Knights in shining armor could be coming to a campus near you.

Early Act First Knight (EAFK), a character building program, will be implemented at the Mineola Elementary School campus in the fall.

It is sponsored by the Mineola Rotary Club with funding from the Meredith Foundation.

School counselor Carrie Gonzalez outlined the program for the school board last week.

The program is included in the curriculum for 10 minutes daily and stresses six character traits. It includes parent and community involvement.

Though EAFK was not developed by Rotary International, it does support the Rotary Four-Way Test: 1. Is it the truth? 2. Is it fair to all concerned? 3. Will it build goodwill and better friendships? 4. Will it be beneficial to all concerned?

The school will have a wall of champions for students who exemplify those traits, along with a knighting ceremony. That’s where the knight comes in.

Parents can attend the ceremony, where the student receiving the honor will be surprised  by the announcement.

Gonzalez said the program recognizes all types of students. She told of calling a mother whose student was going to be honored – in another school district where she worked – and the mother was in tears, saying her child had never been recognized before.

Possible traits include compassion, confidence, citizenship, discipline, honesty, friendliness, perseverance, respect, responsibility, service, tolerance and trustworthiness.