Napa County Office of Education supports social-emotional learning (SEL) countywide through the CalHope grant. Support is provided to districts in Napa County through our SEL Community of Practice, which gathers to learn together, leverage strengths, and build partnership by:
- building a collaborative space for professional learning around SEL and connected efforts
- providing ongoing networking and sharing of best practices
- showcasing successful SEL efforts in our Napa County districts and schools
- integrating district and school action planning for change
These efforts are supported by a statewide partnership with Sacramento County Office of Education, Orange County Department of Education, UC Berkeley, and FEMA. For more information, visit the CalHope Project website, access the SEL Community of Practice archives below, and contact Jill Barnes if you have an interest in being part of the county-wide SEL Community of Practice.
Napa County Social and Emotional Learning Community of Practice 2023-24 (new window) – PDF
Community of Practice Website (external website, new window)
Contact Jill Barnes for questions and to register for the SEL Community of Practice.
SESSION 1: TYLER HESTER – EDUCATORS THRIVING
Session Description:
Participants had the opportunity to dive into some of the research on restoring relationships in the face of conflict, assess their conflict style & consider a framework for having difficult conversations.
About Tyler Hester:
About Tyler Hester: Dr. Tyler Hester is the founder of the Educators Thriving program. His passion for education was sparked as an undergraduate at Stanford University when he stumbled across a tutoring program that matched undergraduate students with janitors on campus. Tyler went on to work at the U.S. Department of Education and, during the 2008 presidential campaign, on then-Senator Obama’s education policy committee. After college, Tyler went on to earn an M.Phil at Cambridge University, where he studied Educational Research as a Gates Scholar. Convinced that educational inequity is the civil rights issue of our generation and inspired to make change for young people in California, he became a teacher in 2008. After four years in the classroom, Tyler became the leader of Teach For America in Richmond, California. In 2020, he completed a Doctorate in Education Leadership at Harvard University. After graduate school, Tyler returned to the classroom as a full-time high-school teacher in Stockton, California. Today, in addition to leading Educators Thriving, he is the Vice Principal of a school in Richmond. He’s grateful to have the chance to do the most important work there is.
Session Recording and Materials:
Session Recording (external site, new window)
Contact Jaina Sebastian with questions.
SESSION 2: TYLER HESTER – EDUCATORS THRIVING
Session Description:
This session’s topic is “Appreciation,” where we’ll learn more about the research behind this topic, reflect on our appreciation preferences and make a plan for expressing appreciation for the people in our lives.
Session Video (external site, new window)
Resources and Materials (external site, new window)
Contact Jaina Sebastian with questions.
SESSION 3: TYLER HESTER – EDUCATORS THRIVING
Session Description: The session topic discussed is “Apologies.”
What characteristics lead some people to apologize more than others? What makes some apologies less effective than others? Our session together will focus on the science of apology, considering these questions and more. You’ll complete a research-based questionnaire that will assess your reluctance to apologize and have a chance to reflect on the types of apologies that you appreciate versus those that don’t hit the mark. Leave positioned to have conversations with friends, colleagues, and loved ones about how, when, and why we apologize.
Session Recording (external site, new window)
Session Resources & Materials (external site, new window)
Contact Jaina Sebastian with questions.
The 2022-2023 Napa County SEL Community of Practice focused on adult social-emotional competency and well being. Using Elena Aguilar’s Onward, participants practiced and acquired skills to support the development of emotional resiliency.
Access the 2022-2023 Community of Practice Materials (new window)
Contact Jaina Sebastian with questions.
NCOE Social-Emotional Learning Speaker Series
Join us for our speaker series focused on exploring ways to empower student skills for social-emotional growth and develop resilience.
SESSION 1: ELENA AGUILAR
Session Description:
Elena Aguilar will discuss 12 habits to cultivate resilience in individuals and communities and how to identify the interconnectedness between individual wellbeing and community wellbeing. Participants will practice using these strategies as well as understand why they are so effective, particularly in times of crisis and change.
About Elena Aguilar: Author of The Art of Coaching and founder & CEO of Bright Morning Consulting, an organization committed to helping individuals and organizations create the conditions for transformation. She has taught tens of thousands of folks how to have conversations that build a more just and equitable world. Elena can be heard demonstrating these conversations on the Bright Morning Podcast.
Session Recording and Materials:
Session Recording (external site, new window)
Summary and Resources (external site, new window)
SESSION 2: MIRKO CHARDIN
Session Description:
Mirko Chardin will discuss his interpretation of how SEL connects to his areas of expertise, such as implicit bias, microaggressions, UDL, restorative practice, identity, courageous conversations about race and personal narratives.
About Mirko Chardin: Novak Education’s Chief Equity and Inclusion Officer. Before joining Novak, he was the Founding Head of School of the Putnam Avenue Upper School in Cambridge, MA. Mirko’s work has involved all areas of school management and student support. His greatest experience and passion revolves around culturally connected teaching and learning, recruiting and retaining educators of color, restorative practice, and school culture. He is also a race, diversity and cultural proficiency facilitator & leadership coach for the Aspire Institute at Boston University’s New Wheelock College of Human Development and Education.
Session Recording and Materials: (recording will be added the day after, March 31st)
Session Recordings and Materials
- Session 1: Safety & Belonging in Classroom and Schools
- Session 2: Adult Self-Care & Emotional Resilience
- Session 3: Trauma, Adversity and Equity
- Session 4: Academic Integration of SEL
Greater Good in Education
NCOE Social-Emotional Learning Speaker Series
The 2021-2022 school year will bring students back to the classroom while facing new challenges to their mental and emotional well-being. Join us for a speaker series focused on exploring ways to empower student skills for social-emotional growth and develop resilience.
SESSION 1: JULIE BURNS – ALDEA
Session Description:
What is trauma and trauma informed care? The benefits of adopting a trauma informed approach and trauma intervention strategies.
About Julie Burns:
Julie Burns is the Chief Program Officer for ALDEA where the mission is to improve lives and create bright futures for people by providing professional mental health, child welfare and support services in a manner that respects the dignity and individuality of each person.
Session Recordings and Materials
- Session Recording
- Slide Presentation (new window) – PDF
- My Maintenance Self-Care Plan Worksheet (new window) – PDF
SESSION 3: RICKY ROBERTSON
Ricky Robertson, National Trauma-Informed Care Presenter, Consultant, Author, and Coach
November 8, 2021 (new window) – PDF
SESSION 4: JULIE BURNS – ALDEA
Session Description:
Supporting student well-being through family and community engagement.
About Julie Burns:
Julie Burns is the Chief Program Officer for ALDEA where the mission is to improve lives and create bright futures for people by providing professional mental health, child welfare and support services in a manner that respects the dignity and individuality of each person.
December 9, 2021 (new window) – PDF
SESSION 5: DR. SHAWN GINWRIGHT
Session Description:
Dr. Ginwright’s research examines the ways in which youth in urban communities navigate through the constraints of poverty and struggle to create equality and justice in their schools and communities. Dr. Ginwright is also the Founder and Chief Executive Officer of Flourish Agenda, Inc., a national nonprofit consulting firm, whose mission is to design strategies that unlock the power of healing and engage youth of color and adult allies in transforming their schools and communities.
About Dr. Shawn Ginwright:
Shawn Ginwright, PhD is one of the nation’s leading innovators, provocateurs, and thought leaders on African American youth, youth activism, and youth development. He is a Professor of Education in the Africana Studies Department and a Senior Research Associate at San Francisco State University.
February 15, 2022 (new window) – PDF
Session Recording (external site, new window)
SESSION 2: MARC BRACKETT
Session Description:
Permission to Feel: Unlocking the Power of Emotions to Help Our Kids, Ourselves, and Our Society Thrive. During this session, Marc shares tools and perspective on how to support the social emotional needs of students and adults in education while leveraging SEL as a mechanism for equity.
About Marc Brackett:
Marc Brackett, Ph.D., author of Permission To Feel, is founding director of the Yale Center for Emotional Intelligence and a professor in the Child Study Center, Yale School of Medicine at Yale University. His grant-funded research focuses on the role of emotions in learning, decision making, creativity, relationship quality, wellbeing, performance, and organizational climate; the measurement of emotional intelligence; and the influence of emotional intelligence training on key life outcomes.
Marc has published over 150 scholarly articles, received numerous awards, and is featured regularly in popular media outlets such as the New York Times, Good Morning America, CBS This Morning, and The Today Show. He also is on the board of directors for the Collaborative for Academic, Social, and Emotional Learning (CASEL).
Marc is the lead developer of RULER, a systemic, evidence-based approach to social and emotional learning that has been adopted by over 3,000 public, charter, and independent pre-school through high schools across the United States and in other countries, including Australia, China, England, Italy, Mexico, and Spain. Research shows that RULER boosts academic performance, decreases bullying, enriches classroom climates, reduces teacher stress and burnout, and enhances teacher instructional practices.
Marc regularly consults with large companies on best practices for integrating the principles of emotional intelligence into training and product design. He is co-founder of Oji Life Lab, a corporate learning firm that develops innovative digital learning systems for emotional intelligence.
Marc speaks to tens of thousands of people each year and has been the keynote speaker at over 500 conferences around the world, including the White House, U.S. Departments of Education, Justice, and Defense, the Surgeon General’s office, the New York Times, Microsoft, Google, Facebook, and Twitter, as well as dozens of education conferences.
Session Recordings
“For access to the full session recording of Marc Brackett, please contact Jaina Sebastian.
SESSION 6: KRISTIN NEFF – THE CENTER FOR MINDFUL SELF-COMPASSION
Session Description:
As we emerge from the pandemic, when burnout is threatening the happiness, success and productivity of us all, she shows us why we need self-compassion more than ever.
About Kristin Neff:
Neff’s first book Self-Compassion: The Proven Power of Being Kind to Yourself quickly became the handbook for truly actionable wellness advice. Using solid research, personal anecdotes, practical exercises, and humor, Dr. Neff was able to clearly explain how to rewrite your own destructive scripts so that you can be healthier, happier, and more productive. Its companion, The Mindful Self-Compassion Workbook, went on to become a bestseller, providing science-backed, step-by-step guidance for tapping your inner resources and transforming the way you work and live.
May 4, 2022 (new window) – PDF