Projects in the Education program area inform policy and practice that support high-quality, educational opportunities for all Americans. Building on the Academy’s long-standing commitment to the vital role that education and knowledge development play in our nation and world, the program area–through commissions, projects, convenings, and publications–engages scholars and practitioners from a range of fields and disciplines to examine the conditions that foster the creation, transfer, and preservation of knowledge throughout our society. These initiatives seek to advance equitable educational outcomes, embrace innovations in educational experiences and learning, and connect developments in technology and the future of work to the classroom and training pathways.
ADVISORS
Deborah Loewenberg Ball
University of Michigan
Joanne Berger-Sweeney
formerly, Trinity College
Nancy E. Cantor
Hunter College
Greg Duncan
University of California, Irvine
Joan Gabel
University of Pittsburgh
Kris Gutierrez
University of California, Berkeley
Nicholas B. Lemann
Columbia University
Susanna Loeb
Stanford University
Michael Lomax
United Negro College Fund
John C. Mitchell
Stanford University
Na’ilah Suad Nasir
Spencer Foundation
Francesca Purcell
Harvard University
Marcelo M. Suárez-Orozco
University of Massachusetts Boston
David Weinstein
Write the World
Project
The Higher Education Forum
The Higher Education Forum at the Academy draws on the strengths of Academy Affiliates, members, and other experts to provide interdisciplinary perspectives on the most pressing issues affecting higher education.
The Higher Education Forum’s annual convening was held in Aspen, CO, on June 2–5, 2025. More than one hundred higher education experts and leaders, including university presidents, provosts, and academic deans from many of the Academy’s Affiliate institutions, gathered to discuss topics such as higher education financing and governance, the changing political landscape, housing challenges in their communities, technology and security innovations, and efforts to strengthen inclusion on campus.
FUNDERS
Lumina Foundation
Alfred P. Sloan Foundation
TIAA
Bank of America Private Bank
Barclays
BrandEd
Kaplan, Inc.
Mellon Foundation
Spencer Foundation
David C. Weinstein
Project
Commission on Opportunities After High School
The Commission on Opportunities After High School was launched in May 2024. Its mission is to recommend strategies that would help every student to thrive, find rewarding jobs in a rapidly changing global economy, and participate fully in society. The Commission is focused on expanding opportunities for underserved students so that multiple routes to success are broadly accessible. The Commission is developing recommendations that address the obstacles that may hinder student progress and identifying promising pathways from high school into higher education or directly into the workforce.
COMMISSION CHAIRS
Nancy E. Cantor
Hunter College
Harrison Keller
University of North Texas
Bridget Terry Long
Harvard Graduate School of Education
COMMISSION MEMBERS
Kirsten Baesler
North Dakota Department of Public Instruction
Gilda A. Barabino
Olin College of Engineering
Kristen Bennett
Service Year Alliance
Emily Callahan
Brown County Schools, Indiana
Jason Callahan
The Forum for Youth Investment
Mary Schmidt Campbell
formerly, Spelman College
Shirley M. Collado
College Track
Michael Collins
Jobs for the Future
Michelle Asha Cooper
Lumina Foundation
Aimée Eubanks Davis
Braven
Arne Duncan
Emerson Collective
Elena Fuentes-Afflick
Association of American Medical Colleges
Lisa Gevelber
Google LLC
Roberto G. Gonzales
University of Pennsylvania
Antonia Hernández
formerly, California Community Foundation
Enrique Hernandez, Jr.
Inter-Con Security Systems
Sheila Johnson
Salamander Hospitality
Perri Klass
New York University
Félix V. Matos Rodríguez
City University of New York
Janet A. Napolitano
University of California, Berkeley
Santa J. Ono
Ellison Institute of Technology
Eloy Ortiz Oakley
College Futures Foundation
Bobby Pace
Community College of Aurora
Tracy P. Palandjian
Social Finance
Madeline Pumariega
Miami Dade College
John White
Great Minds
Anthony Woods
Stealth Startup
David S. Yeager
University of Texas at Austin
Laura Zabel
Springboard for the Arts
PROJECT STAFF
Melissa Chan
Program Coordinator for Education (2021–2025)
Kimberlee Eberle-Sudré
Program Director for Education (2022–2025)
Peter Robinson
Chief Program Officer
Pamela Taylor
Program Director for Education (2025–present)
Catherine Van Ness
Program Officer for Education
FUNDERS
Spencer Foundation
Carnegie Corporation of New York
William T. Grant Foundation
Robert and Elizabeth Pozen
Anonymous Source
COMMISSION MEETINGS
Third Meeting of the Commission
April 14–15, 2025
House of the Academy, Cambridge, MA
At this meeting, Commission members discussed key themes that emerged from listening sessions held in nine states with employers, community leaders, and high school and college students and administrators. Commissioners discussed both the central messages that will frame the final report and the draft recommendations, which will focus on developing students’ life skills, empowering students’ agency, and aligning education and workforce systems.
Fourth Meeting of the Commission
October 28–29, 2025
Virtual
At the Commission’s fourth meeting, Commission members discussed and agreed on a framework for the final report, which will include historical context and a reimagined system for the future of students’ journeys through postsecondary education and training. Commission members reviewed draft recommendations presented by the Commission’s working groups on K-12 education, postsecondary education, and the future of work and society. The meeting also included robust conversations about the Commission’s final products and plans for outreach after the public release of those products in 2026.