Classroom Character Education Program
Each week during the school year over a hundred volunteers, known throughout the community as Character Coaches, visit nearly 90 classrooms in the county to teach character building lessons to students grades Pre-K through 9th. These lessons are based on our core values, The Six Pillars of Character: Trustworthiness, Respect, Responsibility, Fairness, Citizenship and Caring.
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Character Coaches are outstanding members of the Kent County community; each coach brings a unique perspective to their classroom lessons, engaging students as they draw inspiration from their personal experiences and successes.
Our coaches are dedicated individuals, donating more than 3,600 cumulative volunteer hours each year. They are role models, upstanding members of our community that students can look up to and reach out to for advice. Character Coaches are yet another valuable asset and role model in the formation of good character.
The CCKC organization is responsible for facilitating the leading character education program in our local schools, working to ensure that every student enrolled in a Kent County school receives some form of character education. As an independent non-profit organization, CCKC operates under the guidance of an advisory board and executive director. The CCKC program is dependent on support from the community to facilitate programming for students.
Six Pillar Essay Contest
All students in Kent County, grades 2—12, are invited to participate in Character Counts Kent County’s Annual Six Pillar Essay Contest. Each year a new set of character-focused prompts are provided to teachers and students in January. Prior contests have featured essay topics on how generosity, friendship, integrity and responsibility relate to good character.
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Approximately 1,350 students participate annually and winners are selected by panel of judges that includes CCKC Advisory Board Members. Cash prizes totaling more than $1,400 are split between 1st, 2nd and 3rd place winners in each grade level. Additional Grand Prizes are awarded to overall winners: $200 at the Elementary level, $400 at the Middle School level, and $600 at the High School level.
Students are encouraged to use their prize winnings responsibly, our intent is to reward winners with the opportunity of their choice. In the past our winning writers have contributed to their savings for college, they have used their prizes to fund 4-H Projects, and others have used the prize money to help pay for Driver’s Ed or enrollment in summer enrichment camps and sports leagues.
Essay submissions are judged on content, structure, spelling and grammar. Essay’s must feature references to at least one of the Six Pillars of Character: Trustworthiness, Respect, Responsibility, Fairness, Citizenship, Caring. Submissions should be no more than 1,200 words in length and should be neatly handwritten or typed.
Winners are announced by April 1st; deadlines for submission of essays vary depending on grade level and school – see grade specific details for more information. The Six Pillar Essay contest is sponsored in part by The United Way of Kent County. An awards ceremony is typically held each April at Washington College to recognize the annual Six Pillar Essay Contest winners.
For more information, contact us at director@cckentcounty.org.
WCTR Junior DJ Program
Every week, WCTR invites CCKC students from local schools to participate in their “Junior DJ” program. The “Junior DJ” of the week goes to the WCTR studio to join morning hosts to talk about the CCKC program, introduce music, discuss happenings in their school and share their future plans. The “Junior DJ” program airs every Wednesday morning during the school year, tell your friends and family to tune in to WCTR.
Student of the Month Program
In an effort to reinforce character development, each month participating schools recognize students who display strong character in adherence with one or more of the Six Pillars of Character: Trustworthiness, Respect, Responsibility, Fairness, Caring, and Citizenship.
The Student of the Month program is proudly supported by Domino’s in Chestertown. Students are awarded a certificate of achievement and a coupon for a small pizza!
Leadership Workshop
Character Counts Kent County partners with Dixon Valve to offer the Leading with Integrity Student Workshop for high school students in positions of leadership.
The Six Pillars of Character – Trustworthiness, Respect, Responsibility, Fairness, Caring and Citizenship – serve as the foundation for the workshop. The workshop covers topics related to leadership principles and values.
Participating students meet and interact with Dixon Valve’s corporate leaders. The goal of the workshop is for students in leadership positions to gain valuable insight by learning more about their leadership strengths and opportunities so that they may become stronger community leaders.