YORBA LINDA

Cheers and applause echoed through Esperanza High School’s gymnasium Thursday morning during an annual workshop designed to help fight stereotypes and build friendships.

“Breaking Down the Walls” is a three-day program that involves 600 students--200 each day--who take part in a series of activities to remove the social barriers between them, said Assistant Principal Doug Domene.

“These kids don’t know each other; they don’t know kids out of their social groups,” he said. “This session is to help them build bridges to one another.”

The school has been hosting the program since 1997 but did not have one last year because of the cost, he said. Food, T-shirts and other materials for the workshop typically cost about $10,000.