The relationship between educational research and policy/practice has been under theoretical investigation for over 100 years. Most recently, however, interested parties have been developing more innovative and technology-based mechanisms to actively merge the research-to-policy/practice divide. [Name of project] is one project meant to deliver meaningful, relevant, and accessible research, knowledge, and information, as per some of the education academy’s finest, to an international audience, via an open-access, historiographical, online site.

Accordingly, [name of project] models the innovative use of technology to transmit educational research beyond academia, and throughout the world. This is done by chronicling the personal and professional journeys of highly esteemed educational researchers and scholars in the United States (U.S.), although project leaders aim to begin to interview and highlight the scholarly contributions of esteemed educational researchers throughout the world (on which project leaders need some direction, which is another need for this presentation if accepted) through a series of video interviews and other online archives; hence, [name of project] aims to provide increased access to research, knowledge, and information to an international audience of educational leaders, policymakers, administrators, teachers, graduate students, and others throughout the world who are interested in “education” in its broadest, most global terms. Since its inception in 2009, the website has been garnering a national and international audience and presence, currently attracting over 1,500 viewers per month from more than 45 countries including, as its top 10 over the past year, the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, Australia, the Philippines, Mexico, Brazil, Germany, Singapore, and Spain. However, what viewers might actually be learning and consuming given the website’s content is currently unknown.

In this study, researchers examined the extent to which [name of project] is serving its intended purposes. Researchers, more specifically, conducted an in-depth qualitative analysis of 12 of the now 19 honorees’ interview data. Analyses revealed that [name of project] is functioning as an accessible, relevant, research dissemination platform by providing viewers, potentially including educational leaders, policymakers, administrators, teachers, graduate students, and others (although viewers’ specific identities and educational affiliations or interests are currently unknown) increased access to open source information and expert knowledge about foundational and contemporary educational philosophies, salient policy issues, and research-based policies/practices of utmost prevalence in education in its most general and global terms. For mainly contextual purposes, researchers also explored how educational knowledge and content are being translated via non-traditional dissemination means. Researchers did this by investigating how others are using alternative means for research dissemination purposes; what these other sources’ intended purposes and audiences are; and what evidence those involved with alternative forms of research and knowledge dissemination are using to also examine their intended effects.

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