April 2026

The AERA Research Engagement and Development with Youth (READY) Program brought six teams of high school students from California, Massachusetts, New Jersey, Ohio, and South Korea to participate in a workshop and present their work at the 2026 AERA Annual Meeting in Los Angeles. The continuation of this program reflects AERA's ongoing commitment to capacity building and expanding youth access to the Annual Meeting.

The READY program provides youth researchers opportunities to gain insights into the field of education, engage with researchers across career stages, network with peers, and strengthen their research communication skills. Each READY team included four-to-six high school students conducting education research on a range of topics. In total, 30 youth researchers participated in the program at the Los Angeles meeting. Teams were competitively selected from an international pool of applicants and were led by AERA members working with youth in high schools, universities, and community organizations.

The 2026 READY workshop built on established programming while introducing new elements. Ed-Talks, first introduced in 2024, again served as a workshop activity, offering five-minute presentations in which teams introduced their projects to one another. The READY scholar roundtable session also returned, providing each team with an opportunity for in-depth discussion with a senior scholar whose expertise aligned with the team’s research topic.

New this year, READY participants also took part in a Presidential Session titled Nothing About Us Without Us: Attending to Youth Desires for Their Educational Futures. During this session, READY team members engaged in focused roundtable conversations with researchers across AERA on topics including teaching, learning, and curriculum; arts and intergenerational advocacy; and organizing and civic engagement.

On April 9, the READY teams presented their work in a well-attended poster session in the exhibit hall. Youth researchers shared their findings and engaged with Annual Meeting attendees on topics as they identified as especially relevant to their communities and peers. These included youth counterstories in QuantCrit; high schoolers’ perceptions of pursuing a teaching career; community narratives and decisions about using AI; ethnic studies classrooms in California and disrupting race as determinant; equitable access to STEM engagement and learning; and the role of community schools in supporting civic engagement. READY poster presentations are available to Annual Meeting registrants in the AERA i-Presentation Gallery and will be made publicly available in August.

The READY program will continue at the 2027 Annual Meeting. The call for proposals will be released in September. For more information, contact edresearch@aera.net or visit the READY program website.

2026 READY Participants

Data Breachers: Youth Counterstories in Quantitative Education Research
Team Leaders: Wendy Castillo, Juan Andrés Ouviña, and Marielyn Hidalgo (Montclair State University)
Youth Researchers: Daniel Asebiomo, Oluwadamilare Ashaolu, Jeidymar Molina Cruz, and Aolani Perez
Project Title: Data Breachers: Youth Counterstories in Quantitative Education Research

First Ring Student Leadership Institute
Team Leader: Adam Voight (Cleveland State University)
Youth Researchers: Coralie Barcelona, Ryan Hilcu, Breanna Kern, Abigail Peck, and Maya Trempe
Project Title: Who Will Teach Us Next? Ohio High School Students’ Perceptions of Teaching as a Career

Lexington Student Research and Publication Collaborative
Team Leader: Alexa Muse (Lexington Public Schools)
Youth Researchers: Amal Balachundhar, Aanya Kaveti, Cameron Mantha, Rocio Salgado Rodriguez, Noe Voskuil, and Angela Xie
Project Title: Tool or Temptation? ChatGPT and the high school experience

Liberation Learners
Team Leader: Jonathan Desmon Russell Pérez (The School of The New York Times)
Youth Researchers: Juan Chavez Martinez, Tajanea Clark, Jesus Gutierrez Flores, Christian Hernandez Martinez, Kimberly Jimenez Martinez, and Icker Merida Gramajo
Project Title: Ethnic Studies and the Praxis of Transgressive-Racialization: Liberation Learners Exploring the Unmaking of Race

Robotico: Students Empowering Diverse Future Talents in STEM
Team Leader: Insook Han (Korea University)
Youth Researchers: Justin An, Stella Kwon, and Ian Shin
Project Title: Building Robots, Building Equity: A Student-Led Robotics Program for Empowering Diverse Learners in South Korea

UCLA Community Schools: Civic Engagement Scholar Youth Team
Team Leaders: Jeffrey Yo and Karen Hunter Quartz (University of California, Los Angeles)
Youth Researchers: Iolani Brideau, Maria Jillian Santos, Christian Lopes, Valerie Manzo Munguia, Abraham May, and Warenn Trujeque
Project Title: Reimagining Secondary School through Community-Based Research: Insights from Two University-Assisted Community Schools