With state assessment tests just a few days away, a group of students at a local middle school wanted to make sure their fellow students had the encouragement they needed to do well not only on the tests but in everything they do.

On Friday morning, members of the Girls on the Run team at Happy Valley Middle School arrived before the rest of the school’s students and placed a Post It note with a positive message on each locker, classroom door and office in the school.

As part of the curriculum for the Girls on the Run program, the students have to participate in a community service project.

“We had to come up with something to do for our community or our school,” team member Anslie Pinkston said.

So the group decided to spread some positivity.

“Everybody has been so stressed about TCAPs and I think this will help them,” said team member Lauren Younce.

Her teammate Abigail Rush agreed. “I think it will really make them smile, especially if they have been having a bad day.”

The team worked through the hallways for about 30 minutes Friday morning before their classmates arrived placing messages on the lockers and doors. The small notes held messages such as “Have Confidence,” “You are awesome,” Believe in Yourself,” “You Are Gonna Rock the TCAPs” and “You Are Beautiful.”

The power of those simple words was one of the things team member Emma Holtsclaw liked best about the project.

“I think it’s really going to impact them because we are in middle school and people don’t always say nice things,” she said. “I think it will make them have a better day just knowing someone does care about them.”

And the students getting the post it notes weren’t the only ones feeling good Friday morning.

“It made me feel good to make them feel good, “team member Clara Smith said.

Tiffany Herrick, the counselor at Happy Valley Middle School, serves as the faculty adviser for the Girls on the Run team. This the first year the program has been at the middle school, but Herrick worked with the program previously at another school. So far, she said the program has been wonderful at Happy Valley Middle.

“I think in middle school girls often struggle with issues of self-esteem and self-confidence,” she said, adding the program promotes confidence through physical activity and community service. “Through the program they gain self confidence and that spills over into the classroom and into their relationships with friends and family.”

When the team began discussing the Positive Post-Its project, the students didn’t want to just do it for their classmates, they wanted to include everyone at the school including teachers, faculty, the cafeteria staff, the janitor and the school nurse, Herrick said.

“It showed me they really got the message and they know everybody contributes to the school,” she said. “The whole motto of Girls on the Run is to build each other up instead of bringing each other down.”