Wisconsin school district received $1M+ for 'Social Emotional Learning' initiatives

An organization that promotes "health equity" provided a Wisconsin school district with more than $1 million to promote "Social Emotional Learning" (SEL) initiatives, watchdog group Parents Defending Education has revealed.

The Greater Watertown Community Health Foundation promotes health equity and declares it to be "at the center of our decisions." Through public records requests, PDE identified grants that the organization gave to the Watertown Unified School District, revealing the receipt of more than $1 million from April 1, 2023, through the president.

Among the grants was a $100,000 sum to hire a mental health and SEL coordinator. The school district provided PDE with both a contract and press release for the employee whom they hired for the post.

PDE also secured the district's plans to implement SEL into its local curricula.