2026 Early College Summit: Full Schedule

RTI International will host the 2026 Early College Summit on June 9–10, 2026 at the Benton Convention Center in Winston-Salem, NC. This two-day event for early college leaders and program teams will focus on research-based early college and dual enrollment strategies to improve practice and support student success in rigorous learning environments. The Summit is designed so that veteran and new early college practitioners and college partners can collaborate to learn and share expertise to improve learning and student outcomes. Join us as we strengthen our capabilities to empower learners for future ready success!

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10:45am EDT

Instructional Advancement through Inquiry

Tuesday June 9, 2026 10:45am - 11:45am EDT

Salem 3C

Educators and instructional leaders are invited to reflect on Innovation Early College's journey of cultivating faculty capacity to create a school-wide culture of student-inquiry. In this session, participants will develop a shared understanding of high-level inquiry as sustained investigation with increased student agency, examine how intentional vocabulary instruction and exemplars build teacher capacity, apply a practical observation tool to support inquiry-based instructional growth, and examine how inquiry-based instruction advances core Early College outcomes, including student agency, persistence, postsecondary readiness, and credit attainment.

Presenters

Angela Powell

Instructional Coach, Innovation Early College High School

Daniel Fussell

Social Studies Teacher, Innovation Early College High School

Wesley Grant

Dean of Students, Innovation Early College HS

Jennifer Ferguson-Attardi

Tuesday June 9, 2026 10:45am - 11:45am EDT
Salem 3C

Innovative Instruction

1:00pm EDT

Early Colleges Improve Mathematics College Readiness for Underprepared Students

Tuesday June 9, 2026 1:00pm - 2:00pm EDT

Salem 3C

This session will present the results of a mixed methods experimental study that examined the impacts of the Early College High Schools in North Carolina on students’ success in college preparatory mathematics courses in the 9th through 11th grades, disaggregated for academically prepared and underprepared students. The results show that the Early Colleges have improved students’ course-taking and success for all students, but the impacts are larger for underprepared students. The analyses of classroom observations and interviews with mathematics teachers reveal that instruction in the ECHS displayed a mix of traditional approaches and rigorous student-centered instructional practices.

Presenters

Nina Arshavsky

Senior Research Specialist, RECN 2.0, Early College Research Center, UNCG

Nina Arshavsky is a Senior Research Specialist at the Early College Research Center/SERVE Center at UNC-Greensboro. Dr. Arshavsky’s research and evaluation projects focus on STEM, dual credit, and early college model, which she has been studying for over 18 years. Dr. Arshavsky... Read More →

Tuesday June 9, 2026 1:00pm - 2:00pm EDT
Salem 3C

Research Policy & Impact