Wisconsin Schools of Character

 

Prairie Elementary School (Waunakee Community School District) – Honorable Mention 2011

Prairie School is to be commended for its strong and consistent effort to reinforce character education, starting with the strong foundation of the Tribes Program in 2001 and the ongoing use of the Kelso's Choices Program.  It is evident that the administrative and teaching team work together to continually upgrade and improve their program components.  The strongest area is the embedding of character education across the school culture that provides many opportunities to define character by "thinking, feeling and doing".  Identifying and facilitating an artist in residence program that focuses on character education and adopting the "Peace on the Prairie" concept and goal are highly effective and reflect the fact that Prairie School considers character education in their planning throughout each school day and year.  The involvement of bus drivers, nurses, and all staff members in character education activities and training is also commendable. The school has provided a significant amount of staff development opportunities for its staff through formal training, reading, and staff meeting discussions.

 

Woodlands School (UW Milwaukee Charter School) - Emerging School of Character 2011

Woodlands School is being recognized for their efforts to implement a character education program that is based on developing the "whole child".  This foundation and the concepts from the Time for Learning Program provide strong momentum for them.  They provide many opportunities to teach and develop character in their students.  The multi-age "Little Families" groups provide opportunities for developing a caring community.   Implementation of the "One Book/One School/One Community" concept provides very effective connections among staff and students and also with their families.  The TFL Chart, which defines the pillars at the different developmental levels, is a very effective tool for both staff and students. 

 

 

 

 

 

Jefferson School District- Wisconsin School District of Character 2010

Jefferson School District’s character education program is pro-active and incorporates a variety of programs that have been developed and sustained over many years. The district leadership has provided many outstanding in-service opportunities for all staff, students and community members. This school district has done an exceptional job of taking their “character education” into the community - it seems that if you don't know something about the Jefferson Way in the three communities served by this school district, you've probably been away for several years.

Jefferson School District was also named a National School of Character in 2010.

Stormonth Elementary School– Wisconsin School of Character 2010

Stormonth Elementary (Fox Point-Bayside School District) met the standards for recognition as a school that has integrated character education throughout their school and school day. One of the particular strengths of this school is the common training that all staff members have received in the Capturing Kids Hearts Program. Their strong bullying prevention strategies and programs result in positive outcomes. The use of social contracts and class meetings represent a significant amount of student input into expectations and behavior standards. The Stormonth School program is pro-active and uses a variety of programs and strategies to focus on character development and has been sustained over several years.

To learn more about these schools and their character education programs check out the videos on this website.

Milwaukee College Preparatory School- Wisconsin School of Character 2009

Milwaukee College Preparatory School received the first Wisconsin School of Character recognition. Milwaukee College Prep was selected for its integrated and foundational program in character development. The hallmark of this public charter school in Milwaukee is the strong emphasis on academic achievement and character development. As students enter the doors each day, they transition from a troubled inner-city neighborhood setting into a warm, orderly state-of-the-art school environment created to support urban children and their families. Through strong partnerships with parents, differentiated instruction and a college-bound curriculum, high expectations, and an educational philosophy of love and hard work, school staff help their students become successful candidates for top-notch schools.

Milwaukee College Preparatory School was also named a National School of Character in 2009.

To learn more about their character education program, see the video on this website.

This recognition is for their excellent work in character education, their well established best
practices, and the strong evidence that they are making good progress in the integration
of character education in their schools. WCEP is pleased to announce that the following
schools are Wisconsin Emerging Schools of Character 2009:

Canterbury Elementary School – Greendale School District, Greendale, WI Canterbury Elementary School’s strengths can be found in their staff and student connections, the successful integration of core values into curriculum areas- especially literature and writing, their CARE checklist for student reporting along with long-range goal setting. Students participate in activities such as CARE buddies and shared literacy projects.

Grant School Family – Sheboygan School District, Sheboygan, WI Grant School Family – merges a public school with a charter school sharing space and a common character education focus. Grant school has strong family involvement and connection to community. Character education is clearly articulated and infused throughout the school.

Waunakee Intermediate School - Waunakee School District, Waunakee, WI Waunakee school strength is in their assessment piece- with self-assessment, self-evaluation, and use of family and staff surveys. They are also strong in parent-school connections. Activities that create a caring community are strong and include an all-school book club, bully-buster program and mix-it-up lunches.