Lawmaker pushing for character education in Ohio schools

The Center Square
By J.D. Davidson
Jun 17, 2025

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A former teacher turned lawmaker believes Ohio students need to learn character traits like honesty, loyalty, abstinence before marriage and patriotism to lead productive adult lives.

Rep. Kevin Ritter, R-Marietta, says students are struggling because they lack good character, and lawmakers have a responsibility to ensure that education impacts that character.

“Here in Columbus, we spend a lot of time considering what education can do for us, like help us get a job or a promotion, but we spend comparatively less time thinking about what education should do to us,” Ritter told the House Education Committee. “For much of our nation’s history, Americans believed that rather than merely equipping us with the skills necessary for a particular job, education should also impact our character. It should make us better people.”

The bill would require each school district to develop “appropriate” instruction in success and character education for grades 7-12 and would allow schools to make its buildings available for third-party, after-school programs that offer success sequence and character education.

The bill says the district curriculum must include “instruction in the following character traits and fundamental values deeply rooted in the history and tradition of the United States.”

That would include:

▪ Trustworthiness, including honesty, reliability, punctuality and loyalty.

▪ Responsibility, including hard work, accountability, diligence, good judgment, perseverance and self-control.

▪ Care for family, including parents, siblings and future spouses and children.

▪ Kindness and generosity toward others.

▪ Respect and care for human life.

▪ Respect for parental authority.

▪ Respect for parents’ obligations to children.

▪ Respect for the property of other people.

▪ Respect for legitimate authority and law.

▪ Respect for patriotism, service to the community and concern for the common good.

▪ Respect for religious faith, morality, wisdom and knowledge.

▪ Respect for lifelong marriage, sexual fidelity within marriage and sexual abstinence outside of marriage.

▪ Gratitude, charity and courage.

“As successful adults, as leaders in our communities, we know this. It’s time we consistently shared this wisdom and experience with our kids and gave them the tools they need to be the best version of themselves,” Ritter said.

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