HR0254 97TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY

HR0254 LRB097 11351 NHT 53734 r

HOUSE RESOLUTION

WHEREAS, Section 27-12 of the School Code states that "every public school teacher shall teach character education, which includes the teaching of respect, responsibility, fairness, caring, trustworthiness, and citizenship, in order to raise pupils' honesty, kindness, justice, discipline, respect for others, and moral courage for the purpose of lessening crime and raising the standard of good character"; and

WHEREAS, School is not the only opportunity for lessons of character development to occur; it is often difficult for school districts and community organizations to identify and find resources and programs that meet the statutory educational requirements, and educational opportunities often arise only in a haphazard way throughout the period of a season or school year; and

WHEREAS, Examples of a need for programs that can meet the needs of a changing society are present from institutions of higher education, newspapers, and the media that decry the lack of character development and moral and ethical education and the seeming lack of moral judgment in making business, political, and even personal decisions; and

WHEREAS, The Good Citizens Foundation is a new, non-profit organization in this State, founded by James McCoy, D.C., of Sycamore, Illinois, which is dedicated to the mission of identifying secular, non-religious programs of learning that teach moral judgment, character development, and ethical decision-making to future generations; and

WHEREAS, The Good Citizens Foundation has discovered, researched, and identified many good character building programs, such as Character Counts!, based on the 6 pillars of character; the Torch Clubs and Keystone Clubs of the Boys and Girls Clubs of America, based on involving pre-teens and teens in their communities; and the Good Choices Program, based on the Way to Happiness; and

WHEREAS, These programs have been selected by the Good Citizens Foundation for recommendation as programs that can have great positive impact on the character development of the children of this State; and

WHEREAS, Of these programs, those that have been most successfully implemented in a public school, as well as in after-school settings, are Character Counts! and the Good Choices Program, each with programs to fit students from ages 6 to 18-years old and with cost-effective training and resources for teachers; and

WHEREAS, The Good Choices Program not only satisfies Section 27-12 of the School Code, but also comes with the endorsement, support, and assistance of the Happy House: Building Better Families organization, co-founded by actress Nancy Cartwright; and

WHEREAS, The Good Citizens Foundation will maintain a virtual headquarters for the people of this State on the Internet, where it will provide links to all of the programs listed in this resolution, as well as research and identify others; therefore, be it

RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE NINETY-SEVENTH GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we recognize that the programs listed in this resolution are all qualified to teach character development, and that we acknowledge that the Good Choices Program, by virtue of the fact that it teaches common sense guidelines covering specific tools to help children evaluate situations and make good decisions that will improve life for themselves and others, is one example of a program fully in compliance with Section 27-12 of the School Code, as it seeks to enhance the character development and potential future moral judgment of the children of this State and, therefore, encourages its use and the use of similar programs by educators, coaches, mentors, and other community service leaders; and be it further

RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be presented to the Good Citizens Foundation.