12:00 PM ET: Welcome and Overview

12:05 PM ET: 🎥 Youth Moral Development in a Digital World

This session explored the urgent need to intentionally cultivate empathy and moral character in children during a time of growing social division and digital disruption. Panelists discussed the central role parents and educators play in shaping children’s empathy and values, the ways technology can both support and undermine prosocial development, and why active guidance, emotional literacy, and real-world connection are essential for helping young people thrive online and offline. 

12:30 PM ET: Breakout Sessions

  • PreK/Elementary School: Led by Jessica Somerville, PhD, Professor, Department of Psychology, University of Toronto
  • Middle School: Led by Emily Farkas, MAEd, Program Director, Grand Canyon University
  • High School and Beyond: Led by Alexa Hasse, 5th year PhD Candidate, Tufts University; Visiting Scholar, Technical University of Munich

1:05 PM ET: Report Out

Breakout Session Leaders

1:20 PM ET: Break

1:35 PM ET: 🎥 Youth Civic Development in a Digital World

This session examined how to cultivate civic identity and democratic participation in young people growing up in an increasingly digital and surveilled world. Panelists explored the surprising early roots of civic learning, the structural and algorithmic forces that shape how youth engage online, and why shifting from hyper-individualism to collective responsibility is foundational to raising engaged, values-driven citizens.

2:00 PM ET: Breakout Sessions

  • PreK/Elementary School: Led by Jennifer Hauver, PhD, Department Chair and Professor, Kennesaw State University
  • Middle and High School: Led by Diana Graber, MA, Director, Cyber Civics and Cyberwise
  • High School and Beyond: Led by Lucía Magis-Weinberg, PhD, Assistant Professor, Department of Psychology, University of Washington

2:35 PM ET: Report Out

Breakout Session Leaders

2:50 PM ET: What We Learned

3:00 PM ET: Adjourn

12:00 PM ET: Welcome and Overview

12:05 PM ET: 🎥 Youth Intellectual Development in a Digital World

This session explored how to foster deep thinking, curiosity, and intellectual independence in young people increasingly surrounded by AI tools. Panelists examined the fine line between using AI as a powerful thinking partner and surrendering cognitive development to it, why foundational knowledge and intellectual character traits like humility, skepticism, and creativity are the true safeguards against over-reliance, and how preparing young people – not just restricting them – is the standard we should be setting for responsible AI use in learning.

12:30 PM ET: Breakout Sessions

  • PreK/Elementary School: Led by Jamie Jirout, PhD, Associate Professor, School of Education and Human Development, University of Virginia
  • Middle School: Led by Ashley Brandon, EdD, Assistant Director, Canyon Center for Character Education, Grand Canyon University
  • High School and Beyond: Led by Brady Nash, PhD, Assistant Professor, University of Florida

1:05 PM ET: Report Out

Breakout Session Leaders

1:20 PM ET: Break

1:35 PM ET: 🎥 Youth Performance Development in a Digital World

This session explored how resilience, perseverance, responsibility, and purpose are built – and what threatens them – in an age of AI and constant digital connectivity. Panelists discussed why genuine struggle, human mentorship, and real agency are irreplaceable engines of performance character development, how surveillance and shortcuts can quietly erode the very qualities we’re trying to build, and why joy, hope, and equity are just as foundational as grit – especially for marginalized and neurodiverse youth who are too often left out of the design decisions that shape their digital lives.

2:00 PM ET: Breakout Sessions

2:35 PM ET: Report Out

Breakout Session Leaders

2:50 PM ET: What We Learned

3:00 PM ET: Adjourn

4:00 PM ET: Welcome and Overview

4:05 PM ET: 🎥 Youth Perspectives and Engagement

This session put young people at the center of the conversation — and what emerged was a portrait of a generation far more thoughtful, self-aware, and ethically serious than adults often assume. Panelists explored the real pressures teens face around AI use and academic integrity, why intentional use is the distinction young people themselves are already drawing, and why habit formation and digital literacy can’t wait until adolescence. Across every theme, a consistent message surfaced: young people don’t just need to be guided through digital life – they need to be treated as co-navigators, co-designers, and genuine partners in building the tools, norms, and policies that shape their world.

4:50 PM ET: Breakout Sessions

  • PreK/Elementary School: Led by Juan Pablo Hourcade, PhD, Professor, The University of Iowa
  • Middle and High School: Led by Linda Charmaraman, PhD, Senior Research Scientist, Youth, Media, & Wellbeing Research lab, Wellesley Centers for Women, Wellesley College
  • High School and Beyond: Led by Morgan Brown, MA, MS, Research & Evaluation, Boys & Girls Club of America

5:35 PM ET: Report Out

Breakout Session Leaders

5:50 PM ET: What We Learned

6:00 PM ET: Adjourn

12:00 PM ET: Welcome and Overview

12:05 PM ET: 🎥 Youth Interventions for Positive Character Development

This session examined what actually works – and what doesn’t – when it comes to supporting youth character development in a digital world. Panelists made clear that interventions designed without young people’s input are less effective from the start, that adult modeling remains one of the most powerful tools available, and that self-regulation skills must be built far earlier than most programs currently attempt. From the importance of explaining the ‘why’ behind rules to the need for scalable, school-embedded approaches that go beyond individual behavior change, the session challenged practitioners and policymakers alike to measure what truly matters: not compliance, but the slow, meaningful shift in how young people reflect on and align their digital lives with their own values.

12:30 PM ET: Breakout Sessions

  • PreK/Elementary School: Led by Faith Rogow, PhD, Media Literacy Education Maven, Insighters Education
  • Middle School: Led by Markie Morrison, Program Manager, Giving Tuesday
  • High School and Beyond: Led by Melissa Alamo, MEd, Director of Program Design and Strategy, Boys & Girls Club of America

1:05 PM ET: Report Out

Breakout Session Leaders

1:20 PM ET: Break

1:35 PM ET: 🎥 Digital Design for Positive Character Development

This session challenged a foundational assumption of the modern tech industry: that platform design is a neutral act. Panelists argued that every design choice – from infinite scroll to notification timing to community norms – shapes youth behavior, identity, and character, and that without external pressure from communities, researchers, and policymakers, platforms will continue optimizing for attention rather than development. The session made the case for a new standard: one where interdisciplinary collaboration, youth co-creation, and intentional friction are built into the design process from the start, where success is measured not in time spent but in belonging and growth, and where policy moves beyond bans toward shared, developmentally grounded design standards that make virtuous design not just possible – but expected.

2:00 PM ET: Breakout Sessions

  • PreK/Elementary School: Led by Lynn Girolamo, Digital Learning and Innovation Coach, Greece Central School District
  • Middle School: Led by Allison Starks, PhD, Clinical Assistant Professor, Educational Communication and Technology, Steinhardt School of Culture, Education, and Human Development, New York University
  • High School and Beyond: Led by Kat Schrier, EdD, Professor/Director, Games & Emerging Media, Marist University

2:35 PM ET: Report Out

Breakout Session Leaders

2:50 PM ET: What We Learned

3:00 PM ET: Adjourn

Return to Character Matters Main Page