During the summer of 2014, five Warsaw Community School teachers (Crystal Kreider, Katie Lowry, Lauren McMillen, Courtney White and Betsey Vastbinder) participated in a one-week symposium of character instruction followed by a 10 day study of schools in England, Scotland and Ireland.

According to Katie Lowry, Language Arts teacher at Lakeview Middle School, “Passport to Innovation is an incredible program that gives teachers the opportunity to include character growth into their curriculum, which allows them to better themselves as well as their students.”

Not only did this group of educators visit famous landmarks, but they were able to study the educational system of other countries and learn new approaches to building character in students in their own classrooms. Crystal Kreider, fifth grade teacher at Leesburg Elementary School, stated, “I have a better understanding of who I am as a person and as an educator and how I can use character development to inspire and equip my students to reach their educational and personal dreams. I am already using what I have learned to create a ‘family’ out of my classroom and it’s making a difference for all students.”

Betsey Vastbinder, social studies teacher at Lakeview Middle School and the 2014 WCS teacher of the year, commented, “One school in particular shocked us by saying that their reputation in their community is not based on standardized test performance. While their student passing rate on the national standardized test is roughly 50 percent, every year they have more parents wanting to enroll students in their school than they have room for. They have a stellar reputation for sticking with students through thick and thin, and they have one of the highest placement rates for sending students on to something after high school – trade school, university, etc.”