Dear Partners in Positive School Cultures,

Some of you know abut Living Values Education Program (www.livingvalueseducation.org ) which is a ten year old non-profit all volunteer organization dedicated to being a part of a global movement for a culture of peace in the framework of the United Nations International Decade for a Culture of Peace and Non-Violence for the Children of the World. All of our approaches are strength based.

We incorporate Ai in to all our staff trainings and have been working with school systems in USA and the countries around us and belong to such groups as the Character Education Partnership out of D.C. where we provided a presentation at their annual conference on the results of our parenting groups in Dade County. We have a series of books that help adults come up with activities with different ages in 12 values (http://www.livingvalueseducation.org/Resources/Book_Overview/Book_Overview.htm )

We have just learned that one of the schools (Aventura School in Florida} we have worked with these past seven years is a finalist for national recognition. Here is the official release.

TWENTY-SEVEN SCHOOLS AND DISTRICTS SELECTED AS NATIONAL FINALISTS IN PRESTIGIOUS CHARACTER EDUCATION COMPETITION
Winners to be selected in late May
February 25, 2009 . . . Washington, DC

The Character Education Partnership (CEP) has named twenty-five schools and two districts as National Finalists in its National Schools of Character (NSOC) awards program. CEP, the nation’s leading advocate for quality character education, chose the 27 National Finalists from a record 185 applicants across the United States. CEP will be conducting site visits to all National Finalists throughout the end of April. CEP’s Blue Ribbon Panel will then meet to select approximately 10 winners in May.

“CEP congratulates all the applicants and commends them for the important work they are doing to develop young people of good character,” CEP Executive Director Joe Mazzola said. “Character education has never been more important. It is a genuine honor to recognize these exemplar schools that are setting the standard for the rest of the nation.”

Schools or districts selected as the 2009 National Schools of Character will receive the award, national recognition, and a financial grant at CEP’s 16th National Forum on Character Education, Citizens of Character – the Foundation of Democracy, to be held October 29-31, 2009, at the Hilton Alexandria Mark Center outside of Washington, DC. Having demonstrated the success of their initiatives through the rigorous NSOC application and screening process, winners use their grants to serve as national leaders and models for other schools and districts seeking to improve their character education efforts.

“We know the NSOC application process is time-consuming and demanding,” NSOC Director Janice Stoodley said. “But applicants repeatedly tell us they benefit from applying. We know the process works. We are able to find schools and districts doing innovative things to connect with kids and connect kids to their communities. We see first-hand the remarkable results these schools are able to achieve in terms of academic achievement and school climate.”

CEP selects the National Finalists on the strength of their written applications, which demonstrate their outstanding work in encouraging the ethical, social, and academic growth of their students through effective character education. In addition to the 27 National Finalists, 28 schools will receive national honorable mention as a result of the strength of their work. CEP’s Eleven Principles of Effective Character Education, which defines excellence in character education, guides the evaluation and selection of finalists and winners.

Each year since 1998, the NSOC awards program has recognized K-12 schools and districts that provide exemplary comprehensive character education programs that consistently yield positive results in student behavior, citizenship, school climate, and academic performance. For more information about CEP or the NSOC awards program, visit www.character.org.

Character Education Partnership2009 National Schools of Character Award National Finalists:

• Alta S. Leary Elementary School, Warminster, Pennsylvania
• Ashland High School, Ashland, Ohio
• Aventura City of Excellence School, Aventura, Florida
• Bayless Elementary School, St. Louis, Missouri
• Bayless Junior High School, St. Louis, Missouri
• Beverly Elementary School, Beverly Hills, Michigan
• Beverly Woods Elementary School, Charlotte, North Carolina
• The Blake School, Hopkins, Minnesota
• Brigantine Elementary School, Brigantine, New Jersey
• Col. John Robinson School, Westford, Massachusetts
• First Philadelphia Charter School for Literacy, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
• Fox C-6 School District, Arnold, Missouri
• Fuguitt Elementary School, Largo, Florida
• Greenfield Elementary School, Beverly Hills, Michigan
• Hamilton Township School District, Hamilton, New Jersey
• Kehrs Mill Elementary School, Chesterfield, Missouri
• Lake Riviera Middle School, Brick, New Jersey
• Long Elementary School, Crestwood, Missouri
• Lore Elementary School, Ewing, New Jersey
• Lyles-Crouch Traditional Academy, Alexandria, Virginia
• Milwaukee College Prep School, Milwaukee, Wisconsin
• Parkside Primary Center, Bethalto, Illinois
• Peak to Peak Charter School, Lafayette, Colorado
• Seminole Elementary School, Seminole, Florida
• Sullivan Primary School, Sullivan, Missouri
• Walnut Street Elementary School, Uniondale, New York
• Westwood Elementary School, Friendswood, Texas

Geographic distribution:
The 2009 National Finalists represent 15 states. Five states have two or more National Finalists: Missouri (6), New Jersey (4), Florida (3), Michigan (2), and Pennsylvania (2). In 2009, 26 states participated in the State Schools of Character awards program, a preliminary step in reaching the national level of competition. All of the 27 National Finalists were part of this process and named State Finalists in their states.

Demographics:
Most of the 2009 National Finalists are public schools although two are districts and one is a private school. Nineteen of the twenty-five schools are elementary schools, two are middle schools, one is a high school, and three have a mix of grade levels. Most National Finalists are located in suburban settings, although nine of the schools are urban and one of the schools is located in a rural area. A number of the National Finalists have student populations that may be described as low-income; 10 have one-third or more of their students eligible for free and reduced price lunch.

Anne Rarich
Certified Executive Coach and Facilitator
Inscape Publishing
Authorized Distributor
Phone: 978-369-9071
Web: http://www.learning-exchange.com