A COMMUNITY ACTION PLAN

Use these practical Character Education strategies to create a way of life for children and adults in your community.  In this plan you will find the 5 C's (Commitment, Consensus. Collaboration, Communication and Collecting Data) along with the 5 E's (Explore, Engage, Excite, Expand and Evaluate) that will make character count in your schools and community.

 YEAR 1

 COMMITMENT:

  • Assess the community's needs. Tools used will include: surveys, focus groups
  • Determine who must be involved in order to have the necessary commitment to begin CHARACTER COUNTS!
  • Build a Coalition that includes key community leaders:
               Consider the possibility of using an existing network that focuses on the needs of the community.
               Form a new Coalition that will address CHARACTER COUNTS! as its primary mission

 CONSENSUS:
  • Reach consensus on core ethical values
  • Determine if any obstacles will stand in the way
  • Agree to be purposeful in your approach with clear objectives designed to influence values and behavior.
  • Develop a vision and mission statement with a discussion on goals
COLLABORATION:
  • Commit to training:

A) Schedule a one-day awareness training for your community. Involve key people representing various segments of your population
B) Choose key leaders who will be your "trainer of trainers" and send them to a three-day Character Development Seminar (CDS)
C) Host a community-wide CDS for up to 35 key participants (2/3rds educators; 1/3rd community)

  • Create a common vision for your community. Determine what you would like to see happen in three to five years
  • Join the National CHARACTER COUNTS! Coalition
  • Interact with other schools and communities involved in similar efforts

 COLLECT DATA:
  • Determine what data your community would like to collect.
  • Assess baseline level in areas where you will be collecting data.

a) Surveys - students, parents, community
b) Level of student, parent, community involvement
c) Perceptions of community related to character education
d) Police statistics
e) School discipline statistics
 

COMMUNICATION:

  • Determine who needs information
  • Prepare presentations to be given throughout the community using resources from trainings attended by key leaders

a) A ten minute overview of CHARACTER COUNTS! and the plans for implementation in your community
b) A 30 minute presentation that further explains the initiative and why it is important for your community

  • Establish a public relations/marketing sub-committee
  • Develop a web page and/or newsletter
  • Create a chart to assist in sharing the vision with others in your community
GROUP                          MESSAGE                      BENEFITS                     MEDIUM                       WHO/WHEN
Schools
Youth Organizations
Businesses
Local Government
Families
Media
     
YEAR 2

 EXPLORE:
  • Identify specific strategies to implement in your community that will move the initiative from words to action.
                   STRATEGY                 FOR WHOM?             WHEN
  • Connect with appropriate existing community-wide events
  • Investigate funding opportunities from local sources and grants
  • Be creative in making CHARACTER COUNTS! become immersed in the life of your schools

 ENGAGE AND EXCITE:
  • Determine how the strategies will engage the community to be actively involved in the initiative
  • Plan and organize at least one community-wide event
  • Purchase materials, banners and posters that will display messages on character in schools and throughout the community
  • Create a Community Speakers Bureau

 EXPAND:
  • Design a local handbook as a source of information about mission, strategy and structure of your Coalition
  • Strive to ensure the Pillars of Character pervade all aspects of activity in your community
  • Promote the importance of the Pillars through frequently repeated messages emphasizing the benefits of a common language
  • Train additional educators and community leaders using your own trainers
  • Develop a Student Leadership Team. Train middle and high school students as "Ambassadors of Character"
  • Present your CHARACTER COUNTS! initiative to as many community organizations as possible
  • Consider employing paid staff to coordinate efforts either locally or with a consortium of other districts/communities
  • Participate in National CHARACTER COUNTS! Week (October)

 EVALUATE:
  • Compile and analyze data to determine what is working
  • Determine ways to communicate message about effectiveness of initiative
  • Modify action plan as needed
  • Identify ways to increase the number of individuals involved in the Coalition and the activities to be considered in future years

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