Publisher
Dwight Moody once said, “Character is what you are in the dark.”
In
the current national climate of political attack and shrillness, it seems more
important than ever to make sure our young people acquire the core values of
honesty and decency.
The
idea is not new. Several years ago major corporate employers rated the five employee
traits that are most and least important to them.
The
highest rankings were all “work ethic” items: arriving on time, not stealing,
putting in a full day’s work, being reliable.
Interestingly,
the lowest-rated items were academic background, knowledge and experience.
Author
Rushworth Kidder reinforced these findings through his own research. He pointed
to troublesome indications that adults’ ethics have been moving in the wrong
direction.
Today
we can cite hedge fund managers and a broad range of banking and white-collar
fraud.
The
good news is that a large portion of the public has noticed and seems to care.
Several
schools throughout our county have been using constructive programs that
provide values education.
The
Anti-Defamation League’s programs, “A World of Difference,” and “No Place for
Hate,” are excellent resource hubs for educators at every level. The common
thread is that important values are selected, discussed, and practiced.
No
single institution is responsible for the challenges that face our youth and
adults today, and no one institution can solve the problems in isolation. I
applaud our public schools for becoming an increasingly large part of the
effort.
