Leader in Me is based on a program developed by Principal Muriel Summers at A.B. Combs, a magnet school in North Carolina. The model was then formalized by FranklinCovey Education, an education and training services company. Leader in Me’s whole-school improvement model is designed to promote social and emotional learning by shifting teaching practices and organizational approaches to learning. Based on principles from “The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People” and “The 4 Disciplines of Execution”, this model shifts ownership of learning to students using the following core paradigms: (1) everyone can be a leader, (2) everyone has genius, (3) change starts with me, (4) educators empower students to lead their own thinking, and (5) develop the whole person. Through training and consultation, Leader in Me provides schools with a process aimed at creating a trusting and nurturing school climate. Free-standing lessons are also provided for each grade level for teachers to utilize as needed within their classroom.

Leader in Me requires extensive training, which includes on-site coaches and coordinators. The standard cost of implementation is based on the size of school population. Reported averages in the U.S. range from $40-50 per student per year for the first three years, followed by $14-19 per student per year after the first three years.

The Leader in Me has models designed for preschool, elementary, middle and high schools. The pre-school and elementary Leader in Me programs were included in CASEL’s (Collaborative for Academic, Social and Emotional Learning) list of  SELect programs in 2018, which indicates that CASEL considers them high-quality, well designed programs, with documented positive impacts through research evaluations.