Social and Emotional Core of Equity Leadership

Gianna Cassetta has been a classroom teacher, a school founder and leader, and a district-level leader. She is a certified Goleman EI Emotional Intelligence Coach and an International Coaching Federation Associate Certified Coach. She founded The Plain Red Horse Coaching and Consulting, where she supports parallel and equity-focused pathways to social and emotional development for children and adults.

“This book arrives at a critical moment when educational leaders are grappling with how to authentically center educational equity while bridging divides, expanding belonging, and supporting the social and emotional wellbeing of their communities. Cassetta uses case studies to brilliantly illustrate how social awareness requires us to lean into curiosity, consistently check our assumptions and engage with the historical, cultural, and systemic forces that shape every interaction in our schools. In the case examples and throughout the book, you will see how leading transformation requires simultaneous attention to both the technical and the deeply relational dimensions of change that impact peoples’ ability and willingness to engage skillfully and effectively. As a long-time leadership coach and trauma therapist, I deeply appreciate how the acknowledgement that the state of our own nervous systems, our presence, language, and decisions literally shape the extent to which people feel safe around us. This awareness is critical as a felt sense of safety is a precondition to healthy social engagement, collaboration, and learning. Leading with social and nervous system awareness is especially important for leaders working with students and staff who carry the daily metabolic cost of navigating marginalization within our current systems. For any leader committed to leading meaningful transformation, this book provides both a framework and relatable examples to guide leaders to do the deep inside out work that lasting change requires.”Kathleen Osta, LCSW, SEP, Managing Director, National Equity Project“Equity requires a redesigned kind of relationship—one where power, trust, and knowledge flow freely and without friction. I truly believe that the schoolhouse—especially the public school—holds immense promise for adults to model equity, shared ownership, and power with the children in our classrooms. The Social and Emotional Core of Equity Leadership offers a powerful roadmap for any educator or school leader seeking to deepen their skills in designing and developing equitable relationships.”Caroline Hill, 228Accelerator“I became an educator to fight for social justice, yet I've found through the years that the way we do the work often reinforces the status quo. Finding my way through that as a k-8 teacher and then a middle school principal has always been one of the hardest parts of the work. There is very little practical guidance for how to make the means match the ends. This book is full of concrete tools and strategies grounded in Emotional Intelligence, SEL and DEI theory and practice. Cassetta combines her deep experience as an educator with her excellent prose to give us something new in the sector to guide school leader practice and development.”Matt Taylor, Founder and CEO, Noble Story Group“Gianna Cassetta’s The Social and Emotional Core of Equity Leadership is a powerfully humanistic and timely call to action for school leaders to do the deep inner work that is imperative for sustainable, equity-centered change. By integrating social and emotional learning, the analysis of issues of power, and root causes of inequity, Cassetta transcends comfortable solutions by offering a roadmap to generate meaningful community where all members belong and student voices are lifted up. This book invites us to be deeply reflective, stretch beyond what has seemed comfortable, disrupt inequity, and lead authentically, grounded in empathy, humility, and courage. It’s essential reading for every educator committed to justice.”Kristina A. Hesbol, PhD, Associate Professor, Educational Leadership and Policy Studies, University of Denver, Founding Director, Center for Innovative Rural Collaborative Leadership Education (CIRCLE)“The Social and Emotional Core of Equity Leadership is a wake-up call for every leader. Cassetta pulls no punches as she dares us to do the real work: inner reckoning and outer repair to dismantle the systems we’ve been complicit in. It’s a blueprint for leading with both heart and spine. Read it if you’re done playing it safe.”Annie Azarloza, Education Leader, M.Ed

• Introduction Part 1: Foundations of SEL 1. A Tiered Approach Starts with All Students in Mind 2. Creating the Conditions That Support SEL Part 2: The Inner Work of SEL We Need to Do The Outer Work of Equity and Justice 3. Self-Awareness 4. Self-Management 5. Social Awareness 6. Relationship Management 7. Responsible Decision-Making 8. Putting It Into Practice: A Reflection Tool for Equity-Centered Leadership Conclusion:Belonging Without Exception