National Center for Innovation in Education

The Center for Innovation in Education started in 2013 with support from the William and Flora Hewlett Foundation and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. It is housed at the University of Kentucky. Putting learners and learning at the center, CIE strives to be a national voice to build consensus around a new, more coherent vision of education and to help state and local systems develop and act on robust theories of change. A unique part of CIE’s approach is working in cooperation with state education agencies and local districts on innovation priorities, with both policy and with practice, so that lessons learned can inform state policy and be more likely to enable real transformation. From its inception, CIE has been a partner with the Council of Chief State School Officers in supporting the Innovation Lab Network. We convene the ILN Implementation Leaders Advisory to give power to the voices of teachers and local leaders and to tap their collective wisdom. Today, CIE also works with a number of other partners and beyond the ILN states. We frame all of our work around learning agenda, trying to bring diverse perspectives together around complex problems and engaging practitioners with the research community to test solutions and draw new insights.