National Academy of Education

What National Academy of Education does

The National Academy of Education (NAEd) is an independent, Washington, DC-based non-profit founded in 1965 that operates as an honorific society of leading education researchers and as a grantmaking/research body. Its core activity is administering three competitive NAEd/Spencer fellowship programs—Dissertation Fellowships ($27,500 per academic year, 35 awarded annually), Postdoctoral Fellowships ($70,000 per academic year, 25 awarded annually), and Research Fellowships ($100,000 per year, 12 awarded annually)—alongside the Equity in Math Education Research Grants (EMERG) program. NAEd also commissions and publishes consensus study reports and research initiatives addressing teacher preparation, balanced assessment systems, civic reasoning and discourse, COVID-19 educational inequities, educator support for equitable learning environments, and the use of generative AI in assessment. Governance is provided by an elected member body of 353 U.S. members and international associates drawn from top research universities, plus an operating staff of approximately 8 personnel led by Executive Director Gregory White.

The organization's go-to-market is event-driven rather than commercial: scholars are recruited through competitive fellowship applications, annual research initiative calls, and professional development retreats, with distribution of findings via website, email newsletter, LinkedIn, Twitter/X, and YouTube channels. NAEd has no technology platform, no API surface, no mobile applications, and no proprietary software products; its 'products' are funded fellowships, published reports, and convening capacity. The Academy does not sell to or price its outputs for end users—recipients receive funding rather than pay for services.

NAEd is funded primarily through foundation grants, with the Spencer Foundation serving as the principal funder of the NAEd/Spencer fellowship suite, complemented by the William T. Grant Foundation, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, the William and Flora Hewlett Foundation, and individual/organizational donations. The organization files amicus briefs in federal courts on education-policy matters (including a June 2026 Fourth Circuit filing opposing DoDEA curriculum censorship and prior Supreme Court and Oklahoma state-level filings) and engages in federal funding advocacy, including a joint letter signed with 96 organizations urging protection of IES funding. Revenue figures are not publicly disclosed in the input data.

Name

National Academy of Education

Legal name

National Academy of Education

Website

https://naeducation.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1965

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

The National Academy of Education is a 501(c)-equivalent non-profit founded in 1965, headquartered in Washington, DC, that administers fellowships and publishes consensus research to advance high-quality education research and its use in policy and practice. It serves doctoral candidates, postdoctoral scholars, and early-career education researchers through programs funded by the Spencer, Gates, William T. Grant, and Hewlett foundations.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Education Research and Policy

NAICS

Educational Support Services (611710), Educational Services (611)

SIC

Services-Membership Organizations (8600), Services-Educational Services (8200)

akta.pro primary industry

Scholarship & Fellowship Foundations and Trusts (EDADAHAC)

akta.pro secondary industry

Research, Capstone & Extended Essay Mentoring (IB EE, independent research) (EDANAKAH)

Keywords

• Education research
• Fellowship programs
• Education policy
• Professional development
• Scholarly membership

Headquarters

HQ city

Washington

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Others

Revenue model

1. Foundation Grants and Fellowship Funding: NAEd receives funding from foundations including the Spencer Foundation, William T. Grant Foundation, Gates Foundation, and Hewlett Foundation to administer fellowship programs and conduct research initiatives. The Spencer Foundation provides primary funding for NAEd/Spencer Fellowship programs.
2. Donations and Support: The organization accepts donations from individuals and organizations to expand capacity for advancing high-quality education research, professional development of education scholars, and application of research to education policy and practice.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

NAEd administers competitive fellowship programs (Dissertation, Postdoctoral, Research) that provide funding ($27,500–$100,000) to early-career education scholars, alongside research grants such as the EMERG program and consensus research initiatives addressing pressing issues in education policy and practice. It also functions as an honorific society of 353 elected U.S. and international education researchers whose members mentor fellows and produce guidance for the field.

Product overview

The National Academy of Education operates a portfolio of fellowship programs and research initiatives rather than a unified technology product. Its core offerings include three competitive fellowship programs—the NAEd/Spencer Dissertation Fellowship ($27,500 for doctoral candidates), the NAEd/Spencer Research Fellowship ($100,000 for recent PhDs), and the NAEd/Spencer Postdoctoral Fellowship ($70,000 for early career scholars)—alongside the EMERG (Equity in Math Education Research Grants) program providing ten early career research grants. The organization also conducts multiple research initiatives addressing pressing educational issues including the Use of Generative AI in Assessment, Educator Support for equitable learning environments, Civic Reasoning and Discourse education, Balanced Assessment Systems, COVID-19 educational inequities, and Teacher Preparation Programs. These are research-based professional development and knowledge products rather than commercial software or technology platforms.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• NAEd/Spencer Dissertation Fellowship A competitive fellowship program that supports doctoral candidates with $27,500 for one academic year, professional development retreats, and mentorship from NAEd members to complete their dissertation research on education. Supports 35 doctoral fellows annually.
• NAEd/Spencer Postdoctoral Fellowship A non-residential fellowship supporting 25 early career scholars annually with $70,000 per academic year, professional development retreats, and mentorship for significant contributions to education research.
• NAEd/Spencer Research Fellowship A fellowship providing recent dissertation fellowship awardees with $100,000 for one year, professional development retreats, and mentorship to advance their research and career amid a disrupted academic job market. Supports 12 early career scholars annually.
• Equity in Math Education Research Grants (EMERG) Program A program of ten early career research grants supporting individual research projects focused on equitable mathematical experiences for K-12 learners from historically underserved populations, including African-American, Latine, Indigenous, and low-income communities. Funded by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.
• Use of Generative AI in Assessment Initiative A research initiative engaging a broad spectrum of stakeholders in a community-wide effort to design a structured, collaborative roadmap report that will guide the ethically responsible and effective use of generative AI in learning assessments.
• Educator Support Initiative: Evidence-Based Research for Equitable Learning Environments An initiative partnering with the Equity Assistance Center-South (EAC-South) at Southern Education Foundation to provide evidence-based guidance and technical assistance to educators and policy leaders for delivering effective learning experiences that fully engage cognitive, social-emotional, and cultural strengths of all students.
• Educating for Civic Reasoning and Discourse An initiative to improve students' learning in civic reasoning and discourse by developing discipline-specific teacher resources informed by the best available evidence, building on a 2021 NAEd report.
• Reimagining Balanced Assessment Systems An NAEd volume providing guidance on balanced assessment systems for state and local educational agencies, schools, and teachers regarding fostering productive assessment use, designing policy systems, and implementing data-driven improvements. Funded by Smarter Balanced/University of California Santa Cruz.
• Addressing Educational Inequities in the Wake of the COVID-19 Pandemic A project building on prior COVID-19 research to provide intervention strategies for improving student well-being and learning outcomes for historically marginalized populations affected by the pandemic. Funded by the William T. Grant Foundation.
• Evaluating and Improving Teacher Preparation Programs A consensus study report addressing the role of teacher preparation programs in recruiting, preparing, and retaining a qualified and diverse teacher workforce.
• Implications for Education of an Integrative Synthesis of Research on Human Learning and Development An initiative fostering a deeper understanding of the complex, dynamic processes of human learning and development by synthesizing cross-disciplinary research, creating an interdisciplinary community of practice, and developing multimedia tools to engage diverse audiences.

Quantifiable outcome

• 35 doctoral fellows supported annually through Dissertation Fellowship program
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers1 record

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

AI capability2 records

Partnerships

Two partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• Smarter Balanced/University of California Santa CruzcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerFunded the Reimagining Balanced Assessment Systems project, a NAEd volume providing guidance on balanced assessments for state and local educational agencies, schools, and teachers.
• Equity Assistance Center-South (EAC-South) at Southern Education FoundationcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartners with NAEd on the Educator Support Initiative to provide evidence-based guidance and technical assistance to educators and policy leaders for delivering effective learning experiences.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• American Educational Research Association: AERA is the largest U.S. professional society for education researchers, running grants, fellowships, and annual meetings; directly comparable to NAEd as a membership/research society for education scholars that also funds early-career researchers through dissertation grants.
• Society for Research on Child Development: SRCD is a membership society for developmental researchers that funds early-career scholars and produces policy-relevant research; directly comparable in size and mission (professional society + research funder in education-adjacent field).
• American Educational Research Association Foundation: The AERA Foundation runs research grants, dissertation awards, and training programs that directly overlap with NAEd's NAEd/Spencer programs; the most direct competitor for early-career education research funding.

Others

• Spencer Foundation: The Spencer Foundation is NAEd's primary funding partner for the dissertation, postdoctoral, and research fellowships, making it both a strategic ally and the closest comparable foundation operating in education research funding; categorized as 'Others' because it is a funder, not a competing membership organization.
• William T. Grant Foundation: William T. Grant is a major NAEd funding partner focused on youth development and education research; comparable as a private foundation running its own research initiatives, scholar programs, and policy advocacy in the same domain.
• Russell Sage Foundation: Russell Sage funds scholarly research on social, behavioral, and economic issues and runs early-career fellowship programs; comparable to NAEd as a private foundation running research grants and scholar programs in education-relevant behavioral sciences.

Broad incumbents

• National Academy of Sciences: NAS is the parent honorific academy under which NAEd was chartered and operates as a parallel affiliate; comparable as a peer-elected honorific society with consensus studies, policy influence, and a multi-disciplinary scholarly membership model.
• Institute of Education Sciences (IES): IES is the federal government's primary arm for education research and evaluation, running dissertation and early-career grant programs; a much larger incumbent funder in the same 'education research funding' space as NAEd and a direct substitute for many of NAEd's programs.

Emerging players

• National Council of Teachers of Mathematics: NCTM is the professional association for math educators, intersecting with NAEd's EMERG grant program focused on K-12 mathematics equity; partial overlap via shared focus on math education research and equity, though NCTM is broader (instruction/teachers) while NAEd is research-focused.
• Council of Independent Colleges: CIC serves small and mid-sized independent higher education institutions and runs faculty development programs; partially comparable as an education-sector membership body with fellowship-style programming for educators and emerging scholars.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/naeduc
• YouTubeyoutube.com/@nationalacademyofeducation6055
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/national-academy-of-education

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles18 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about National Academy of Education