Previous colloquium speakers, videos and materials are available here.
PEPG events are intended to create an open academic environment in which top scholars can present and discuss the best current thinking on education policy and governance. Towards this end, the program has hosted numerous conferences and seminars since its founding in 1996. And in 2003, we initiated the Education Policy Colloquium Series with the expressed purpose of providing the Harvard community with greater access to cutting-edge education research.
Spring 2026 Colloquium Series
All events run from 12 to 1:15 p.m. A light lunch will be served. Events are free and open to the public. R.S.V.P. to attend.
The ‘Gerrymandering’ of K-12 Education
Thursday, March 12
Vladimir Kogan, Professor, Department of Political Science, Ohio State University
Responding: Scott Levy, Adjunct Lecturer, Harvard Graduate School of Education
WAPPP Cason Conference Room, Taubman 102, HKS
Kipp Academies
Thursday, March 26
Shavar Jeffries, CEO, KIPP Foundation
WAPPP Cason Conference Room, Taubman 102, HKS
Labor Market Strength and Declining Community College Enrollment
Thursday, April 2
Joshua Goodman, Associate Professor of Education and Economics, Boston University
WAPPP Cason Conference Room, Taubman 102, HKS
Educating for Democracy
Thursday, April 16
James Traub, American journalist and historian
WAPPP Cason Conference Room, Taubman 102, HKS
The Jagged Frontier of AI in Education: Uneven Gains, Real Risks, and What Comes Next
Thursday, April 23
John Bailey, American Enterprise Institute
WAPPP Cason Conference Room, Taubman 102, HKS
Colloquium archive
Emerging School Models
Broadening the landscape for choice
Now entering its fifth annual convening, the Emerging School Models conference continues to grow as a leading national forum on school choice and educational innovation. Acknowledging proliferating state legislation across the country as well as the new federally-funded tax-credit scholarship program, this year’s theme shall emphasize “Broadening the landscape for choice.”
We are now accepting proposals for this year’s conference, hosted on September 17–18, 2026, at the Harvard Kennedy School of Government in Cambridge, Mass. We seek proposals that focus on research, policy, practice, or an integrated combination of these areas. Submissions highlighting school choice issues and innovative school models in the public and private sectors are encouraged, as are proposals showcasing new technologies, accountability policies, support systems, fiscal models, and programs designed to scale emerging models.
Learn more and submit a proposal
Empirical Methods in Education Reading Group
The Empirical Methods in Education Reading Group (EMERG) meets once a month to discuss recent methodological innovations in empirical/quantitative education research.
College Application Mistakes and the Design of Information Policies at Scale
Monday, Nov. 24
By Tomás Larroucau, Ignacio A. Rios, Anaïs Fabre and Christopher Neilson
11 a.m. WAPPP Cason Conference Room, Taubman 102, HKS
This session will be hybrid, with one room at HKS and one at UAndes (Chile). Cecilia Correa (UAndes) will lead the session, which will also be available on Zoom.
At each meeting, the Program on Education Policy and Governance will provide light snacks and beverages.
For more information on EMERG, email mkarnani@hks.harvard.edu.
For past events and conferences, please visit our archive.