TOPEKA — Hoisington Middle School was honored May 6 at the Brown v. Board of Education National Historic Site in Topeka as one of 25 Kansas schools and school districts offering excellent character education that focuses on students’ social, emotional and character development.
Recognition for these character-focused schools and districts is given though the Kansas School of Character Recognition Program and sponsoring organizations — KScharacter.org, Character.org, the Kansas State Department of Education and the Brown v. Board site.
Character touches everything we do. Preparing students for this challenging world means offering not only academic preparation but character development, too. Character education is a proactive effort by schools, districts and communities to help students develop important core ethical and performance values, such as caring, honesty, diligence, fairness, fortitude, responsibility, grit, creativity, critical thinking and respect for self and others.
The social, emotional, and character development programs and initiatives in these schools prepare our students with the attitudes and skills necessary for both college and career readiness.
“Character development is an integral part of the Kansas State Board of Education’s new vision for Kansas education, which is Kansas leads the world in the success of each student,” Kansas Commissioner of Education Dr. Watson said. “I want to congratulate each school and school district on this wonderful achievement.”
The Kansas Standards for Social, Emotional, and Character Development Standards, http://www.ksde.org/Agency/Division-of-Learning-Services/Career-Standards-and-Assessment-Services/Content-Area-M-Z/School-Counseling/Social-Emotional-and-Character-Development adopted by the Kansas State Board of Education in 2012 give structure to the process. The Eleven Principals of Effective Character Education http://info.character.org/11-principles-download by Character.org provide a framework to evaluate the programming in schools.
For more information about Kansas’ character development programs, see the Kansas Schools of Character website at KScharacter.org or contact Noni Cremer by email at noni@KSCharacter.org; Sue Kidd by email at skidd.kschared@gmail.com or by phone at (785) 865-9942; or Kent Reed by email at kreed@ksde.org.
gfgfb