Signature Model

Educator MTSS work designed
for real school transformation.

The Teaching Well’s School Sustainability Model is a multi-year, whole-school partnership designed to strengthen educator wellbeing, stabilize adult culture, and create the conditions for long-term sustainability in schools.

About The Teaching Well’s School Sustainability Model

The Teaching Well’s School Sustainability Model is a multi-year, whole-school partnership designed to strengthen educator wellbeing, stabilize adult culture, and create the conditions for long-term sustainability in schools.

Grounded in research and guided by a human-centered, trauma-informed approach, the School Sustainability Model uses an integrated combination of professional development, leadership coaching, Mindful Mentoring, and research. We work alongside school communities at the personal, interpersonal, and systemic levels to address the root causes of burnout, disconnection, and staff turnover.

Over the course of 3–5 years, schools engage in intentional, data-informed transformation that leads to stronger collaboration, improved retention, and more sustainable outcomes for both adults and students.

At the heart of this work is a simple belief: when the adults in a school are thriving, students thrive too—and that ripple effect strengthens entire communities.

A teacher leading a classroom discussion

IMPACT

The results are both measurable
and financially significant. 

80%

Educators retained annually

Across our Signature Model partnerships, we retain an average of 8 out of 10 educators annually.

$6.4M

Saved in hiring & onboarding costs

This has saved districts more than $6.4 million in hiring, onboarding, and staffing replacement costs.

83%

Of partnerships saw ≥10%
drop in student absenteeism

Data shows a direct correlation between our signature model partnership and a decrease of students absenteeism — 83% of our partnerships experienced at least a 10% decrease with 30% experiencing more than 20% decrease.

Individual

One-on-one Leadership Coaching for School Leaders, Mindful Mentoring for Teachers, & Clinical Therapy available to all staff

Dedicated support and thought-partnership for educators navigating their toughest decisions, plus wellness coaching to identify and realign the patterns and behaviors getting in the way of your wellbeing and retention.

A coach in conversation during a one-on-one session

Interpersonal

Whole Team Professional Development & Group Coaching

Build the trust, shared language and skills your team needs to operate sustainably, collaborate on a shared mission, and push each other's practice towards improved student outcomes.

A team gathered around a laptop collaborating

Systemic

Research that drives action.

Our annual landscape analysis informs policy and practice for greater staff sustainability. The Teaching Well helps schools use data cycles to reduce attrition, ease adult friction, and build systems that sustain educators.

A facilitator presenting at a whiteboard
An audience seated and listening during a session

Research

What the Research Shows

Research from UC Berkeley and published in the Journal of Negro Education (JNE) highlights The Teaching Well as an impactful model for educator sustainability, wellbeing, and school transformation.

The study highlights how The Teaching Well’s Signature Model draws from a long legacy of care-centered support systems created by Black educators before Brown v. Board of Education. The study illuminates how pre-Brown Black educators built strong professional networks rooted in mentorship, collective care, wellness, and community accountability — approaches that helped educators sustain themselves while creating thriving learning environments for students. The research identifies The Teaching Well as a modern continuation of that tradition: a healing-centered, whole-school model that strengthens adult culture, prioritizes educator wellbeing, and creates the conditions for long-term sustainability in schools.

Read More:  JNE Article on TTW Sig Model

  • “It has really benefitted me to talk to someone outside of my organization about specific scenarios and role playing what feedback and other conversations look like; also helping me identify and hold myself accountable to my own leadership goals.”

    Leadership Coaching Participant

  • “In the beginning I felt somewhat stressful about the year beginning, whereas now I can utilize these techniques to stabilize my environment. I noticed a positive shift in my spirit as a result of this session, bettering my outlook on the oncoming school year.”

    Professional Development Participant

  • “I find myself looking forward to Mindful Mentoring sessions, and will miss this experience. One tangible takeaway for me was that I like silence to process, and that coloring is an effective strategy that helps me feel less anxious about talking about difficult or more emotionally challenging topics, which I didn't know about myself.”

    Mindful Mentee

  • “I cannot believe how much I am taking away from these therapy sessions. Other people have already noticed a change in my demeanor and verbalized it to me. I am so thankful for these services, especially in a time of financial hardship.”

    Clinical Therapy Participant

  • “I cannot believe how much I am taking away from these therapy sessions. Other people have already noticed a change in my demeanor and verbalized it to me. I am so thankful for these services, especially in a time of financial hardship.”

    Clinical Therapy Participant