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WASHINGTON, D.C. (October 15, 2024) —  Character.org has selected Professor James Arthur OBE, to receive the 2024 Sanford N. McDonnell Award for Lifetime Achievement in Character Education. The “Sandy Award” is named in honor of Sandy McDonnell, a co-founder of Character.org and one of the driving forces behind the current character education movement in the United States.

Professor Arthur is the founding director of the Jubilee Centre for Character and Virtues (UK), the leading research center in the world dedicated to the study of character. The Centre has published dozens of reports, statements, and publications that inspired leaders in schools, the military, and more. 

Professor Arthur has also written many books on character, including Teaching VirtueEducation with CharacterThe Formation of Character, and Of Good Character.  He was Editor of the British Journal of Educational Studies for ten years and holds numerous honorary titles, including Honorary Professor at the University of Glasgow, Faculty Affiliate at Harvard University, Senior Fellow of Boston College, and Honorary Research Fellow at the University of Oxford. 

Professor James Arthur OBE

Professor James Arthur OBE

2024 "Sandy Award" recipient

James was made an Officer of the British Empire by the Queen in 2018 and in 2020 won the internationally prestigious Expanded Reason Award from the Ratzinger Foundation in the Vatican.

“We are honored to recognize James as our 2024 Sandy Award recipient,” says Dr. Arthur Schwartz, president of Character.org. “Millions of students around the world have been positively impacted by his visionary and bold leadership as founder of the Jubilee Center, a pioneering research center focussing on character, virtues, and the seedbeds of human flourishing.”

Highlights of the significant impact the Jubilee Centre has achieved since it was formed include:

  • Collaborated with international partners and individuals in over 175 countries;
  • Established the world’s first distance-learning MA in Character Education
  • Published over 350 academics publications in top tier journals with global reach;
  • Established the preeminent international annual conference in the field, held annually in Oxford;
  • Published the Framework for Character Education that won the overall QS Reimagine Education award in 2022;
  • Undertaken over 20 extensive research projects; the impact has been rated 4* in two REF submissions.

Character.org will be releasing shortly more information about when Professor Arthur will receive his “Sandy Award.” We will also be producing a tribute video to recognize and celebrate Professor Arthur’s enduring impact on the field of character education.


ABOUT THE ‘SANDY AWARD’: This annual lifetime achievement award is named in honor of Sanford N. McDonnell, Chairman Emeritus of the McDonnell Douglas Corporation and Founding Chairman and Chairman Emeritus of Character.org. It is the nonprofit’s highest honor, and the award goes to one individual each year who, over a significant period of time has:

*Influenced policy, research, and/or practice
*Been a change agent or creator of innovations
*Widely disseminated a character development program as a catalytic leader

ABOUT CHARACTER.ORG: Character.org is a worldwide network that empowers people of all ages to practice and model the ethical core values that shape our hearts, minds and choices.  Formerly known as the Character Education Partnership, the organization has relentlessly advocated for character since 1993. Today, Character.org creates and shares resources that support people around the globe, including the 11 Principles Framework for Schools: A Guide to Cultivating a Culture of Character. The organization’s vision is to be the global leader and voice for developing character in families, schools, and organizations.

For more information, contact John Kabashinski, john@character.org or visit Character.org and follow on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, YouTube and LinkedIn

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