This Month's Best Practice

Each Month the Maryland Center for Character Education (MCCE) picks one of the Best Practices from a Character Education award winning school to share with you.

NOVEMBER

This month's Best Practices is from an award winning school from 2004-2005.

 

BEST CHARACTER EDUCATION PRACTICES

 

School: Stephen Decatur High School

Address: 9913 Seahawk Road, Berlin, Maryland 21811
Contact: Louis Taylor , Principal  
Phone: 410-641-2171

 

Title of Best Practice: The Decatur Way Through Connections and Play it Safe

Primary Character Trait(s) Emphasized: With parents, staff, and students – a school-wide approach to reinforcing elements of character such as caring, responsibility and citizenship. A program of service learning for the community.

Objective(s): To instill the principles and values of service as a life-long learning experience. To provide opportunities to become a caring and contributing member of the community.

Brief Description (including such items as materials needed, persons responsible, sequence of activities, observable results, references, etc.)

Brief Description:

Materials needed: Various, many supplied through grants. Time and energy. Administrative support

Persons responsible: Club sponsors, administrators, student leaders.

 

Several years ago the School Improvement Team, made up of educators, parents and students adopted the Decatur Way which has proved to be a way of life for students and staff in their interactions with each other and with the broader community. Under the aegis of the Stephen Decatur High School slogan, “The Decatur Way..the way to grow through pride, achievement, responsibility and pride, “the positive elements of character are an integral part of life at SDHS; the slogan serves as an umbrella for the many student volunteer and service experiences available to all students.

 

School organizations such as Student Government, Key Club, Future Educators, Future Medical Professionals, and Students Against Destructive Decisions see students actively supporting venues which include American Cancer Society, MS, Walk for Diabetes, Light the Night Walk for Leukemia, CASA marathon, the Eastern Shore Blood Bank, tsunami relief, Habitat for Humanity, and Believe in Tomorrow. The SDHS segment of the Eastern Surfing Association has helped provide beach access wheelchairs for the handicapped. The entire student body participates in the annual Christmas Canned Food Drive for local families, raising over 25,000 canned goods each year.

 

The impetus for character development begins in ninth grade when each freshman completes a service learning project as part of the government curriculum. From this active beginning students branch out in many directions. Two worthy outcomes are the Connections group and the Play it Safe group.

 

Connections is a student-driven service learning organization founded in 2003 by a student-written grant. It provides a volunteer center to fulfill needs of community and students. Connections students volunteer after school, on weekends, and during the summer. They serve their community helping the environment, the elderly, those in poverty, the health care field, and various educational fields. Partnerships forged with the community have included a community breakfast, a Community Partners Conference, and student-led informational meetings as well as working with Diakonia, Worcester Gold, Holly Center, Atlantic General Hospital, and the Surfriders Association.

 

The latest venture of the group, “Surfing with Connections,” pairs students with senior citizens to offer hands-on instruction in Internet skills. The first meeting between students and seniors saw close to 40 seniors filled with excitement at sending and receiving their first e-mails. A Service Learning Fair is planned for the spring.

 

The Play It Safe group is an outgrowth of the SDHS SADD club. These students work with Ocean City, Worcester County, and state and national networks to provide drug-and alcohol-free, safe and fun activities for the young people of the area and visiting teens in the resort area during the month of June.

 

The Decatur Way is truly alive and well at Stephen Decatur High School. Graduates leave with “an appreciation for the values of volunteerism and an awareness of their place in the community.”

 

 

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The Maryland Center for Character Education
29 West Susquehanna Ave., Suite 300, Baltimore, MD 21204

Phone: 410-823-4902
Fax: 410-828-9661
E-Mail: MCCEcharacter@aol.com