Our mission at SELF is to empower schools to create welcoming and effective communities that enable ALL students to achieve their fullest potential. We aim to improve the quality of special education student outcomes by developing current and aspiring special education teacher-fellows, leader-fellows, and leadership teams through a variety of specialized programs.  

SELF’s unique and specialized programming includes:

1. The Leader Fellowship: a two-year program that provides formal training sessions, leadership coaching, professional learning communities, peer program reviews and visits to exemplary programs across the country.

2. The Teacher Fellowship: a year-long program that provides formal training sessions, professional learning communities, personalized coaching, and partners with national research-based instructional programs.

3. Individualized Support and Technical Assistance: training for leadership teams (HUB) and customized consulting services to school, charter management organization network teams, and school districts.

Our Core Values guide what and how we do our work and interact with each other and all of our partners:

Belief: We believe that every student, regardless of their identity and learning style, can achieve at their highest potential.

Responsibility: It is our responsibility to use our own talents and capacities in order to ensure that the mindsets and systems are in place for our students to have equitable, inclusive, and anti-bias classroom spaces.

Team Work: We prioritize collaboration to ensure a stronger sense of belonging. We lead ourselves and others in a way that places all students at the center of our work.