By Tim Eaton, Superintendent
Pulaski County School System

          As we more forward into the new millennium, we should strive to look for ways to help our children become not only better learners, but better people. Although our primary responsibility is to educate children in reading, writing and math, we would be amiss to think that academics alone constitute what makes a positive contributor for our community. The development of a child's character and appropriate behavior is first and foremost the responsibility of the family. However, children are exposed to many outside influences and spend a good deal of time away from their families. Families need the support of the schools and the community in their efforts to develop good character in their children. Character can not be instilled in our children in isolated environments.  Children must be taught good character traits at home, in church, in school, and in the community.
          The Pulaski County School System has implemented a character education initiative focusing on guiding principles that include respect, responsibility, adaptability, compassion, contemplation, courage, honesty, initiative, loyalty, optimism, perseverance, and trustworthy. Our efforts are causing those around the state to take notice of the success we are having including features on KET’s Inside Kentucky Schools, in Kentucky Teacher magazine, and requests for presentations at state and national conferences.
          We have celebrated this success during the first ever Character Education Week that was proclaimed by County Judge Executive Darrell Beshears.  We also presented Chamber of Commerce members character bags of information, honored character recipients at our monthly Board meeting, and hosted a wonderful breakfast that truly showed the wide spread support our community has for this effort.
          Our approach to character education is an initiative not a program.  It is not an add-on, but an add-in. It is not something we have added to our teacher’s plates, rather it IS the plate.  Also, our approach does not rest merely in the classroom, but is woven into the fabric of our entire district and indeed the community. Teachers, administrators, food service, custodial, and transportation personnel coach, model, and reinforce the guiding principles. We work with businesses, service clubs, government agencies, churches, and other school systems.  Our initiative has brought together 15 schools in the 3^rd largest county in the state in addition to Science Hill Independent, Victory Christian School, Wayne County High School, Somerset Independent and a host of non-school entities who have joined our crusade for building a community of character.
          Each month, Pulaski County Schools focus on a different guiding principle of exceptional character.  The "Word of the Month" is a large part of the character-centered teaching initiative that helps reinforce a series of behaviors, beliefs, and perspectives that constitute good character. We recognize the word of the month program alone, does not constitute a proactive character education initiative. We use the word of the month as well as other common activities like our Salute to Good Character and Happy Friday that help keep a coherent focus throughout the district. Although these common themes and activities help keep us all on the same page, each school had the freedom to infuse character into their building that best suited the school’s personality.
          Other keys to success have included the support of our Board Members and an aggressive awareness and education campaign that has been used to help parents, grandparents, business, and faith community members understand what character education means not only to our schools but also to our community’s future. 
          Businesses realize that our students are our future and they have been eager to become a part of this effort. Business partnerships have included everything from putting the Word of the Month on marquees to a character section at Blockbuster Video to donations for program components such as the sponsorship of Gold Star Chili for the Gold Star Bus program.  The Commonwealth Journal supports our efforts by involving their “Teen Team” in character education projects and covering character events. These are a few examples of how our entire community is getting involved.
          This year our focus is geared toward sportsmanship and building bridges with our faith-community. We hosted a Faith Community Breakfast where administration, school personnel, and fifteen multi-denominational ministers, came together to discuss ways that schools and churches can work together through character education. There is so much attention on what schools and our faith community CAN’T do together. We saw the need for us to draw attention to what we CAN do together. We invited them to get directly involved with our children through the character education program, as positive adult mentors for our children, participants on our crisis response teams, or as a referral source for Christian counseling.  In addition, we encouraged the faith leaders and/or their congregation to volunteer to be reading tutors.  From our efforts, a local church started after-school clubs open to all religious denominations.
          Education at its best is a partnership between schools, parents, and community.  We are working to build partnerships where we can share our triumphs and solve our weaknesses. Character Education is not the responsibility of one entity, but a community working together for our future. In just a short time, we have seen internal morale rise, community support grow, and most importantly witnessed student actions that indicates the impact character education is making to them.  As Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr. said, "Intelligence is not enough.  Intelligence plus character, that is the goal of true education."