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BY BECKY RHEINTGEN Columbine. The hockey dad. These situations in the news have made us all wonder, how could things have gone so wrong? Could something or someone have made a difference? The character deficit in America is a huge issue facing park and recreation professionals today. According to the Josephson Institute: "The character deficit is not simply a problem of the urban poor. Increasing proportions of youth from all over the country, from advantaged as well as disadvantaged backgrounds, are demonstrating total disregard for fundamental standards of ethical conduct." It is not only the youth in our communities who need guidance in character; it is also the coaches, teachers and parents. You may think you can't begin to make a difference with the character of the children in your park district or recreation agency. You are wrong! You make a difference with every child, parent, participant, coach, teacher and community member who you have made aware that character counts.
Don't think of your role as a recreation supervisor to just organize programs, hire staff and write brochure copy. You have the responsibility or opportunity (however you want to look at it) to make a difference in your community by incorporating Character Counts into the programs you supervise. Character Counts is the nation's most widely used character development framework. It is used in schools, youth sports and civic organizations. It is based on shared beliefs and consensus values called the Six Pillars of Character: trustworthiness, respect, responsibility, fairness, caring and citizenship. Start small. Think of how you can incorporate character education into your day camp program, within your facility or with your youth sports programs. At the Bolingbrook Park District, the Power Dance Project was born exactly that way. I had heard about Character Counts at a couple of seminars but wasn't quite sure how it could work with preschool or dance programs until a dance instructor noticed a need in the community for an outreach dance program. The Power Dance Project was the brainchild of Stacey Archer-Little. Stacey was teaching a variety of dance classes for the park district, including a number of hugely successful hip-hop classes. Through her involvement and experiences in the Bolingbrook community, she noticed the following things. • Bolingbrook is an economically and comically diverse community. • Many children in the community would love to take a hip-hop class but the classes held at the park district were too expensive for their parents to afford. • Transportation to park district community centers was a challenge. • Children who have never taken a dance class before were intimidated to join a hip-hop class fearful they wouldn't fit in. • Children in Bolingbrook were in need of some positive role models and character education. After meetings with park district and school district staff, the Power Dance Project began in the fall of 2001. The program is an outreach hip-hop dance program held after school in six elementary schools, two March/April 2003 11
middle schools, two park district community centers, a high school and the local library. The program, held September through June, serves more than 225 participants ages 5 to 18. Classes are offered at a reduced rate and are held in five-week sessions. Children involved perform at a variety of school functions throughout the year. Each class meeting consists of hip-hop instruction and a lesson in Character Counts. The mission of the Power Dance Project is to bring the experience of dance into the lives of as many Bolingbrook youth as possible through a nonthreatening, encouraging, convenient, and affordable community-based program. It promotes the positive development of each child's self-worth, engages them in activities and experiences that will encourage the development of strong character, self-acceptance, proactive involvement in their community, and teaches them effective leadership skills in an effort to better prepare them for their future. Like most park districts, Bolingbrook Park District has an intergovernmental agreement with the Valley View School District that permits the park district to use school sites for programming without charge. Because of this agreement, the park district was able to secure space at local schools to hold the Power Dance Project. Prior to the creation of the program, park district and school district administrators sat down to discuss the idea. We knew that without the support of the school district administration, the program was unlikely to get off the ground. The school district administration thought the program was a great idea and agreed to send a letter to each school's principal endorsing the program and encouraging them to welcome it into their school. The administration warned us that despite his endorsement, we might have difficulty getting the schools to buy into Power Dance Project. New ideas, new activities in their schools, new people to cooperate with—all these changes can be difficult to invite into your school. After many letters and phone calls, the program was secured to be held in three elementary, one middle school and one high school the inaugural year. Our next step was to get the word out. Due to the school districts' timing in approving the facility requests, the Power Dance Project information was not included in the fall brochure. As with many park districts, the brochure is our main source for advertising programs. Fortunately, as part of the intergovernmental agreement, the school district permits the park district to distribute approved flyers to all students. These flyers were used to promote the new Power Dance session. The school district also allowed dance instructors to have an informational booth at each school's registration day in the summer. This gave parents the opportunity to meet the instructor of the program, ask questions regarding class content and enroll their child. Some schools located in the school district permitted program staff to market the program by participating in the all-school assemblies held in the beginning of the year. Over sixty children participated in the Power Dance Project the first year. Now the program is so popular and well-known in the community that parents whose children attend schools that don't have the Power Dance Project are calling to request the program at their school. The introduction of character education into the dance program has made a huge difference in the attitude, self-esteem, and thoughtfulness of the children participating. Participants are excited to be involved, mindful of their teachers and classmates and more confident in all aspects of their lives. The Power Dance Project is a unique program that goes beyond teaching a physical skill. It is a program that not only teaches children dance, it helps its participants grow as individuals. The goal of this program is to make a difference in the youth of Bolingbrook and I truly believe we have. Think about incorporating Character Counts into your recreation programs. You can make a difference in the youth in your community!
BECKY RHEINTGEN
12 Illinois Parks and Recreation |
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