Centers and Institutes
In addition to our five departments of academic study, the College of Education is proud to be the home of the following research institutes, centers and support offices.
These programs have their own administrative offices and are affiliated with the research conducted by our faculty and graduate students. Each center aims to increase the knowledge and practices of teaching and learning from multiple perspectives of education.
Center for Community College Student Engagement (CCCSE)
CCCSE, a service and research initiative, assists institutions and policymakers in using information to promote improvements in student learning, persistence and attainment by delivering “aha” moments about the student experience based on insights that matter. Since its founding in 2001, more than 70% of the nation’s community colleges have participated multiple times in a CCCSE survey.
Center for Research to Community Impact
CRCI, formerly known as TexCEP, is dedicated to bridging the gap between scientific research and real-world solutions that benefit all communities. Researchers affiliated with CRCI lead cutting-edge studies in education and health while actively sharing their findings with stakeholders and community partners in a collaborative effort to optimize positive outcomes for children, families, schools and communities.
The Fitness Institute of Texas
The Fitness Institute of Texas (FIT) opened in 2001 to enhance the education of UT students and to provide the greater Austin community with a resource to design and execute health-related research. Initially focused on conducting fitness assessments, FIT began offering nutritional services and Get FIT, a 12-week group exercise and weight loss program in 2008. At this time, FIT conducts more than 2,000 assessments and works with approximately 500 Get FIT participants each year.
H.J. Lutcher Stark Center for Physical Culture and Sports
The H.J. Lutcher Stark Center for Physical Culture and Sports is a research center housed within the Department of Kinesiology and Health Education. It is a unique combination of library, archive, and gallery/exhibit space featuring The Joe and Betty Weider Museum of Physical Culture.
Institute for Public School Initiatives
The Institute for Public School Initiatives focuses on improving student performance from preschool through high school via strategic partnerships with UT institutions, community colleges, school districts and state agencies.
LONESTARP3
LONESTARP3 brings together researchers, education leaders and policy advocates together to surface urgent problems of practice and policy, conduct investigations to address those problems and produce research with clear and immediate use. The College of Education is proud to serve as the hub for our statewide network of members.
Meadows Center for Preventing Educational Risk
The Meadows Center for Preventing Educational Risk is dedicated to generating and disseminating empirically validated knowledge and practices to influence educators, researchers, policy-makers, families and other stakeholders who are striving to reduce academic, behavioral and social risk in all learners, particularly those with disabilities.
National Deaf Center
As deaf people leave high school and prepare for college or careers, the National Deaf Center (NDC) wants them to succeed. Our research shows that deaf people are not completing college degrees, getting jobs or earning as much as hearing people. We’re here to change that.
Texas Education Research Center (Texas ERC)
The Texas ERC provides access to longitudinal, student-level data for scientific inquiry and policymaking purposes. Since its inception in 2006, the Texas ERC’s goal has been to bridge the gap between theory and policy by providing a cooperative research environment for study by both scholars and policy makers.
UT PK-12 Schools
The UT PK-12 Schools operate as an integrated laboratory system with the College of Education, connecting researchers, practioners and students across three distinct yet interconnected school districts. This system translates cutting-edge research directly into classroom practice while serving 6,000+ students from prekindergarten through high school.
The Vaughn Gross Center for Reading and Language Arts
The Vaughn Gross Center for Reading and Language Arts provides information to educators statewide and nationally about research-based effective practices in the teaching of reading and language arts. The center aims to promote academic success for students in Texas and across the nation.
