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Sponsors A Look at Character Counts! CHARACTER COUNTS! Website

Character Counts! in St. Johns County The Inaugural Character Counts! 6K Race was a success! Thank you to all the runners, volunteers, sponsors, spectators, neighbors and cheerleaders for a wonderful first race! The annual American Youth Character Awards banquet is May 2nd! History of Character Counts! in St. Johns County Thirteen years ago the St. Johns County School District, along with area businesses, youth organizations and civic groups, selected the national character educational program of CHARACTER COUNTS! as a county wide initiative to instill positive character traits in our young people. Each fall during the national observance we honor area businesses that have contributed to the CHARACTER COUNTS! effort, and in the spring, we sponsor our annual American Youth Character Awards program to recognize high school students of good character. As adults we are responsible for modeling appropriate behavior, which has been proved as the best way to teach character in others.  Several years ago,  we became the first school district in Florida to implement Pursuing Victory with Honor in all of our athletic programs. Character education is an important part of every School Improvement Plan and a major component of each Student Code of Conduct and our Strategic Plan. How Character Counts! Began In July 1992 the Josephson Institute of Ethics brought together an eminent group of educators, youth leaders and ethics scholars to see if a common ground and common language could be found concerning the need for and content of character education. The statement that emerged from that meeting, the Aspen Declaration, lists six core ethical values: trustworthiness, respect, responsibility, fairness, caring and citizenship, that form the foundation of our society. The St. Johns County School District has embraced the program for all of its students and was awarded the Points of Light Award in 2003 by the Governor for the positive effect this program has had on our youth. The American Youth Character Awards program was honored in 2005 as an exemplary recognition program by the Sunshine State School Public Relations Association. Effective character education must be based on core ethical values, in particular the Six Pillars of Character. The Six Pillars of Character TRUSTWORTHINESS CARING RESPECT RESPONSIBILITY CITIZENSHIP FAIRNESS