I 

114TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 497 

To require training for teachers in social and emotional learning 

programming, and for other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

JANUARY 22, 2015 

Mrs. DAVIS of California introduced the following bill; which was referred to 

the Committee on Education and the Workforce 

A BILL 

To require training for teachers in social and emotional 

learning programming, and for other purposes. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Supporting Emotional 

5 Learning Act’’. 

6 SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 

7 The Congress finds as follows: 

8 (1) A positive, healthy school community where 

9 children thrive and grow, both intellectually and 

10 emotionally, takes purposeful and thoughtful planVerDate Sep 11 2014 06:12 Jan 29, 2015 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H497.IH H497

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1 ning. Students who develop personal strengths like 

2 grit, perseverance, concern for others, and positive 

3 academic mindsets become important contributors to 

4 their school and community. Schools have a respon5 sibility to nurture the intrapersonal and inter6 personal skills students need to navigate social situa7 tions and effectively and respectfully communicate 

8 with a diverse group of people. 

9 (2) In the United States, we have always placed 

10 an emphasis on developing academically rigorous 

11 curriculum, but unfortunately have not been as de12 liberate about imparting children with important so13 cial and emotional life skills. There needs to be a 

14 balance and integration between cognitive learning 

15 and social emotional learning. 

16 (3) While not a new concept, the term ‘‘social 

17 and emotional education’’ has recently become an 

18 important focal point for many researchers, adminis19 trators, and teachers. The term ‘‘social and emo20 tional learning’’ means the process through which 

21 individuals acquire and effectively apply the knowl22 edge, attitudes, and skills necessary to understand 

23 and manage emotions, the ability to set and achieve 

24 positive goals, feel and show empathy for others, esVerDate Sep 11 2014 06:12 Jan 29, 2015 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H497.IH H497

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1 tablish and maintain positive relationships, and 

2 make responsible decisions. 

3 (4) Research has shown that social and emo4 tional learning effectively boosts student academic 

5 success and fosters the very skills that are being uti6 lized in the workforce. Social and emotional learning 

7 both increases protective factors for helping children 

8 learn and thrive as well as reducing risks for prob9 lems in both learning and behavior. These teachable 

10 skills help children avoid risky behaviors such as ag11 gression and early drug and alcohol use and provide 

12 a springboard for being a capable student, citizen, 

13 and worker. 

14 (5) Continued research is necessary to discover 

15 best practices and prepare educators to integrate so16 cial-emotional skills into the curriculum and school 

17 culture. In addition, we need to support well-de18 signed theoretical models and implementation sup19 ports in social and emotional learning. Social and 

20 emotional learning should be included as a central 

21 component of our education system. Federal law 

22 needs to include language that prioritizes social and 

23 emotional learning for educators. 


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1 SEC. 3. DUTIES OF THE NATIONAL CENTER FOR EDU2 CATION RESEARCH. 

3 Section 133(a) of the Education Sciences Reform Act 

4 of 2002 (20 U.S.C. 9533(a)) is amended— 

5 (1) in paragraph (10), by striking ‘‘and’’ at the 

6 end; 

7 (2) in paragraph (11), by striking the period at 

8 the end and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and 

9 (3) by adding at the end the following: 

10 ‘‘(11) carry out research initiatives regarding 

11 the impact of social and emotional education.’’. 

12 SEC. 4. RESEARCH TOPICS OF THE COMMISSIONER FOR 

13 EDUCATION RESEARCH. 

14 Section 133(c)(2) of the Education Sciences Reform 

15 Act of 2002 (20 U.S.C. 9533(c)(2)) is amended by adding 

16 at the end the following: 

17 ‘‘(L) Social and emotional skills and hab18 its.’’. 

19 SEC. 5. COMPREHENSIVE CENTERS. 

20 Section 203(f)(1)(A)(ii) of the Education Sciences 

21 Reform Act of 2002 (20 U.S.C. 9602(f)(1)(A)(ii)) is 

22 amended— 

23 (1) in subclause (II), by striking ‘‘and’’ at the 

24 end; and 

25 (2) by adding at the end the following: 


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1 ‘‘(IV) imparting social and emo2 tional life learning (as defined in sec3 tion 200(24) of the Higher Education 

4 Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1021)); and’’. 

5 SEC. 6. SOCIAL AND EMOTIONAL LEARNING. 

6 (a) DEFINITIONS.—Section 200 of the Higher Edu7 cation Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1021) is amended— 

8 (1) in paragraph (13), by inserting at the end 

9 the following: ‘‘, except that such term includes a re10 quirement that highly qualified teachers have prepa11 ration in the understanding, use, and development of 

12 social and emotional learning programming’’; and 

13 (2) by adding at the end the following: 

14 ‘‘(24) SOCIAL AND EMOTIONAL LEARNING.— 

15 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The term ‘social and 

16 emotional learning’ means the processes 

17 through which students acquire and effectively 

18 apply the following set of interrelated com19 petencies: 

20 ‘‘(i) Self-awareness and self-manage21 ment skills to achieve academic and life 

22 success. 

23 ‘‘(ii) Social awareness and relationship 

24 skills to establish and maintain positive re25 lationships. 


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1 ‘‘(iii) Responsible decisionmaking 

2 skills and behavior in personal, school, and 

3 community contexts. 

4 ‘‘(B) SELF-AWARENESS.—The term ‘self5 awareness’ means an individual’s ability to ac6 curately recognize— 

7 ‘‘(i) the individual’s own feelings and 

8 thoughts; and 

9 ‘‘(ii) the influence of such feelings and 

10 thoughts on the individual’s behaviors. 

11 ‘‘(C) SELF-MANAGEMENT.—The term ‘self12 management’ means an individual’s ability to— 

13 ‘‘(i) regulate the individual’s own emo14 tions, cognitions, and behaviors effectively 

15 in different situations; and 

16 ‘‘(ii) set and work toward personal 

17 and academic goals. 

18 ‘‘(D) SOCIAL AWARENESS.—The term ‘so19 cial awareness’ means an individual’s ability 

20 to— 

21 ‘‘(i) take the perspective of and 

22 empathize with individuals from diverse 

23 backgrounds and cultures; and 

24 ‘‘(ii) recognize family, school, and 

25 community resources and supports. 


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1 ‘‘(E) RELATIONSHIP SKILL.—The term 

2 ‘relationship skill’ means an individual’s ability 

3 to establish and maintain healthy and reward4 ing relationships with individuals from diverse 

5 backgrounds and cultures through commu6 nicating clearly, listening actively, cooperating, 

7 negotiating conflict constructively, and seeking 

8 and offering help when needed. 

9 ‘‘(F) RESPONSIBLE DECISIONMAKING

10 SKILLS AND BEHAVIOR.—The term ‘responsible 

11 decisionmaking skills and behavior’ means an 

12 individual’s ability to make constructive and re13 spectful choices about personal behavior and so14 cial interactions, based on consideration of eth15 ical standards, safety concerns, the realistic 

16 evaluation of consequences that stem from ac17 tions, and the well-being of self and others. 

18 ‘‘(25) SOCIAL AND EMOTIONAL LEARNING PRO19 GRAMMING.—The term ‘social and emotional learn20 ing programming’ refers to instruction, activities, 

21 and best practice initiatives that— 

22 ‘‘(A) integrate social and emotional learn23 ing with academic achievement; 

24 ‘‘(B) provide systematic instruction where25 by social and emotional skills are taught, modVerDate Sep 11 2014 06:12 Jan 29, 2015 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00007 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H497.IH H497

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1 eled, practiced, and applied so that students use 

2 them as part of their daily behavior; 

3 ‘‘(C) teach students to apply social and 

4 emotional skills to prevent specific problem be5 haviors such as substance use, violence, bul6 lying, and school failure, and to promote posi7 tive behaviors in class, school, and community 

8 activities; and 

9 ‘‘(D) establish safe and caring learning en10 vironments that foster student participation, 

11 engagement, and connection to learning and 

12 school.’’. 

13 (b) TEACHER QUALITY PARTNERSHIP GRANTS.— 

14 Section 202 of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 

15 U.S.C. 1022a) is amended— 

16 (1) in subsection (b)— 

17 (A) by striking the period at the end of 

18 paragraph (7)(D) and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and 

19 (B) by adding at the end the following: 

20 ‘‘(8) a description of how the eligible partner21 ship will prepare prospective and new teachers and 

22 principals, if applicable, to understand, use, and de23 velop social and emotional learning programming.’’; 

24 (2) in subsection (e)(1)(C)— 


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1 (A) by striking ‘‘and’’ at the end of clause 

2 (iii); 

3 (B) by striking the period at the end of 

4 clause (iv) and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and 

5 (C) by adding at the end the following: 

6 ‘‘(v) preparation in understanding, 

7 using, and developing social and emotional 

8 learning programming.’’; and 

9 (3) in subsection (f)(1)(C)— 

10 (A) by striking ‘‘and’’ at the end of clause 

11 (ii); 

12 (B) by striking the period at the end of 

13 clause (iii) and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and 

14 (C) by adding at the end the following: 

15 ‘‘(iv) preparation in understanding, 

16 using, and developing social and emotional 

17 learning programming.’’. 

18 (c) AUGUSTUS HAWKINS CENTERS OF EXCEL19 LENCE.—Section 242(b)(1)(B) of the Higher Education 

20 Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1033a(b)(1)(B)) is amended— 

21 (1) in clause (i), by striking ‘‘and’’ at the end; 

22 (2) by striking the period at the end of clause 

23 (ii) and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and 

24 (3) by adding at the end the following: 


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1 ‘‘(iii) promoting the understanding, 

2 use, and development of social and emo3 tional learning programming.’’. 

4 (d) TEACH TO REACH GRANTS.—Section 

5 251(c)(1)(B) of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 

6 U.S.C. 1034(c)(1)(B)) is amended— 

7 (1) by striking ‘‘and’’ at the end of clause (iv); 

8 and 

9 (2) by adding at the end the following: 

10 ‘‘(vi) understanding, using, and devel11 oping social and emotional learning pro12 gramming; and’’. 

Æ 


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