RE-1 Valley School District in Colorado is committed to providing social emotional learning opportunities for students. Members of the district’s student support services team spoke about some of the social emotional learning services RE-1 offers at a Rotary Club meeting Wednesday.

“We know that achievement is raised by social emotional learning,” said Dr. Lois Christiansen, district psychologist.

She explained that social emotional learning focuses on important areas such as social awareness, relationship skills, self awareness, responsible decision making and self management.

In looking at concerns related to substance use/abuse, the district applied for and was awarded a grant from the Colorado Department of Education, funded by the state’s marijuana revenue, to develop a HEADS UP (Higher Educational Adolescent Development Substance Use Prevention) program.

Led by Ryan Einspahr, the program is offered to students at Sterling High School, Sterling Middle School and Caliche School, and focuses on prevention. He leads substance prevention groups and provides one-on-one substance education using Botvin LifeSkills Training curriculum. The grant has also allowed for community partnerships, trainings for staff and community speakers, such as the recent guest speaker Doc Brown.

Read full article: RE-1 Valley Has Strong SEL