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Topeka, Kansas Capital of Kansas Population 124,000 The entrepreneur spirit in Topeka began in 1842 with the founding of a ferry service across the Kansas River. Named "the 7th most livable city in the Midwest" www.topeka.org |
In the year 2000, our city leaders were looking for a way to promote good character and reinforce positive aspects of doing the right thing and making the right choices. After discovering the Character Cities model from the International Association of Character Cities, the Topeka City Council embraced the idea and unanimously passed a resolution naming Topeka a City of Character. The successes we have seen as we enter our fifth year as a Character City are very exciting. Since 2000, we have seen a continuous decrease in crime in Topeka. In 2003, Topeka City of Character was awarded a four-year Partnership in Character Education grant from the U.S. Department of Education to continue our community-wide character initiative, as well as to further disseminate character training in Topeka Public Schools. This grant has enabled us to put Character First! materials into the hands of approximately 10,000 students, teachers, and administrators in Topeka Public Schools, as well as sponsor community training for law enforcement and businesses. The response has been overwhelmingly positive, and we believe that families, schools, businesses, the faith community, law enforcement, and the government of Topeka are all stronger because of our character initiative. (reprinted from a 2005 IACC conference brochure) |
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