Parents: The First Character Educators

David B. Wangaard, Ed.D.

Education is full of controversial topics; however, there is one point all education research supports -- positive parent engagement can improve student behavior, academic performance, and school climate. Specifically, parents can provide great support when they become involved in a school's character initiative. As parents are their children's first character educators, schools should recruit and embrace the parent community as a strategic goal of any character-education program.

To effectively recruit parents, school leaders are encouraged to personally contact individuals to join a school character committee. Successful recruitment is often encouraged by stating clear goals for parent involvement, engaging parents and school staff in social mixers to build committee teamwork, scheduling meetings with respect to parents availability, providing child care, and always including refreshments!

A school district north of Indianapolis was noted for its successful recruitment of parent volunteers. The school reception areas were purposefully redesigned and furnished to appear as a family living room. The décor included artwork, floor lamps, comfortable chairs and flowers. In part, the redesign was completed to encourage and welcome parents to come into the school. The benefits of this strategy also helped improve office staff morale and calm students who might be "visiting" the school office.

Parents that are recruited to a character-education committee can make valuable contributions to the school's character initiative. From clarifying goals to recruiting other team members, parents can provide a tremendous source of ideas and energy for the work of character education. Devine, Seuk, and Wilson1 note the importance of the support of parents in expanding the character mission during school sponsored parent activities. These can include the work of the PTA, parent conferences, family nights, school academic and athletic contests, and parent support groups that provide parenting training with specific references to child character development.

Many schools have also succeeded with formal programs to support parent volunteer activity. Parent volunteers can directly facilitate the integration of the school's character vocabulary into their volunteer tasks. With appropriate training and oversight, parent volunteers can include character development strategies within their duties in the library, lunchroom, at recess, during field trips, and after-school events or programs. 

Some keys to successful parent involvement with character education thus include--identifying the goal of parent involvement, recruiting parents personally, writing volunteer job descriptions, providing training and supervision, and linking all of these functions to the school's character mission. The underlining goal is to provide opportunities for adults committed to good character to have contact with students and promote the demonstration of character. The more positive adult contacts with students the better. Parent volunteers are a great resource to keep ethics in action for character development at school.


¹ Devine, T., Seuk, J. H., & Wilson, A. (Eds.). (2001). Cultivating heart and character: Educating for life's most essential goals. Chapel Hill, NC: Character Development Publishing.

Engaging Parents in Character Education: Ideas to link parents and school

• Evaluate procedures that help parents and supporting community always feel welcomed at school
• Investigate parent interest in promoting intergenerational programs
• Include character themes in ongoing communication between school and families: PTO, PTA newsletters, etc.
• Include character themes in ongoing communication with community through local media
• Evaluate procedures that welcome parents as volunteers in classrooms
• School representatives attend parent & community group meetings for input, discussion, and reinforcement of values
• Encourage parent/home support for school program and homework completion, etc.
• Host parent education, workshops, and support groups and remember to provide child care
• Invite and train parents to support student mentoring programs
• Engage parents and community in Read-Aloud Program with students
• Dedicate school funds help to purchase character education material with library access to parents
• Include character themes in messages on parent homework hotline
• Invite parents to eat lunch with students
• Encourage community sponsorship of events at the school
• Welcome parent support of tutoring programs
• Organize and host family fairs with character themes
• PTA representative invited to attend student council meetings
• Service learning project includes community/parent support
• Community has Adopt-A-School or Adopt-A-Class Program
• On-site Career Day with parent/student
• Invite parents to visit D.A.R.E program classes/graduation with community police department

Eleven Ways Communities Can Promote Character Education

Once a school has created a consensus with parents and neighbors about what kind of character and citizenship traits they want to promote, there are countless ways that members of the community can help. Here are eleven places to start:

1. Sign up seniors.

Mine the warmth and wisdom of older adults by setting up opportunities for them to pass on their experience. Retired businesspeople can advise teenage entrepreneurs and handy folks can teach kids knitting or woodworking skills. "Grandparents and Books" is a national program that brings seniors to read to and tutor kids in the library. Seniors are also happy to receive service projects-from yard work to cheering visits. Newsome Park Elementary in Newport News, Virginia, gets old and young together starting in kindergarten and first grade, when seniors and kids help build a greenhouse together. In later lessons, elders tell stories about living in simpler times while the kids show them computers.

2. Mobilize the media.

Get advocates on talk radio and local TV. In Chattanooga, one station did a week long special about a particular school. A Binghamton, New York community television station also airs a "Character Minute" weekly on the evening news that that is written by students. A television station in St. Louis produces a Saturday morning program telling stories about virtues. Newspapers can also showcase the school's current character theme-along with accounts of local examples-and feature character lessons.

3. Call on the clergy.

Leaders of churches, mosques, synagogues and temples are natural allies. They can serve as advisors to character education initiatives and their weekly message can highlight virtues. In some Tennessee high schools, youth ministers make themselves available during lunchtime for students to talk to. Clergy are also in a unique position to bring the community together for worthy causes and in that way help model caring and cooperation to the young. In South Carolina, the Putting Families First program has hundreds of religious organizations involved-each group reaches out to help one needy family-and is breaking down barriers of race, class and politics in the process.

4. Get businesses on board.

Businesses can help by not only practicing ethics, but also broadcasting their commitment to them. When successful businesspeople speak in schools about how honesty and service pay off for them-a regular feature at the James E. McDade Classical School in Chicago-kids listen. In St. Louis, the local businesses have signs in their buildings echoing this month's character traits. Businesses can also donate supplies, bankroll billboard and poster promotions and sponsor conferences and other initiatives.

Easterling Primary School in Marion, South Carolina, invites business leaders to serve as role models and tutors to their students. This is the idea behind An Achievable Dream Academy, in Newport News, Virginia, a public school for at-risk children that was started by a businessman with local businesses and non-profit groups. Seventh and eighth-grade students-most of whom have only one parent or guardian-help out as volunteers in local workplaces, where they meet adults who will be their mentors.

5. Utilize colleges and universities.

Invite university students and professors to take up mentoring, leading after school programs and other activities as research and service projects. In Siena College in Latham, New York, one professor enlists her students to conduct a social and emotional learning program for elementary school kids. Colleges have other resources too. At the University of Tennessee coaches made a video on character in daily life that was broadcast on all networks.

6. Engage the arts.

Music, poetry, theater, movies-these can be powerful vehicles for good values. Invite filmmakers to discover unsung community heroes. Challenge songwriters to celebrate healthy choices. One New York dance school created a jazz dance piece on resisting destructive influence that teens performed in local schools. Sponsor creative writing or essay contests, like the nationwide "Laws of Life" Templeton Foundation program. Hold regular Concerts for Character to support service organizations and other causes.

7. Get groups, clubs and associations in gear.

Organizations like the Shriners and Kiwanis have long had a service and citizenship focus. The Chamber of Commerce and unions can rally the businesses. Invite the YMCA and other groups to help provide more constructive activities for after-school time and during championship games or prom nights when kids may end up in trouble. Groups and businesses in Clifton, New Jersey teamed up to open a supervised Friday night program of sports and other social activities for teenagers at the high school gym.

8. Pull in the health, legal and other professionals.

Get doctors, lawyers, social workers and other professionals to offer their expertise. Health workers can speak about drug abuse and STDs. At Philadelphia's Martin Luther King, Jr. High, lawyers address students about legal accountability for choices they make regarding sex and having children. Health professionals can organize service projects finding companions and mentors for physically or mentally challenged youngsters or kids in the hospital.

9. Call the police-and other public servants.

"We are a community of character" is emblazoned on the police cars of Lombard, Illinois. Police and other public servants like firemen and rescue workers are natural role models for character. They can speak on the rewards of selfless service, and also sponsor contests and other programs to showcase young people who serve. In St. Louis, the police department teams up with a newspaper to recognize young kids who are setting a good example. A police department in Wake County, North Carolina, gets officers and other community members involved as role models for troubled kids, and this has caused a noticeable reduction in youth crime. In a Virginia school, soldiers from a nearby base serve as mentors and teachers.

10. Get sports support.

Invite high school, college and local professional sports players to talk up the self-discipline, perseverance and other keys to success. At sporting events, insist on the fans-including the adults-practicing good sportsmanship. One school district in Georgia plays Aretha Franklin's "Respect" before all games.

11. Garner support from city hall.

Encourage the town to join with others across the country to become a "City of Character." The city hall in Albuquerque, New Mexico coordinates the efforts of schools, businesses and service organizations to build personal character to counteract social problems. They advise businesses on integrating core values into their mission statements, hiring, evaluations and other practices. Library and park programs, as in some towns in North Carolina, can incorporate character messages as well. The Utah state government encourages community initiatives that involve young people in public forums. By giving kids practice in treating each other in a civil manner-doing what good neighbors do-they are learning good citizenship.

Brought to you by the Center for Character and Culture - http://www.cultivatingheartandcharacter.com 

Character based on Respect & Responsibility | Moral Knowing, Moral Feeling, Moral Action | The Teacher as Caregiver, Model, and Mentor | Teaching Conflict Resolution | Ethical Reflection & Conscience of Craft | Service Learning | Cooperative Learning | Teaching Values through Curriculum | A Democratic Classroom Environment | Moral Discipline | A Caring Classroom Community

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