The U.S. Education Department has awarded 5-year contracts to 10 Regional Educational Laboratories charged with carrying out research, development, dissemination, training, and technical assistance activities.

The laboratories, serving geographic regions that span the nation, work to ensure that those involved in educational improvement at the local, state, and regional levels have access to the best available information from research and practice. The current priority for the 2006-2010 contract period is providing policymakers and practitioners with expert advice, training, and technical assistance on how to interpret the latest findings from scientifically valid research pertaining to requirements of No Child Left Behind. In instances where scientific evidence is not available and schools need appraisal and analysis of alternative strategies to improve learning, the regional educational laboratories fill the void with applied research and development projects that include Fast Response Projects and Rigorous Studies.

The 10 Regional Educational Laboratories and the contractors are listed here:

REL Appalachia (Kentucky, Tennessee, Virginia, West Virginia) at The CNA Corporation, Alexandria, Virginia

REL Central (Colorado, Kansas, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, South Dakota, Wyoming) at Mid-Continent Research for Education and Learning, Denver, Colorado

REL Mid-Atlantic (Delaware, Maryland, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Washington, DC) at Pennsylvania State University, State College, Pennsylvania

REL Midwest (Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Michigan, Minnesota, Ohio, Wisconsin) at Learning Point Associates, Naperville, Illinois

REL Northeast & Islands (Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New York, Puerto Rico, Rhode Island, Vermont, the Virgin Islands) at Education Development Center, Newton, Massachusetts

REL Northwest (Alaska, Idaho, Montana, Oregon, Washington) at Northwest Regional Educational Laboratory, Portland, Oregon

REL Pacific (American Samoa, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, the Federated States of Micronesia, Guam, Hawaii, the Republic of the Marshall Islands, the Republic of Palau) at Pacific Resources for Education and Learning, Honolulu, Hawaii

REL Southeast (Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina) at University of North Carolina at Greensboro, North Carolina

REL Southwest (Arkansas, Louisiana, New Mexico, Oklahoma, Texas) at Edvance Research Inc., San Antonio, Texas

REL West (Arizona, California, Nevada, Utah) at WestEd, San Francisco, California