Southeastern Education Consortium is located in southeastern West Virginia, an area of picturesque farmland, rolling hills, and small streams and rivers. Interstate-64 passes through this region, allowing for convenient access to all four consortium sites.

The area has numerous recreational activities year round. Wildlife is plentiful in the area and there is fishing on the many rivers and streams. Other outdoor activities include camping, boating, water skiing, whitewater rafting, mountain biking, and backpacking. A one to three hour drive takes one to four down- hill skiing areas, numerous Bed and Breakfast Inns, resorts and National Historic Areas.

The internationally famous Greenbrier Resort offers a broad range of entertainment, gourmet cuisine, recreation, and spa activities. Carnegie Hall in Lewisburg offers concerts and plays by nationally known performers, children's programs, and classes in the visual and performing arts. Artisan Guilds are widespread throughout the area. Annual fairs and festivals, including: Farmer's Day in Union, Alderson's Fourth of July Celebration, the WV Water Festival in Hinton, White Sulphur Spring's Dandelion Festival, Civil War Reenactments, the WV State Fair, the Harvest Festival in Union, Railroad Days in Hinton, Lewisburg's Taste of Our Town, and the New Year's Day Shanghai Parade offer a variety of cultural and social activities.

The economy of the area is based primarily on agriculture, timber, small industry, tourism, and mining. The health status of the area includes higher than average rates of inadequate prenatal care, diabetes, hypertension, COPD, motor vehicle accidents, seatbelt nonuse, sedentary lifestyle, and lower than average rates of births to unwed mothers and binge drinking.