By Jennifer Kim, PESC Senior Director of Operations
The AACRAO Annual Meeting concludes at 1:00 p.m. on April 22. At 1:30 p.m., just steps away at the Hilton New Orleans Riverside, the PESC April 2026 Data Summit begins, providing a seamless opportunity to continue conversations on data exchange and interoperability. Participation requires only one additional hotel night and no added airfare.
The Postsecondary Electronic Standards Council is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization that develops and promotes free and open data standards for higher education. Members collaborate to create interoperable frameworks and sustainable solutions that help institutions operate more efficiently and better support students. These standards include, for example, consistent transcript formats and standardized approaches to student record exchange across institutions.
But this Summit is about more than data standards. It is about alignment—coordinating systems, practices, and strategies to support learners across institutions and organizations.
Higher education is entering a new phase shaped by AI-enabled interoperability, increased automation, and growing expectations for student and credit mobility. Institutions cannot navigate this shift independently. Progress requires shared frameworks and coordinated strategies across institutions, vendors, government agencies, and national organizations.
Why This Matters to AACRAO Professionals
Many AACRAO members work with data exchange challenges every day—from transcript processing and transfer evaluation to reporting and compliance requirements. As institutions modernize systems and adopt new technologies, interoperability is becoming less of a technical issue and more of an operational necessity.
The PESC Data Summit provides a forum for exploring:
Practical approaches to improving data exchange across institutions and organizations
How free and open data standards support institutional operations
Emerging challenges in data sharing and system alignment
Preparing institutional systems for AI-enabled data exchange
These discussions directly affect registrar and enrollment operations and are increasingly shaping institutional strategy.
Develop Future-Ready Strategies
AI is accelerating change across admissions, registration, evaluation, transfer, and credentialing. These advances only succeed when underlying systems are aligned. The Summit focuses on practical approaches institutions can use now to strengthen interoperability and prepare for AI-enabled environments.
Free and open data standards and coordinated practices help ensure systems can exchange information accurately and efficiently across organizations, supporting both operational effectiveness and student success.
Connect with Leaders Shaping the Ecosystem
The Summit brings together a broad community, including registrars, institutional leaders, enrollment and IT professionals, solution providers, and policy stakeholders. Participants collaborate to design the infrastructure that supports learner mobility and share operational perspectives that influence how systems evolve across higher education. AACRAO professionals play a central role in this ecosystem.
Advance Your Professional Influence
Understanding ecosystem alignment is becoming a strategic competency for higher education leaders. Participation provides insight into emerging trends and strengthens your ability to guide institutional change.
Experience Collaboration in Action
As digital transformation accelerates, collaboration across sectors is essential. The Summit creates space for focused, solution-oriented dialogue that supports institutional effectiveness and improves the learner experience.
Co-locating the PESC April Data Summit with the AACRAO Annual Meeting creates an intentional bridge between policy, practice, and the systems that support both.
Learn more about the PESC April 2026 Data Summit
For additional information, contact info@PESC.org.
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