A Decade of Progress—and What’s Next for CS Education—at the 2026 ECEP Summit

Expanding access to and participation in computing education took center stage in March 2026, as the Expanding Computing Education Pathways (ECEP) Alliance convened its annual Summit at the J.J. Pickle Research Campus at The University of Texas at Austin.

The event convened teams from 33 states and the territory of Puerto Rico to highlight state-level strategies for overcoming obstacles to participate in computer science education (CSEd). Across two days, action-oriented sessions provided tangible lessons on increasing universal CSEd access and opportunity and navigating challenges in the education space, spotlighting the theme of Reflecting on a Decade of CS for ALL.

Texas Advanced Computing Center Executive Director Dan Stanzione opened the Summit, welcoming more than 100 attendees to the milestone 10th annual gathering.

“This work is all about community — leaning on and learning from each other,” said ECEP Director Jaci McCune. “We all have areas of expertise and live in different locations, so it's important that we learn and grow together.”

ECEP’s mission is to broaden participation in computing by identifying and addressing the policies, pathways, and practices in state education systems that are barriers to universal student engagement and success. The Alliance works with state-level leaders and uses data to discover which students do not have access to computer science (CS) pathways and reasons why.

“The ECEP Summit offers dedicated time to work on actionable team goals and opportunities to learn different strategies from other states."

“The ECEP Summit offers dedicated time to work on actionable team goals and opportunities to learn different strategies from other states,” said Sara Frey of the Pennsylvania team. “Our team members have different roles, so we can approach Summit breakout sessions from varying perspectives to learn strategies that we can bring to our state.”

The 2025 State of CS Report demonstrates the need for state-level plans to expand participation in computing. In Alliance member-state Alabama, 92 percent of high schools offer at least one foundational CS course and 98 percent of school districts offer a course. By comparison, only 44 percent of high schools in non-ECEP state Idaho offer at least one course. The national average is 60 percent.

Being an ECEP state member appears to have a positive relationship to implementing policies which support CSEd for all students.

“Our research findings suggest that ECEP states, on average, have adopted a broader and more comprehensive set of policies to support and sustain CS education,” said Ryan Torbey, Evaluation Researcher for the ECEP Alliance. “We find this especially true in policy areas that require ongoing investment and systemic coordination.”

At the Summit, state teams began formally documenting their CSEd progress over time through State Snapshots. These snapshots will publicly showcase the milestones, catalysts, and efforts put towards increasing universal access to computing education in ECEP states. Attendees also collaborated on a variety of projects designed to improve K-12 CS education. Ideas included improving data collection and reporting, training more CS teachers, and establishing a state nonprofit for CS and artificial intelligence (AI) education advocacy. The Summit spotlighted the evolution of computer science education since 2016, alongside a state-by-state view of how CS offerings have expanded nationwide.

Computer Science Teachers Association Director Jake Baskin, Kapor Center Chief Research Officer Sonia Koshy, and Expanding Pathways In Computing Director Carol Fletcher comprised a panel moderated by Aman Yadav and reflected on a decade of CSEd progress and shifts. The powerhouse trio also offered insights into where CSEd may be heading with the proliferation of AI in classrooms.

“We have an opportunity to recruit educators who may not see themselves as CS teachers and show them that this content already exists in what they’re teaching or can easily be adapted in their classrooms.”

“We have an opportunity to recruit educators who may not see themselves as CS teachers and show them that this content already exists in what they’re teaching or can easily be adapted in their classrooms,” Baskin said. “I love working with partners like ECEP to create the best teaching and learning environments for our students.”

“If we in CSEd want to reach every student, we must dedicate time and effort to helping teachers understand how to effectively integrate CS lessons from elementary to high school,” Fletcher added. “Embracing a holistic approach to education will also address how we address AI literacy for future generations, instead of expecting them to take one class and fully understand AI.”