The U.S. Department of Education has awarded Education Northwest a five-year, $28.5 million contract to serve as the regional educational laboratory (REL) for the Northwest. The award, funded by the Institute of Education Sciences, builds on Education Northwest’s 46-year history of providing REL research and technical assistance services to clients in Alaska, Idaho, Montana, Oregon, and Washington.

“We are excited about the scope of work in the new contract,” says REL Northwest Director Steve Fleischman. “There is an emphasis on building regional stakeholders’ capacity to identify, access, use, and apply data and research to meet their self-defined improvement goals. The REL program also seeks to build a national knowledge base of reliable, actionable evidence to help improve student outcomes.”

One major difference between current and future work is that much of this capacity building and research will be carried out through collaborations with “research alliances.” These are established groups throughout the region that have agreed to work with Education Northwest on topics that reflect regional and national priorities, including turning around low-performing schools; increasing graduation rates and readiness for postsecondary education and careers; and achieving greater equity by improving outcomes for all students.

In addition to working with research alliances, REL Northwest will continue to offer customized, research-based answers to educators’ questions through its free Reference Desk service. And, it will continue to inform education policy and practice in the Northwest by conducting and disseminating studies that address critical regional challenges.

To stay up-to-date on REL Northwest resources and services, check the REL Northwest website frequently. For more information about the REL program, which includes 10 national laboratories, visit the IES website.

December 22, 2011