We identify and promote the adoption of our model’s best practices through the sharing of information and ideas, metric-based evaluations of member programs, and professional development.

Information Sharing
We organize staff retreats and conferences, conduct and distribute research, and bring together staff from our member programs to examine our core areas of work, including academics, health and wellness, and college prep and persistence. We also create and disseminate Best Practice Guides designed by member program staff and SEA.

Metric-Based Evaluations
We conduct metric-based evaluations of our member programs. Annually, member programs provide SEA with key program information, and evaluations are conducted jointly by SEA staff and leaders of other member programs. Areas of focus include student attendance, attrition, college placement and graduation rates, finances, board development, governance, and more.

Professional Development
We provide professional development opportunities to staff of our member programs. Opportunities include the Leadership Fellows Program and the Staff Travel Fund. The Leadership Fellows Program, SEA’s flagship leadership initiative, provides emerging leaders with a unique professional development experience and helps attract and retain future leaders of SEA member programs. The Staff Travel Fund  supports visiting and learning from other member programs through staff trainings and learning calls. One of SEA’s most important responsibilities is building a diverse leadership talent pool and developing the future leaders of our network.

Student Safety
We invest in examining ways that we and our member programs can work to ensure the safety of our students. We offer online trainings for staff members, set safety standards for the network, share best practice recommendations, and have a hotline where students, families, volunteers, and staff members can report safety concerns anonymously. For more information, visit our Student Safety page.