You can help bring Pittsburgh-born ideas to SXSW EDU. Here’s how.

Pittsburgh educators and thinkers are full of good ideas, and you can help share those ideas with the world at the next South by Southwest EDU conference.

If you’re not familiar with South by Southwest (better known as SXSW), this annual gathering takes place in Austin each spring. One part of the festival is SXSW EDU, where creative thinkers and innovators from around the world present the latest research and ideas related to learning and education.

The fun part: The general public gets to help decide which presentations and panel discussions will make it to the SXSW stage. So your vote matters.

This year, there are nine projects with connections to the Pittsburgh area — including one created by Kidsburgh’s Parents as Allies team.

In this panel, Kidsburgh’s director Yu-Ling Cheng will talk with Dr. Chuck Herring (director of diversity, equity, inclusion and belonging at South Fayette Township School District) and Emily Morris, a research fellow at the Brookings Institution, who is one of our creative partners in the Parents as Allies project.

They’ll discuss how Parents as Allies teams throughout the Pittsburgh region build real family-school engagement through deep listening exercises, empathy interviews and the human-centered design “hacking” process.

Another panel, called “Beacons of Hope: Positive Storytelling for Public Education,” will explore how putting a spotlight on positive stories can help rebuild trust in public education. Using Pittsburgh as a case study, the panel hosts (Ryan Rydzewski and Gregg Behr, co-authors of “When You Wonder, You’re Learning“) will explore how student-driven stories can show the world what schools, at their best, can be. (These stories are just one example!)

And yet another panel looks at the incredible impact of the Remake Learning Days festival and how it can inspire communities to thrive.

Below, we’ve listed all nine submissions from Pittsburgh-area educators and thinkers. We’d love to have you vote for them, now through Aug. 18. (If you don’t have a free SXSW account, it takes only a moment to make one.)

Inspiring Action: A Guidebook to Family-School Engagement: Vote right here for the Parents as Allies panel co-hosted by Kidsburgh’s director Yu-Ling Cheng, South Fayette’s Dr. Chuck Herring and Brookings research fellow Emily Morris, who will explore powerful ways to help families and schools support one another.

Beacons of Hope: Positive Storytelling for Public Education: Vote right here for this panel on the power of student-driven stories to nurture new connections between communities and schools — and spark new opportunities for learners.

Spark the Future: Educational Shifts with Moonshot Grants: Vote right here for this panel that explores the transformative process of Remake Learning’s Moonshot Grants, which include grant-funded innovations like this one.

From Housing to Edu: How Festivals Drive Equity & Innovation: Vote right here for this panel about the deep impact that festivals like Remake Learning Days can have.

From Viewing to Doing with Fred Rogers Productions: Vote right here for this conversation with Fred Rogers Productions, KERA and the Center for BrainHealth, so that educators can learn about the innovative ways that shows like “Daniel Tiger’s Neighborhood” build on timeless lessons from “Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood” and can discover resources that support learning.

Media Impact & Young Learners Meet Up with Fred Rogers Productions: Vote right here for this Meet Up with Mallory Mbalia, director of learning and education at Fred Rogers Productions, who will talk with educators about helpful content made for young learners and the many free resources and outreach opportunities they can access.

Maker Educator Meet Up: Agency by Design: Vote right here for this gathering for those who teach kids about making in classrooms, makerspaces, fablabs, museums, libraries and more, co-hosted by Jeff Evancho, director of partnerships and equity at Northgate School District, and Paula Mitchell, executive director at Agency by Design Oakland.

Youth-Adult Partnership for Inclusive Decision Making: Vote right here for the World Affairs Council’s panel on why youth voice is important for equitable dialogue and decision-making, and how communities can amplify youth voice. Panelists include Natalia Connor, Julia Tracy and Kidsburgh teen contributor Morgan McCray.

Learner-Centered Ecosystems: Dive into this Growing Movement: Vote right here for this panel. Here in Pittsburgh and beyond, communities and leaders are coming together to design public education systems that center learners and communities. Panelists including the leader of Remake Learning’s civics working group, History Co:Lab CEO Fernande Raine, will explore ways that young people are connecting to a vibrant, interwoven world of learning experiences that live everywhere.

We really appreciate your time. Thanks for considering helping bring insight and ideas from Pittsburgh to SXSW EDU in 2025. We believe this local knowledge can help parents and teachers throughout the U.S and the world.