Shaneen Kennedy is a doctoral student at The University of the West Indies, Cave Hill Campus. She is a trained social worker and an early childhood educator who has taught and supported students with academic and SEL challenges. Mrs. Kennedy is a former director of the Shaping Adolescents to Function in their Environment (S.A.F.E) Zone programme in Barbados, a movement geared towards equipping youth with 21st-century skills to function effectively in their daily life. In 2012, Shaneen received the Emerging Leaders of Americas Scholarship, leading her to Alberta, Canada, where she gained extensive training in programme development and working with diverse and at-risk populations at the micro, mezzo, and macro intervention levels. Her research focuses on SEL skills and primary language arts teachers’ professional learning, the contextual application of SEL in promoting effective instruction, and the application of SEL to reduce aggressive behaviour and increase later adult functioning.