Maple Road School has character

BY PATRICIA KELLER
WEST MILFORD — Maple Road Elementary School has received the "New Jersey School of Character designation for 2016.

Interim Superintendent of Schools Anthony Riscica made the announcement at a recent board of education meeting, noting the school earned the "honorable mention" title last year, its first year applying for the New Jersey School of Character award.

Riscica congratulated Principal Bill Kane and the Maple Road School staff for their accomplishment. He said that West Milford has even more to be proud of, now with three schools in the district having earned the School of Character title.

Upper Greenwood Lake Elementary School was awarded the NJ School of Character designation in 2015; and Macopin Middle School received four Promising Practices and two Honorable Mention titles with Character.org since 2013, earned the state level NJ School of Character title for 2014 and 2015, and was also designated as a National School of Character in 2015.

"I am proud that Maple Road School was selected as a 2016 NJ School of Character," said Kane. "Being a School of Character is a full school community commitment. This honor is a testament to the hard work, dedication, and integrity of our teachers, parents, and students. All members of our school community have played a part in supporting our character education initiatives and service learning projects."

“Although I am extremely excited for the Maple Road School and community, I am not surprised," said West Milford's Director of Education Dan Novak in an email to the Messenger. "Maple Road began their journey toward building character many years ago and have finally received the recognition they deserve. Maple Road has a tremendous and caring staff as well as a proud and active parent community. They now join both the Macopin and the Upper Greenwood Lake Schools in receiving the state honor."

To earn a School of Character designation, schools must demonstrate accomplishment of the “11 Principles of Effective Character Education.”

The 11 principles are:
The school community promotes core ethical and performance values as the foundation of good character.

The school defines “character” comprehensively to include thinking, feeling, and doing.

The school uses a comprehensive, intentional, and proactive approach to character development.

The school creates a caring community.

The school provides students with opportunities for moral action.

The school offers a meaningful and challenging academic curriculum that respects all learners, develops their character, and helps them to succeed.

The school fosters students’ self-motivation.

The school staff is an ethical learning community that shares responsibility for character education and adheres to the same core values that guide the students.

The school fosters shared leadership and long-range support of the character education initiative.

The school engages families and community members as partners in the character-building effort.

The school regularly assesses its culture and climate, the functioning of its staff as character educators, and the extent to which its students manifest good character.”

Once a school earns the designation as a state School of Character, they hold that designation for three years. During the three year time period, those schools each serve as models of excellence within their respective states and share character education best practices with other schools as part of a state-wide network of schools of character. Also, once a school earns the designation as a state School of Character, their applications are then forwarded to the national level for consideration as a National School of Character.

National Schools of Character are schools that have completed a rigorous evaluation process and have demonstrated that character development has had a positive impact on academics, student behavior, and school climate. National schools of character hold their designation for five years and become part of a national network of Schools of Character serving as models and mentors to other educators nationwide.

Kane told the Messenger he is proud of the community for being a good example to the children at Maple Road.

"I am especially proud of the way that our teachers and parents consistently model to our students the importance of giving back to the community, providing them with valuable character lessons that will last a lifetime," he said.

Novak is impressed with the Maple Road community's commitment to the children and how that affects the entire township.

"Under the leadership of Mr. Kane and a strong Character Education Committee, Maple Road has achieved something that can't be taken away," he said. "What's most impressive is not the award, but the commitment to building good citizens in each and every student. This process makes the entire West Milford community stronger.”

Maple Road will receive its official "NJ School of Character" display banner at a recognition ceremony in May.

Source: Character.org
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