Morgan Gelfand, a Dobbs Ferry 8th grader, wore a blue shirt under her gray sweatshirt on Monday.

"I was bullied when I was younger," Gelfand said. "I don't remember exactly what the kids said—it was a long time ago—but I remember they were suddenly talking behind my back."

Gelfand said bullies also used the internet—especially facebook—to write hurtful messages.

Students and faculty from all three Dobbs Ferry schools wore blue on Monday for BLUE SHIRT DAY: WORLD DAY OF BULLYING PREVENTION.

DFHS Senior Amy Stiefel, who spearheaded the initiative, is a teen ambassador for the national organization STOMP Out Bullying.

Like Gelfand, Stiefel said she was bullied when she was younger. Now, she's using that experience to make sure other kids don't have to go through what she did.

"Having everyone come to school in blue shirts helps raise awareness of bullying; it sends the message that bullying isn't cool," Stiefel said.

In Dobbs Ferry Middle and High Schools, many students and teachers  who purposefully wore blue on Monday said bullying isn't much of a problem in their district.

"I wore blue to make sure we continue what's already going on here," said DFHS senior Danny Crowe. "We're all nice people here."

Substitute teacher Michael Gaudio agreed. "Bullying isn't really an issue in Dobbs Ferry. We have really nice kids. I watch them interact every day in the cafeteria, and it's a really nice community."

But still, hearing news about teens who end their own lives after suffering silently makes students like Stiefel continue to push anti-bullying programs and activities.

"You hear about teens committing suicide as a result of bullying all the time," she said. "It's so awful—so sad. We're trying to raise awareness to make sure that stops."

Even students as young as 11 and 12 have been exposed to news coverage of teen suicide.

"I've seen on TV that bullying is a big thing now and that kids have committed suicide because of it," said 7th-grader Dale Hasbrouck. "It's not a problem in Dobbs Ferry, I don't think; but I wore blue because I know it's happening in other places."

For Gelfand, having everyone wear blue to show they're against bullying is a good first step.

"I'm not sure whether it will actually decrease the amount of bullying though," she said. "It all depends on how the bullies respond to it."

Learn more about STOMP Out Bullying here.

Read Amy Stiefel's 'teen ambassador' profile here.