(San Francisco, CA, June 3, 1999) A new educational guide designed to teach students the meaning of character through the use of newspapers has been released. The guide, entitled, "Character Matters: Using Newspapers to Teach Character," was developed by Use The News, one of the nation’s leading educational services companies. The resource guide was written by Dr. Edward F. DeRoche, co-director of the International Center for Character Education at the University of San Diego, and edited by Dr. Sherrye Dee Garrett, who co-founded Use The News with Dr. Betty L. Sullivan.

"Character Matters: Using Newspapers to Teach Character" is written as a resource for elementary, middle and high school teachers and parents. The guide provides classroom strategies and activities that teach eight values: respect, responsibility, caring, honesty, tolerance, courage, citizenship and justice. "Character Matters" outlines positive actions to counter what many feel is a decline in moral and civic values. For example, an exercise under the "Honesty" section asks students locate and read a news story about an individual demonstrating an honest action. The student then finds a character in history or literature whose behavior parallels the action of the person in the news story, and compares the two by answering three questions: "What was the honest act?" "What were the consequences of the act?" and "Would you have made the same decision? Why or why not?"

Character education can help students learn to reason critically and morally and to practice the habits of being good people and good citizens. Newspapers are excellent resources for teaching character. Newspaper articles can be used in schools and in homes to help students learn and practice positive personal and civic values.

"There are two sides to character education," says Dr. DeRoche, "one is to create schools and communities that are caring, civil and challenging, both academically and behaviorally. The other side is to develop young citizens who are smart, decent and responsible."

"Character Matters" author Dr. DeRoche is a professor at The University of San Diego, and co-chair of The New York Times College Program Advisory Board. He is a recent recipient of the prestigious "Teacher Educator Award," an award given annually to an outstanding educator at the college or university level by the State of California Association of Teacher Educators.

Dr. DeRoche’s extensive experience in education includes working as an elementary school teacher and principal, junior high school teacher and principal, university professor, associate dean and dean for the English Department at The University of San Diego. He is the author of numerous books, including The Newspaper: A Reference Book for Teachers and Librarians (1991), Evaluating School Programs and Personnel (1989) and Complete Public Speaking Handbook for School Administrators (1988). Most recently, he co-authored Educating Hearts and Minds: A Comprehensive Education Framework (1998).

Dr. DeRoche holds a Ph.D. and an M.A. from The University of Connecticut, an M.Ed. from Eastern Connecticut State University and a B.S. from The University of Maine.

Use The News is one of the nation’s fastest-growing educational services companies. It publishes a variety of distinguished educational resources for middle and secondary school curricula, most recently, "Here Comes the Millennium."

Use The News products are imaginative, colorful and designed to build a long-lasting awareness of newspapers among students. Other notable publications include "Reach for the Rings: Focus on Respect," produced with the United States Olympic Committee, examines concepts and values like respect for self and others and citizenship through sportsmanship; "Newspapers and the ’Net," in which students compare the news reporting of their local papers with on-line coverage in the United States and around the globe; "Welcome to the Newspaper," which introduces students to the essential aspects of producing a newspaper. It discusses major topics such as "what is newsworthy?" and the importance of features, sports and opinion pages.

Use The News Foundation was established in 1998. It serves as a nonprofit fiscal sponsor service to Newspaper in Education programs nationwide and provides technical assistance on strategies, grant proposal development, identification of partners and project verification and evaluation.

For further information about the upcoming publication, "Character Matters: Using Newspapers to Teach Character," contact Use The News at (415) 861-1637, visit the Web site at www.usethenews.com or e-mail bettysnie@aol.com