Since ECEP’s launch in 2012 with just two states, ECEP has grown into a national collective impact network of 29 states and the territory of Puerto Rico. This growth has brought continuous changes and improvements as the network responds to the evolving needs of CS education (CSEd) advocates and leaders. 2025 marks a significant milestone for ECEP, as we usher in exciting changes. We are pleased to announce that ECEP has received a five-year renewal of support from the U.S. National Science Foundation (NSF) for the NSF BPC-AE: Expanding Computing Education Pathways (ECEP) Alliance. The support of NSF, along with Google.org and the Siegel Family Endowment, undergirds ECEP’s continued commitment to building state-level capacity for systemic change in policies, pathways, and practices that collectively advance state broadening participation in computing (BPC) goals. ECEP’s goals include:

• Serving as a national hub for scalable BPC;
• Building state capacity to implement BPC strategies;
• Empowering state leaders to build and utilize state data systems to track BPC gaps and outcomes; and 
• Catalyzing BPC student outcomes 

ECEP will continue to serve the CSEd community through signature ECEP services, including convenings, state coaching, co-sponsorships, ScIP professional development and GECKO grants in partnership with CSTA. Additionally, new resources tailored to meet states’ needs, such as the ECEP Teams Toolkit, will be released in 2025. These resources are strategically developed to support states as they grow and revitalize the broad-based leadership teams needed to continue to advance BPC in a rapidly changing socio-political environment. 

Building on the success of ECEP Connect, in 2025 ECEP will also launch ECEP Connected, a virtual workshop series that allows for deeper exploration of topics covered at ECEP Connect. These virtual convenings are designed to build lasting connections and share resources nationally, leverage the expertise of partner BPC Alliances and ECEP resources. 

ECEP’s premier initiative, the Common Metrics Project (CMP), will enter a new phase with the launch of Cohort 5, bringing a cohort of six ECEP states together to continue building states’ capacity to leverage CSEd data for BPC. Also in 2025, an ECEP-wide data request will be completed, to continue strengthening the ECEP CS data dashboard that has been developed based on several years of research and working alongside state CSEd leaders. 

ECEP 4 also brings new transitions in leadership. ECEP Co-Principal Investigators (PI) Dr. Anne Leftwich of Indiana University and Dr. Debra Richardson of University of California, Irvine will move into an advisory capacity, allowing the Alliance to continue leveraging their expansive expertise and institutional knowledge. New Co-PIs, Dr. Allison Scott of the Kapor Foundation and Dr. Aman Yadav of Michigan State, will join the PI team, helping ECEP expand into new directions that support our BPC goals. Dr. Scott, along with Dr. Sonia Koshi of the Kapor Foundation, will lead ECEP’s participation in the Justice-Centered Computer Science Initiative focused on building and implementing an equity-explicit policy framework for K-16 computing education. Dr. Yadav will lead research in building and measuring equitable teacher capacity for CSEd, particularly in the pre-service space. Finally, ECEP external evaluator Dr. Aileen Reed, will move into an advisory role. Dr. Callie Edwards of North Carolina State’s Friday Institute will lead ECEP’s external evaluation. 

The ECEP collective impact network has enabled the Alliance to serve as a national hub for BPC resources, a testbed for interventions whose lessons can be scaled nationally, and a locus for connecting and convening diverse advocates for CSEd who are committed to advancing BPC goals at scale. The Alliance looks forward to a new year filled with additional opportunities to build and sustain state CSEd ecosystems that prioritize equitable capacity for, access to, participation in, and experiences of CSEd for the 33 million K-16 students in ECEP states and the entire nation.

To learn more about ECEP’s initiatives, access valuable resources, and stay informed about upcoming events, visit our website at www.ecepalliance.org.