Sustaining social and emotional learning implementation support: Qualitative insights from county-level plans in a statewide effort

Social and emotional learning (SEL) has received significant investment in recent years. To realize the positive student outcomes associated with these investments, SEL must be sustained in practice over time. Limited research has explored the sustainability of statewide efforts to bring SEL to scale. Deliberate planning for continued implementation increases the likelihood of sustainment. In this paper, we explore sustainability planning efforts via a qualitative analysis of 56 SEL implementation plans collected at the outset of a statewide SEL effort. Data are from CalHOPE Student Support, a statewide effort to build capacity for SEL implementation across California (CA). Representatives from 56 of the 58 CA County Offices of Education (COEs) submitted initial plans on how they intended to use CalHOPE funds to implement SEL in their counties. This study explores the extent to which sustainability is mentioned in these plans, and the nature of COEs' motivations and intentions to sustain SEL implementation activities. Of 56 plans, 17 mentioned sustainability. Among those 17, we found that COEs were motivated to sustain SEL activities as part of an implementation approach that integrated SEL into organizational structures and routines and to respond to enduring needs. COEs expressed their intentions to sustain specific SEL implementation activities, such as implementation support (e.g., training, technical assistance), and in some cases, described how they sought to sustain efforts (e.g., funding identification). Findings reveal practical insights into the motivations for sustainability planning, the activities COEs seek to maintain, and intended approaches for sustainment.