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Data and Computing in K–12 Education: Foundational Competencies – A Report from the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine
Wednesday, April 8, 1:45 pm to 3:15 pm
Los Angeles Convention Center, Level Two - Room 404AB

Chair: Christopher J. Dede (Harvard University)
Discussants: Mimi M. Recker (Utah State University), Thomas M. Philip (University of California - Berkeley)
Participants: Victor R. Lee (Stanford University), Andee Rubin (TERC), Joshua Rosenberg (University of Tennessee), Shuchi Grover (Looking Glass Ventures)

To advance national conversations about the role of K-12 education in developing students’ competencies in data and computing, the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine convened an expert committee to conduct a consensus study that identified competencies needed for students to navigate and succeed in the changing computational landscape and described the role that K-12 education can play in the development of these competencies. The committee was asked to give particular attention to approaches and experiences that promote the success of all students.

Transforming the Special Education Workforce: Research and Complex Systems Perspectives – An AERA Publication
Thursday, April 9, 9:45 am to 11:15 am
Los Angeles Convention Center, Level Two - Room 403B

Chair: Erica D. McCray (University of Florida)
Discussants: Roddy Theobald (American Institutes for Research), Jason C. Chow (Vanderbilt University)
Participants: Marcia L. Rock (University of North Carolina - Greensboro), Lisa Dieker (University of Kansas)

Transforming the Special Education Workforce: Research and Complex Systems Perspectives offers a comprehensive and interdisciplinary examination of the national crisis in special education staffing. Edited by leading scholars Marcia L. Rock, Bonnie Billingsley, Lisa Dieker, and Melinda Leko, this book brings together innovative research, policy analysis, and systems thinking to propose theoretically sound, empirically validated, and sustainable solutions. Through a blend of empirical studies and conceptual frameworks, the volume highlights the interconnected factors contributing to workforce instability. The authors provide theoretical frameworks for conducting systems thinking using informed workforce research as well as actionable strategies for educators, administrators, and policymakers to recruit, develop, improve, and sustain the special education workforce.

The Elementary and Secondary Education Act at 60: Looking Back and Future Prospect
Thursday, April 9,  2:15 pm to 3:45 pm
Los Angeles Convention Center, Level Two - Room 403A

Chair: Elizabeth H. DeBray (University of Georgia)
Participants: Geoffrey D. Borman (Arizona State University), Sheneka M. Williams (Michigan State University), Kara S. Finnigan (University of Michigan), Walker A. Swain (LPI)

This session honors the 60th anniversary of Elementary and Secondary Education Act with an examination of the history and current challenges of the federal role in K12 education. The most recent version of the law, the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA), was enacted in 2015 and devolved major responsibilities for accountability to states. The chair will offer context by describing the law’s evolution since 1965. Panelists will assess various facets of ESSA’s implementation in light of recent political and institutional challenges during the Biden and both Trump administrations. Research on funding, rural schools, meeting students’ holistic needs, and challenges for state administration are among the topics to be considered.

Looking Forward: Research Recommendations for Early Childhood Curriculum
Friday, April 10, 9:45 am to 11:15 am
Los Angeles Convention Center, Level Two - Room 408B

Chair: Vivian L. Gadsden (University of Pennsylvania)
Participants: Andres Sebastian Bustamante (University of California - Irvine), Caroline Ebanks (Teachers College, Columbia University), Wintre Foxworth Johnson (University of Virginia), Christine M. McWayne (Tufts University)

Drawing on the recent research report Looking Forward: Research Recommendations for Early Childhood Curriculum, this interactive session will highlight major issues and recommendations for a future-oriented agenda to advance early childhood curriculum and implementation. Funded by the Gates Foundation, it extends issues and recommendations in the National Academy of Sciences, Engineering, and Sciences’ (NASEM) 2024 landmark study A New Vision for High-Quality Preschool Curriculum and support the NASEM report’s vision of preschool quality, access, and equity.

Predicated on proven findings that preschool curriculum is central to young children’s experiences in—and outcomes evoked from their engagement in early childhood program, the report centers research needed to advance rich, content-driven, and experientially engaging curriculum. It also acknowledges that to be optimally useful, future research will need to consider the changing demographic contexts for children, families, and the early childhood workforce; rapidly changing technological and methodological advances that are dramatically contouring research; and a changing and increasingly complicated programmatic and policy context. Given these realities, creating a forward-thinking, equity-centered research agenda is both a social imperative and a prudent strategy; it is an insurance policy that safeguards the future of preschool curriculum and the success of our nation’s youngest children. In considering methodological and technological innovations, the report provides concrete guidance regarding the essential content of an empirical agenda that will significantly advance the design, implementation, and evaluation of contemporary preschool curricula.

National Science Foundation: Supporting STEM Education Research and Innovation Funding Opportunities and Program Officer Roundtable
Friday, April 10, 9:45 am to 11:15 am
Los Angeles Convention Center, Level Two - Room 404AB

Chair: Monya Aisha Ruffin-Nash (National Science Foundation)
Participants: Sylvia Margaret Butterfield (National Science Foundation), Monya Aisha Ruffin-Nash (National Science Foundation), Margret A. Hjalmarson (National Science Foundation), Andrea Nixon (National Science Foundation), Eric J. Knuth (National Science Foundation), Rabiah Marie Mayas (RMM Consulting), Suazette Mooring (Georgia State University), Adrienne P. Stephenson (Florida State University)

This session provides the opportunity for informal connections with program officers for research and training programs funded by the National Science Foundation (NSF) STEM Education Directorate (EDU). Program officers will be available to discuss funding opportunities and provide information about a variety of programs that support education research. The session will kick off with opening remarks from Dr. Sylvia Butterfield, Directorate Head, NSF Directorate for STEM Education and Dr. Monya Ruffin, Deputy Directorate Head, STEM Education Research and Innovation.

Friday, April 10, 11:45 am to 1:15 pm
Los Angeles Convention Center, Level Two - Room 501B

Moderator: Tony Pals (American Educational Research Association) 
Panelists: Jill Barshay (The Hechinger Report), Jaweed Kaleem (Los Angeles Times), Sequoia Carrillo (National Public Radio)

Education research shapes policy, practice, and opportunity—but only when it enters the public conversation. Join veteran education journalists for a candid discussion about how scholars can elevate timely research, engage effectively with reporters, and contribute meaningfully to coverage of K–12 and higher education. Panelists will share what makes research stand out, how to communicate complex findings clearly, and how to navigate media engagement during challenging times for education and academe. Participants will have time for questions and to briefly highlight research with broad relevance.

Friday, April 10, 11:45 am to 1:15 pm
Los Angeles Convention Center, Level Two - Room 511AB

Chairs: Bianca Jontae Baldridge (Harvard University), Vichet Chhuon (University of Minnesota)
Participants: Travis J. Bristol (University of California - Berkeley), Conra D. Gist (University of Houston), Peter A. Youngs (University of Virginia), Marcia L. Rock (University of North Carolina - Greensboro), Lisa Dieker (University of Kansas)

In this engaging session, attendees can learn more about AERA’s Book Publishing Program from the incoming and outgoing Chairs of the Books Editorial Board and the editors of the three most recent AERA volumes. Attendees will learn how AERA seeks to serve as a publisher of books of excellence and importance to the education research community, and to practitioners and policymakers interested in education research. AERA publishes works to advance knowledge, to expand access to significant research and research analyses and syntheses, and to promote knowledge utilization. AERA publishes authoritative handbooks, edited volumes, and reports.

In addition to discussing their books’ content, the editors will share insights about how the projects began and the publication process with AERA.

Friday, April 10, 1:45 pm to 3:15 pm
Los Angeles Convention Center, Level Two - Room 511AB

Chairs: David M. Osher (Education Collaboratory at Yale University), Brenda L. Townsend Walker (University of South Florida)
Participants: Brenda L. Townsend Walker (University of South Florida), David M. Osher (Education Collaboratory at Yale University), Pedro A. Noguera (University of Southern California), Mark Rosenbaum (Public Counsel), Megan Bang (Northwestern University)

Conflicts over curriculum, censorship, and historical memory are intensifying across P–12 schools and universities, reshaping what can be taught, funded, researched, and publicly discussed. This interactive town hall examines how historical erasure and ideological suppression affect educators, students, and democratic life. Brief presentations from scholars, practitioners, legal experts, and students will frame the challenges and emerging responses. Most of the session will involve facilitated dialogue and large-scale audience input on professional risks, student well-being, and collective action. Participants will leave with a deeper understanding, shared strategies, and concrete ideas for strengthening democratic education in constrained times.

Friday, April 10, 3:45 pm to 5:15 pm
Los Angeles Convention Center, Level Two - Room 406AB

Chair: Michal Kurlaender (University of California - Davis)
Participants: Adam Gamoran (William T. Grant Foundation), Nicole Patton-Terry (Florida State University), Kristabel Stark (University of Vermont), Michelle Crosby (American Statistical Association)

The February 2026 report, Reimagining the Institute of Education Sciences (IES): A Strategy for Relevance and Renewal, provides cross-cutting “big shifts” and recommendations for each of the IES centers as part of the Department of Education’s intent to reform IES. The report from Department of Education Senior Advisor Amber Northern highlights actions that IES can take to enhance the relevance and timeliness of research and evidence-based resources, updates to collection and reporting of data by the National Center for Education Statistics, and ways to modernize processes to meet the needs of educators, state agencies and school districts, policymakers, and researchers.

This invited panel will feature reflections on the potential implications of these recommendations for the statistics, research, special education research, and practice-oriented activities that IES funding helps support. Presentations will be followed by the opportunity by session attendees to ask questions and share their perspectives.

Friday, April 10, 1:45 pm to 3:15 pm
Los Angeles Convention Center, Level Two - Room 511C

Chair: George L. Wimberly (American Educational Research Association)
Participants: Jack Busbee (National Academy of Education), Rhoda Freelon (The Spencer Foundation), Jenny Irons (William T. Grant Foundation)

The Leadership Role and Research Priorities of the National Science Foundation (NSF) STEM Education Directorate (EDU): A Conversation With James L. Moore III, NSF EDU Assistant Director
Saturday, April 11, 9:45 am to 11:15 am
Los Angeles Convention Center, Level Two - Room 409AB

Chair: Anne-Marie Nunez (University of Texas - El Paso)
Speaker: James L. Moore (National Science Foundation)

This open discussion forum provides an opportunity to hear from Dr. James L. Moore, III, Assistant Director for the STEM Education Directorate (EDU) at the National Science Foundation (NSF). This session will start with a brief talk from Dr. Moore. He will discuss important opportunities for the education research community and priority areas meriting attention, including the role of education research in strengthening STEM education across the lifespan and developing a STEM-capable workforce. He will also provide updates on his priorities within the EDU Directorate along with its partnerships on cross-NSF and cross-agency priorities.

School Active Shooter Drills: Mitigating Risks to Mental, Emotional, and Behavioral Health – A Report from the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine​​​​​​​
Saturday, April 11, 1:45 pm to 3:15 pm
Los Angeles Convention Center, Level Two - Room 403B

Chair: Dorothy L. Espelage (University of North Carolina - Chapel Hill)
Discussants: Ron Avi Astor (University of California - Los Angeles), Chris Curran (University of Florida)
Participants: Melissa Brymer (UCLA-Duke University National Center for Child Traumatic Stress), Kristen Harper (Child Trends), Anthony A. Peguero (Arizona State University)

The 2025 consensus study report from the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine, School Active Shooter Drills, explores how these drills are conducted and how to reduce potential harm while supporting school safety. Developed by a committee of experts in education, school safety, public health, pediatrics, child and adolescent development, psychiatry, psychology, neuroscience, public policy, and criminology, this report provides an in-depth review of current practices and offers guidance. The report provides suggestions for implementing practices that promote prevention and preparedness while supporting well-being, and foster learning environments where students and staff feel safe, capable, and supported.

This session will feature an overview of the report and recommendations from members of the committee that produced the consensus study, as well as discussion on future research directions based on the recommendations provided in the report.