Russ Sojourner is the Schools of Character Director for the Character Education Partnership (CEP) in Washington, DC. In this article he begins by saying that Daniel Lapsley and Charles Murray's articles presented in this issue of "Journal of Character Education" are clearly concerned about the compelling (and daunting) challenges facing our society when it comes to developing young people of good character--those who are strong enough to do the right thing. Sojourner comments that despite differing opinions regarding the history, nature, root causes and scope of the challenge, the Character Education Partnership (CEP) shares those same concerns. CEP also agrees strongly that it is essential to foster caring relationships within schools, families and communities. Unfortunately, this need for positive and healthy relationships with adults is not being adequately addressed through current education reforms. Despite growing national attention to the importance of school climate and bullying prevention, many initiatives do not do enough to encourage systemic and comprehensive change, and are often one-time programmatic "fixes" that are easily abandoned. Sojourner affirms that CEP strongly believes character education is so much more than simply a program. It is about school improvement and reform--a way of life and a way of being--built on the power of caring and respectful relationships; students to students, student to adults, and adults to adults. To be truly effective, character education requires sustained, long-term commitment. Provided is a summary of the "11 Principles of Effective Character Education" published by CEP which have been used in schools across the nation and by many foreign countries as a school improvement framework.