Research Centers

The USC Center for Affective Neuroscience, Development, Learning and Education (CANDLE) brings educational innovation and developmental affective neuroscience into partnership, and uses what is learned to guide the transformation of schools, policy, and the student and teacher experience for a healthier and more equitable society.

Established in 2017, the Center for Empowered Learning and Development with Technology (CELDTECH) is a transdisciplinary research center that promotes equity in digital learning and development among urban populations in formal and informal contexts. CELDTECH takes an intersectional approach to the study of learning with technology and foregrounds the nexus between students’ histories, cultural assets and developmental needs.

Established in 2017, the Center for Education, Identity and Social Justice has a compelling interest in eradicating all forms of discrimination based on the intersection of an individual’s identities that include religion, gender, sexual orientation, race, ethnicity and disability. Using rigorous research and legal analysis, we empower educators to utilize laws and policies in order to identify and extricate bias and unequal distributions of power within educational institutions.

One of the world’s leading research centers on higher education, the Pullias Center for Higher Education at the USC Rossier School of Education advances innovative, scalable solutions to improve college outcomes for underserved students and to enhance the performance of postsecondary institutions. The mission of the Pullias Center is to bring an equity-focused, multidisciplinary perspective to complex social, political and economic issues in higher education. The Center is currently engaged in research projects to improve access, admissions and outcomes for low-income, first-generation students, improve the performance of postsecondary institutions, assess the role of contingent faculty, understand how colleges can undergo reform to increase their effectiveness, analyze emerging organizational forms such as for-profit institutions, and assess the educational trajectories of community college students.

Established in 2017, the Race and Equity Center is the epicenter for interdisciplinary scholarship, resources and meaningful activities on racial equity that significantly benefit the University, other institutions of higher education and the broader society.

Public education in Southern California and across the nation faces a daunting array of challenges: longstanding structural inequities, declining enrollments, staffing shortages, funding shortfalls, political conflicts, and the ongoing effects of the pandemic on student academics and mental health. The challenges are often systemic, with causes and consequences crossing school systems and other boundaries, and disproportionately affecting minoritized and low-income communities.

The USC EdPolicy Hub collaborates with schools, education systems, and community colleges throughout Southern California to conduct rigorous, actionable, boundary-spanning research. Research results—shared with language and formats geared for practitioners and policymakers—inform decisions for educators, policymakers, and families, ultimately improving student outcomes.

The USC STEM Center will be a research and practice hub focused on reimagining, improving, and sustaining high-quality STEM teaching, building science identities in both teachers and learners, and creating training tools to support both of these goals.

The Center will be guided by a particular focus on building educator confidence and skill in STEM subjects. By developing innovative teacher training experiences, conducting cutting-edge research, and creating practical tools and curricula, we empower educators and students for success. We will partner with experts across USC, community organizations, and school districts to amplify our impact and ensure that our projects reach as many educators with innovative training tools as possible. Through these efforts. the USC STEM Center drives initiatives that are relevant, inclusive, and transformative, reflecting our commitment to addressing inequality and advancing educational excellence.

We work with entrepreneurs who are developing promising technology solutions aimed at solving some of the most pressing educational challenges and improving educational access and outcomes for all learners.

As perhaps the country’s most impactful edtech accelerator while concurrently its most diverse, our success is a result of the focus we place on eliminating barriers to participation typical of other accelerator programs and our emphasis on customizing the accelerator program for entrepreneurs, rather than requiring them to follow a pre-packaged, one size fits all approach