Medal of Honor Recipients Promote Character Values to Local Students through Educational Development Program

School Initiative Aims to Inspire America's Youth with Values of Honor and Engaged Citizenship

GETTYSBURG, Pa., Sept. 12, 2013 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- When more than 40 recipients of the U.S. Military's highest honor converge on Gettysburg for the Congressional Medal of Honor Society's annual convention September 19-21, they will also meet with local area middle and high school students who have participated in the Medal of Honor Character Development Program. 

The Medal of Honor Character Development Program is a teaching resource designed to provide students with opportunities to explore the important concepts of courage, commitment, sacrifice, patriotism, integrity, and citizenship. The program's lesson plans draw from personal accounts of living Medal of Honor recipients to create "living histories" that are combined with instructional activities to encourage students to explore what courage means to them.

"My students are extremely excited to meet in person the brave men who have demonstrated what it means to be the best person you can be," said Jared Nace, social studies teacher for Bermudian Springs School District, Pa. "They find the stories of the recipients eye-opening and truly inspiring."

As the flagship education initiative of the Congressional Medal of Honor Foundation, the Character Development Program is the legacy of the Medal of Honor recipients, who view it as a way they can inspire the youth of America to become great citizens in their communities, their country, and the world. 

"The program gives students real-world examples of conquering adversity with leadership," said Lt. Col. Michael M. Wertz, senior JROTC instructor at Gettysburg Area School District, Pa. "It teaches how to take initiative, and how to take charge when needed to promote a positive outcome."

"We have integrated the program with our other initiatives, such as our anti-bullying and anti-drug campaigns," said Bill Chain, superintendent of Fairfield Area School District, Pa. "This program helps our seventh and eighth graders know that even if they feel intimidated by peer pressure, they have the strength to do the right thing, now and into adulthood."

The Congressional Medal of Honor Society gathers each year to reunite living recipients as they continue their legacy of inspiring America's youth, honoring patriots and exemplary citizens, and memorializing fellow recipients who have passed.

About the Congressional Medal of Honor Society Convention
The Congressional Medal of Honor Society Convention is an annual gathering of members of the Congressional Medal of Honor Society – the only organization consisting exclusively of recipients of the Medal of Honor. The Medal of Honor is the highest military decoration awarded by the United States for valor in combat. The Convention honors Medal of Honor recipients and promotes the Medal's values of courage, sacrifice, service, and patriotism. Learn more about the 2013 convention at www.cmoh2013.org.

SOURCE Congressional Medal of Honor Society Convention