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      ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

      Writing this book was the most exciting, painstaking, glorious, nerve‐wracking, challenging thing I’ve ever experienced. Without the patience, encouragement, and support of my family, friends, and colleagues, I’m quite sure the emotions would have gotten the best of me. Before I express my heartfelt gratitude to those who helped make this book possible, I’d like to acknowledge my granddaughters, Kayla and Kelsi. You are my hope and my inspiration. You are the reason for this book, so I dedicate it to you.

      I begin by thanking my wonderful husband, Greg. For more than 48 years, you have cheered me on and made me feel there was nothing I could not do. We often have jokingly said that the only reason we are still married is because neither of us wanted a divorce on the same day. Well, this book tested that theory and proved it wrong! Neither of us could have imagined how challenging the book would be while living through a pandemic and enduring two surgeries in 10 months. Despite this, you were there to support and encourage me. I am blessed to have you by my side, and I hope you know how much I love and appreciate you, and look forward to many more years together.

I also could not have done this without the patience and understanding of my loving family. To my son Jason and his fiancée Melinda, you stepped up when your dad and I were not able. You were there after my surgeries to lend a hand. You ran errands, brought us food, and helped with the granddaughters. For all this, I am forever grateful. To my daughter Allison and my son‐in‐law Chris, you were so patient with me during a time when I knew you desperately needed relief. You were parents, teachers, and playmates to your children, while also juggling the demands of working full‐time from home. I cannot imagine how hard this has been for you, and I owe you some relief time. When it is safe, there will be sleepovers and outings with the girls once again, I promise. To my sister Yolanda and my brother‐in‐law Darryl, I can’t thank you enough for helping keep the family connected. You were always there for the virtual happy hours and the family game nights because you knew how much they sustained us through these challenging times. Your being there supported me in ways you could not have known. To my nephew Aaron and his fiancée Lyndsey, your interest in my passion for SEL is inspiring and gives me hope for the coming generation. I thoroughly enjoyed our virtual discussions, and I thank you immensely for your support. To my nephew Kyle, just seeing you with your new fiancée during our virtual gatherings reminded me of how important it is to have hope and why this book is so necessary.

      This book never would have been possible without the support of friends and colleagues. To my dearest friend and mentor Gail Cheramie, no words can express how much your support has meant to me. You have been there for almost 30 years, first as my professor and now as my dearest friend. If a teacher’s success is measured by the success of her student, then I hope I have honored you well. There would not have been successes without you. You have taught me that anything is possible if you believe it is possible. Thank you for everything you do for me, and by the way, thank you also for helping review parts of the book. You are a true friend! I also want to thank my dear friend Ginger Gates for her help in reviewing the work. You inspire me every day with your humor and your positive nature, and I am always striving to become a better trainer because of you. You are the best. To Debbie Blackmon, thank you for sharing your knowledge of equine‐assisted learning and your applications of SEL to this specialized area. You are an incredible therapist and educator, and I am lucky to have you as a colleague and a friend. To my partner in crime, Angela Downes, I thank you for keeping me grounded and helping me see that the dirt at the end of the road is worth more than a pot of gold. Your co‐counsel, Ashton, brought me a breath of fresh air when I needed it the most. To my physical therapist, Monica, and her assistants, Rishi and Courtney, not only did you get me through a tough recovery, you also lifted my spirits and kept me going. Through your relationship‐centered approach to therapy and your caring, nurturing environment, you model the principles of SEL every day in the work you do with your patients.

      I would be remiss if I did not thank Jeff Manson and Amanda Wynn at Western Psychological Services. Not only did you support me in writing this book, but your belief in SEL and your vision for its future strengthened my commitment, and I am forever grateful. I also want to thank Clark McKown for his willingness to share some of his work in this book. Your expertise in SEL assessment offers support for an area in which schools have a tremendous need, and I truly am grateful for your contributions. Lastly, I want to thank all the wonderful people at Wiley who have helped make this process as painless as possible. For Monica, Darren, and all the editing and production group, you were exceptionally patient in allowing me to work through this at my own pace, and I am especially grateful. Without you, there would be no book.

      INTRODUCTION

      The intent of this book is to provide schools and practitioners with a comprehensive overview of SEL and a practical but systematic approach for implementing it in schools. The book also offers suggestions for how local communities can support schools through alignment of efforts and shared accountability. Please note that the information in the book is applicable to individual schools as well as to whole school systems, such as local education systems, state or regional education systems, or national education. Therefore, in the interest of clarity and consistency, the terms school and school systems are used interchangeably.

      SEL is a global concern, so the information provided in this book is grounded in research from around the world. While a large part of the research focuses on schools within the United States, this book strives to offer ideas and information that can be applied to a global audience. Where there are gaps in research or information, there will be limitations to how applicable it is for international purposes. Thus, readers should be mindful of this and use their own judgment in how the information is applied. Nonetheless, the research contained in the book is the latest available at the time of this publication. Given the gaps between research and practice, however, it is expected that more research will be forthcoming and hopefully will expand beyond the United States.

      ABOUT THE COMPANION WEBSITE

      This book is accompanied by a companion website:

      www.wiley.com/go/black/essentialsofsel Скачать книгу