MIT Blueprint Labs

Co-director @davidautor explains the difference between automation technologies and collaboration technologies — and why there is huge untapped potential for AI to be used as a collaboration tool.

Thank you to the attendees and speakers who joined the 2026 School Quality Measures Conference, a two-day event that convened education leaders and researchers to explore evidence on school quality measurement. We hope this week’s conversations carry into the future.

Nearing the end of this week’s conference, Blueprint Affiliate @cqcampos presented recent research that examines how information and social interactions affect families’ decisions about which schools to send their children to. Read the research: blueprintlabs.mit.edu/research/socia…

This morning at the School Quality Measures Conference, Chicago Public Schools’ Kevin Shallcross and Denver Public Schools’ Pamela Wong discussed their experiences communicating multiple measures of school quality and performance.

At Blueprint’s SQM Conference, @instrumenthull and @FatimaDjalalova presented research that explores the links between test scores, surveys, and long-run outcomes. Baltimore City Public Schools’ Chris Wohn shared how BCPS uses surveys. Read the research: blueprintlabs.mit.edu/research/putti…

Many thanks to Pedro Martinez of @MASchoolsK12, @jennbellell, @DanWeisbergNYC, and Brandee Tate for sharing valuable insights.

This evening at MIT, a panel of leading policymakers and practitioners discussed the current school quality measurement policy landscape, how political realities shape school quality measurement, and how stakeholders can enact lasting positive change.

In the first session of Blueprint’s SQM Conference, Blueprint Labs Director @metrics52 shared Blueprint’s approach to measuring school quality, and New York City Public Schools’ Eric Ashton discussed New York City’s implementation of evidence-based school quality measures.

Today kicked off Blueprint’s 2026 School Quality Measures (SQM) Conference, a two-day event that aims to equip policymakers, practitioners, funders, and the research community with rigorous evidence on school quality measurement.

In Blueprint's latest challenge session, School Access and Quality Fellow Fernanda Flores-Bolivar led a discussion on recruiting and retaining students amid declining enrollment. Read more about the Fellowship here: blueprintlabs.mit.edu/mit-school-acc…

Interested in finding a research-practice partner for your charter work? Blueprint’s Charter Collaborative virtual matchmaking sessions give practitioners and researchers the chance to meet and build partnerships. Sign up now: docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAI…

Congratulations to Blueprint Affiliate Jack Mountjoy for receiving a 2026 Sloan Research Fellowship. The Fellowship is awarded to early-career scholars who “represent the most promising scientific researchers working today.” sloan.org/fellowships/20…

Who benefits from public school choice, and how is that shaped by how assignment systems are designed? New research by Blueprint Affiliates @cqcampos and @jmb112485 and co-authors Eric Chyn and Antonia Vazquez explores choice system designs’ effects: blueprintlabs.mit.edu/research/who-c…

In this week’s challenge session, SAQ Fellow Kevin Shallcross from Chicago Public Schools led a valuable discussion on how to hold districts accountable for providing school-level supports, as well as how to communicate those supports. Read about SAQ: blueprintlabs.mit.edu/mit-school-acc…

How will AI affect the labor market? A recent New York Times piece highlights a conversation between Blueprint Co-Director David Autor and two other economists on AI's potential effects on employment. nytimes.com/2026/02/04/opi…

In a newly published paper, Blueprint Director @prof_parag, Affiliate Camille Terrier, and co-author Kevin Ren examine England’s transition away from one type of centralized student assignment algorithm, called immediate acceptance. Read the research: blueprintlabs.mit.edu/research/from-…

What can educators learn from item-level standardized test data? A new @FutureEdGU article summarizes research by Blueprint Affiliate Jesse Bruhn and his co-authors that shows the information that can be gained from item-level analysis: future-ed.org/research-notes…

Read a recap of the launch of the Stone Center in MIT News. The event "[brought] together scholars, policymakers, and practitioners to explore critical questions about economic opportunity, technology, and democracy." news.mit.edu/2026/stone-cen…

In this week’s challenge session, School Access and Quality Fellow Paul Houchens led an interesting discussion on how to support schools, including alternative school models, attempting to meet federal accountability standards.

In 2025, Blueprint’s faculty and affiliates released 21 working papers and publications, the Charter Collaborative funded 16 research projects, the Stone Center launched within Blueprint Labs, and more. Take a look back at Blueprint’s year: blueprintlabs.mit.edu/2025-annual-re…