Celebrate Character Counts! Week October 13-19, 1996

How I can get my cities, communities, counties, and state to become active in CHARACTER COUNTS?

Many national and local elected officials supported the first annual National CHARACTER COUNTS! Week by issuing resolutions or proclamations. There are many things local government can continue to do to help highlight the CHARACTER COUNTS! message:

* Get Elected Officials to Participate
Encourage your governor, mayor, city council members, state legislators, school board members, etc., to introduce a resolution that proclaims the third week in October as CHARACTER COUNTS! Week. (Sample proclamation enclosed.)

Contact an elected official's office - either in writing or by telephone. Provide a background sheet on CHARACTER COUNTS! and why you believe it is important that the elected official recognize a commitment to good character.

During October's CHARACTER COUNTS! Week, local governments can also participate by putting a banner in a prominent position, such as in city hall. The banner could proclaim: "CHARACTER COUNTS! in (Name of City)."

Town Hall Meeting
Encourage your local officials to hold a CHARACTER COUNTS! Town Hall meeting in the city council chamber. Invite a broad cross section of community activists to discuss the "Six Pillars of Character" ( trustworthiness/respect/responsibility/fairness/ caring/citizenship) and acknowledge individuals, both adults and young people, in the community who exemplify these virtues. Local elected officials can give these individuals certificates of acknowledgment to worthy individuals.

Make a "CHARACTER COUNTS! in (name of city)" banner.,Display it across a major thoroughfare. (Permission to use the CHARACTER COUNTS! logo is required.)
Encourage businesses to display the "Six Pillars" on signs. (Permission to use the CHARACTER COUNTS! logo is required.)
Sponsor an essay contest in the local newspaper: "Why do the 'Six Pillars of Character' count in (name of city)?"
Prepare local news articles on one of the "Six Pillars" or on the value of good character in general.
Have a CHARACTER COUNTS! recognition banquet in your city with media coverage to highlight what's good in your community.
Prepare a CHARACTER COUNTS! insert in the local paper. (Permission to use the CHARACTER COUNTS! logo is required.)
Ask local libraries and book stores to feature books dealing with good character during the week.

Prepare radio PSAs (public service announcements) and share them with local stations. (See enclosed.)

Sponsor a billboard about character

How to incorporate CHARACTER COUNTS!
into education

THINGS YOU CAN DO

School-wide Activities

€Word/Trait of the Month/Week
€Hallway Displays
€Morning Public Announcements
€Student/Faculty Task Force
€Posters
€Faculty Training/Discussions
€Pride Campaign
€Parent Meetings/Workshops
€Mottos/Slogans
€Parent/Faculty Task Force
€Quotations of the Week
€Peer Counseling/Mentoring
€Library Exhibits and Booklists
€Cross-Age Tutoring/Mentoring
€Codes and Rules of Conduct
€School Service Projects
€Pledges
€Community Service Projects
€Theme Assemblies
€Fund-Raising for Charities
€Rewards, Awards and Prizes
€Student-Designed T-shirts
€Contests
€School Mural
€Ceremonies
€School-sanctioned "Graffiti Wall" featuring "Six Pillars" art and messages about character
€Cafeteria Table Tents
€Recognition Wall for Exemplary Student Achievement in Character
€Six Pillars Club
€"Honor Roll" (nonacademic)

Classroom Activities

Praise and Appreciation
Rewards
Walls of Character

Correction/Negative Feedback
ConsequencesIPunishment

Class Projects
Student-Developed Rules
Posters
Slogans or Mottos
Mural

Class Discussions
Lessons Integrated in Substantive Curricula
Current Events at School
News Events
Movies
Discussion Questions
Quotations
Student-Generated Questions

Personal Assignments
Reading (Books/Stories)
Write Essay
Write Personal Journal
Deliver Speech/Presentation
Design Coat of Arms
Personal Mission Statement

Individual or Group Projects
Cartoons
Original Quotations
Picture Book for Younger Kids
Posters
Songs
Skits or Plays
Video
Write a Commercial
Journalistic-Style Interviews

CHARACTER COUNTS! Week Activities

Talk to civic and community leaders and make them aware of CHARACTER COUNTS!. Ask the mayor to endorse a CHARACTER COUNTS! proclamation for your community.

Make a banner or poster which reads "CHARACTER COUNTS! in (name of city)." Display it across a major thoroughfare and/or throughout work places in the community. (Permission to use logo is required.)

Display the "Six Pillars of Character, (trustworthiness, respect, responsibility, fairness, caring and citizenship) on signs and billboards. (Permission to use logo is required.)

Design, print, and distribute CHARACTER COUNTS! and/or Six Pillars bumper stickers. (Permission to use logo is required.)

Ask local banks and utility companies to include the Six Pillars of Character and a reference to CHARACTER COUNTS! Week on monthly statements.

Distribute "A Person of Character..." wallet cards to local community groups and churches for them to include with their bulletins and newsletters.

Encourage residents and businesses to display the American flag during CHARACTER COUNTS! Week to celebrate the citizenship Pillar of Character.

Ask local libraries and bookstores to recommend and display books dealing with good character during CHARACTER COUNTS! Week.

Organize a CHARACTER COUNTS[ Task Force in your city or school to extend character-building activities throughout the year.

Invite a CHARACTER COUNTS! speaker to your community to help initiate a Community Leadership Program for young people.

Get permission to cover an unsightly wall with a colorful Six Pillars design. Have a contest to determine which design you will use, then recruit young people to paint it.

Distribute the CHARACTER COUNTS! Sports Ethics Code to community leagues. Encourage the leagues to train coaches, parents and players using the Code.

Create a "CHARACTER COUNTS in Sports" contract for all participants in community sports leagues, committing them to the Six Pillars of Character.

Organize Father vs. Son and/or Mother vs. Daughter sporting events (basketball, baseball, volleyball, etc.). Give ribbons and prizes for good sportsmanship. Discuss the importance of good sportsmanship.

Prepare a CHARACTER COUNTS! insert in the local paper. Include local news articles on CHARACTER COUNTS!, the Six Pillars of Character or character in general. (Permission to use logo is required.)

Prepare radio PSAs (public service announcements) and share them with local stations.


Arrange a rap contest with rap songs related to character or the Six Pillars. Publicize the event and its winners in newspapers and the newsletters of local groups.

Plan a fund-raising project for a local charitable organization.

Honor local heroes. Sponsor a "Characters Who Count" recognition event or banquet in your city. Encourage residents to nominate those who live by the Six Pillars. Contact local reporters and encourage them to cover the event. Have "Parents of Character/Kids of Character/Teens of Character" recognition events too!

Design and print holiday cards with a character theme. Have a contest and select the top entries. Have a CHARACTER COUNTS card sale during CHARACTER COUNTS! Week.

Have a "Doing the Fight Thing" poster contest for children and display the art in shopping centers, government offices, businesses, schools, libraries, etc., Send the winning entries to CHARACTER COUNTS! as part of the Kids f or Character' Creations Search.

Sponsor a T-shirt design contest for teens. Design, print, and recruit local teens to sell the T-shirts to support CHARACTER COUNTS.

Have a photography contest focusing on the Six Pillars in everyday life. Display photos in a prominent location.

Sponsor CHARACTER COUNTS! mini-booth exhibits at the local fair or school festivals. Distribute CHARACTER COUNTS literature and display posters on the Six Pillars of Character.

Have a CHARACTER COUNTS art exhibit. Submit the best entries to CHARACTER COUNTS! as part of the Kids f or Character Creations Search.

Write and present a play on character. Invite the neighborhood. Ask local businesses and youth organizations to donate costumes and props. Videotape the play and submit it to CHARACTER COUNTS! as part of the Kids for Character Creations Search.

Plan and conduct a CHARACTER COUNTS camp for children.
Plan a CHARACTER COUNTS weekend retreat for teens.
Distribute CHARACTER COUNTS ribbons, pencils, buttons and stickers to recognize students who exemplify one of the Six Pillars during the week.

Design and print lunchroom place mats that read "CHARACTER COUNTS! at (name of school)." Design a place mat for each day, featuring one or more of the Six Pillars. Send the place mats home on Friday for families to use and discuss.

Decorate your school with the Six Pillars. Display banners, posters and art work on classroom doors, in hallways, in the library, cafeteria and gym. Be creative.

Have students build six "pillars" from papier micro fiche, corrugated cardboard or construction paper. Identify them as the"Six Pillars of Character"and display them in a prominent place.

Have students write or draw CHARACTER COUNTS! slogans or famous quotes about character, based on one of the Six Pillars. Assign related reading as a homework assignment.

Organize an essay contest addressing the topic of character development or (un)ethical behavior. Publish winning essays in the school newspaper or newsletter. Send winning entries to CHARACTER COUNTS as part of the Kids f or Character Creations Search.

Have students of all ages participate in a speech contest or debate focusing on ethical issues. Provide media recognition for all participants.

Have a costume day at school where students and teachers dress as real or fictional heroes who have shown good character. Have each person identify which of the Six Pillars his/her hero exemplifies.

Have students write reviews of books with characters who demonstrate good character, then have them present these reports to the class and discuss.

Have students interview a person who demonstrates one or more of the Six Pillars, then have them present these interviews to the class and discuss.

Add quotes and character-building reminders on the school calendar; make a calendar for the week, listing CHARACTER COUNTS! Week activities plus suggestions for practicing the Six Pillars at home.

Have students make a CHARACTER COUNTS movie. Divide responsibilities, including script-writing, casting, camera work, editing, music, etc. Send the finished product to CHARACTER COUNTS! as part of the Kids for Character.
Creations Search.

Show the Kids for Character video to a youth group. Pause the video after each segment and discuss each Pillar. Serve popcorn and create your own skits and songs related to the Six Pillars.

Using the Six Pillars of Character, have students devise rules for the classroom, hallways and playground. Select a "Children's Task Force" to help enforce the rules.

Have a PTA/PTO program on "Raising Kids With Character." Discuss the Six Pillars and what is being done in the classroom to inculcate these values. Encourage parents to reinforce these lessons and to discuss the importance of each Pillar during CHARACTER COUNTS Week.

Start a CHARACTER COUNTS petition at your school, making the "Six Pillars" a priority among the students and teachers who sign. Develop a contract for all who sign, committing them to the Six Pillars.

Establish a high school "Six Pillars Society" whose membership is based on service to the school and community.

Develop a reward system for youngsters who demonstrate good character. CHARACTER COUNTS offers "happy face" stickers and "Exercising Character Daily Score Cards" for this purpose.

Have students write notes to stick on a mirror at home, using the phrase "I am a person of character because..."

CHARACTER COUNTS!

4640 Admiralty Way, #1001, Marina del Rey, CA90292-6610
(310) 306-1868(800) 711-2670

CHARACTER COUNTS!. @1996 CHARACTER COUNTS!, a project ot the Josephson Institute of Ethics

The purpose of the CHARACTER COUNTS! Coalition is to strengthen the character of young people today and thereby safeguard tomorrow for all. To do this, the Coalition seeks to put the issue of values education at the top of the national agenda, an agenda without regard for race, creed, politics, or wealth. The Coalition is built on the consensus ethical values that are the very foundation of a free, democratic society. These values, called "Pillars of Character," are: trustworthiness, respect, responsibility, fairness, caring, and citizenship.

A BRIEF HISTORY

In July 1992 the Joseph & Edna Josephson Institute of Ethics brought together in Aspen, Colorado, an eminent and diverse group of educators, youth leaders and ethicists to share ideas about character development and to investigate ways of working together. Chief among these ways was developing consensus on the ethical values that held appeal for individuals and organizations with differing beliefs, missions and methodologies. At the end of three-and-a-half days of discourse, participants unanimously endorsed the Aspen Declaration on Character Education. This statement enshrined the language that came to be called the Six Pillars of Character. About a year later, the Institute founded the CHARACTER COUNTS! Coalition to further the goals of the Aspen conference.

WHOSE VALUES, WHAT VALUES?

What values describe the highest ideals of human behavior? Can it be that we have no idea? The Coalition works to overcome the false but surprisingly powerful notion that no single value is intrinsically superior to another, that ethical values must vary by race, class, gender, and politics that greed and fairness, cheating and honesty all carry the same moral weight, simply depending on one's individual perspective and immediate needs. The Coalition strives to build consensus that however diverse our opinions and personalities and backgrounds, there are values that clearly define us at our best. It follows that such values are worthy of promotion where they are evident and of repair where they have faltered. And that is what the Coalition seeks to do: build awareness of these consensus values and teach them rigorously to the young in support of the paramount role of parents.
But why six values? Why not five or seven or thirteen' The reason is a balance needs to be struck between the [win virtues of brevity and comprehensiveness. In a repeating echo of the Aspen conference, there is continuing consensus (that the Six Pillars are sufficient to uphold the good society and enclose the qualities held dear by well meaning people. In two years, 39 states and over 450 cities, counties, school districts and chambers of commerce (not to mention the President, the U.S. Senate and the House of Representatives) have endorsed CHARACTER COUNTS! and the Six Pillars.
One can add to this short list of values, of course, but here at least are six that serve as a common denominator, an irreducible minimum. Still, why even bother with all this talk of words when action is so desperately needed? The reason: if character education is to work society-wide, diverse groups must work together. A standard lexicon is critical because language is the currency of communication. And as with any instruction, effective character education benefits from consistency and repetition, from the family room to the school room to the locker room.

Ongoing Projects and Programs

CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT EDUCATION Character Development Education (CDE) is the Coalitions primary means of training and certifying teachers, coaches, youth leaders and other youth-influencing adults to teach principled reasoning and ethical decision making based on the Six Pillars. CDE graduates work with each other as a team to help youth in a single community. California, New Mexico, Texas, Connecticut,Ohio, Maryland and Michigan are among the states where CDEs have taken place.

COMMUNITY FORA How does a community find consensus on what unites its members, regardless of gender, racial, political and-religious differences? Inviting a broad cross-section of the community to a two-day forum on values helps. Community members can confront the always-vexing "whose values, what values" issue head-on, share ideas about what works in values education, and then set up teams to work together. Such a forum also lays the ground for a Character Development Education program to take place in the same community at a later date.

CHARACTER COUNTS! WEEK
Given the concern many voice over the state of society, finding verbal support for CHARACTER COUNTS is not terribly difficult. But building awareness that the world should change is one thing, it's quite another to convince people, from the householder to the I House Speaker, that there exists a ready means to change the world: acknowledging the ethical values that bind us and teaching them rigorously to the young. CHARACTER COUNTS Week is a way, to build that necessary awareness, and each year. thousands of schools, businesses and politicians are asked to sponsor or participate in programs during the third week in October - not so much to celebrate our best selves, but to call the nation to action.

YOUTH-AT-RISK WORKSHOPS
Turning around troubled lives and reversing the tide of youth violence swamping the nation's streets, homes, and school yards are among society's more daunting tasks. ' CHARACTER COUNTS! is involved in this effort with a pilot program in Tulare County, CA, training teachers at a special school to help at-risk kids develop ethical decision-making skills.

Kids for Character CREATIONS SEARCH In this innovative program, kids across the country express their conviction that character counts in essays and poems (Say It), songs (Sing It) and posters, art work or videos (Show It). Events have ranged from Big Brothers/Big Sisters' annual awards in Tarrant Count, Texas, to a nationwide school-based art contest, much of which now graces attention-grabbing stickers, ties and scarves available through the national offices of CHARACTER COUNTS

Kids for Character CLUB
Young children are encouraged to serve their school and family and otherwise live according to the Six Pillars by being members in this club. There is no tree house, but members do receive fun awareness products and an official membership certificate featuring the Kids for Character pledge.

NATIONAL CHARACTER COUNTS! BUSINESS PARTNERS Just as they are encouraged to bring ethics training into the work place, businesses are encouraged to join CHARACTER COUNTS and sponsor community fora in the communities within which they operate. And business has responded with gusto. Metropolitan Life and State Farm Insurance, for example, have generously supported CHARACTER COUNTS at the national level, while other firms have supported CHARACTER COUNTS on the local level by underwriting Community Fora and Character Development Education programs.