FAIRVIEW PARK, Ohio - The importance of a promise made and kept may be overlooked in today's society. That's the message Because I said I would co-founder Alex Sheen shared last month with Fairview High School students.

The Rocky River-based nonprofit handpicked Fairview High School for a pilot program aimed at making a difference in the school and the community by keeping promises to help others in need and working to become better citizens through personal development.

"From the moment Alex finished his talk for the students and staff, the response was overwhelming in terms of excitement and interest," Fairview High School TLC Coordinator Grant Graves said.

Because I said I would co-founder Amanda Messer said its first pilot high school chapters - Fairview High School, Akron's Buchtel Community Learning Center and Columbus' Walnut Ridge High School - were chosen based on having adult counterparts in those communities.

" We started chapters as a way to create measurable impact on the world through promises," Messer said. "According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics , 75 percent of Americans do not volunteer a single hour in a given year.

"Our chapter members volunteer at various projects together, making the experience more enjoyable because you are doing it as a team."

The idea is simply there's power regarding the concept of keeping a promise made. Messer said character education in schools has been shown to reduce self-harm, address teen suicide, increase volunteerism, decrease bullying, create a greater commitment to academics and provide a platform and support for positive activities.

"Some students do not receive positive behavior modeling at home at all or not enough," Messer said. "Whether their parents are fighting their own battles, are uneducated or simply need to work to provide for their family, the truth is that we don't get everything we need to learn at home.

"Learning English, math and science is incredibly important, but if we're not educating the next generation to be decent human beings to one another, then what's the point of it all?"

Currently Graves is in the process of selecting 40 students - 10 from each grade - to provide the group sustained leadership and guidance. Eventually a Chapter Leadership Team will be formed with students in charge of various topics including logistics, fundraising, photo journalism and communications.

"We're lucky to be selected to host this pilot chapter for the organization," Graves said. "We can't wait to get started by serving the community around us and improving the lives of those involved through the power of promises made and kept."