Our Centers for Ethics:

The Aspen Declaration on Character Education

In July 1992, the Josephson Institute of Ethics hosted a summit conference in Aspen, Colorado. A diverse group of ethicists, educators and youth-service professionals convened to find ways to work together and boost their character-education efforts. The declaration that concluded this meeting would form the intellectual foundation for the CHARACTER COUNTS! movement, started by the Institute the following year. Read more about CHARACTER COUNTS! here.

1. The next generation will be the stewards of our communities, nation and planet in extraordinarily critical times.
2. In such times, the well-being of our society requires an involved, caring citizenry with good moral character.
3. People do not automatically develop good moral character; therefore, conscientious efforts must be made to help young people develop the values and abilities necessary for moral decision making and conduct.
4. Effective character education is based on core ethical values rooted in democratic society, in particular, respect, responsibility, trustworthiness, justice and fairness, caring, and civic virtue and citizenship.
5. These core ethical values transcend cultural, religious and socioeconomic differences.
6. Character education is, first and foremost, an obligation of families and faith communities, but schools and youth-service organizations also have a responsibility to help develop the character of young people.
7. These responsibilities are best achieved when these groups work in concert.
8. The character and conduct of our youth reflect the character and conduct of society; therefore, every adult has the responsibility to teach and model the core ethical values and every social institution has the responsibility to promote the development of good character.

Participants at the Aspen Summit Conference and Declaration Signatories
(positions at the time of the conference, July 1992)

• Jane A. Amero: Chair, Maine State Board of Education; board member, Maine Excellence in Education and Maine Partners in Education
• Sharon Banas: Values Education Coordinator, Sweet Home Central School District, New York
• Marvin W. Berkowitz, Ph.D.: Associate Professor of Psychology and Associate Director, Center for Ethics Studies at Marquette University, Milwaukee; board member, Association for Moral Education; Associate Director, Wisconsin Center for Addiction Studies
• Diane Berreth: Deputy Executive Director, Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development, Alexandria, Virginia
• Beth Brainard: President, Good Idea Kids, Inc.; board member, Cornell Museum of Fine Arts and Rollins College, Florida
• B. David Brooks, Ph.D.: President and CEO, The Jefferson Center for Character Education, Pasadena; member, Presidential Advisory Council Working Committee on Ethics and Self-Esteem
• Mike Carotta: Executive Director, Department of Religious Education, National Catholic Education Association.; author; former Director of Religious Education, Boys Town, Nebraska
• Gary Edwards: President, Ethics Resource Center, Inc., Washington, D.C.
• H. Dean Evans, Ph.D.: Indiana Superintendent of Public Instruction; member, President's Advisory Committee on Education; Board of Trustees, Franklin College; Chairman, Indiana State Board of Education
• Margaret Gates, Esq.: National Executive Director, Girls, Inc., New York; co-founder and board member, Center for Women's Policy Studies; former chairperson, National Collaboration for Youth
• John H. Green: National Director, Learning for Life, Boy Scouts of America, Irving, Texas 
• Frances Hesselbein: President and CEO, Peter F. Drucker Foundation, New York; Chairman, Josephson Institute of Ethics Board of Governors; former CEO, Girl Scouts of the U.S.A.; board member, Mutual of America Life Insurance
• Gary Heusel: Director, National 4-H Council, Chevy Chase, Maryland
• Geneva Johnson: President and CEO, Family Service of America, Inc., Milwaukee; board member, The Foundation Center, Chairman's Council, and Mutual of America Insurance Co.
• Michael Josephson, Esq.: President and Chief Executive, Joseph & Edna Josephson Institute of Ethics, Los Angeles, California
• Mary Jean Katz: Character Education Specialist, Oregon Dept. of Education; Treasurer and Executive Committee member, Oregon Council for the Social Studies
• Thomas Lickona, Ph.D.: Professor of Education, State Univ. of New York at Cortland; former President, Association for Moral Education
• Joanne Livesey: Director, Ghostwriter Outreach, Children's Television Workshop, New York; member, National Assn. of Broadcaster's Children's Advisory Committee and Scarsdale Youth Advisory Board
• Mary Rose Main: National Executive Director, Girl Scouts of the U.S.A., New York
• Sylvia L. Peters: Founding Partner, Edison Project, Whittle Communication, Nashville; former principal, Alexandre Dumas Elementary School, Chicago
• Kevin Ryan, Ph.D.: Director, Center for the Advancement of Ethics and Character, Boston University
• Eric Schaps: President, Developmental Studies Center, San Ramon, California; Director, Child Development Project
• Dr. Michael Schulman: Supervising Psychologist, Leake & Watts Children's Homes, New York; Chairman, Columbia University Seminar on Moral Education; Director of Ethical Education for the Ethical Culture Schools, Queens, New York
• Thomas H. Smolich, S.J.: Executive Director, Proyecto Pastoral at Dolores Mission, Los Angeles; member, Coalition for Humane Immigrant Rights of Los Angeles, Jesuit School of Theology at Berkeley, and Community Involvement Board of LEARN
• Keith M. Sovereign, Ed.D.: Executive Director, Community of Caring, Joseph P. Kennedy, Jr. Foundation, Washington, D.C.; board member, National Organization on Adolescent Pregnancy and Parenting
• Norman A. Sprinthall: Professor, North Carolina State University; member, Assn. for Moral Education; editorial board member, Journal of Teacher Education and Journal of Moral Education
• Dennis Van Roekel: Executive Committee member, National Education Association, Washington, D.C.; President, Arizona Education Association
• Don Whatley: National Representative, American Federation of Teachers; President, Albuquerque Teachers Federation, Albuquerque
• Jane Willsen: President, Sports Learning Systems, Inc., Carmichael, California
• Dick Wilson: National Executive Director, American Youth Soccer Organization, Hawthorne, California; President, Centinela Valley School Administrators and Trustees Association; former president, Wiseburn School Board, California