Application Information

Questions to Consider Before Applying


Is your initiative or practice innovative or significant?

Does your initiative or practice align with one or more of the 11 Principles?

Does your initiative or practice connect to your school’s core values?


The Evaluation Process

Promising Practices applications are evaluated and selected according to the following criteria:

Uniqueness
Although a given practice may be new to a particular school, it may not be unique nationwide. Many wonderful and effective practices, such as mentoring programs, service clubs, recognizing Veterans, or leadership opportunities, are not selected because these initiatives are not unique or different from other practices we have previously recognized. We are looking to recognize new approaches and initiatives that
have not been implemented elsewhere.
Aligning with our
11 Principles Framework
We will be evaluating the extent to which
your practice or initiative aligns with one
or more of principles articulated in our
11 Principles Framework for Schools:
A Guide to Cultivating a Culture of Character

Evidence of Impact
The application should contain sufficient evidence
of impact (for students, staff, parents, community members, etc.). Some practices may hold promise but have yet to demonstrate objective evidence of impact.
Clarity of Narrative
Your narrative needs to include sufficient
detail for the evaluators to assess the
effectiveness of the practice.

For Districts
District submissions should include sufficient evidence of a
district-level initiative including how the district leaders provided
direction that enabled or enhanced the practice.


Helpful Hints While Writing Your Application
  • Character limits – Spaces and special characters are included in the character limits. Text that exceeds the character limits will not be included.ed.
  • Applications in English only - While we welcome applications from outside the United States, please note that we can only accept applications written in English.
  • Include a Photo - You will be asked to upload a photo of your practice in action. If you do not have a photo that represents your practice, you can upload a photo of your school or organization.
  • Photo Release Policy - If your photo includes young people, please be sure to follow relevant policies for releasing photos since this photo may appear on Character.org’s website, in publications and any recognition event (should your practice be selected).
  • Contact Information – The contact and overview information provided in your application may appear on Character.org’s website and publications (should your practice be selected).
  • Submitting your Application - You may “save and return” to your application as many times as you wish until you click the “submit” button at the end of the application. Once the application has been submitted, it cannot be edited.
  • Multiple Applications - We invite your school, district, or organization to submit multiple applications for different practices, although no more than two will be selected in a given year.

Submission Process

Character.org does not give more than two designations to
any one school or district applicant in a given year.

Application fee is $100 per application.

If paying by purchase order, there is an additional
$25 per application administrative fee.


Ready to get started?

Our Promising Practice Application for award year 2022 is available now and closes March 25th.

Please checkout our FAQ’s for how you can prepare
for the Promising Practice application.


We recommend you take some time reviewing the application PDF before starting the final application. Remember to draft and save your application in a Word document.

Your responses will not be saved in the system until the application is submitted.

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