Ensuring all children and youth thrive as they move through school and into their adult lives requires that they have the opportunity to develop the skills and competencies that will help them land their first job, navigate and overcome the challenges they will face, keep positive relationships, and make good decisions. While families are central to this, others who interact with students can play a supporting role. For instance, a bipartisan report by the American Enterprise Institute and the Brookings Institution recommended a holistic approach to education, promoting both academics and skills such as working well with others, self-management, and responsible decision-making. Social and emotional learning or SEL is the most common terminology to encompass these skills and competencies. Afterschool and summer learning programs, which have long been places for positive youth development, are helping students cultivate their social and emotional skills and competencies. This issue brief highlights a few ways afterschool programs support student social emotional development.