As regards the actors that govern the education policy and educational reforms in Slovenia during the last three decades, it is evident that the high political elite (ministers) and politico-administrative elite (e.g. heads of a ministerial directorate) have been very rapidly changing. Since already nineteenth minister responsible for education was appointed in 2023, it is hard to identify the stable politico-administrative elite. On the other hand, the relatively small network of experts has been actively involved in all three “big” education reforms as authors of their conceptual backgrounds, members of advisory groups etc. During the periods between the reforms in the last three decades, they act as university professors and members of various national expert committees (the technostructure of the ministry). Taking into consideration both facts (changing politico-administrative elite and stable epistemic elite), the presentation focuses on the following main research question: “Is there an epistemic elite that leads reforms in education in Slovenia”? and tries to address several subsequent sub-questions of how such a network of experts, has been able to survive in changing political environment, what are experts’ characteristics and activities, and whether and how their network can (not) be perceived as epistemic elite. The presentation is based on the following theoretical-conceptual backgrounds: a) The development of post-socialist education systems in which politicization is tainted and the role of expert knowledge is favoured as well as compliance with Western values prioritized (e.g. Chankseliani & Silova, 2018; Halász, 2015); b) The characteristics of epistemic communities/elites, including their personal, relational, organizational, institutional and cultural backgrounds, authority and legitimacy (Haas, 1992); c) The role of epistemic communities/elites in policy-learning (e.g. Dunlop & Radaelli, 2013) and policy-making (e.g. Gaber, 2007; Kodelja, 2007; Radaelli, 1995); d) The critical examination of the role of the epistemic elite in contemporary educational reforms and/or education policy-making (e.g. Cross, 2013; Dunlop, 2016).

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