Colleges That Encourage Character Development : A Resource for Parents, Students, and Educators

Based on research compiled by a group of educational professors, this work features 400 college programs that emphasize service, leadership, and spiritual growth.

As character education becomes more popular, coverage of colleges that encourage character development seems most fitting. This publication describes 405 college programs in 10 categories. The guide is geared to parents, educators, potential students, counselors, and college communities.

Established in 1987, the John Templeton Foundation works with educators, theologians, scientists, and others to support academic programs that foster character development. For this book, the foundation invited all four-year universities and colleges in the U.S., as well as a number of higher-education associations, to nominate character-development programs that deserved special recognition. The project's advisory board collaborated with the Institute on College Student Values at Florida State University to identify additional programs, develop a set of criteria, and rate each nomination. More than 2,500 programs from 1,000 institutions were reviewed. Most schools selected are private, and at least one-third have religious connections.

Programs are listed under 10 categories, including "Student Leadership Programs," "Spiritual Growth Programs," "Civic Education Programs," and "Character and Sexuality Programs." A half page is given to each school to provide address and contact information, a small photo or school quote, and a summary of relevant programs. In some cases, several efforts are listed; in other cases, different aspects of a single program are noted. About a quarter of the schools appear under more than one category, among them Calvin College, Dartmouth, the U.S. Air Force Academy, Wheaton College, and Yale.

Each college and university that was sent a nomination packet was also encouraged to nominate its president for leadership in the field of character development and to nominate itself for "The Templeton Honor Roll." These nominations were subject to the same review and rating process as the college programs. Fifty higher-education presidents are given one-page profiles. In the Honor Roll, 100 institutions are cited as "character-building" colleges that "articulate the expectations of personal and civic responsibility in all dimensions of college life." Each of these schools is allocated one page for a description of their programs and philosophy; coverage in the category listings is cross-referenced in this section.

Additional features include a list of advisory board members, a glossary, and a directory of 70 higher-education organizations that encourage character development. At the end of the volume, programs are indexed alphabetically, by state, and by category.

There appears to be a conservative, Christian emphasis here, but with that limitation in mind, the reader may find this work valuable in college selection. It should be used in conjunction with other guides, because it does not provide information on accreditation, degrees offered, cost, and so on.

Assembled by the John Templeton Foundation for students, parents, and educators, this work "profiles over 500 college and university programs that inspire students to lead ethical and civic-minded lives." The book is divided into three major parts: exemplary programs, presidential leadership, and a list of 100 profiles of Templeton Honor Roll colleges and universities. Unfortunately, this is not the comprehensive guide it claims to be; it is in fact subjective and biased. Most selection criteria given are not measurable or justified, and there is no mention of how data was collected and tabulated. (In some cases, a college president is honored but the college itself is not.) It should be pointed out that the mission of every college and university is not only to educate students but also to encourage character development; singling out a group of colleges and universities that place emphasis on character development is thus impossible. Finally, the arrangement of this book makes it difficult to use, and no index is provided. Most college-bound students and their parents will find this book of limited reference value.ASamuel T. Huang, Northern Illinois Univ. Libs., DeKalb
Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc.