Guilford County Schools (GCS) is comprised of 126 K-12 schools that serve over 73,300 students. GCS students represent 144 countries, 10,134 have special education, 13,111 are advanced learners and approximately 57% of students are on free/reduced lunch. When NC State Legislature passed the Student Citizen Act, GCS established programs to help students build character. GCS used effective practices like, student recognitions or volunteerism in the community; however they did not produce sustainable changes in school climate or other measureable student outcomes. In 2008, the school district launched a Strategic Plan under the leadership of Superintendent Maurice “Mo” Green. GCS heard from its parents, students and staff that the best education should include developing academic skills as well as character. GCS developed and implemented a character development model district-wide with goals of reducing out-of-school suspensions due to minor student misbehaviors, like discourteous and non-compliance, and to improve our stakeholders’ perception of safety in our schools. The GCS Character Development Initiative (CDI) began and a CDI project team comprised of 4 advisory members and 33 project deployment members. The team established partnerships with 5 organizations; National Youth Leadership Council (NYLC), National Center for Community and Justice (NCCJ), The Volunteer Center of Greensboro, Habitat for Humanity of Greater Greensboro and Community in Schools, High Point.

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