At Mount Rainier Elementary School in Mount Rainier, Maryland, counselor Norma Freeborne teamed with principal Phillip Catania to develop a character education program that has helped build a school-wide sense of community and give students the structure and connections they often lack at home. The school gives students Peace Passports, to be filled out whenever they demonstrate any of the program’s themes of peace, respect, responsibility, empathy, and effort in the classroom, playground, lunchroom, or other areas. Once a passport is filled out, the principal endorses it with an official stamp, designating the student as a Peace Ambassador. This and other activities related to the initiative helped Mount Rainier exceed its goal of 160 peaceful school days last year.

– Norma Freeborne