Published: May 17, 2008 10:24 pm      

Mid-Del educators ‘on fire’ for character

Encouraging model behavior is nothing new to many Mid-Del schools.

Traub Elementary School, for example, already posts a character creed and rewards students who emulate it with “character bucks.”

But a new pilot program set to begin next fall will implement what teachers, administrators and counselors took away from a three-day Character Counts training seminar that ran May 6 to 8.

Not every educator in the district underwent the training. In fact, only about three dozen were sent. But they will train others in the district, according to Mid-Del administrator Jackie Castleberry, who will oversee the program’s implementation. This will save the school money because of the cost of the Character Counts training, she said. The district spent $26,000 for the seminar.

The person Castleberry attributes to bringing the program to the district’s attention was Assistant Superintendent Katherine Ridenour-Hughes.

The program will begin with the training of educators but eventually will extend to cafeteria workers, transportation employees and interested members of the community.

“It’s something that will touch every facet. Then we’ll want to draw in business and it will be a community effort,” Castleberry said.

Cleveland Bailey Elementary School counselor Jan Morris was excited talking about a list of ideas she has come up with since attending the seminar. The pillars will be integrated with the school’s Great Expectations life principles and a theme, Safari of Success. Plans include a passport that is stamped when students show signs of character, a Character Counts family night, stuffed animals representing each pillar and a bench in the entrance that the six pillars are painted on.

Morris was familiar with Character Counts before the seminar but did take away from the training that many children are less able these days to identify personal heroes. Teaching them to identify role models means that they have someone to keep them accountable in their head, she said.

“We have to help our children establish heroes,” Morris said.

Traub Elementary School Principal Rondall Jones also attended the training. He said coming up with ways to spotlight students who model the Character Counts pillars will be a focus. He also wants to convert six columns in the school’s cafeteria to be the six “pillars” of Character Counts.

“I’ve got six columns. I’d like to have that painted by some of our (Del City) high school artists,” Jones said.

A Steed Elementary School art teacher and the school’s principal also attended the seminar.

“I came back on fire,” teacher Kristy Harris said.

Principal Dayna Hamilton said she immediately began using the pillars in her vocabulary when speaking with students sent to her office.

Both teachers and students will be surveyed about their thoughts on character. Over the summer, the principal plans on training other members of the school staff and doing some brainstorming.

“Our kids are just so overexposed,” Harris said. “Hopefully, we as educators can deflect some of that negativity.”