Marlboro County High School Receives Prestigious Character Education Award
May 31, 2009WASHINGTON, DC – May 29, 2009 – Marlboro County High School is one of 13 schools across the nation to be recognized for unique and effective school reform efforts in the area of character education, the Character Education Partnership (CEP) has announced. This year marks the fourth time the school has won the Promising Practice award since 2002.
Winning practices include creative ways to help students give back to their schools and communities, raise academic expectations and achievement, decrease bullying, increase tolerance and solve conflicts peacefully
“These educators have created low-cost, effective programs that help transform their school communities into places where students not only learn, but learn to do what’s right,” said Lara Maupin, CEP’s associate director. “Kids are being inspired through these practices to use their talents to create a better world.”
Marlboro County High School’s winning practice – Character Education through the Judicial Process – was the only one that focused on the Youth Court Program. The Marlboro initiative is the result of a collaborative effort among the Marlboro County High School Army JROTC, Camp Bennettsville Wilderness Institute, the school’s School Resource Officer and students who want to see their peers learn from their mistakes in a positive and constructive manner.
CEP gives the annual awards for unique and specific exemplary practices that encourage the ethical, social and academic growth of K–12 students through character education. The program is an attempt to recognize educators for their efforts and to encourage others to learn from and replicate successful initiatives.
The awards will be presented at the 16th National Forum on Character Education, Citizens of Character – the Foundation of Democracy scheduled for October 29–31 outside the nation’s capitol. In addition, winning practices will be featured in CEP’s annual National Schools of Character publication and on the CEP Web site.
This year, the CEP received a record 369 applications from 274 public and private schools and districts. Schools in Missouri submitted the most applications and will receive the most awards, followed by New Jersey and Florida.
The Promising Practices awards program is administered by CEP and made possible by generous support from the John Templeton Foundation and Lockheed Martin Corporation. Based in Washington DC, CEP is a nonprofit, nonpartisan, nonsectarian coalition of organizations and individuals dedicated to helping schools develop people of good character for a just and compassionate society.