OpenSeat

OpenSeat adds much-needed capacity for K-12 schools, and in partnership, serves as an extension of a school's social-emotional and MTSS supports. OpenSeat provides students 1-on-1 virtual access to a diverse, multilingual team of SEL-focused, trauma-informed, and supervised mental wellness professionals.

OpenSeat reduces the risk of academic, social-emotional, and behavioral challenges by intervening early and as a school and its students need. School teams need more capacity; often only able to reach students on a caseload or in crisis. OpenSeat helps schools provide short-term interventions for frequently unserved students who may be experiencing motivational lapses, poor choice making, peer-relationship issues, low attendance, or any number of short-term needs.

Launched in 2022 with 10 pilot partners across 4 states, OpenSeat is working to expand its impact to 50+ schools and over 10,000 youth by 2025. Our push to expand is based both on the overwhelming need in schools and the success of our pilot year. Results included:
-2/3s of students improved attendance
-More than 50% improved their GPAs by more than a letter grade
-92% saw improvements in their social-emotional skills
-100% of teachers saw marked improvements in behavior
-Across over 600 sessions, students rated their experience above a 9.3 out of 10

All but one of OpenSeat's current partners pays for the services in full. This approach creates a sustainable financial model for our work, ensuring we're not reliant on philanthropic funds once we hit an attainable scale. We believe in fiscal prudence and have designed our work to scale to sustainability. In these early years, philanthropy will allow OpenSeat to get to scale.

Additionally, where there are earmarked schools or regions at reduced to gratis cost from specific philanthropists, we can have a focused and meaningful impact on student mental health at the request of donors. The average monthly cost of support for schools is $3,000. A donation of $36,000 can provide OpenSeat for an entire school community for a full year. The average cost per student for support is $300. Your donation has an ability to directly increase an entire community or a specific student to receive support they likely otherwise would not have affordable access to.

Please reach out to our CEO, Malia Burn (malia@openseat.me) if you have specific requests or would like to meet. We will make time for any and all philanthropic inquiries.

We're grateful for your shared passion of ensuring all students are able to thrive in school!