USA VALUES - Today's Children, Tomorrow's Future.

USA Values-CDP Character Development Programs, a not for profit 501(C)(3) organization has developed these materials from our attempts to help children and schools achieve over the past 8 years.

Our goal started out as:
At the end of 6th grade, every child will understand the personal assets and attributes required to succeed and share success in the United States of America. Those who have face time with children will agree on a broad spectrum of K-6 messages that create the understanding of success and sharing. Communities will choose to send these messages through the schools as a matter of citizenship.

This is still is the goal, but in order for it to be realistic we must insist children are ready-to-read starting in kindergarten before predictable year over year continuous progress can be made.

The Truth
Without the gift of Early Reading Skills all children are behind before they even start kindergarten.

The Gift
Only an individual gift delivers early reading skills at age 3, 4 and 5. This gift is the key to opportunity, success and sharing. It is society's best (effective and lowest cost) approach to preparing the bottom half of the bottom half (poorest of the poor) to want the choices and engagement.

The Focus
When 100% of the children start kindergarten ready to read English the urban school has the resources to meet the Adequate Yearly Progress Requirement of No Child Left Behind.

Goal
Every child will have basic or better early reading readiness skills by the time they enter kindergarten is added to the initial goal above.

Kids Games

Building Blocks

CDP is a secular value messaging program. It counts in part on a substantial faith base contribution with a secular mission to "help" the at-risk and poorest of the poor.

We believe there is ultimate power in the separation of church and state; the nation is stronger for it in the world setting. It believes the ultimate worldly character message starts from freedom of speech/freedom of religion, and that the ability to read is the initial ticket to finding secular opportunity. This plays out in a simple tool-belt (product line) supporting ready-to-read going into kindergarten and then the age appropriate messages, stories and assets and attributes of achievement and sharing in elementary school. It insists that changes (additions that go along with new money) can be made in the community and school approach and provides product that assist those changes.

CDP will partner to create the ready to read impact on the at-risk child and provides messages and related stories to teachers and caregivers. Talks with parents, teachers, principals, community, mayors, governors, faiths, businesses, schools, regions, and effective citizens are required to pinpoint first-things-first change. But very likely it will include being ready to read going into kindergarten.

Today's Children, Tomorrow's Future.™

Some who have helped us impact children are listed below.

Individual or Organizations	Impact
15 Individuals	Funded messages and stories presented to children by teachers
Cargill Foundation	Funded messages and stories presented to children by teachers
USA VALUES, Inc.	Funded messages and stories presented to children by teachers and created the content for presentations
20 Principals	Promoted the messaging to children in classrooms
600 Teachers	Delivered the messaging to children in classrooms
The Miner Group	Facilitated development and operations
W&C Printing Company, Inc.	Facilitated development, operations and funded inventories

10 Principals
Defined what they needed most to be more effective. It is 100% ready-to-read in English populations of children entering kindergarten

Jon Miner	Founder and provided development funding
Tom Wolfgram	Board member and founder and provided development funding
Mrs. Bonnie Hermann	Board Member, developer of product, and advisor
Dr. Joanne Buggey	Board member and advisor
Elmer Koch	Board member and advisor
Odell Bjerkness	Board member and advisor
Dr. Dean Reiner	Advisor

We encourage you to read the section Introduction to USA VALUES. It is about the messaging we send to ourselves and the children and the materials provided to do that. Bio's are available upon request.

The other day we found a solid articulation of wisdom! Simply put, in any long-range strategy to improve year-after-year one must be solidly grounded in the truth. Only truth gives one the base confidence that long-term growth is possible. Course corrections and turnarounds are always better now than later.

Principals and teachers tell us!
It is a tragedy to think we can have 100% reading proficiency in grades 6, 7, and 8 without the foundation of 100% of the children in grades 3, 4, and 5 being proficient. All of which is predicated on 100% of the children not being behind in grades K, 1, and 2. It is wonderful that society now delivers half of the children ready to read or already reading in kindergarten because an individual gift was given to each of those children by an adult. That has raised the bar, and we cannot look back, we now must give the individual gift to 100% of the children if we expect 100% engagement and proficiency in latter years.

In the sense of a collaboration to achieve these expanded goals we have personally discussed this with many effective individuals who do not yet see the truth. The public sector is not ready to focus on first things first. CDP's expanded goal to pre-kindergarten ready-to-read with the message of early literacy pinpoints this issue. We help focus on 100% of the children and the principal of the school who needs this to succeed. We are comfortable that something good has gotta give in this log jam.

A "business plan of sort" is presented for district, city, regional consideration at: http://ulticharnetwork.blogspot.com/

A discussion about the absolute importance of early reading, a brief summary of its status in the nation and the primary role of the elementary school principal are at: http://usavalues.blogspot.com/

Several written letters to the governor that could just as easily be written to all governors and urban mayors in the nation are at: http://chardevelactivity.blogspot.com