sister's cash sat in a drawer for four years – until late 2018. Ulmer was teaching ninth grade English at Hatboro-Horsham High School and the class was reading "Fahrenheit 451." 

"It's a dystopian novel that takes place in the future," Ulmer explained.  "I was trying to teach my students how the book is a warning of how we don't want to become like this society."

Then she decided to use her sister's money to help teach the lesson "because my sister was always, always concerned with other people."

With the money, Ulmer started a project she calls the "$20 Kindness Challenge." Now, every semester she gives her students each $20 to put toward a good deed of their choice. 

Giving back

Students often throw in some of their own money or even pool their twenties with classmates.

"I made bracelets for every elementary schooler! Each of them are grouped by grade," said 9th grader Ellie Goldsman.

Another 9th grade student, Victoria Kanoff, said she donated to the nonprofit Glad Dogs Nation.

Afterwards, the students have to make a video about what they learned.

"It made us feel like we had a bigger impact than just our budget," said 10th grader Peter Linn.

For some students, like 10th grader Charlie Boyd, the project was personal – just like it was for Ulmer.

Boyd donated to Parkinson's research, explaining his dad has "been suffering from Parkinson's for about 10 years. The effect that it has on him really inspired me to find something to do with that."

As word has gotten out, donations have poured in – helping hundreds of students do good deeds over the years.

"Being able to be a part of like this community and this class that performed like such a good thing for the world was just, it made her class a really welcoming space for me," said 10th grader Myah Morales Jones.

It's even inspired teachers across the country to reach out and see how they can start their own kindness projects.

"One of the best takeaways for me was the way that the students described how they felt… it made them light up," said Amy Smith, a teacher in Delaware.

But the most grateful beneficiary is Ulmer – the person who started it all.

"Every time the kids are doing something, I see her being like, 'yeah, that's awesome,'" Ulmer said, thinking of her sister who inspired the project. "I felt better like for the first time ... I was like, 'oh … that felt good.' And every time the kids would share with me what they did, I felt a little better. This next generation, I don't know, to me they're gonna save the world."