Character Counts Washington County

How it all Started
Shortly after entering her daughter into school, Carolyn Brooks became aware of the change in culture away from respectfulness and civility evidenced by the lack of respect shown to the staff by some of the children, and even more shockingly, by the parents of those children. As she became more involved in the community, the issue continued to bother her recognizing the change in the way people interacted she set out on a mission to address her concerns, and during a conversation with the soon-to-be Lieutenant Governor, Kathleen Kennedy Townsend, Brooks was introduced to Character Counts!, a character education program created by the Josephson Institute of Ethics. 

In 1998, Brooks finally was given the opportunity to act on her passion when the HotSpot/CSafe program, a state crime prevention initiative, came to Washington County. At that time, Lieutenant Governor Kennedy was sponsoring the program, and Brooks was hired as the administrator in Hagerstown. Shortly thereafter, the Character Counts! Program was added into the HotSpot program, and Lieutenant Governor Kennedy Townsend awarded $10,000 to get the program up and running.

Since then, elements of the Character Counts program have been written into Code Of Ethics for the Washington County Board of Education; schools in Washington County and the Greencastle-Antrim school districts have implemented Character education into the classroom; and the CHARACTER COUNTS! Coalition has been bringing Character education to organizations in our area for the last thirteen years.

The Program

Most people know what Character is, but when you ask them to define it, they will struggle to form the words to do so. Eventually, they will give some answer, which will be different than the answer you will receive when you ask anyone else the same question. CHARACTER COUNTS! teaches that character is made up of six pillars - Trustworthiness, Respect, Responsibility, Fairness, Caring and Citizenship. The program teaches that character is important and what it means to have good character. It enforces these Six Pillars and continuously advocates the importance of being trustworthy, respectful, responsible, fair, caring and a good citizen. Finally, representatives strive to model good character to their peers, to youth and to the community in general by doing the right thing even when its difficult, being accountable when we inevitably mess up, and always seeking to do better.

 

How we measure success

Long term, our Coalition will consider itself successful when the members of our community, across the spectrum, have integrated the Six Pillars of Character into their daily lives and are themselves advocating the importance of doing so to those they influence.

 

In the short term, we would like to see these values instituted and enforced in the home, where community of the future is raised.

 

The Pillars
Trustworthiness Be honest • Don’t deceive, cheat, or steal • Be reliable – do what you say you’ll do• Have the courage to do the right thing • Build a good reputation•
Be loyal – stand by your family, friends, and country

Respect Treat others with respect; follow the Golden Rule • Be tolerant of differences
•Use good manners, not bad language • Be considerate of the feelings of others•
Don’t threaten, hit, or hurt anyone • Deal peacefully with anger, insults, and disagreements

Responsibility Do what you are supposed to do • Persevere • Always do your best
Use self-control • Be self-disciplined • Think before you act – consider the consequences • Be accountable for your choices

Fairness Play by the rules • Take turns and share • Be open-minded; listen to others •Don’t take advantage of others • Don’t blame others carelessly

Caring Be kind • Be compassionate and show you care •Express gratitude • Forgive others • Help people in need

Citizenship Do your share to make your school and community better • Cooperate
•Get involved in community affairs • Stay informed; vote • Be a good neighbor
•Obey laws and rules • Respect authority • Protect the environment