American Educational Research Association (AERA)

August 2026 Jason Grissom is Patricia and Rodes Hart Professor of Public Policy and Education and (by courtesy) of Political Science at Vanderbilt University’s Peabody College. He also serves as faculty director of the Tennessee Education Research Alliance, a research-policy-practice partnership that produces research to inform Tennessee’s school improvement efforts.

August 2026 This fall, AERA will begin introducing plain-language summaries (PLS) in its journals. Written in nontechnical language, these summaries will complement article abstracts and make published research accessible to a broader audience. The initiative will launch in September with Educational Evaluation and Policy Analysis (EEPA), with other AERA journals joining later in the year. How will PLS work?

August 2026 The call for submissions for the 2027 AERA Annual Meeting, which closed July 24, drew an enthusiastic response from the education research community. The number of submissions for next year’s convening in Toronto was the second highest since 2018. The 2027 Annual Meeting will be held April 14–18 in Toronto.

June 2026 The AERA Graduate Student Council (GSC) Nominating Committee welcomes recommendations of well-qualified individuals as potential candidates to run for GSC office in the 2027 election. The GSC plans and coordinates activities that advance the professional interests of graduate students in the association, based on policies and procedures approved by the AERA Council.

June 2026 The Nominating Committee for the AERA Special Interest Groups (SIG) Executive Committee seeks recommendations for well-qualified candidates to run for the positions of chair-elect and member-at-large in the 2027 election. The chair-elect will serve a one-year term as chair-elect followed by a two-year term as chair (simultaneously serving as the SIG representative to AERA Council). The member-at-large will serve a three-year term.

July 2026 AERA is accepting nominations for the 2027 AERA Awards, which recognize outstanding contributions to education research, public service, mentoring, scholarship, and research communication. Nominations are due by Wednesday, October 14, 2026, at 11:59 pm Pacific Time and must be submitted electronically through the AERA APPLY portal. “It is more important now than ever to recognize and celebrate excellence in education research,” said AERA Executive Director Tabbye M. Chavous.

July 2026 Julie Posselt is an AERA Fellow. She is a professor in the Rossier School of Education at the University of Southern California (USC), associate dean of the USC Graduate School, and founding director of the Equity in Graduate Education Consortium. Graduate education in the United States is now pursued by more than a third of those who obtain bachelor’s degrees, and the sector is undergoing a period of significant structural change.

June 2026 A proposed White House Office of Management and Budget (OMB) regulation could significantly reshape how federal agencies award, manage, and oversee research grants—including potential changes to peer- review processes, agency authority to terminate awards, and limits on research dissemination and public access.

June 2026 The AERA Nominating Committee seeks recommendations of candidates for AERA-wide offices. Each year, the committee advances a slate of nominations for president-elect and two member-at-large positions. Members are encouraged to recommend persons with experience appropriate to both posts. The nominees will run for office in the 2027 election. The president-elect serves a one-year term in the elect position, then one year as president and one year as past president.

June 2026 AERA has announced the recipients of the 2026-2027 Minority Dissertation Fellowship in Education Research and Travel Awards. This highly competitive program provides funding to members of racial and ethnic groups historically underrepresented in education research and offers mentorship and professional guidance as fellows complete their doctoral studies.