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Institute of Education Sciences


IES Centers
Director of IES
John Q. Easton

John Q. Easton

Director of the Institute of Education Sciences

John Q. Easton, the president's nominee for director of the Institute of Education Sciences (IES), was confirmed by the Senate on May 21, 2009, for a term of six years. IES is the research arm of the U.S. Department of Education. It encompasses the National Center for Education Statistics, the National Center for Education Evaluation and Regional Assistance, the National Center for Education Research, and the National Center for Special Education Research.

Easton comes to IES from Chicago, where most recently he was executive director of the Consortium on Chicago School Research at the University of Chicago. Easton was affiliated with the consortium since its inception in 1990, and became its deputy director in 1997. He had a long association with the Chicago Public Schools (CPS), serving in several research capacities, including as the director of the Department of Research, Analysis, and Assessment. He also served as director of research for the Chicago Panel on School Policy, where he led a study on the effects of decentralization on CPS.

Easton served a term (2003–07) on the National Assessment Governing Board, which sets policies for the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP), also known as the "Nation's Report Card." In 2008, he was awarded a presidential citation from the American Educational Research Association for "research leadership and evaluation studies focused on improving the nature and quality of education in a large urban city."

Easton holds a Ph.D. in measurement, evaluation, and statistical analysis from the University of Chicago; a master's degree from Western Washington University; and a bachelor's degree from Hobart College. He is the author or coauthor of numerous reports and articles, and two books: Charting Chicago School Reform: Democratic Localism as a Lever for Change and Organizing Schools for Improvement: Lessons from Chicago, published by the University of Chicago Press in January 2010.

Director's Remarks and Presentations

April 14, 2012
National Council on Measurement in Education: Inaugural Opening Plenary Session
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March 3, 2012
National Arts Education Association Talk
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January 25, 2012
Easton Welcome Remarks.
2012–2017 Regional Educational Laboratory Opening Conference
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July 07, 2011
Easton remarks, Economic Science Association
Chicago, Illinois
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June 22, 2011
National Institute of Justice Conference on Translational Research
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May 07, 2011
Talk to graduating IES fellows at the Graduate School of Education
University of Pennsylvania
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March 28, 2011
How Relevant Research Can Help Build a Science of Education
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and Frank Porter Graham Institute Talk
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September 24, 2010
Research Conference:
IES/National Center for Postsecondary Research/Foundation
Keynote speech, New York
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September 24, 2010
Developmental Education:
What Policies and Practices Work for Students
Teachers College, Columbia University
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September 20, 2010
Maryland High School Artists: A Juried Exhibition. Opening Talk
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July 28, 2010
Helping States and Districts Swim in an Ocean of New Data
STATS-DC 2010 Data Conference
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June 29, 2010
New Research Initiatives for IES
IES Research Conference Keynote Address
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May 2, 2010
Out of the Tower, Into the Schools: How New IES Goals Will Reshape Researcher Roles
Presidential Address, American Educational Research Association Conference, Denver, CO
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April 26, 2010
Connecting Research, Policy, and Practice: New Goals and Strategies at the Institute of Education Sciences
Keynote Address, University of Maryland College of Education Graduate Student Research Conference, College Park, MD
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April 7, 2010
Proposed new directions for IES research priorities
For discussion at NBES meeting
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February 20, 2010
John Easton's speech at the American Association of Colleges for Teacher Education (AACTE) conference in Atlanta
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January 29, 2010
John Easton's speech for the Higher Education Consortium for Special Education (HECSE)
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November 9, 2009
John Easton's address to the National Board for Education Sciences
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October 5, 2009
Swearing-in ceremony, John Q. Easton as Director of IES
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September 11, 2009
Introduction for Education at a Glance, OECD Breakfast Series
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September 10, 2009
Speech at "Chicago Contributes," a University of Chicago forum on health care and education in Washington D.C.
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August 12, 2009
Speech by Director John Q. Easton presented in New Mexico at the Stupski Foundation's Education R&D Summit
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August 7, 2009
Comments to National Assessment Governing Board
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July 29, 2009
NCES Summer Data Conference Presentation
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June 8, 2009
Plenary Address, 2009 IES Research Conference
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