Potomac State College of West Virginia University has honored numerous students with the CHARACTER COUNTS! Program which is an outgrowth of The Joseph & Edna Josephson Institute of Ethics.
This nonprofit organization is dedicated to helping people make principled decisions in order that they might live with greater integrity.
The program is based on six pillars of character: Trustworthiness, Respect, Responsibility, Fairness, Caring and Citizenship. 
The six pillars of character serve as ethical values to guide choices; improve the quality of decisions and improve lives.
Six students at the College were recognized as exceptional in the particular character trait they were chosen for.
Serena Mowery of Bloomery, W.Va. was chosen in October 2007 to represent  the trait of trustworthiness.  Mowery is a graduate of Hampshire High School and a biology major who plans to earn a degree in medical laboratory technology. 
She is president of Campus & Community Ministries, president of STAND and a member of CAB.
Mowery enjoys volunteering with Habitat for Humanity and mentoring children at her church. 
Extracurricular activities include playing women’s soccer in 2005 and 2006, riding four-wheelers, reading and spending time with family and friends.  She is the daughter of James and Linda Ford, Sr.
Chris Szafran was chosen to represent fairness for the month of January. 
Szafran, a graduate of Keyser High School, is majoring in physical education and health. 
He is a member of the Catamount baseball team and enjoys working out and spending time with his family. 
Future goals include pursuing a master’s degree in physical education and health with a minor in special education. 
“I would like to teach at the high-school level, in addition to coaching baseball and basketball,” said Szafran. 
Szafran volunteers at the local food pantry and works as a lifeguard during the summer.  He is the son of Stan and Sue Szafran.
Sarah Saville, a pre-nursing major, represents the trait of respect for February.
She enjoys participating in cheerleading competitions, dance, piano, and traveling.
Saville is a graduate of Hyndman High School in Hyndman, Pa. and currently works in the College’s Service Center. 
She plans to earn a bachelor’s degree in nursing with a specialization in trauma care.  Saville is the daughter of Pam Therit.
May is for caring and Rebekah Strite is an extraordinary example of that character trait.  A graduate of Hampshire High School, Strite is a nursing major who also serves as secretary for the Life Science Club. 
She was recently named to Who’s Who Among Jr. Colleges and has achieved success on the Provost’s List all four semesters that she’s attended Potomac State.  Strite enjoys spending time with family and friends, swimming, kick boxing and served as a volunteer at Winchester Medical Center in Winchester, Va. 
For the past seven years, she has gone on mission trips with First Baptist Church in Romney, W.Va. to help out wherever there’s a need. 
This year’s mission trip will be to Michigan where she will help build houses, etc.  She is the daughter of Eric and Missy Strite of Shanks, W.Va.
Jeremy Zimmerman, a political science major from Shepherdstown, W.Va. and graduate of Jefferson High School was chosen for March to represent the character trait of respect.
The April trait of trustworthiness was bestowed upon Sara Davy, a sophomore pre-nursing major from Bedford, Pa.
(Photos of Davy, Szafran, and Zimmerman were unavailable.)