Polk County elementary students are beginning the 2026-27 school year with a shared approach to character development through the expansion of Character Strong to all four elementary schools.
The program uses the PurposeFull People curriculum, which focuses on a different character trait each month. Students will explore respect, responsibility, gratitude, empathy, perseverance, honesty, cooperation, courage and creativity through lessons and activities during the school year.
Each elementary school launched the program in August with a kindness kickoff, giving students an introduction to the curriculum while allowing each school to put its own personality into the effort.
The district began piloting Character Strong during the 2025-26 school year at Polk Central Elementary and Polk County Early College with support from the Polk County Community Foundation and the Tryon Rotary Club Foundation.
Following that pilot, additional funding allowed Polk County Schools to expand the elementary curriculum to Saluda Elementary, Sunny View Elementary and Tryon Elementary while continuing the work at Polk Central. Funding for the 2026-27 expansion and summer training for program leaders was provided by the Tryon Rotary Club Foundation, Tryon Rotary District 7670 and the Blue Cross Blue Shield of NC Foundation.
School counselors serve as the program coordinators at each elementary school.
At Saluda Elementary, counselor Cora Laurens said she appreciates having a shared focus and common language across grade levels.
“It is exciting to see the word Kindness on posters throughout our school,” Laurens said.
Saluda students began the year with PurposeFull People lessons and a surprise Kindness Dance. The school’s fifth-grade OwlStanding Leaders program is also incorporating kindness as a foundation for student leadership work.
Polk Central Elementary tied its kickoff to the school’s Rocket identity.
Counselor Ashley Bell said mascot Astro made a surprise visit to encourage students to “blast off into kindness,” while students received space-themed reminders of the initiative.
Teachers followed with classroom discussions, kindness agreements and activities designed to help students get to know one another and practice kindness.
“It was an incredible launch, and our Polk Central Rockets are ready to shine bright and make kindness their mission every day!” Bell said.
At Tryon Elementary, students helped create a visual reminder of their work by adding their hands to a Kindness Tree.
“Each student added their hand to our Kindness Tree to show that Tryon students help kindness grow every day,” counselor May Rikard said.
Classes also created kindness quilts, used self-portraits to explore what makes each student unique and discussed how small acts of kindness can make a difference.
Sunny View Elementary counselor Monica Barber introduced the initiative through schoolwide announcements and then visited classrooms during Character Strong lessons.
She pointed to a second-grade Kindness Contract as one example of students putting the concept into practice.
“I really liked how 2nd grade did the Kindness Contract, and they have it in their room for a reminder,” Barber said.
Though the activities differed by school, the goal was the same: give students common language and regular opportunities to think about how character traits can shape the way they learn, lead and treat others.
The districtwide elementary expansion will continue throughout the school year as students move from kindness into additional PurposeFull People character traits.
