The Background - Our Why

It was the decade of the 80’s, and Sandra Sommerfrucht began to notice a decline in behavior at the high school where she eventually taught for 34 years. The bad behavior was mainly in the hallways of a school in a very conservative town with upper middle-class parents, but it would eventually creep into the classroom.

Sandra had recently read a book about the rise in drug use, abortions, unwed pregnancies, divorced parents, and violence. The author of the book contended that in 1962-1963 when prayer and Bible reading were banned from public school, students in public schools were not the same as when they studied the Holy Scriptures and memorized the Ten Commandments. He was appalled at statistics proving a falling away from the excellent standards that students had exhibited in American schools since the beginning of the nation. Even SAT scores had plummeted.

What was the simple prayer that all boys and girls across the nation prayed before class started? It was a 22-word prayer and had five parts to it: Almighty God, we acknowledge our dependence upon Thee, and we beg Thy blessings upon us, our parents, our teachers, and our country.

America’s founding fathers knew the key to success in public schools, prayer and study of the Bible, so they warned if these instruments that teach internal restraints were removed, there would be disastrous consequences. Benjamin Rush, for example, predicted in 1791 that Americans would “waste so much time and money in punishing crimes and take so little pains to prevent them.”

Time has proven Benjamin Rush to be accurate in his assessment. Many dollars have been spent trying to educate students lacking in the excellence of character, underperforming, and ill-willed.

THE BIRTH OF A SOLUTION

During the 90’s, Sandra prayed that our nation’s schools would be reformed. One day while getting dressed to start her day, she heard God say “School of Character” and knew that a curriculum must be developed with each unit centered around the fruit of the Spirit: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, and self-control (Galatians 5:22-23). These fruit eradicate those characteristics that keep students from being their best in their own personal lives and cause them to wreck the lives of others, ultimately creating chaos and even violence in our nation.
(See the list below)

Desired Behavior

Undesired behavior

LOVE

anger, hatred, resentment, school fights

JOY

depression, refusal to do work,
low self- esteem, absenteeism

PEACE

anxiety, fear, lack of concentration,
lack of participation, intimidation

PATIENCE

impatience, class interruptions,
sloppy work, carelessness

KINDNESS

rudeness, self-centeredness,
lack of cooperation

GOODNESS

stinginess, refusal to help others, bullying

FAITHFULNESS

irresponsibility, disloyalty, mediocrity,
no school supplies, unfinished homework, tardiness, wandering through the halls

HUMILITY

pride, arrogance,
lack of compliance to dress code
and other school rules

SELF-CONTROL

undisciplined and “out of control,” drug use, blame of others, desire to remove the problem with a weapon, attitude of “anything goes”

The Correction

1. A DESIRE TO EXCEL
2. REGULAR ATTENDANCE
3. RESPONSIBILITY FOR HOMEWORK AND MATERIALS
4. RESPECT FOR AND COURTESY TOWARD AUTHORITY AND PEERS
5. RESPECT FOR PROPERTY
6. MODEST DRESS
7. COOPERATION
8. ATTENTIVENESS
9. GENEROSITY
10. HELPFULNESS
11. A POSITIVE ATTITUDE
12. CREATIVITY
13. A REALIZATION OF INDIVIDUAL GIFTS AND TALENTS
14. INTEGRITY FOR FUTURE ROLES AS FAMILY MEMBERS, EMPLOYEES/EMPLOYERS, AND PRODUCTIVE CITIZENS

How

The literature of the Bible
Secular literature that echoes the values of the Bible
Famous quotations
Stories for teens and pre-teens
Teacher’s questions
Teacher’s PowerPoints
Repetition of key points
Student dramatizations

What

Parable studies
Music/poetry     
Character sketches
Group studies
Maps and charts    
Art work by students
Class discussion
Dramatizations
DVDs and CDs