Twenty sixth-, seventh- and eighth-graders were scattered around the sparsely decorated classroom at Our Lady of Guadalupe School, Rosehill, eyes fixed to the junior in white T-shirt and baggy blue shorts from St. Genevieve High School standing in their midst.

"The way that I am is because of where I came from," Carlos Valenzia explained, holding out his hands, palms up. "But I have changed. Because in order for someone to succeed and, you know, to become the person that you want to be and the leaders of tomorrow, there are changes in your life you have to make."

Then he walked over to a group of kids sitting at old chipped wood desks.

Carlos said before transferring to St. Genevieve he was going to a "separated" high school, where students isolated themselves into little cliques and made fun of each other, with the coolest kids on campus being the jocks.

"I come from a neighborhood that is relatively violent, because it is in the middle of L.A.," he went on. "But in spite of the fact that I come from that type of environment, you don't need to get sucked up in it. Because it's really your choice.

"And you guys have the opportunity. By coming here to this school, you have the opportunity to become something greater."

Carlos and seven other St. Genevieve student peer trainers came to the urban elementary school in El Sereno from Panorama City Oct. 5 as part of an Anti-Defamation League program called "A World of Difference." The high-schoolers were trained over the summer to work with other students in recognizing and combating bias as well as all forms of prejudice and bigotry on local campuses.

Their hour-plus presentation impressed Alina Alvarev, Our Lady of Guadalupe's student body president.

"I learned that there were some sixth-graders who think that seventh-graders are like bullying them, and eighth-graders who don't talk to them," the 13-year-old said. "So it was great knowing how people from different classes feel about other people. We'll try to work that out.

"And I'll try to make everybody here feel more welcome," she added, "and want to come to school because they're enjoying it."