Drawing on conversations at the 2026 Annual Conference and a spring survey, three Communities of Practice (CoP) have launched.

Drawing on conversations at the 2026 Annual Conference and a spring survey, three Communities of Practice (CoP) have launched in fall 2026.

An Advancing Character Community of Practice is a group of ACAE community members who share a passion, purpose, curiosity, or concern that relates to the advancement of character across educational contexts. They collectively deepen their knowledge and expertise through ongoing interactions designed to foster learning, engage in practice, and amplify their outcomes.

Established Advancing Character CoPs:

Depth and Breadth: Systems, Structures, and Sustainability: This community of practice brings together thought partners committed to operationalizing character development throughout organizations, considering scalability and depth of integration. Reflecting a “depth and breadth” approach, the group may focus on cultivating both individual and collective practices that embed character formation into everyday systems, structures, and decision-making processes. Collaboratively examine how curriculum, pedagogy, assessment, and campus or school culture can consistently reflect and reinforce prioritized virtues. Through ongoing dialogue, shared inquiry, and practical experimentation, members can learn from one another while identifying strategies that move character development beyond isolated initiatives into a coherent, scalable framework. By working as a whole community, the aim is to explore environments where character is intentionally nurtured, measured, and sustained across entire schools and universities, supporting both personal growth and institutional transformation at scale.

It Begins with Us: Fostering a Character-Centered Adult Culture: Come together to collaborate and focus on continuous growth in character, professional practice, and relational trust as environmental conditions that foster character-centered adult culture. Engage in regular dialogue, reflection, and shared inquiry to strengthen thoughts surrounding how adults form, model, and cultivate virtues within their own interactions and across their work with others. Explore adult formation practices and needs, as well as best practices or conditions necessary for building inclusive, supportive, and psychologically safe spaces where individuals feel a sense of belonging and are encouraged to contribute meaningfully. Through the exchange of strategies, experiences, and resources, you may consider how to align daily practices with character-driven principles and institutional goals. By engaging in ongoing collaboration, feedback, and reflection, the community of practice supports members in translating character development from concept into lived culture. The ultimate aim is to foster environments where both adults and those they serve are empowered to grow, thrive, and contribute to a shared vision of flourishing grounded in ethical and relational excellence.

R.E.M.A. (Research, Evaluation, Measurement, and Assessment): Collaboratively explore and clarify research, assessment, evaluation, and measurement in character education. Explore ideas for defining key concepts, examining their distinct purposes, and consider how each can be meaningfully applied within character-centered educational contexts. Through shared dialogue, inquiry, and reflection, members may engage with current scholarship and practical examples to strengthen their understanding and use of evidence-informed approaches. Ultimately, the community will aim to build collective capacity to share ideas and refine character education approaches that are both impactful and thoughtfully assessed.