Align Resources

1

Examine your district’s current budget and priorities to see how SEL aligns with them.

Use the Strengths and Needs Inventory: Vision, Priority, and SEL Alignment from the SEL Financial Sustainability Planning Tool to identify areas in your district’s current budget and priorities that may support SEL implementation. Your goal is to get a clearer sense of where your opportunities and challenges will be for supporting SEL in your district...

Use the Strengths and Needs Inventory: Vision, Priority, and SEL Alignment from the SEL Financial Sustainability Planning Tool to identify areas in your district’s current budget and priorities that may support SEL implementation. Your goal is to get a clearer sense of where your opportunities and challenges will be for supporting SEL in your district.

2

Estimate the cost of your district’s current SEL plan and budget for any additional costs.

Use the following tools from the SEL Financial Sustainability Planning Tool to determine the potential cost of a pilot year at a small set of schools...

Use the following tools from the SEL Financial Sustainability Planning Tool to determine the potential cost of a pilot year at a small set of schools:

Analyze SEL Implementation Strategies: This tool can help you compare the costs of different strategies or different levels of implementation of a single strategy.
SEL Budgeting Tool (Excel-based) and Build the SEL Implementation Expenses Budget: These tools can help you develop a sample budget. By saving multiple copies, you can develop alternate budgets as your SEL planning evolves.

As you’re assessing your expenditures, be sure to include the following considerations:

Funding for a team of high-quality staff and relevant training to guide SEL implementation in your district, including professional learning, coaching, and support to principals and teachers.
Any economies of scale that could reduce the cost of implementation. Case studies for Austin, Chicago, Washoe County, and Wheaton-Warrenville may generate ideas for your own district.

3

Explore opportunities to fund your district’s SEL vision and plan.

Identify and assess current sources of funding for SEL by following the process outlined in Identify Funding Strategy and Sources from the SEL Financial Sustainability Planning Tool...

Identify and assess current sources of funding for SEL by following the process outlined in Identify Funding Strategy and Sources from the SEL Financial Sustainability Planning Tool. Here are some questions to explore:

How are SEL programs and practices currently funded?
Is there room for expansion?
When will this funding end?

Consider whether there are parts of your district’s current budget that could be redirected to support SEL staffing, professional learning, and materials. For example, there may be youth development and prevention programs that may be redundant or ineffective. Funds or staff time for those programs could be applied to support SEL.

Identify any currently held funds from grants or donations that could support initial SEL planning and/or implementation.

When suggesting these adjustments, be transparent in your review about how SEL aligns or competes with other district initiatives for money, time, and people.

4

Identify and pursue opportunities to develop new funding sources.

Ask district fund development staff about potential external funders for SEL, such as civic groups, private foundations, and municipal funding collaboratives...

Ask district fund development staff about potential external funders for SEL, such as civic groups, private foundations, and municipal funding collaboratives.

Develop a compelling story and focused plan for new SEL fund development. Here are some resources that may help:

The Economic Value of Social Emotional Learning (PDF)
CASEL’s Fund Development Presentation for Districts (PowerPoint presentation) and CASEL’s Fund Development Webinar for CDI districts (which reviews and discusses the PowerPoint presentation)

Investigate and compare the new funding sources you’ve identified using these guidelines for identifying the most qualified funders.

Determine when to approach external private funders. Some funders might want to support the early adoption of SEL, while others may want to wait for results from an initial pilot. It’s also possible that funders may want to fund organizations that partner with your district rather than the district itself. Your district fund development staff may be able to offer insights.

Engage district leaders to cultivate relationships with funders: Here are some samples and tools that may help:

Outcomes from Austin Independent School District.
Sample fund development invitations from CASEL’s CDI districts

Demonstrate the value of SEL to potential funders with media coverage of SEL in your district, local or national videos that show SEL in action, or school visits. Materials you developed for SEL-related communications or to build district expertise may support these efforts.

Log communications with funders using this Tracking Sheet for Potential Funders.

5

Conduct a final review of your budget and maximize the use of longer-term, diverse funding sources.

Determine whether you can afford to implement your plan as is...

Determine whether you can afford to implement your plan as is. If not, review Step 3 of CASEL’s SEL Financial Sustainability Planning Tool to explore the costs and tradeoffs of different SEL implementation strategies.

Analyze current funds and assess their sustainability for SEL over time. How much of your district’s Year 1 SEL budget can you count on in future years? Use CASEL's Financial Sustainability for SEL Tool: Identify Funding Strategy and Sources for support.

Consider whether a faster ramp-up is feasible if there are ample funds early in the year or if the sustainability of key funds is questionable.

6

Propose a final SEL budget for approval (if needed).

If you’re developing an SEL budget apart from your annual district budget process, determine which leaders need to approve the budget for implementation to begin...

If you’re developing an SEL budget apart from your annual district budget process, determine which leaders need to approve the budget for implementation to begin.

Determine if you need to communicate your SEL budget and human resources decisions to the district or school leaders.

7

Assess the stability of funds at least annually.

Conduct an annual risk assessment of funds and staff positions that support SEL...

Conduct an annual risk assessment of funds and staff positions that support SEL. Are any grants ending? Are any leadership or political changes threatening to repurpose funds away from SEL? Are any staff cuts expected?

If you are losing funds in the next two years, repeat the steps in this process to identify new funding resources that could fill budget shortcomings.
If your funds are at risk due to leadership changes, leverage any partnerships with other districts with SEL expertise, and civic and social service organizations to increase SEL advocacy to district and city officials. Increase communication internally and in public forums to share positive outcomes of SEL for students in your district.

8

Maintain effective communications with funders.

Share successes and outcome data with funders at least twice annually. Here are some samples...

Share successes and outcome data with funders at least twice annually. Here are some samples:

Schedule at least annual site visits so funders can see SEL in action. This is the most powerful way to communicate the impact of SEL.

Since each district is unique, decisions about how to fund and support SEL vary widely. In a study funded by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, CASEL documented how four districts chose to prioritize, fund, and sustain SEL. Case studies of these findings are summarized here:


Austin, Tex. Enrollment: 84,596 Schools: 129 Data for 2011-1015	Budget growth for SEL: From 2011-2015, $690,000 to $2M. Top expense: $988,000 (49% of budget) in 2014-2015 for SEL specialists. Greatest increase in budget: Budget for SEL specialists grew from $152,000 to $988,000. Funding: Included significant federal funding for teacher professional development through SEL coaches, and support from local donors to support systemic SEL implementation. Local philanthropists issued a $1M challenge to other local foundations, which yielded $2.4M in grants and donations over three years. Budget strategy: The district developed a six-year budget during the first year of implementation. SEL expenditures are expected to remain fairly steady, with $1.8M budgeted for 2015-1016, $1.5M budgeted for 2016-2017, and $1.5M budgeted for 2017-2018.
Chicago, Ill. Enrollment: 400,545 Schools: 664 Data for 2012-2015	Budget growth for SEL: From 2012-2015, from $6.3M to $9.6M. Top expense: $3.9M (44% of budget) in 2014-2015 for Consultants (PD, fund development, direct service to students, communications, etc.). Greatest increase in budget: Expenditure for direct SEL staff grew from $1.7M in 2012-2013 to $3.9M in 2014-2015. Funding: The Office of Social and Emotional Learning (OSEL) collaborated with CASEL on an SEL project supported by a federal Investing in Innovation (I3) grant, which provides $500,000 in services and support. Budget strategy: In addition to seeking additional funding for SEL, the district restructured existing departments and programs to use SEL as a guiding principle for many district programs. SEL expenditures are expected to remain fairly steady, with $9.4M budgeted for 2015-1016, $9.2M budgeted for 2016-2017, and $9M budgeted for 2017-2018.
Washoe County/Reno, Nev. Enrollment: 62,986 Schools: 91 Data for 2012-2015	Budget growth for SEL: From 2012-2015, from $143,892 to $454,639. Top expense: $212,523 (47% of budget) in 2014-2015 for direct SEL staff. Greatest increase in budget: Expenditure for hourly and substitutes went from $1,598 in 2012-2013 to $130,697 in 2013-2014. However, in 2014-2015, that amount reduced to $82,597. Funding: The district applied multiple budget sources, including grants, district general funds, and federal funds. They also received a $125,000 planning grant and an annual grant of $250,000 for three years from the NoVo Foundation as part of the CDI. Budget strategy: The district started with limited SEL implementation in 12 schools in the first two years to minimize costs, and developed a finance plan that used those upfront savings to purchase evidence-based program materials, resources, and professional development for use starting in Year 3.
Wheaton-Warrenville, Ill. Enrollment: 13,423 Schools: 20 2012-2015	Budget growth for SEL: From 2012-2015, from $36,300 to $40,900. Top expense: $37,000 (90% of budget) in 2014-2015 for direct SEL staff. These funds were used to cover allocated to cover a small portion of costs for the assistant superintendent for student services, an existing position, with other small expenditures for professional development and travel. Greatest increase in budget: From 2012-2015, expenditures remained constant, with direct SEL staff comprising 90% to 95% of the budget. Funding: Used existing resources to develop, execute, and fund the first three years of their SEL initiative. Budget strategy: From 2015-2018, the budget for SEL is estimated to remain about the same, except for the addition of costs for curriculum resources and EBP materials ($5,000 in 2015-2016 and $40,000 in 2016-2017).

Overview

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