FAQs - Stronger States, Stronger Outcomes: From Compliance to Capacity

About the Convening

What is Stronger States, Stronger Outcomes: From Compliance to Capacity? Stronger States, Stronger Outcomes is a 2-day in-person convening for state education agency (SEA) leaders focused on strengthening SEA capacity, deepening collaboration, and improving outcomes for students.

The convening will bring together SEAs, the U.S. Department of Education, the Comprehensive Centers Network (including Regional Comprehensive Centers and Content Centers), and Regional Educational Laboratories (RELs) for peer learning, practical problem solving, and shared planning.

When and where will the convening take place? The convening will take place September 9–10, 2026, at the Grand Hyatt Washington, 1000 H Street NW, Washington, DC 20001.

Who will host the convening? The convening will be hosted by the National Comprehensive Center, in partnership with the U.S. Department of Education.

What is the purpose of the convening? The convening is designed to help SEAs move from compliance to capacity by creating time and space for SEA leaders to learn from one another, share practical strategies, and strengthen the systems that support districts, schools, educators, families, and students.

Participants will explore how SEAs are building internal capacity, using federal flexibilities, strengthening the educator workforce, supporting families, and working with federally funded TA partner organizations to advance state and jurisdictional priorities.

What will SEAs gain by participating? SEA teams will have the opportunity to:

learn directly from other SEAs about promising and practical approaches;
engage with leaders from the U.S. Department of Education;
strengthen relationships with Regional Comprehensive Centers, Content Centers, RELs, and other federally funded TA partner organizations; and
leave with clear next steps for applying what they learned in their own state or jurisdictional context.

The goal is for SEA teams to leave not only with information but also with practical ideas, stronger connections, and a clearer path to action.

Is this a public event? No. This is a closed-door convening for SEAs, federally funded TA partner organizations, invited guests, and the U.S. Department of Education.

Attendance and Registration

***NEW***How can I request a seat after registration closes on July 17? We understand that some state educational association (SEA) attendees were unable to register by July 17 because of prior commitments and other circumstances. (Our thoughts are with those affected by the typhoons in the Pacific.)

If you are from an SEA, please submit your registration request through Cvent. We will review and process your request as quickly as possible. If your SEA has already used all available seats, we will reach out for more information.
If you are a team member from a Regional Comprehensive Center, Content Center, or Regional Educational Laboratory, please email us at CCNetworkConveings@Westat.com. Please include your name, affiliation, title, and preferred contact email address.

We appreciate your assistance in registering or notifying us of your waitlist request as soon as possible. We will begin releasing seats to waitlist attendees on Tuesday, July 28.

***NEW***How will you distribute seats to the waitlist? The primary objective of this event is to build SEA capacity. As such, priority will be given to SEA attendees. After processing all SEA waitlist requests, we will release remaining seats to federally funded technical assistance centers based on (1) the date the request was received and (2) the number of SEAs that a Regional Comprehensive Center serves relative to the number of attendees registered to date. We will complete this process at the beginning of August. If additional requests arrive after August 1, we will handle them on a first-come, first-served basis until we reach capacity limits for the main ballroom.

Who should attend from my SEA? SEAs are encouraged to send leaders who are well positioned to connect the convening content to state or jurisdictional priorities and bring learning back to their agency. This may include chief state school officers or designees, deputy chiefs, senior SEA leaders, program leads, strategy or innovation leads, and staff responsible for work aligned with the convening theme.

How many people can attend from my SEA or organization? Current attendance limits are as follows:

Up to 3 people per SEA, ideally the chief (or a designee) and 2 colleagues. Additional seats will be provided to
- SEAs participating in the Learning Agenda pilot (+1 seat for the Learning Agenda lead)
- SEAs with accepted presentations or panels (+1 seat for presentations; +2 seats for panels)
Up to 3 people per Regional Comprehensive Center
Up to 2 people per Content Center
Up to 2 people per REL

When registration opens, SEA chiefs will receive an email from Jill Lammert outlining the number of seats offered to their SEA.

Can local education agency (LEA) representatives participate? The primary focus of the convening is to build capacity at the SEA level. However, SEAs may include LEA representatives as co-speakers in presentations when their perspective is important to the work. LEA representatives will count toward the SEA’s total number of attendees.

Will there be a waitlist? Yes, we will maintain a waitlist. SEAs and organizations who would like to send more people than their allotted number of attendees should email the event planning team at CCNeworkConvenings@westat.com by Friday, July 17. Kindly limit the number of requested waitlist attendees to 1–3 per SEA or organization.

After registration fully closes, additional participants may be invited from the waitlist as space allows. Waitlisted participants will receive a decision in early August. Waitlist decisions will prioritize SEA participation, balance attendance across participating organizations, and honor the time commitment of selected speakers.

Travel and Reimbursement

***NEW***Can I obtain documentation showing that SEA attendee travel costs will be covered? Yes, we have prepared a letter for SEAs that attests that the NCC, operating under a grant funded by the U.S. Department of Education, will cover all travel costs for SEA attendees. The letter certifies that the NCC will cover the cost of airfare or rail travel, lodging, ground transportation, and per diem at the applicable federal rate. All travel expenses will be managed in accordance with applicable federal travel regulations and requirements.

We have posted a copy of this letter to Cvent, here. If additional information is required to support your agency's travel approval process, please contact us at CCNetworkConvenings@westat.com.

***NEW***How will you support attendees traveling from the Pacific East and Pacific West islands who may have limited flight options? Our travel agents will help you find connecting flights that suit your needs and allow you to participate fully in the event. We understand that some travelers may need to stay additional days in the Washington, DC, area due to their flight schedules. We are prepared to cover all business-related travel costs for extended stays, including per diem for all travel days.

***NEW***I am with an SEA and was asked to self-book my travel using the GetThere platform. How do I access the platform? Here are the instructions: How to Use GetThere Instructions (Updated July 1). If you registered before July 1, please use this link instead of the one in your email, which may not work. If you experience any issues accessing the document or making your travel arrangements, please email CCNetworkConvenings@westat.com to be connected with our Travel Office.

***NEW***What should I do if, while using GetThere, the self-booking platform, I receive an error message for a flight that seems reasonable? If you receive an error message in GetThere, such as “outside of policy” for a flight that appears reasonable, please email CCNetworkConvenings@westat.com to be connected with our Travel Office. One of our agents will be happy to work with you to review additional options and help identify a reasonable flight that meets both your needs and travel policy requirements.

How many people’s travel costs can the National Comprehensive Center cover? To advance SEA learning and promote collaboration, the U.S. Department of Education has authorized the National Comprehensive Center to cover travel costs for all SEA attendees and one attendee from each invited federally funded TA partner organization, including Regional Comprehensive Centers, Content Centers, and RELs.

Requests for travel reimbursement beyond these numbers will be reviewed on a case-by-case basis.

What travel costs will be covered by the NCC? For all SEA attendees and sponsored travelers, NCC will cover the cost of travel to the event (flights, train, or personal vehicle) as well as lodging, per diem, and ground transportation. Our travel office will arrange all hotels and travel (flights or train) for sponsored travelers, either by supporting travelers directly or reviewing requests submitted through our self-booking platform GetThere.

How will travel reimbursement work? The travel reimbursement process will differ by organization.

For SEA attendees:
Westat’s travel team will book hotel and airfare directly. After the event, SEA attendees will receive an expense report form to submit for other eligible costs, such as food and ground transportation.
For Regional Comprehensive Center, Content Center, and REL attendees:
Please book your hotel and airfare on your own. A room block has been reserved at the Grand Hyatt Washington. Please reserve your room here. For the one sponsored attendee, Westat will cover lodging costs directly through the hotel and provide an expense report form for other eligible costs, such as economy airfare, per diem, and ground transportation. Expense report forms must be returned by Friday, September 25 for processing.
For all travelers:
Travel costs must be reasonable, appropriate, and compliant with federal travel regulations. Receipts are required for claimed expenses. If a participant chooses to extend their stay in Washington, DC for personal reasons, only event-related expenses for approved travel and meeting days will be reimbursed. (Extra days required to accommodate limited flight options are considered approved travel days.)

Will meals be provided? As of June, breakfast and lunch will be on your own. Additional details will be shared before the convening. Because the convening is federally funded, all meals and refreshments must comply with applicable federal requirements. Participants should review forthcoming “Know Before You Go” materials for final details.

***NEW***Pacific and Atlantic Islands Gathering (PAIG)

What is the Pacific and Atlantic Islands Gathering (PAIG)? In partnership with the U.S. Department of Education and the Pacific East, Pacific West, and Islands Comprehensive Centers, the NCC is offering an optional Pacific and Atlantic Islands Gathering (PAIG) for SEA leaders from American Samoa, the Federated States of Micronesia, Guam, Hawaiʻi, the Republic of the Marshall Islands, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, Palau, Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Virgin Islands attending the Convening.

Where and when is the PAIG? This optional meeting will take place on Friday, September 11, 2026, from 9:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. ET at Westat’s Offices in nearby Bethesda, MD. Round-trip transportation will be provided from Grand Hyatt.

What topics will be covered? Participants will have the opportunity to exchange strategies, promising practices, and lessons learned on topics such as:

Processes to support grants (e.g., Consolidated Grants and Palau Grant)
Disaster resilience and recovery
Leveraging federal partnerships to support educational priorities
Applying NCC resources and supports within island education contexts

How do I register for the PAIG? Interested participants should first register for the Stronger States, Stronger Outcomes Convening. Further details for the optional PAIG will be shared directly with registered attendees from the Pacific and Atlantic Islands and the federally funded technical assistance centers that support them. If you have questions, please email us at CCNetworkConvenings@westat.com.

Agenda and Session Format

To download a PDF version of the agenda click here.

How was the agenda developed? The agenda was developed to support the convening theme, From Compliance to Capacity, and to create meaningful opportunities for SEA teams to learn from one another.

The National Comprehensive Center identified initial themes in consultation with the U.S. Department of Education and with input from Regional Comprehensive Centers. The agenda also reflects proposals submitted through an open call for presentations and posters.

How were proposals selected? Proposals were reviewed through a process that included members of the National Comprehensive Center team and representatives from selected Regional Comprehensive Centers. Reviewers used a rubric to assess proposals based on factors such as alignment with the convening theme, emphasis on outcomes and learning, evidence of collaboration and partnership, and usefulness to other SEAs. The U.S. Department of Education also reviewed submitted proposals.

What will the agenda include? The agenda will include a mix of plenary sessions, SEA-led presentations, panels, poster sessions, Learning Agenda sessions, and structured peer exchange.

Day 1 will feature a plenary session on the Learning Agenda followed by a series of concurrent breakout sessions featuring SEA-led presentations and examples of promising work from across the country. Multiple chief-only sessions are also planned.

Day 2 will feature a plenary session on federal flexibilities and waivers, moderated by the U.S. Department of Education and featuring multiple SEAs. There will also be time reserved for a “consultative exchange” with presenters from Day 1, giving participants time to dig deeper, ask questions, and consider how ideas may apply in their own context.

Will there be opportunities to meet with peers from other SEAs? Yes, peer learning is central to the design of the convening. Participants will have structured and informal opportunities to connect with colleagues from other SEAs, compare approaches, ask candid questions, and build relationships that can continue beyond the convening.

Presenters and Posters

***NEW***I am a presenter at the convening. Where do I submit my materials and when? As a reminder, the content deadline details and submission links were shared via email on July 1, 2026. If you are unable to locate those emails, please refer to the following submission links:

Presenter Bio and Photo Submission: due by July 24, 2026
Draft Presentation/Poster Submission: due by July 24, 2026

Thank you in advance for submitting presenter materials on time to ensure timely review by the content team and the U.S. Department of Education.

***NEW***I’m being paired with another SEA presentation during a concurrent session. As we prepare draft slides for our SEA’s presentation, should we coordinate with the other SEA team? We intend to post the full agenda on August 1, identifying which SEAs are being paired together. There is no need to coordinate with the other SEA ahead of time. We will have a room host/concierge who will introduce each team for their presentation. Our hope is that session attendees who come for learning from one SEA will also be inspired by the other.

***NEW***What (if anything) do we need to prepare for the consultative exchange on Day 2? No materials are required for the consultative exchange. You might anticipate what additional details you could share as you engage others in conversation. You will not have access to a screen or projector. You are welcome to bring your laptop in case you want to reference an online resource.

My proposal was selected. What should I expect next? Selected presenters will receive follow-up communication with preparation details, deadlines, session expectations, and any templates or materials needed for the convening. As part of the development process, presenters should expect to receive and respond to feedback from the convening’s content review team and the U.S. Department of Education.

Presenters should be prepared to share not only what their SEA or partnership has done but also what others can learn from it. Strong sessions will focus on practical implementation, lessons learned, evidence of progress where available, and questions or considerations that may help other SEAs adapt the work in their own context.

Are selected presenters expected to participate in both days? Yes, presenters should plan to participate fully in the convening. Day 1 presentations are designed to introduce key work and lessons. Day 2 will provide additional opportunities for deeper discussion, consultation, and peer exchange.

Can presentations include work that is still emerging? Yes, the convening is designed to support ongoing learning, not just completed projects. SEAs may highlight mature initiatives as well as promising projects that are still being developed or implemented.

If results data are limited, presenters should focus on what they are learning, what questions they are still working through, what conditions have supported progress, and what other SEAs may want to consider.

Can federally funded TA partner organizations co-present with SEAs? Yes, federally funded TA partner organizations, including Regional Comprehensive Centers, Content Centers, and RELs, may support proposal development and co-present alongside SEAs. SEA leadership participation in the session is strongly encouraged.

Are SEAs required to present in order to attend? No, SEAs may attend the convening and participate actively in workshops, peer discussions, Learning Agenda activities, and consultative exchanges without submitting or presenting a proposal.

I’m interested in presenting a poster. What would that involve? Poster presenters will receive a template and guidance from the National Comprehensive Center. Design support may be available upon request. The National Comprehensive Center will also print the poster, so presenters do not need to travel with a printed poster.

Poster sessions are intended to make it easy for participants to learn about a range of state or jurisdictional efforts, ask questions, and identify colleagues for follow-up conversations.

May I include prerecorded videos in my presentation? Yes, prerecorded videos are welcome, especially when they help bring the work to life by featuring LEA staff, educators, families, students, or partners who supported implementation. Presenters should ensure that all videos are appropriate for the audience and that any required permissions have been secured.

Communications and Event Materials

Will materials be shared before the convening? Yes, registered participants will receive event communications before the convening, including agenda information, preparation details, and “Know Before You Go” materials.

Will sessions be livestreamed or offered virtually? No, the convening is designed as an in-person meeting and will not be livestreamed. Due to high interest, we plan to record a few of the sessions about the Learning Agenda. These recordings and selected other materials will be shared after the convening.

Will there be photography or videography at the convening? Yes, several sessions will include photography and video to help document and share key themes, resources, and lessons from the convening. A photo release will be collected at registration. If you have concerns about your image being shared publicly, please let us know at registration or email us at CCNetworkConvenings@westat.com.

How should I prepare for the convening? SEA teams may want to discuss the following questions before arriving:

What SEA priority do we most want to advance through this convening?
What implementation challenge would we like to discuss with peers?
What promising work from other SEAs would be most useful for our team to learn about?

Coming with a clear learning goal will help teams make the most of the convening.

Call for Proposals

Is the call for proposals still open? No, the call for proposals closed on June 1.

Who was eligible to submit a proposal? SEAs were asked to lead the submission process. Federally funded TA partner organizations, including Regional Comprehensive Centers, Content Centers, and RELs, could provide support to SEAs during proposal development and can co-present alongside SEA partners at the convening.

What types of proposals were encouraged? The call invited presentations, panels, and poster sessions that highlight efforts that are strengthening SEA capacity, supporting districts and schools, improving implementation, and contributing to better outcomes for students.

Proposals could include mature initiatives, emerging work, early lessons, policy or practice changes, and examples of meaningful collaboration between SEAs and their federally funded TA partner organizations.