The 2011 Ethical Literacy® Conference, hosted by Westside High School in Omaha, Nebraska, from June 22—24 was our best conference ever.

The conference is our network schools’ annual opportunity to share, teach, and learn. This collaborative approach exemplifies the Ethical Literacy Learning Community philosophy. Through applications, reflection, and assessment, our participating schools discover replicable practices that will help any school culture effectively balance attention to academic rigor and a consistent focus on ethics.

How do we know we are making progress? Conference attendees were active participants in our inquiry: examining evidence, mapping our network’s progress, providing feedback, and celebrating achievements.

This year, we were thrilled to launch our first-ever student conference strand on discovering the ways ethics can be brought to life through the arts and media. This theme carried into the adult sessions with a learning expedition to the Joslyn Art Museum and a featured presentation by the local theater group, R.E.S.P.E.C.T.2 — bringing the tough gray areas of ethical decision making to life through role-play.

Most conference sessions focused on student-led initiatives and helped us further appreciate the power of student voice in building school cultures of integrity. Use the following links to learn more about each session, including: session descriptions, intended learning outcomes, observations, tools, highlights, replicable practices, artifacts, and related activities.

• Sustainable Structures: Actions Worth Replicating
• RESPECTfully Playing a Role: How to Utilize Role Playing to Solve Ethical Dilemmas
• Leading with Dilemmas: A Peer Approach
• Digital Presentations: Updates and Projects from Our Community
• Growth, Not Punishment: How One School Is Restoring Justice
• Cross-Cutting: A Scope and Sequence Structure for Infusing Ethics Across the Curriculum
• Latin American School for Young Social Action
• Values in Action: GO HDR!

We thank you for your continued interest in making Ethical Literacy a reality in our schools and invite you to be in touch in the coming school year to explore the Ethical Literacy approach for your school community. Stay tuned for details about the 6^th Annual Ethical Literacy Conference.

Sincerely,

The EL Staffers
Amber, Don, & Paula

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