Hundreds of purple and blue signatures dot a large, white poster on the second-floor hallway wall to end the use of the word “retard” in a derogatory manner.

Best Buddies club members posted the sign this month to recognize Best Buddies’ national “Spread the Word to End the Word” month, special educator Stephen Sutherland said.

Whitman’s chapter is participating for the first time this March and hopes to do even more to promote awareness next year.

“The whole goal is to get [people] to stop using the R-word as frequently as it’s being used,” Sutherland said. “This year was our first year, but next year, I think it would be a good idea to expand into maybe making bracelets or T-shirts.”

The sign has been effective in promoting the cause, said junior Molly Houston, who helped create the poster.

“The banner shows a lot of school support,” she said. “It shows how many people agree with this. It was amazing, the way we just got the word out really fast.”

Whitman’s Best Buddies class has grown rapidly in recent years, from 25 members six years ago to around 150 now, Sutherland said. The rapid growth has helped spread awareness about the campaign through Best Buddies members and Designated Hitters interns, he said.

Despite the increasing popularity and prominence of Best Buddies at Whitman, offensive language is still a problem, Houston said.

“I think it’s one of those things that people have just been used to saying for a while and never mean any true harm by it,” she said. “But the truth in the matter is that it harms a lot of people. There’s an entire population affected by it.”

Sutherland said he hopes the poster will help signers consider the consequences of their words and ultimately change their behavior.

“I’m sure there’s a percentage of people that signed it just because their friends signed it and probably didn’t even read the words on the poster,” he said. “But at the same time, I think there’s also a percentage of people who signed it who truly believe in it.”