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Character
Spotlight
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Gina
Vance
 Gina Vance is an elementary school principal
at Hebron Avenue School in Glastonbury, Connecticut. Ms. Vance and her
staff have initiated a number of ideas to promote positive
character development in their school. The six pillars of
character, Trustworthiness, Respect, Responsibility, Caring,
Fairness, and Citizenship, are located in the main lobby of
the school. They greet every student, teacher, and visitor who
enters the building and a vocabulary of character surrounds
the school community throughout the day. There is a mailbox in
front of Gina’s office, and it is used to encourage
students, staff, and parents to recognize one another for
portraying the pillars of character. Every Friday afternoon
Gina uses the public address system to share the names of
people who were recognized through the mail. Gina also reads
books or student’s original stories with her students on a
regular basis. This personal attention to students fosters an
atmosphere of caring and respect. Ms. Vance uses the six
character pillars in conflict resolution. Instead of focusing
on a specific incident, she reminds the students to set
positive character goals. This focuses students on respectful
and caring behavior rather than who “wins” in the
conflict. The constant repetition of the six pillars has
improved morale, discipline, and created a caring attitude in
this school. We applaud Ms. Vance and the staff and students
at Hebron Avenue School for their efforts to put “Ethics
in Action”.
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