With grant support from the Herb Alpert, Annenberg, and MSST Foundations, and program and administrative oversight from The Ojai Foundation, the LAUSD’s Council Practitioners Center (CPC) in the Instructional Support Services Branch serves staff, schools, and offices that wish to develop and sustain Council-based programs and practices.  Based on the universal tradition of sitting in circles to tell our stories, Council addresses the District’s priority for creating “safe, caring environments” for students, staff, parents, and community members.
    In addition to offering salary-point approved central trainings for all interested LAUSD staff, the CPC establishes “pilot” schools (with 12 or more participating staff).  These schools receive training, in-class mentoring, program coordination, parent/community Council facilitation, and evaluation.  The CPC also trains and mentors counselors, Diploma Project Advisors, and BTSA facilitators to run council-based groups. In addition, the CPC offers practitioners’ collaboratives, remote mentoring, crisis intervention, as well as team and community-building sessions for all interested LAUSD schools and offices.  Our program at CSULA brings the experience of Council to several hundred students each year, many of whom will become teachers and counselors.