Boston, Massachusetts
Number of Students: 56,000
Number of Schools: 125
Boston Public Schools has seen a huge transformation over the past 20 years. BPS, once a failing school district, is now one of most renowned urban public school systems in the country. Social emotional learning has become the foundation of student wellness at BPS. Various departments center around the social emotional needs of students; two of these offices include: SEL Instruction & Support Services and SELWell Operations. The BPS Office of Social Emotional Learning and Student Wellness’ vision for students is “Healthy and supportive schools will prepare all students to learn and thrive.” The office takes a “Whole School, Whole Community, Whole Child (WSCC)” approach, which combines elements of a traditional coordinated school health approach and a whole child framework. The goal is to actively promote social, emotional, and physical health and wellness to advance healthy development and readiness to learn. The SELWell departments collaborate to build a Multi-tiered System of Supports that are needed to implement SEL objectives.. BPS has recently hired an Assistant Superintendent of Social Emotional Learning and Wellness, which is believed to be the first cabinet- level post in a public school district in the nation. In July of 2017, BPS was awarded the Wallace Foundation Grant. BPS is one of six communities in the country to be selected for this initiative based on its efforts surrounding SEL.
Learn more about BPS’s social emotional learning initiatives here.