Key Projects
Center to Improve Social and Emotional Learning and School Safety
Integrating Evidence-Based Practices to Help Students Achieve Their Greatest Potential
Funded by the U.S. Department of Education, the vision of the Center to Improve Social and Emotional Learning and School Safety is that all children are educated in places of equity, safety, and learning and receive the integrated academic, social, and emotional supports that meet their individual needs to achieve their greatest potential in their K–16 education, career, and life.
Learning settings that integrate social-emotional learning (SEL) with academic instruction, and other whole-person approaches, are correlated with higher student attendance and engagement, improved student connectedness, and better social and emotional health. The same conditions correlate with greater job satisfaction and higher retention for school staff.
Given these positive associations, growing numbers of state and local education agencies view SEL and school safety (especially psychological and emotional safety) as critical to school improvement.
Supporting Education Agencies
To help education agencies address challenges to integrating SEL and school safety with other whole-person initiatives and with academic teaching and learning, the SEL Center offers three tiers of capacity-building support. Lessons and insights from the targeted and intensive tiers of support are shared with the field through tools, practitioner briefs, and our general tier of support.
- General: Curated evidence-based tools, resources, and professional learning intended to address the field’s priority needs and available on the center website
- Targeted: Facilitated networks of practice for state and local education agencies, offered with consultation from subject-matter experts
- Intensive: Extended partnerships with one to two SEAs and LEAs to create proof points of systems change
The Center challenged us to think outside of the box in order to make the most impact quickly while also considering sustainability and reach. Their assistance was instrumental in the momentum gained regarding MTSS and whole child initiatives in Oklahoma education.
–Beth Whittle, M.Ed. and LPC, Oklahoma State Department of Education