Innovation Day at the SREE Conference

September 23, 2026

 Be part of a community transforming education through meaningful, evidence-based collaboration.

Practitioners: Apply Today  

TIMELINE: 

 With a generous sponsorship from Arnold Ventures, SREE is excited to host Innovation Day—a one-day, hands-on event designed to bring together practitioners and researchers to work together on a problem that needs to be solved and that can be informed by evidence. The problem might be in K-12, early childhood, or postsecondary education. Innovation Day is a chance to collaboratively explore how to find a solution to that problem. 

Held on the first day of the SREE Annual Conference, Innovation Day will provide participants with an opportunity to engage in facilitated conversations with experts in research, policy, and practice who have successfully navigated the complications of bridging these worlds and get feedback on next steps.    

Selected participants will receive complimentary registration, accommodations for two nights, and a $400 travel stipend.  

What To Expect?

Pre-Event 

Practitioner Applications: Deadline to Apply – June 12 

Individuals from school districts, local and state agencies, or other educational organizations are invited to submit applications outlining a critical problem or challenges their organizations face—ranging from boosting student achievement to overcoming implementation barriers to college completion.  

Virtual Presentations of Selected Practitioner Projects: Week of July 13 

Practitioner teams selected to participate in Innovation Day will be invited to present their problems of practice at virtual meetings so that interested researchers may learn more before applying. This will also provide an opportunity for practitioners to get some early feedback and continue to refine their questions. Practice teams who are unavailable to attend at these times may record their presentations in advance, and we will capture any discussion and feedback to share afterward. 

Researcher Responses: Deadline to Apply – July 24  

SREE will put out a second call to the research community to indicate their desire and expertise on the identified topics, which will help to form the consultations and prepare before the event. 

Innovation Day (September 22-23, 2026):  

On September 22, the evening before Innovation Day, participants will be invited to a networking dinner to meet fellow attendees and learn more about each other’s interests. 

On September 23, in the morning of the first day of the SREE conference, practitioners and researchers will convene to participate in structured, collaborative activities designed to foster meaningful partnerships. The day’s programming includes: 

• Small-group sessions to help participants refine their questions and collaboratively develop research-informed strategies.  
• Facilitated engagement with experienced knowledge brokers to support collaborative discussions. 
• Networking opportunities designed to broaden access to resources across the field. 

 Who Should Participate?

Practitioners from districts and/or educational organizations with pressing problems or challenges in their work that they want to solve through research evidence. Examples of such questions could include: 

• More than 20% of our elementary students are absent on any given instructional day.  How should we address this problem of chronic absenteeism, and how will we know our efforts are improving attendance? 
• Our state test results show that less than 50% of our 8th graders are proficient in math. How should we address this problem and how will we know if our efforts are improving 8th grade math proficiency? 
• Our college has a very low retention rate for first-generation students. What intervention should we implement to improve retention?   

Why Attend? 

Develop a deeper understanding of how research can inform concrete challenges in educational policy and practice. 

Build meaningful relationships between researchers and practitioners that support continued collaboration. 

Shape future research agendas that are grounded in real-world educational priorities. 

Gain exposure to leading education funders and receive valuable feedback on emerging project ideas. 

Access tools and expertise to help bring collaborative solutions to life. 

Join us at SREE and Arnold Foundation Innovation Day and be part of a community transforming education through meaningful, evidence-based collaboration. 

Practitioners – Apply Today!