A panel about character education in educational institutions will be held on Thursday, Feb. 23, at 4:30 p.m. in the Edwards Recital Hall at Coastal Carolina University as part of the Tea & Ethics series. The event, hosted by the Jackson Family Center for Ethics and Values, is free and open to the public.

Guest speaker Oran Smith will lead the panel discussion with CCU students and faculty on the topic "Can Virtue Be Taught? Is Character Education Possible?," which will focus on the role of character education in schools. Educators attempt to teach honesty, integrity and compassion to students from elementary school through college. This panel seeks to inquire whether or not this practice is effective, realistic and necessary.

Smith is a graduate of Clemson University where he earned a bachelor's degree in political science, and the University of South Carolina, where he earned a master's degree in public administration and a doctorate in government and international studies.

Smith has served on CCU's board of trustees since 1993 and chairs the academic and student affairs committee. He is the president and CEO of the Palmetto Family Council, an organization dedicated to helping those struggling with addiction, depression or marital problems.

This Tea & Ethics session is sponsored by CCU's Jackson Family Center for Ethics and Values. The purpose of the center is to cultivate and promote awareness in the community of the importance of personal and professional integrity.

The Edwards Recital Hall is in Room 152 of the Thomas W. and Robin W. Edwards College of Humanities and Fine Arts building, located at 133 Chanticleer Drive W. on the main Conway campus.

For more information on this event or the Tea & Ethics series, contact Brian Edgerton, assistant director of the Jackson Center, at 843-349-4149 or bjedgert@coastal.edu.