The Michigan Department of Education is embarking on a statewide social and emotional learning (SEL) pilot, made possible through the Michigan Health Endowment Fund. This pilot pairs 10 novice districts with 10 veteran districts, giving novice districts a chance to accelerate their SEL learning and providing successful veteran districts with an opportunity to strengthen their SEL implementation. Through a Michigan Department of Education-sponsored SEL community of practice, pilot participants learn how districts contextualize their SEL implementation and align their efforts with their district infrastructure. To support this work, the School Health and Safety Unit in the Office of Health and Nutrition Services developed a logic model, which includes an evaluation component. The School Health and Safety Unit requested support from REL Midwest to develop and pilot an evaluation strategy. Through this project, REL Midwest is training Office of Health and Nutrition staff in designing and implementing a rigorous evaluation strategy for the Michigan Department of Education's district-focused SEL work.
