Our History

Character Lab was a nonprofit organization that connected researchers with educators to create greater knowledge about the conditions that lead to social, emotional, academic, and physical well-being for young people throughout the country.

Character Lab was founded in 2013 by a scientist and two educators: Angela Duckworth, author of Grit: The Power of Passion and Perseverance and Rosa Lee and Egbert Chang Professor at the University of Pennsylvania; Dave Levin, co-founder of KIPP public charter schools; and Dominic Randolph, Head of School at Riverdale Country School. 

Dave and Dominic met Angela on a field trip. The two educators were visiting leading researchers around the world, eager to find scientific insights that might help young people lead lives that were good for others as well as themselves. These conversations revealed a problem: because research involving kids and educators was so much more time-consuming and expensive than research with adults, the pace of scientific discovery was frustratingly slow. What’s more, insights that had been uncovered by scientists remained hidden from educators and parents, buried in academic articles filled with technical jargon. 

Together, Dave, Dominic, and Angela agreed that a bridge was needed to connect educators and research scientists. That bridge was Character Lab.

Character Lab sunset operations in 2024. See the letter from the Board here.

 

What Is Character?

Character refers to ways of thinking, acting, and feeling that benefit others as well as ourselves. Character is plural—encompassing strengths of heart, mind, and will. Strengths of heart (such as gratitude and kindness) enable harmonious relationships with other people. Strengths of mind (such as curiosity and creativity) enable independent thinking. Strengths of will (such as grit and self-control) enable us to achieve goals.

We use the term character where other organizations we respect and support might use terms like social and emotional learning (SEL) competencies, whole child, or life skills.

What We Did

Science

Character Lab Research Network made school-based research fast, frictionless, and fruitful. Students and educators in our national consortium of innovative middle and high schools worked closely with leading researchers on original studies that illuminate how to help kids thrive.

Practice

Character Lab bridged science and practice by making scientific evidence actionable for parents and educators. Character Lab developed strategic partnerships with media, publishers, curriculum creators, and technology providers to raise awareness about how kids thrive and create evidence-based resources.

Playbooks are research-based guides to cultivate strengths of heart, mind, and will. Each includes a curated set of resources, such as recommended curricula, videos, and books. Read our archive of Playbooks.

Tip of the Week gave 60 seconds of actionable advice in the form of a personal letter written by leading scientists, including Angela Duckworth. Read our archive of Tip of the Week.

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