2025 Summit: Investing in Inclusive PK-3 Education
This year's virtual summit brings together educators, administrators, and researchers in child development to explore both the importance of inclusive PK-3 education and practical strategies to maximize its impact. By bridging research and practice, this conference aims to empower educators and decision-makers with the knowledge and strategies needed to maximize over $5 billion in annual federal and state funding toward early childhood education—ensuring that resources translate into lasting impacts for young learners.
Details
Keynote
Cultivating Joy & Learning for All Across the Early Grades
- Speaker: Iheoma U. Iruka, Ph.D.
- Description: The first eight years of life set the foundation for children's learning, school, and life success. Unfortunately, race, place, language, ability, and zip code continue to determine whether children have the access and opportunities to flourish and be on track for school and life success. The urgency to act is now! This keynote will examine key evidence-informed factors that ensure all learners have access to joyful and enriching learning opportunities. Specifically, this presentation will cover some of the key features that can be aligned from PK-3 (i.e., the early grades) to improve the pathways for excellence for children and their families.
Conference Schedule
Saturday, October 11th
| Time (PT) | Track 1 Preserving Play, Powering Learning: What PK-3 Really Needs |
Track 2 Starting Strong: Equity and Inclusion in Early Childhood |
|---|---|---|
| 8:30 – 8:45 AM |
Opening Remarks State Context and Purpose Speakers: Alison Yoshimoto-Towery, Ed.D. & Jennie Grammer, Ph.D. | |
| 8:45 – 10:00 AM | Keynote Cultivating Joy & Learning for All Across the Early Grades Speaker: Iheoma U. Iruka, Ph.D. |
|
| 10:00 – 10:10 AM | Break/Transition | |
| 10:10 – 11:00 AM | Playful Learning: Teaching Across the Play Spectrum to Supercharge Learning Speaker: Jennifer M. Zosh, Ph.D. & Rachelle Bacong Moderator: Julie Schneider, Ph.D. |
Designing for All: Preparing Educators and Schools for PK-3 Success Speakers: Hilary Seitz, Ph.D., Jenny C. Chiappe, Ph.D., James Koontz, Ed.D. Moderator: Kate Esposito, Ph.D. |
| 11:00 – 11:10 AM | Break/Transition | |
| 11:10 – 12:00 PM | Empowering Families to Promote Playful Learning in Their Community Speakers: Andres Sebastian Bustamante, Ph.D. & Wendy G. Gomez Moderator: Kathy Do, Ph.D. |
Innovative PK-3 Leadership: Intentional Practices for Equity and Inclusion Speakers: Megan Gross, Jessica Maiorca-Nunez, Ed.D., Jennifer Hunt Moderator: Jennie Grammer, Ph.D. |
| 12:00 – 12:15 PM | Break/Transition/Grab Lunch | |
| 12:15 – 1:00 PM | Lunch & Learn Reflect, Network and Share | |
| 1:00 – 2:00 PM | Breakout Sessions: Resource Sharing and Arraya Demonstration Reading, Literacy, and Standard 7 Content PK-3 Courses Navigating Arraya |
|
Speaker Lineup
FAQ
What is the UC|CSU Collaborative 2025 Summit?
The 2025 Summit is the UC|CSU Collaborative’s annual summit focusing on bringing together educators, administrators, and researchers. This year’s theme is Investing in Inclusive PK-3 Education.
Where is the Summit happening?
This year’s summit is completely virtual and will be hosted on our hub, Arraya Learning.
How do I register?
To register, all you need to do is make a free Arraya Learning account and click “Register” at our registration page.
What is Arraya Learning?
Arraya Learning is a centralized, research-based resource hub developed and vetted by leading experts across the University of California (UC) and California State University (CSU) systems. Developed by the UC|CSU Collaborative, Arraya Learning is completely free to users. Learn more at https://www.arrayalearning.org/p/about.
Is it free to register and attend?
Yes! The 2025 Summit is free to register and attend!