WGU Announces Character Education Professional Learning Program
Program Provides Microcredentials in Character Education for Teachers and Principals
Los Angeles, California聽鈥�Western Governors University鈥檚 (WGU) Teachers College, the nation鈥檚 largest college of education, has launched the Character Education Professional Learning (CEPL) program for teachers and principals. The CEPL program takes an assets-based approach that celebrates the diversity, individuality, and value of each human being. The program is open to California-based teachers and principals and meets educators where they are in terms of their knowledge and experience with character development and character education programming.
聽鈥淒eveloping character and caring for the well-being of children has always been a foundational aspect of K-12 education. Our CEPL program prepares K-12 educators with knowledge and tools to cultivate schools and classrooms of character so that all students thrive individually and collectively, feel valued and see value in the learning community, and believe in their ability to do good for their own sake and the sake of others, said Dr. Christina Dehler, Associate Dean and Director of Academic Programs with WGU鈥檚 Teachers College.
The CEPL program is offered in two tracks: one for teachers and one for principals. The Character Education Professional Learning program for teachers (CEPL-T) is a series of 4 microcredentials designed to help educators develop a caring, inclusive classroom culture of character that empowers all students to meet their full potential. Teachers learn how to build a classroom community of character that promotes the intellectual, social, emotional, and ethical development of young people, while helping them become curious, responsible, engaged and caring citizens.
The program designed for also includes 4 microcredentials and is further supported by online synchronous events and an online community where principals engage in discussions, share learnings and practices, and vet and iterate ideas.聽The online community will be available to principals long after they complete their CEPL program, for continued learning and growth, and rich exchanges with colleagues around the country.
A major component of the program is that teachers and principals can earn professional development hours and 4 digital badges as they complete the online microcredential courses at their own time and pace. Once all 4 microcredentials are earned, they are stacked into a Certificate in Character Education that can be applied toward a WGU master鈥檚 level degree program. The series of 4 microcredential courses comes at a low cost of $250 and are flexible, relevant, and practical to ensure educators develop both on-site and online strategies for building a culture of character in their classrooms and schools.
鈥淭his is a great program that will be needed more and more as our nation faces the stresses of the emotional well-being of our communities and student, said a current CEPL Principal Participant.
Microcredentials are available starting June 15. To learn more details about the program, visit the Character Education Professional Learning for teachers website and the Character Education Professional Learning for principals website.
