The Spencer Foundation periodically organizes conferences on specific topics pertaining to educational research. The purpose of these conferences is to identify and discuss topics that have not yet been explored or that merit further inquiry and to develop agendas for future research.
The "Idea of Testing" Project
Fall 2001 - present
Agenda (April 30 - May 3, 2002 meeting)
Agenda (October 10 - 13, 2002 meeting)
Agenda (October 2 - 5, 2003 meeting)
Agenda (February 19-22, 2004 meeting)
Needs and Opportunities in Education Research, 2002-2012
June 25 - 27, 2002
Keynote Speech by the Honorable David S. Tatel, United States Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit
Traditions Of Scholarship In Education
January 24 - 25, 2002
30th Anniversary Conference
Conference Report: "Out of Balance: Our Understanding of how Schools Affect Society and How Society Affects Schools" 
by Richard Rothstein
Studying the Urban High School
May 17 - 18, 2001
New Directions in the History of Education
March 30 - 31, 2000
Sociology and Education
March 1 - 3, 2000
Women's Studies and the Study of Women: What Do We Know About Them and Their Influence?
September 30 - October 1, 1999
Conference on Collaborative Research for Practice
March 11 - 12, 1999
Culture, Child Development, and Education
October 22 - 23, 1998
Economics and Educational Research
June 15 - 16, 1998
Political Science and Educational Research
June 10 - 11, 1998
Community Colleges: Issues and Research
March 4 - 5, 1998
Immigration and Education: Issues and Research
October 8 - 9, 1997
Researching Issues of Diversity in Higher Education
May 28 - 29, 1997