Hope Leadership Academy Professional Learning in Character Education Supports Schools in the Creation of a Caring Community

Oct 15, 2026

Uploaded by McQueen

This research study examined whether three years of participation in the Hope Leadership Academy (HLA) affected participating schools as caring communities. Schools administered the School as a Caring Community Profile-II (SCCP-II) to students and adults in January 2018 and again in May 2020. Descriptive statistics showed increases in schools identified as caring communities, and all five caring-community subsets rose, suggesting HLA participation may strengthen school character education and community outcomes.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryResearch & Report

FormatPDF

Pages9

Reading Time23 min

AccessFree to download

Study Purpose and Design

Caring Community Outcomes (SCCP-II)

Policy Context: NCLB and ESSA

Smart and Good: Academic and Character Development

ESSA Accountability Measures

School Climate as an Indicator

Character Education Frameworks

PRIMED and Eleven Principles

Hope Leadership Academy (HLA)

Program Structure and Yearly Components

Hope Leadership Academy Professional Learning in Character Education Supports Schools in the Creation of a Caring Community Kara Chism and Jodie Newton, Samford University Abstract The purpose of this research study was to determine whether participation in three years of professional learning in the Hope Leadership Academy (HLA) impacted the school as a caring community. The participants were schools that participated in the HLA and administered the School as a Caring Community Profile-II (SCCP-II) to students and adults in January 2018 and again in May 2020. This study used descriptive statistics, and results indicated an increase in schools as a caring community. Each of the five subsets of the caring community increased, indicating schools may improve as a caring community after participating in the HLA. Keywords: Leadership, Character Education, School Culture, Climate, Professional Learning Schools were originally created for two purposes: to help students become smart as well as to help them become good (Lickona & Davidson, 2017) . In the United States, a focus has been placed on providing students with an academically challenging curriculum as evidenced by the national education laws No Child Left Behind of 2001 (NCLB) and Every Student Succeeds Act of 2015 (ESSA). No Child Left Behind required rigorous academic state testing with the end goal of one hundred percent of students proficient in reading and mathematics by the end of the 2014 school year along with stringent accountability measures (No Child Left Behind Act, 2001) . This educational reform set the standard higher for student learning than previous laws. In 2015, Every Student Succeeds Act replaced No Child Left Behind Act and reauthorized the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (ESEA). Every Student Succeeds Act requires all students to be taught to high academic standards with annual statewide assessments that measure individual student’s progress toward meeting high academic standards. This law included accountability and positive action measures to ensure a process was in place to improve schools with consistently low graduation rates and academic progress (Every Student Succeeds Act, 2015) . No Child Left Behind Act and Every Student Succeeds Act both focused on students becoming smart. Every Student Succeeds Act has an additional emphasis on providing a school environment to help students become good. According to the National Association of School Psychologists (NASP) (2016), ESSA’s foundation is based on the strong connection between a positive school climate where students develop character skills that result in student learning that leads to success. The act encourages and provides funding for states, districts, and schools to improve conditions for all students, enhance peer interaction, provide well-rounded education, incorporate community involvement, and service learning that ties to the curriculum (Grant et al., 2017). Schools receiving funding must use evidence-based interventions that have a positive impact on the students’intrapersonal and interpersonal competencies in addition to academic achievement. ESSA requires an increase in academic achievement and support to develop positive character: the smart and the good. As part of the accountability portion of ESSA, states are required to use four measures: academic achievement, graduation rates, English Language proficiency, and one indicator of school or student success selected by the state in a plan (Alabama State Department of Education, n.d.; Kostyo et al., 2018) . The Alabama State Department of Education chose to use school climate as the state selected indicator. Alabama’s ESSA plan, submitted and approved to the state department of education, says,“Alabama plans to address school culture, student behavior, and discipline infractions”(Alabama State Department of Education, 2019, p. 41) . One of the strategies listed in Alabama’s ESSA plan is to “build a cultur

FAQs

What was the purpose of the study about Hope Leadership Academy (HLA)?

The study determined whether three years of HLA professional learning impacted participating schools as caring communities, using SCCP-II results from students and adults.

When were the School as a Caring Community Profile-II (SCCP-II) measures administered?

SCCP-II was administered in January 2018 and again in May 2020.

What were the main findings regarding schools as caring communities?

Results indicated an increase in schools identified as caring communities, and each of the five caring-community subsets increased after HLA participation.

Oct 15, 2026

Uploaded by McQueen