September 2023

As part of the September 11 virtual meeting of the National Board for Education Sciences (NBES), which oversees the Institute of Education Sciences (IES), board members elected AERA Past President Carol D. Lee to serve as the NBES chair. The meeting was the first time NBES had convened since November 2016.

“Heartiest congratulations to Carol Lee for being elected chair of NBES as it resumes its activities under a reconstituted board,” said AERA Executive Director Felice J. Levine. “Carol’s leadership will be vital as IES moves forward on tackling important research topics, especially as the U.S. education system continues to address the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic.”

Lee is Professor Emeritus of Education in the School of Education and Social Policy and in African American Studies at Northwestern University. She chaired a session during the 2023 AERA Annual Meeting with IES Director Mark Schneider that included conversation about his priorities for IES and discussion of future plans related to the 2022 report The Future of Education Research at IES from the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine.

Under the Education Sciences Reform Act (ESRA), NBES is charged with responsibilities that include reviewing and approving IES procedures for peer review; advising on the funding of research grants, contracts, and cooperative agreements; and ensuring that IES activities are relevant to education policy and practice by gathering input and advice from practitioners and researchers; among other key activities.

The September 11 meeting is the first convening of the current board since President Biden’s appointments in October 2022. In addition to the election of the chair, the meeting agenda included a swearing-in of board members, an overview of the IES Office of Science and the four IES centers, and a presentation by IES Director Schneider on IES priorities and an update on the proposed National Center for Advanced Development in Education and ESRA reauthorization. The NBES is planning to hold an in-person meeting later this fall.