A group of teachers learned how to use special curriculum Tuesday developed by the Medal of Honor Foundation for its character development program.
The program teaches children six character traits of Medal of Honor recipients: courage, commitment, sacrifice, patriotism, integrity and citizenship.
The group, including local teachers and some from across the state and parts of North Georgia, gathered in a meeting room at Girls Preparatory School to practice different lessons and to hear Medal of Honor recipient and retired U.S. Army Staff Sgt. Melvin Morris speak.
Morris, now 77, received the medal for his "conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty" in 1969 Vietnam, according to his citation. He was wounded three times while retrieving the body of a fellow team commander who had been killed near an enemy bunker.
But Morris didn't receive his medal until 2014. He was one of 24 veterans who received a Medal of Honor after originally being passed over because of their Hispanic, Jewish or black backgrounds. The move came after a 12-year review ordered by Congress into past discrimination in the military, according to the Washington Post.
Ever since then, Morris has been traveling the country talking to students and teachers about the importance of hard work, taking responsibility and "doing what you have to do" to get ahead in life, he said.
"This is what we have to instill in the students," he said. "Talk to them about being loyal, patriotic, being respectful. We all have to move forward together."
The character development program sometimes uses videos of Medal of Honor recipients recounting their stories to teach students those values.
Students watch the videos and then answer questions analyzing the actions of the veteran. Questions like "What obstacles did the veteran face?" and "How were those obstacles overcome?"
Trainers instructed teachers to always find a way to make a personal connection to the story so children can see how the same thought process can be applied to their life.
"You want to bring it back to the kids," one instructor said. "Are the kids going to be stuck in a rice paddy in Vietnam? Hopefully not They can see how [a veteran] got through obstacles, and they now relate that to something in their own lives."
Eventually, the Chattanooga Medal of Honor Foundation plans to use the character development program's curriculum in conjunction with its immersive exhibits that will be part of the Charles H. Coolidge Medal of Honor Heritage Center once it opens.
People will be able to learn about the different conflicts each Medal of Honor recipient served in, and then tour the interactive exhibits for each one in timeline fashion.
Construction of the museum in downtown Chattanooga next to the Tennessee Aquarium is set to begin in January 2019, and it's scheduled to open in February 2020.
Contact staff writer Rosana Hughes at rhughes@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6327 with tips or story ideas. Follow her on Twitter @HughesRosana.