Call for Conference Proposals

Due April 1, 2024

Education plays a unique role in helping the marginalized feel they matter and belong. How do laws advance or hinder that objective, historically and currently? In what ways do school choice, finance, governance, and safety reflect these trends? How does education law relate to the marginality-mattering paradigm in special education or when seeking to guard students’ and teachers’ rights in K-12 and in postsecondary institutions, both public and private?

The Education Law Association (ELA) welcomes proposals for members and non-members to offer concurrent paper presentations, roundtable discussions, poster sessions, and panels at the 69th Annual Conference in Reno-Tahoe from October 25-28, 2023. The event features scholarship, interdisciplinary dialogue, and networking opportunities with scholars, attorneys, and practitioners in K-12 schools and higher education. All proposals will go through a double-blind peer-review process with presentation opportunities for all levels—emerging, mid-career, and established scholars and practitioners.

Paper Sessions are either 20- or 40- minute presentations inclusive of audience engagement.

Roundtables are short presentations designed to elicit and facilitate a 20- to 30-minute discussion.

Poster Sessions are visual representations with a trifold display of one’s work and a 10-minute informal presentation for interested attendees.

Invited Programs are panels and keynote presentations made at the invitation of the ELA Conference Committee.

The conference invites submissions that address the intersection of law and our education system, both K-12 and higher education. While all are welcome, proposals are encouraged from teams that showcase ELA’s diversity of professions, roles, viewpoints, and demographics. Think “Big Tent!”

The Reno-Tahoe conference is an onsite event. We are considering virtual options for presentations of paper sessions, and applicants will be asked for their preference should a virtual option be made available.

Requirements

Registration: All presenters listed in the proposal are required to register for the conference no later than September 4, 2023 (Labor Day). The contributions of non-attendee collaborators may be acknowledged by attendees in the presentation, but non-attendees will not be listed as presenters in the conference.
Profiles: Before submitting your proposal, we require all contributors to create free accounts on EducationLaw.org and genuine profiles with headshots, titles, affiliations, and biographies.
Length: The entire proposal will be 3-5 pages long (single or double spaced) with all identifying information removed for the double-blind peer-review process.
Proposal Sections: The proposal form requires the submission of a title, abstract, and keywords. The application will also identify the intended audience (attorneys, administrators, educators, researchers, policymakers, or some combination) and presentation type (paper session, roundtable, poster session). Visit Proposal Portal at Educationlaw.org to view the form and download a proposal template.