Today concern exists for the safety and success of students in the public education system. Families, educators, and community members are concerned with the physical, emotional, and mental well-being of students in an environment where incidents of violence are growing. Events like the school shootings at Jonesboro, Arkansas, and at Columbine High School left our nation concerned with the problems within the school system. Numerous people believe that character education can be an effective solution. The purposes of this study are to describe key elements of one school's character education program, and to determine the impact that this program had on academics, attendance, and discipline incidents within that school. The data in this study provide a document analysis in a single rural middle school consisting of students in grades 5-8, in a school where the teachers and community members perceived that discipline issues were out of control. The study centered on the belief that character education has a positive impact on attendance, academics, and the number of discipline incidents. This research was valuable because this research supports that character education is effective. Character education positive impact was seen in attendance; students learn that when they are absent from school they really miss important opportunities in their educational experience. Character education has a positive impact on discipline; they understand what types of behavior are socially accepted not only in school, but in the global community that they reside. Real world applications of character education is extremely important for student understanding of the program.