Top of page

Character Across the Curriculum: Equipping Faculty to Design Courses for Educating Character

July 13 – 15, 2026

Wake Forest University
Winston-Salem, North Carolina


The Character Across the Curriculum workshop aims to equip faculty to: 

  • identify clear and measurable character-related learning outcomes, 
  • design engaging learning activities and assignments that promote students’ growth toward those outcomes, 
  • develop effective and ethically sound assessments of learning activities’ efficacy, promoting such growth, and 
  • integrate these outcomes, activities, and assessments into existing or new syllabuses in ways that are appropriate for, and in service of, the disciplinary goals of the course. 

The workshop will be led collaboratively by members of the Program for Leadership and Character with expertise in character theory and development, course design, and character assessment and measurement among undergraduate, graduate, and professional students. 

We anticipate inviting at least 15 applicants from the Educating Character Initiative Community to attend the workshop this summer. Successful applicants will have all expenses paid for their participation in the workshop, including travel, lodging, and meals during their stay in Winston-Salem. 

Additional workshops – both in person and virtually – will be planned in the future. If you’re interested in attending a virtual faculty course development workshop and would like to be notified when one is scheduled, please join the ECI Community, where these opportunities will be announced.

Eligibility

We invite faculty from any academic discipline at any U.S. undergraduate institution to apply to participate in a three-day course development workshop on integrating character into course design. No prior scholarly expertise in character, virtue, or pedagogy is required for participation. The workshop is aimed at faculty who already teach courses with discipline-specific content, who desire to educate character without compromising that content, and who are uncertain about how to move forward toward these goals.

Applicants who plan to integrate character-related outcomes and activities into courses to be taught in the coming year will be given priority for this year’s workshop. 

If you are a Wake Forest University faculty member, please apply for this same workshop via the Program’s Course Development and Redesign Workshop Stipends form instead.

Application Information

The deadline for application is April 3, 2026. The application form is at the bottom of this page. The form prompts each applicant to answer several questions about their proposed course, their desired character outcomes, and their plans for teaching the course. Applicants will also upload a current CV and have the option of uploading an existing syllabus for which character integration is desired. We anticipate making decisions about applications by April 24, 2026. 

All applicants should also register for the Educating Character Initiative Community. (registration is free). 

Successful applicants will need to commit to investing some time (about 2.5 hours total) pre- and post-workshop, including an introductory Zoom call, workshop feedback, and research surveys. They must also be willing to share materials created during the workshop with the Educating Character Initiative (for educational purposes only). 

Sponsorship

This workshop is made possible through the generous support of Lilly Endowment Inc. and Wake Forest University.

About the Organizers

The Program for Leadership and Character at Wake Forest University aims to inspire, educate, and empower leaders of character to serve humanity. Through innovative teaching, creative programming, and cutting-edge research, the Program seeks to transform the lives of students, foster an inclusive culture of leadership and character at Wake Forest, and catalyze a broader public conversation that places character at the center of leadership. 

The Educating Character Initiative equips institutions of higher education with the resources, funding, and support necessary to integrate character education into their distinctive institutional contexts, curricula, and cultures. The initiative fosters a robust network that recognizes the value of educating character within higher education. To contribute to our collective learning, join the ECI Community.

2026 Character Across the Curriculum Workshop Application

Tip: You may want to draft your answers in a separate document, then paste them here.

Name(Required)
Please respond to both requests: (1) Please tell us the name and course number (if available) of the course you hope to revise or design as part of this program. (2) Leaving aside character outcomes, please offer a short description of your course (level, format, number of students, disciplinary content, learning objectives, etc).
Please answer all three questions: (1) When do you plan to teach the new or revised course for the first time? (2) Has your new or revised course already been approved by your institution for inclusion in an upcoming schedule of courses? (3) How often do you hope to offer the course?
Please answer both questions: (1) What is your current expertise and/or comfort level with character-related concepts and strategies in a university classroom? (2) What character content would you like to integrate into your new or existing course? Please describe what you have in mind in as much detail as possible at this stage, including the character themes and/or outcomes you would like to explore.
Please answer both questions: (1) What motivates you to apply for a course design workshop on integrating character into your existing or new courses? And, how would this program benefit you? (2) How would your newly designed course further the mission and vision of your institution?
Max. file size: 23 MB.
Max. file size: 23 MB.

This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.