Morningside Center for Teaching Social Responsibility (MCTSR), originally called Educators for Social Responsibility Metro, is a consulting company which assists schools primarily in New York City in implementing social and emotional learning (SEL), restorative practices (RP), and racial equity practices. ¹

In 2020, MCTSR was contracted by the New York City Department of Education and delivered seminars to 1,600 teachers. ²

Education Techniques

Morningside Center for Teaching Social Responsibility provides consulting services to pre-k, elementary, and high schools focused on social and emotional learning (SEL), restorative practices (RP), and critical race theory-inspired racial equity practices. ³

SEL is a “process” which attempts to increase empathy between students to improve peaceful conflict resolution strategies. MCTSR claims that SEL programs decrease classroom misbehavior, reduce anxiety and depression, increase attendance, and increase test scores. ⁴

Restorative practices is a social science originating from criminology in the 1970s that emphasized repairing relationships between offenders and victims. In the context of education, restorative practices primarily consist of mitigating traditional punishments such as detention or suspension for mediated discussions that attempt to eliminate the supposed root cause of the student’s misbehavior. Such discussions can occur between teachers and unruly students, or between students in conflict. ⁵

MCTSR’s SEL and restorative practices are particularly oriented toward critical race theory-aligned racial equity. The organization believes that the lower performance of non-white students is driven at least in part by the discrimination of teachers and other students, especially through disproportionate disciplinary measures. Thus, the group helps schools “create systems and structures that promote equity in their classrooms and throughout the school.” This includes programs to make non-white students feel welcomed, and extensive discussions on race, such as racism in the United States, “whiteness, power, and history,” and how “systemic racism, both explicit and implicit, operates in our schools to diminish the opportunities and outcomes for black and brown children.” ⁶

Funding

Morningside Center for Teaching Social Responsibility has received funding from the Catherine and Joseph Aresty Foundation, the Booth Ferris Foundation, the Einhorn Family Charitable Trust, the Charles Hayden Foundation, the Charles Lawrence Keith and Clara Miller Foundation, the Long Island Community Fund, the New York Community Trust, the Novo Foundation, and Trinity Church Wall Street Philanthropies. ⁷

In 2021, MCTSR received $5,000 from the Brooklyn Community Foundation for demonstrating a “commitment to equity and racial justice, track record of impact in Brooklyn, strong institutional values, and a dynamic vision for the future of their organization.” ⁸

In 2020, MCTSR received $46,623 from the American Federation of Teachers. ⁹

In 2016, MCTSR was awarded an Investing in Innovation (i3) grant for $3 million by the U.S. Department of Education. The organization’s grant application was one of fifteen selected out of 385 proposals. ¹⁰

MCTSR’s grant was for a “Whole School Restorative Practices Project” based on its Restore360 program. The grant funded the implementation of its program in four elementary, four middle, and four high schools in New York City over four years. It tested the efficacy of SEL and restorative practices in reducing the gap in education outcomes between brown and black students and white students. ¹¹

1. “Our Services.” Morningside Center for Teaching Social Responsibility. Accessed November 9, 2021. https://www.morningsidecenter.org/what-we-do.
2. “Annual Report 2020.” Morningside Center for Teaching Social Responsibility. Accessed November 9, 2021. https://www.morningsidecenter.org/sites/default/files/2021-04/AnnualReport2020.pdf.
3. “Our Services.” Morningside Center for Teaching Social Responsibility. Accessed November 9, 2021. https://www.morningsidecenter.org/what-we-do.
4. “What is Social & Emotional Learning.” Morningside Center for Teaching Social Responsibility. Accessed November 10, 2021. https://www.morningsidecenter.org/what-social-emotional-learning.
5. Barshay, Jill. “The promise of ‘restorative justice’ starts to falter under rigorous research.” The Hechinger Report. May 6, 2019. Accessed October 26, 2021. https://hechingerreport.org/the-promise-of-restorative-justice-starts-to-falter-under-rigorous-research/.
6. “Centering Racial Equity.” Morningside Center for Teaching Social Responsibility. Accessed November 10, 2021. https://www.morningsidecenter.org/centering-racial-equity.
7. “Our Funders.” Morningside Center for Teaching Social Responsibility. Accessed November 9, 2021. https://www.morningsidecenter.org/about.
8.  “Morningside is a Spark Prize Finalist!.” Morningside Center for Teaching Social Responsibility. October 25, 2021. Accessed November 10, 2021. https://www.morningsidecenter.org/news/morningside-spark-prize-finalist.
9. ^[1] “Teachers AFL-CIO LM2 2020.” U.S. Department of Labor. Accessed November 9, 2021. https://www.influencewatch.org/labor-union/american-federation-of-teachers/.
10. “Morningside Center selected for i3 award to advance equity in schools.” Morningside Center for Teaching Social Responsibility. November 11, 2016. Accessed November 10, 2021. https://www.morningsidecenter.org/news/morningside-center-selected-i3-award-advance-equity-schools.
11. “Morningside Center selected for i3 award to advance equity in schools.” Morningside Center for Teaching Social Responsibility. November 11, 2016. Accessed November 10, 2021. https://www.morningsidecenter.org/news/morningside-center-selected-i3-award-advance-equity-schools.