Philly HS students create Ninja Warrior League hoping to deter gun violence
SPRINGFIELD, Pa. (CBS) -- The Ninja Warrior League Championship in Delaware County is two days away.
It's a tournament designed by high school students in Philadelphia that teaches accountability.
Donald Bullock, 16, used to attend Roxborough High School.
But in September, a student was gunned down after a football scrimmage.
The trauma still haunts him.
"I heard from somebody that they were going to — the people that shot up the school were going to come back — or, shot up the field — were going to come back, and that wasn't a nice feeling to know," Bullock said.
Bullock says after that, he transferred to the Revolution School, a small private high school in Center City.
As part of a wellness class assignment, he and his 23 classmates are now getting ready to host their first ever Ninja Warrior League Championship.
The 24 students enrolled at @rvltnproject in Center City are hosting their first ever Ninja Warrior League Championship on Friday at the @UrbanAirPark in Springfield, Delco. The tournament, which teaches teamwork, is also part of an effort to curb gun violence in Philadelphia. pic.twitter.com/c6vttKvaIq
— Madeleine Wright (@MWrightReports) March 22, 2023
The tournament pits four teams of students against each other on an obstacle course they designed.
"It gives me hope that students or people my age will want to participate and help get their mind off things that they feel sad about," Journey Mickens-Ricketts said.
Carlos Aponte, the executive director of We Love Philly, teaches the wellness class.
"The skills the students are learning by doing this championship is, the most important, which is working together and holding each other accountable in a team setting," Aponte said.
"Trying to help stop solve gun violence by making something like this, like a Ninja Warrior League for kids to do, to get them off the streets," Bullock said.
Students say the league teaches them innovation and leadership skills. It also helps them feel safe.
"I feel more secure and more free to be myself and like, I don't have to like turn and look my back like, is somebody watching me?" Bullock said.
The tournament is on Friday at the Urban Air Adventure Park.