Whole Child Programs At-a-Glance

The Whole Child Programs Team helps educators, school leaders, parents/caregivers, community partners, and youth-serving staff  support all aspects of well-being for students in learning environments. Our programs are designed to address students’ social and emotional, physical, creative, and cognitive needs so they can feel safe and supported on their academic journey and in life. We help build safe and nurturing spaces that are grounded on equity, diversity and inclusion.

A whole-child approach to education emphasizes the humanity of each student and the educators or staff who work with them, as to create the conditions that will help them to thrive. It recognizes that learning is a social process that requires positive relationships and a community effort to create student engagement. For more information, please visit the Learning Policy Institute’s Whole Child Education site, or the Chan Zuckerberg Initiative’s Whole Child page. 

Projects

We are responsible for administering the California Department of Education-funded Region 4 System of Support for Expanded Learning (R4 SSEL) Programs. In addition to serving as the Region 4 Lead for Arts Education for the California County Superintendents’ Arts Subcommittee, we partner with the Alameda County Health Care Services Agency to provide quality Arts and Creativity Programs at the REACH Ashland Youth Center. We advance Early Learning by creating pre-kindergarten through grade 3 coherence, and building capacity at the local, regional and state levels through interagency partnerships. Our Team also provides Civic Education, including organizing the countywide Mock Trial Competition. We are a proud Consortium Member for the Indigenous Nations Child and Family Agency (INCFA) Program, serving Native American students in Hayward, San Leandro, and San Lorenzo. 

Services

• Technical assistance for expanded learning programs in the Bay Area

• Career Technical Education services for potential teaching artists

• Support and advocacy for Early Learning 

• Countywide Civic Education and engagement opportunities for staff and students 

• Leadership and capacity building for Arts Education in the Bay Area