DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. - The National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics; Champions of Character program was created to introduce a system of values into the lives of student-athletes, coaches and parents in order to be a positive role model.

The Champions of Character program is made up of five core values - respect, responsibility, integrity, sportsmanship and servant leadership. For the past two days, eight of the teams playing in the NAIA Men;s Soccer National Championship have gone to local elementary and middle schools to share the message about being a Champion of Character.

The kids heard about how important it is to respect their parents, teachers, classmates and teammates. They were told that responsibility plays a big role in which they are as student-athletes; that they need to get their homework done and get good grades in order to be able to play sports. The teams encouraged the kids to be honest and value truth to have integrity in their lives. Sportsmanship was explained as not being boastful when you;re winning a game and also not being a poor sport if you;re losing. A servant leader was described as someone who strives to be the best example for others, but also does what is best for the group and not just themselves.

Not only did the kids get to hear a great message, but most of them also got to see a few demonstrations from the college soccer players. The gentlemen got to showcase their juggling abilities and even invited the kids to join them in order to teach the kids a few soccer moves.

On behalf of Embry-Riddle (Fla.) University and the NAIA, we would like to thank all of the local schools for taking time out of their day and allowing us to share the message about being a Champion of Character with the kids. Those schools are Calvary Christian Academy, Pathways Elementary, Pine Trail Elementary, Saint James Episcopal, Silver Sands Middle, Spruce Creek Elementary, Tomoka Elementary and Warner Christian Academy. We would also like to thank all of the participating soccer teams for taking the time to make a positive impact on a young person;s life. The teams are Azusa Pacific (Calif.) University, Concordia (Calif.) University, Embry-Riddle, Grand View (Iowa) College, Lee (Tenn.) University, Oklahoma Christian (Okla.) University, Southern Nazarene (Okla.) University and William Jewell (Mo.) College.