REACH: Respect, Education and Always Climb Higher

Punching and kicking, with sweat trickling down their often beet-red
faces, the 38 students practicing martial arts in the Longwood High
School gym Thursday looked ready for a fight.

But even as they assaulted the air around them, their chant remained
noncombative: "I must use common sense before self-defense and must
never be abusive."
The students were taking part in an anti-gang, anti-bullying pilot
program called REACH: Respect, Education and Always Climb Higher. The
afterschool program is a joint effort by the school, the Suffolk
Police Athletic League and a Middle Island martial arts school. It
aims to teach kids how to defend themselves and keep the bullies out
of trouble.

"This school is like a microcosm of Suffolk County -- in race, gender,
religion," said Don Yorie, the program's creator and PAL's
coordinator. "If we can get a pilot program to work here, it can work
anywhere in the county."

Assistant Principal Charles Morea said students often get in trouble
because they are looking to prove themselves by fighting. "People
might have thought we were crazy to teach kids who fight how to
fight," he said of the program, which started in February. "But we're
teaching them to walk away."

The school is determining the program's impact on attendance, behavior
and academics. But Morea said he is getting positive feedback from
teachers, who see more confidence and respect in students.
The reasons why the students joined the 15-week program, which is
designed so that students can join at any time, are as diverse as the
group's members.

The physical violence attracted sophomore Gregory Allen, but during
the course he has found mental growth a by-product. "I go to class on
time a lot more now," said Allen, 15. "I try harder in class."
Senior Deepti Sakaria, who takes the class with her sister Sapna, said
she has been bullied and is glad the program teaches how to fight
back. "Now I'll take anybody on," Sakaria, 16, said with a laugh.
The program, free to students, costs PAL about $4,000 for 40 to 50
students. The school uses certified fifth-degree black belt
instructors from the East Coast Black Belt Academy.

When they're not shouting and jumping, the students get lessons on
life choices from Yorie. He said some of the students were already
falling into the gang lifestyle but have since given it up.
"Am I going to get a hard-core gang member to stop? The chances are
remote," he said. "But I can cut off the supply of kids going into the
gangs."