Dear Educator:

Several years ago, the George C. Marshall Foundation engaged in dialogue with a diverse group of educators in the state of Virginia. From these discussions, two significant needs emerged which directly relate to the Foundation’s organizational mission: Character Education and greater emphasis on 20th Century History. Accordingly, the Foundation developed the J. Clifford Miller, Jr. 20th Century Virginia Role Models program, an interdisciplinary core academic program designed for use in middle school classrooms in conjunction with English and U.S. History studies.

The program consists of five units featuring the following role models: Maggie Walker, daughter of a former slave who became the nation’s first female bank president; Woodrow Wilson, who, as President of the United States, worked to resolve conflicts between parties non-violently; George C. Marshall, whose life represents a hallmark of disciplined selfless service, integrity, hard work, and compassion; tennis champion Arthur Ashe, whose life of character and courage off the court made him a role model for all; and Supreme Court Justice Lewis Powell, whose life was characterized by his willingness to take unpopular stands in defense of truth and justice. Ten Virginia schools served as pilot sites during the 1999-2000 school year.

Each role-model unit is organized under a central character-related theme and learning activities are correlated with Virginia’s Standards of Learning (SOLs) for English and U.S. History II. Each unit comes with an audio CD. The Marshall unit also contains a DVD.

The goal of the program is to tell the stories of 20th century role models in ways that are not only informative for young people but also potentially transformative. The program seeks to foster opportunities for engaged learning that enables students to identify, develop, and exercise their own innate qualities of character and virtue. Thus, it invites students to realize these values in the conduct of both their personal and public lives—to be leaders in their own way, in their own time.

The Role Models program has been recognized in a memo by the Virginia Department of Education as a curriculum supplement resource that supports the Virginia Standards of Learning -http://www.pen.k12.va.us/VDOE/prinsmemos/2005/ems009.html. The program also has a supporting website at http://www.20thcenturyrolemodels.org.

We, here at the George C. Marshall Foundation, hope the J. Clifford Miller, Jr. 20th Century Virginia Role Models program will assist your efforts to teach your students History and inspire them to realize the enormous potential for good that lies within them. For additional information or support, please contact me at lawhorneca@marshallfoundation.org, or phone me at 540/463-7103, Ext. 147.

Sincerely,

Craig A. Lawhorne,

Director, 20th Century Virginia Role Models program