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Conference Justification Kit

The National Summit on Improvement in Education is the annual gathering and rallying point for the vibrant and diverse community of improvers, people like you who are working to create educational systems where all young people learn and thrive. This year, your Summit 27 registration also unlocks Deeper Learning 2027 — two premier events for one investment. Need help making the case to come to San Diego this spring? We’ve got you covered.

Below are tips and resources — including an email/letter template — you can use to make your case to your school, district, or organization to approve and fund your learning experience.

Creative Funding Options

We want all educators, leaders, and changemakers to experience Summit 27 + DL27, but know that registration and travel costs can be a barrier. Below are our recommendations for how you can fund your investment in two conferences for one ticket.

Team, Departmental or District Support

Either individually or with a team, make a case for how attending Summit 27 + DL27 will benefit not only your personal development but also your team or department. Present a proposal outlining the value you’ll bring back to the organization, and offer to host a lunch-and-learn to share the most important learnings.

Use Title II funds (federal dollars designated for professional development) to attend. These funds are typically managed at the district level and can support conference participation when it aligns with instructional priorities and school improvement goals. Connect with your school or district leadership early; share how Summit 27 + DL27 aligns with your professional goals and student outcomes; ask your administrator to explore using Title II funds on your behalf.

Many organizations offer grants that can support conference attendance as part of your professional learning.

Tips for success: frame Summit 27 + DL27 as part of a broader learning plan, connect your experience to student impact and systems change efforts, and start early on application deadlines. You can also explore opportunities through GrantWatch.

Local foundations and community organizations often support educators working to strengthen schools. Even if you don’t see a perfect fit, many regional funders are open to conversation when proposals clearly connect to local impact.

Reach out to local businesses or corporate sponsors with a philanthropic arm in education. Offer to wear their logo, give them a shout-out on social media, or write a blog post highlighting their support.

Many educators effectively crowd-fund and leverage their school’s PTA. Outline the benefits of attending, emphasizing impact on practice and student learning.

Some associations offer scholarships or grants to members. If you’re a member, find out if they’ll help cover your conference costs.

Pre-Conferences

Post-Conferences Huddles

Summit 101

Session Types

Advisory: Intentional small-by-design sessions organized around specific problems of practice or role-alikes create an opportunity to build relationships, process experiences from the event, and discuss, plan, and act toward the future.

Workshops: 90-minute workshops will connect you with improvers and highlight promising practices. Session descriptions and details are posted in Sched grouped by 3 strands: Thrilling Results, Improvement Methods, and Leading Improvement.

Improvement Reviews: A powerful routine – experienced in a fishbowl setting – where improvement teams reflect on their data and learning, share a dilemma, and receive feedback from experts who can provide a fresh perspective and push.

Poster Sessions: Explore a hosted gallery of posters that represent a wide array of improvement efforts. Learn from and with others in the field who are seeking innovative solutions.

Fireside Chats: Opportunities for attendees to engage in deep conversations on issues that matter in education. No slide decks, just real talk—this is a place for attendees to connect with luminaries, hear transformative stories, and ask questions.

DL Crossover sessions: At Deeper Learning 2026 (DL26), a global community of educators, visionaries, and change-makers unites to reimagine what’s possible in education. The Deeper Learning Conference features immersive and transformative learning experiences that inspire participants to design and lead with purpose, creativity, and joy. In 2026, we’re bringing together the powerful Deeper Learning and Improvement communities through select crossover sessions, culminating in a joint closing keynote. You are invited to dive deeper and make new connections at Summit 2026. Check out our Summit and DL26 comparison to learn more.

Post-Conference Problem of Practice Huddles: Intentional spaces for people attending Summit to connect around shared problems of practice and mobilize around collective action.

Selecting Sessions

When do we select sessions?

Sched Preview Week will start on February 24th, when you can look at the session descriptions and make a plan for sessions you are interested in. During this week, Sched will be view only. You’ll want to ensure you are able to log into your Sched during preview week so you are ready for session selection. 

On March 3rd at 5pm Pacific Time, you may select your sessions. Sessions hold a maximum of 25 participants by design, so some will fill up quickly. You will want to have 3-4 options in mind in case your first choices are full. There will be no waitlists.

What is the Thrilling Results Workshop Strand?

The purpose and promise of continuous improvement is to create meaningful change and better outcomes for students and families. Sessions in this category highlight improvement efforts that have gotten compelling results, tell the story of how those results were achieved, and provide evidence that the changes led to improvement. These sessions also support attendees to engage in a key practice, tool, or framework that was pivotal in the improvement effort and that attendees might apply in their own contexts. 

What is the Improvement Methods Workshop Strand?

Expertise is growing in the field as organizations and districts across the country build improvement into their daily practice to enact and sustain change. Methods sessions provide the “how to” knowledge improvers need to take their improvement practice to the next level. In these sessions, attendees get to roll up their sleeves and apply tools and approaches that have advanced improvement in varied settings. They also get to explore methods and models that push the boundaries of how we “do” improvement. Attendees will leave with concrete resources and insights to inform work in their own contexts.

What is the Leading Improvement Workshop Strand?

Leadership plays a critical role in shaping, sustaining and spreading improvement, whether we are leading a team, school, district, organization or network. Leading improvement for transformation requires the ability to shift existing norms, build learning cultures, and work with others to redesign our systems to positively impact the lives of the people we serve. Sessions in this category attend to the ways we build improvement capacity within systems and networks, create a pipeline of improvers of all backgrounds, and promote the enabling conditions and policies needed to sustain improvement in education now and into the future.  

What are Improvement Reviews?

Improvement Reviews showcase a powerful routine that supports team learning and organizational change efforts. Presenters in this category will share an improvement project/effort in progress, reflect on their data and learning, pose a dilemma, and receive feedback from experts who can provide a fresh perspective and advice. These sessions are led by Summit facilitators using a structured protocol in a fishbowl format, which allows session attendees to experience this routine, learn more about the presenting team’s work, and glean insights to inform their own improvement efforts. Improvement Reviews were among the most highly rated sessions last year – by attendees and presenters alike! They are an essential way we “walk our talk” as a learning community that celebrates and pushes each other’s work.

Why should I attend Advisory?

In past summits, people have appreciated intentional places to connect with colleagues interested in similar problems or serving similar roles. At Summit 2026, ADVISORY is that place! You can think of it like your “home room” for the conference, a group you will meet up with twice during Summit to reflect, connect, and mobilize.

Link to Sched

Schedule Overview

A detailed 3-day event schedule for the National Summit on Improvement in Education 2026, featuring color-coded blocks for sessions, meals, workshops, and more from March 30 to April 1—plus links to key Summit Resources.

You can find the full Summit  2026 schedule on Sched.

Meals

LUNCH 

March 31, Day 2

Your lunch schedule will be determined by your selected Improvement Review Time.

If you are in Improvement Review Round 1, you will have lunch from 12:45-1:45.

If you are in Improvement Review Round 2, you will have lunch from 11:30-12:30. 

April 1, Day 3 

Lunch will be served from 1:00-2:00, after our amazing closing event. If you are leaving early, you may pick up boxed lunches in front of the High Tech Elementary Gym starting at 11:00.

Meet Ups & Social Hashtags

Share your Summit experience on social media! Follow us on your favorite platform and post the things delight, surprise, inspire, and make you reflect. Use the hashtags #ImprovementSummit and #Summit2026


If you want to create a meet up group during the conference, simply post using #Summit2026, and invite others to join you. You might create a meet up to run along the waterfront in the morning, or meet up with fellow district improvement teams at breakfast, or find other folks who are curious about solving chronic absenteeism during lunch. Don’t forget to include information about the date, time, and place for the meet up!

Campus Map

Summit 2026 takes place across our Point Loma Campus. Registration and the Opening Event will take place at the High Tech High Graduate School of Education Forum (2150 Cushing Rd. San Diego). All other conference activities will take place at:

  • High Tech High International (HTHI) 
  • High Tech Elementary (HTE)
  • The Forum 

Bring your walking shoes and explore our Point Loma Campus! Don’t forget to bring sunscreen and an umbrella for our outdoor passing periods.

A campus map showing High Tech High Point Loma, including buildings for High Tech High, High Tech Middle, High Tech International, and High Tech Elementary—plus parking, field, dining areas, labeled event locations, and access to Summit resources.

Building Maps

Four floor maps labeled for High Tech Elementary (HTE) and High Tech High International (HTHI) schools’ first and second floors are shown below a National Summit on Improvement in Education 2026 banner, highlighting key summit resources.

HTHGSE Conference Comparison

Frequently Asked Questions

What should I know about checking in at the event launch?

Registration opens at 1:30 am on March 30th at the parking lot for the High Tech High Graduate School of Education Forum (2150 Cushing Rd.). Before you arrive, ensure you have created a Sched profile and signed up for your sessions. There is early check in available from 4-6 pm on Sunday, March 29th at the High Tech High Graduate School of Education Forum.

Late check-ins can get their badge from the late check in desk at the help desk at High Tech Elementary.

There is a help desk at High Tech High International and High Tech Elementary and registration and Sched support at the opening event. For those who need support with mobility, you may use our golf cart service to help you move between buildings.

We are hosting the Deeper Learning conference concurrently. Opening and closing events will take place at the High Tech High Graduate School of Education Forum. Summit sessions will take place at High Tech High International and High Tech Elementary. Deeper Learning sessions will take place at High Tech High (original) and High Tech Middle. Check out our Summit and DL26 comparison to learn more.

Connection Corridor in High Tech Elementary provides a space for informal connections. This is the perfect spot to find new friends or meet up with old friends.

The Marketplace provides you an opportunity to support the student run screen-printing program at High Tech High by purchasing awesome Summit merch such as t-shirts and totes! You’ll also be able to purchase books by some of the Deeper Learning and National Summit on Improvement in Education presenters at the “self-serve” bookstore and through Myers Education Press. The Marketplace is located at the High Tech Elementary Gym.

We invite you to use the Calm Corner, located on the second floor of High Tech Elementary above the Gym for meditation, reflection, or naps. For nursing mothers, we offer a Lactation Room. Please inquire with staff for access.

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