This document presents a report from an advisory council set up by the New Jersey State Department of Education to list and define a common core of values deemed essential to society and acceptable to the majority of New Jersey citizens and to recommend goals and objectives for character education. It briefly outlines the process the council followed in studying character- and values-related materials and in conducting public hearings on values education throughout the state of New Jersey. A set of six premises that underlie the conclusions of the council are listed and discussed. The next section lists, in alphabetical order, the four core values the council decided upon as the core of the state's character and values education program. Each value is subdivided into traits upon which the core value is based. The four core values identified by the council are: (1) civic responsibility; (2) respect for the natural environment; (3) respect for others; and (4) respect for self. The document concludes with suggestions from the council for implementation of a character and values education program. (NB)