Notice2025-18608
Request for Information; Feedback on Redesigning the Institute of Education Sciences (IES)
Primary source
Metadata and text below are from the Federal Register, a public-domain U.S. government work. Always verify the official published version before relying on it for any legal matter.
Published
September 25, 2025
Issuing agencies
Education Department
Abstract
The Education Sciences Reform Act of 2002 established the Institute of Education Sciences (IES) as the research, evaluation, and statistics arm of the U.S. Department of Education. IES is responsible for generating, disseminating, and promoting the use of rigorous evidence to improve education outcomes nationwide. IES is undertaking a comprehensive reexamination to ensure that its core functions-- research, statistics, evaluation, and dissemination--are carried out in ways that maximize relevance, timeliness, and usability for the education stakeholders who rely on them. Specifically, the goal is to ensure that IES' high-quality work is translated in ways that inform teacher and practitioner practice and has a meaningful, positive impact on students' academic achievement and other outcomes. Through this RFI, we seek public input on how IES can modernize its programs, processes, and priorities to better serve the needs of the field and American students.
Full Text
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<title>Federal Register, Volume 90 Issue 184 (Thursday, September 25, 2025)</title>
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[Federal Register Volume 90, Number 184 (Thursday, September 25, 2025)]
[Notices]
[Pages 46187-46188]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [<a href="http://www.gpo.gov">www.gpo.gov</a>]
[FR Doc No: 2025-18608]
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DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION
[Docket ID: ED-2025-IES-0844]
Request for Information; Feedback on Redesigning the Institute of
Education Sciences (IES)
AGENCY: Institute of Education Sciences (IES), U.S. Department of
Education.
ACTION: Request for Information (RFI).
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SUMMARY: The Education Sciences Reform Act of 2002 established the
Institute of Education Sciences (IES) as the research, evaluation, and
statistics arm of the U.S. Department of Education. IES is responsible
for generating, disseminating, and promoting the use of rigorous
evidence to improve education outcomes nationwide. IES is undertaking a
comprehensive reexamination to ensure that its core functions--
research, statistics, evaluation, and dissemination--are carried out in
ways that maximize relevance, timeliness, and usability for the
education stakeholders who rely on them. Specifically, the goal is to
ensure that IES' high-quality work is translated in ways that inform
teacher and practitioner practice and has a meaningful, positive impact
on students' academic achievement and other outcomes. Through this RFI,
we seek public input on how IES can modernize its programs, processes,
and
[[Page 46188]]
priorities to better serve the needs of the field and American
students.
DATES: We must receive your comments on or before October 15, 2025.
ADDRESSES: Submit your response to this RFI through the Federal
eRulemaking Portal at <a href="http://www.regulations.gov">www.regulations.gov</a>. We will not accept
submissions by postal mail, commercial mail, hand delivery, fax, or
email. To avoid duplicate submissions, please submit your comments only
once and include the Docket ID at the top of your comments.
If you require an accommodation or cannot otherwise submit your
comments via <a href="http://Regulations.gov">Regulations.gov</a>, contact: <a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#6d1f080a18010c190402031e0508011d09081e062d0a1e0c430a021b"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="c8baadafbda4a9bca1a7a6bba0ada4b8acadbba388afbba9e6afa7be">[email protected]</span></a> or
call 1-866-498-2945. For telecommunications relay services, dial 7-1-1.
Privacy Note: All comments will be made publicly available on the
Federal eRulemaking Portal at <a href="http://www.regulations.gov">www.regulations.gov</a>. Do not include
personally identifiable information (PII) about others. Comments
containing PII or confidential business information may be redacted.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Amber Northern, Senior Advisor, Office
of the Secretary, U.S. Department of Education, 400 Maryland Avenue SW,
Washington, DC 20202. Telephone: (202) 251-0077. Email:
<a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#a1e8e4f2c7c4c4c5c3c0c2cae1c4c58fc6ced7"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="662f2335000303020407050d26030248010910">[email protected]</span></a>.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Background
The mission of the Institute of Education Sciences (IES), codified
in 20 U.S.C. 9511(b)(1), is to: ``Provide national leadership in
expanding fundamental knowledge and understanding of education from
early childhood through postsecondary study, in order to provide
parents, educators, students, researchers, policymakers, and the
general public with reliable information about, including the condition
and progress of education in the United States, including early
childhood education and special education; educational practices that
support learning and improve academic achievement and access to
educational opportunities for all students; and the effectiveness of
Federal and other education programs.''
IES carries out its mission through four centers:
1. National Center for Education Statistics (NCES)--responsible
for collecting and analyzing education-related data.
2. National Center for Education Research (NCER)--funds research
that expands understanding of educational practices.
3. National Center for Special Education Research (NCSER)--
focuses on improving outcomes for children with disabilities.
4. National Center for Education Evaluation and Regional
Assistance (NCEE)--evaluates federal programs and supports Regional
Educational Laboratories (RELs), What Works Clearinghouse (WWC), and
technical assistance efforts.
IES is currently undergoing a comprehensive assessment to
strengthen its structure, priorities, and operations. This effort seeks
to align the priorities of IES more closely with current state and
local education needs, reduce duplication of effort, and increase the
speed at which evidence is produced and used.
Purpose of This RFI
This RFI invites specific suggestions on how IES can:
<bullet> Function more cohesively across its four centers to ensure
shared goals drive data collection, research funding, and technical
assistance.
<bullet> Better meet the needs of state and local leaders, educators,
parents, researchers, and state education agencies.
<bullet> Improve the timeliness, accuracy, and accessibility of its
statistics and research products.
<bullet> Maximize the utility of federal and other education program
evaluations.
<bullet> Strengthen partnerships with other federal agencies or between
state agencies to align data and reduce redundancy.
<bullet> Improve mechanisms for disseminating and scaling evidence-
based practices, including the work of the RELs, WWC, and R&D Centers.
<bullet> Modernize its peer review, grantmaking, and contracting
processes to encourage innovation while maintaining rigor.
Specific Areas of Interest
We especially welcome comments on how IES should:
1. Prioritize and streamline federal data collections to balance
burden and benefit.
2. Leverage its grantmaking to advance impactful, practitioner-
relevant research on pressing topics, with specific input on the
identification of those topics.
3. Improve the reach and utility of evidence dissemination.
4. Support states and districts through more responsive
technical assistance and capacity building, including building
states' capacity for using evidence and creating a culture of
continuous improvement.
Important Notes
<bullet> This is a request for information only. It is not a request
for proposals (RFP), nor does it indicate a commitment to issue an RFP
or make funding available.
<bullet> The Department will not provide direct responses to comments,
nor will it return submitted materials.
<bullet> Submission of comments is voluntary and does not create any
right or benefit, substantive or procedural, enforceable at law or in
equity by any party against the Department.
Responses should be concrete and solution oriented.
Accessible Format
Upon request, individuals with disabilities can obtain this
document in an accessible format (e.g., RTF, txt, thumb drive, MP3,
braille, large print, audiotape, or compact disc) by contacting the
program person listed above.
Electronic Access
The official version of this document is published in the Federal
Register. To access it or related materials, visit:
<bullet> <a href="http://www.govinfo.gov">www.govinfo.gov</a> (for the official Federal Register and Code of
Federal Regulations)
<bullet> <a href="http://www.federalregister.gov">www.federalregister.gov</a> (for search and PDF access)
Privacy Note: The Department's policy is to generally make all
comments received from members of the public available for public
viewing in their entirety on the Federal eRulemaking Portal at
<a href="http://Regulations.gov">Regulations.gov</a>. Therefore, commenters should be careful to include in
their comments only information that they wish to make publicly
available.
Matthew Soldner,
Acting IES Director, U.S. Department of Education.
[FR Doc. 2025-18608 Filed 9-24-25; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4000-01-P
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