About Us
Ocean of Wisdom School
A K-4 Minnesota charter school initiative by local community members to create a school that cultivates the development of children's social-emotional skills as well as academic knowledge. The Charter School is expected to open in Fall 2025 and will provide students with a state-of-the-art general education curriculum embedded within the whole-school implementation of the Social, Emotional, and Ethical (SEE Learning) program. Additionally, the school will offer optional opportunities for students to learn foreign languages such as Tibetan.
Social, Emotional, and Ethical Learning (SEE Learning®)
The SEE Learning framework and K-12 curriculum is designed to foster the development of social, emotional, and ethical competencies that promote lifelong learning, well-being, and flourishing for individual students. This evidence-based program was developed at Emory University, as envisioned by the Dalai Lama in collaboration with many scholars, researchers, and founders of the social and emotional learning (SEL) field, such as Linda Lantieri, Daniel Goleman, Mark Greenberg, and Kim Schonert-Reichl.
The SEE Learning program is being implemented in over 30 countries and will become the core feature and philosophy of all teaching and learning at this charter school. Today's youths need skills to navigate the complex and uncertain social, cultural, technological, and ecological challenges ahead of them that the current education system may not sufficiently prepare them for. By creating a safe and compassionate environment where students and teachers can critically reflect and develop their own social-emotional skills, and academic knowledge, the goal of school is to provide education to the heart and mind. SEE Learning will foster the cultivation of skills such as attention, resilience based on trauma-informed care, interpersonal skills, compassion for self and others, systems thinking, and ethical discernment.
Research has shown that effective SEL programming can lead to:
- Improved academic performance: Studies have found that students who participate in SEL programs have 10% gain in academic performance
- Enhanced social and emotional skills: SEL helps students develop skills such as self-awareness, self-management, social awareness, relationship skills, and responsible decision-making.
- Increased prosocial attitudes and behaviors: SEL is associated with more prosocial attitudes about oneself, others, and school, as well as increased prosocial behaviors like empathy and cooperation.
- Reduced emotional distress: Participation in SEL programs is linked to reduced depression, anxiety, stress, and social withdrawal.
- Improved behavioral adjustment: SEL has been shown to decrease problematic behaviors such as aggression, delinquency, and substance abuse.
- Positive long-term outcomes: The skills gained through SEL have been found to predict success in school, careers, relationships, and overall health and well-being years later."