By Caley Griebenow, associate editor-in-chief
Staring at the screen of his computer, the founder of the lifestyle apparel company “DUDE. Be Nice” Brent Camalich wrote an apology. He Facebook-messaged a man he knew from high school who ended up switching schools because of bullying, and Camalich expressed his regret for his actions.
Camalich received a response rather quickly; he was forgiven, but yes, high school was not a good experience for this guy.
“I could have befriended him, but instead I made high school hell for him,” Camalich said. “And although I was forgiven, I still have to live with my actions for the rest of my life.”
Camalich vowed to learn from who he was in high school and instead make being “nice” a cool thing to be. He shared his experience to an audience of Prospect students, staff and parents in the evening of April 10. He was able to fly in on a grant won by juniors Lilly Schober and Hannah Walker. They completed an anti-bullying project for an FCCLA competition and were awarded $1000.
After working as news producer to CBS right out of college, a camp counselor, and with various Fortune 500 companies, Camalich decided to devote all of his efforts to being the CEO of DUDE. Be Nice. The company is based in California, but Camalich travels all over the country to promote his message. He also works on video projects, such as this one.
During his presentation, Camalich urged the audience to make their ‘brand’ a positive one, citing the example of Nike equating their brand with professional athletes.
“I’m not perfect; I mean I used to be not-so-nice to people, and now I own a company about being nice to people,” Camalich said. “But like everything else, being a good person takes practice. And I tell people to make your brand a good one because a brand will be what people think of you.”
Senior Dana Iverson was in the audience and was overall impressed with Camalich’s presentation.
“He seems like a really cool guy, and he just really showed how your actions have a big impact on other people’s lives,” Iverson said. “He just makes you think about how being nice should be a priority for everyone.”  
To learn more, visit https://www.dudebenice.com/.