November 2022

The Institute of Education Sciences (IES) marked its official 20th anniversary on November 3. As part of the celebration, IES Director Mark Schneider wrote a Vision Letter highlighting the anniversary and the agency’s plans in coming months to tell the stories of the work that it has supported over the past two decades and to outline future directions.

“Like any 20-year-old, we are filled with energy and enthusiasm as we continue to pursue our mission of transforming the education sciences and improving outcomes for all learners,” Schneider wrote. “We have pushed forward the frontiers of both basic and applied education sciences and we have transformed the way in which questions about education and learning are asked and answered. Together, we have worked to support educators and policymakers seeking to translate our work into practice.”

In addition, the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) released a report, A Retrospective Look at U.S. Education Statistics, to celebrate 155 years of education statistics. Elizabeth Albro, commissioner for the National Center for Education Research, published a blog post that featured how the investment of IES in literacy has made an impact in education.

IES is inviting the community to share their stories about the unique role that IES has played in education, specific projects or grants that are particularly successful or promising, and work made possible by IES that otherwise might not have been completed or funded.

“Contributions from our colleagues and the field are fundamental to our success as an Institute and our ability to contribute to student success,” wrote Schneider. “There will also be opportunities for you to share your own stories and vision for the future of the education sciences.”

AERA will be highlighting some of these key accomplishments by using the hashtag #IESat20 (and #EdResearchMatters). AERA members are encouraged to share their stories on social media, and with AERA if they would like the association to amplify the stories, by emailing communications@aera.net and govrelations@aera.net. We encourage short vignettes (no longer than 250 words) about the impact that IES has had on education research, policy, and practice. IES has also put together a stakeholder toolkit for use on its 20th-anniversary web page.

“AERA is pleased to commemorate and toast 20 years of IES,” said AERA Executive Director Felice J. Levine. “IES is a significant agency for education science and its work over two decades has contributed to many of the research findings and evidence-based resources that have influenced education policy and practice. We look forward to celebrating IES’s accomplishments and envisioning the agency’s future.”