Collaborating States Initiative

CASEL launched the Collaborating States Initiative (CSI) to guide supportive legislation and create conditions that support implementation.

The Collaborating States Initiative (CSI) is a collaborative relationship with and between state education agencies aimed at creating the conditions for high-quality, systemic SEL. 

Since its creation in 2016, the CSI has scaled state-level SEL work from 8 states to over 40 states and one U.S. territory, representing more than 90% of districts, schools, teachers, and students in the US. We’ve also found that states connected to the CSI were more likely to adopt SEL competencies and four times more likely to share SEL guidance. 

In partnership with national advisors, we provide state partners with: 

  • Community of practice, including national meeting of state teams, including state leaders; regional meetings that provide similarly located states to collaborate on their SEL policies and practices; and collaboration on common problems of practice. 
  • Technical assistance, including coaching that is organized around their customized goals; resources such as webinars, a newsletter, and a robust SEL library in our state resource center; findings from state-specific research; information on best practices and evidence-based tools developed for the field; and customized plans for advancing SEL. 
  • Deeper exploration of key areas, such as career and workforce development and SEL, and examples from CASEL, partners, states, and districts.

If you are interested in joining the Collaborating States Initiative, please email rlectura@casel.org.

State Resource Center: Mapping the Journey

Back to top

The CSI offers over 125resources in its State Resource Center. We recommend exploring these key areas first to help you best utilize the curated library of resources from examples from CASEL, partners, states, and districts.

SEL and Workforce Initiative

Back to top

In 2020, CASEL launched the SEL and Workforce initiative, strategically supporting teams in eight states in partnership with key national collaborators.

Our 2022 brief introduced a developmental framework for states working to systemically integrate evidence-based SEL with career and workforce development efforts.

In 2022, CASEL, CIVIC, and the Coalition for Career Development Center released their groundbreaking report for policymakers on integrating SEL and career and workforce development.

Three case studies describe the development and implementation of SEL integrated with career and workforce development efforts in Delaware, Kansas, and Wisconsin.

CSI Advisory Committee

Back to top

The CSI Advisory Committee supports state teams in achieving their customized goals and plans—creating the conditions for the districts and schools in their state to implement evidence-based, equity-focused SEL policies and practices.

      • Anne Bowles, Program Director, Student-Centered Learning, Council of Chief State School Officers
      • John Bridgeland, Founder and CEO, Civic
      • Jennifer DePaoli, Senior Researcher, Learning Policy Institute
      • Linda Dusenbury, Former Senior Consultant and CSI Founder, CASEL
      • Seth Gerson, Program Director, Education Division, National Governors Association
      • Scott Solberg, Professor of Counseling and Applied Human Development, Boston University
      • Ashley Wallace, Program Director, National Conference of State Legislatures
      • Natalie Walrond, Content Area Director, Resilient and Healthy Schools and Communities, WestED
      • Nick Yoder, Associate Vice President, Center on Whole Human Education and Research, National University

      Ex-Officio Advisors

      Chi Kim, CEO, Pure Edge, Inc.

Access the latest, most trusted information on SEL
Sign up for our newsletters