About AACE

The Association for the Advancement of Computing in Education (AACE), founded in 1981, is an international, not-for-profit, educational organization with the mission of advancing Information Technology in Education and E-Learning research, development, learning, and its practical application.

AACE serves the profession with international conferences, high quality publications, leading-edge Digital Library, Career Center, and other opportunities for professional growth.

AACE is committed to diversity, equity, accessibility, and inclusion. We value these principles for how they enrich our profession and the field of education. We carry this commitment into every aspect of our work and extend it to the broader field of educational technology. We believe that it is impossible to identify and communicate the full range of stories about education & technology without incorporating the perspective of everyone. Specifically, we aim to ensure that we are welcoming and supportive of all individuals regardless of race, ethnicity, gender, gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, physical ability, nationality, age, socioeconomic status, and belief. We do not tolerate harassment, discrimination, or incivility across any of our communications or interactions.

History of AACE

In 1980, AACE’s founder Dr. Gary Marks, Ph.D., was a high school science teacher/science department head at Round Rock High School in Austin, TX. He was also was a doctoral student in the University of Texas-Austin after earning a BS in Biology and an MS in Science Education.

What were then called “microcomputers” had just become commercially available and some K-12 schools bought one or two to try them.  Round Rock High School bought a Radio Shack TRS80 microcomputer, one whose limited software was stored on and loaded from a cassette tape.

However, no one knew how to use it and certainly had no idea how it could be used in the classroom.  Curiosity led Dr. Marks to start exploring the machine that sat unused in a corner of the library. Over a brief time, he realized the microcomputer would not be easy for an uninitiated teacher to use and that the limited software would be an issue as well.  Nevertheless, the great potential as a technology to improve learning was evident.

Dr. Marks questioned how he could help move forward the adoption and use of this new tool with so much potential for learning? One critical key was teacher training to learn not only to operate the machine, but also use it as a tool in their classrooms to enhance learning.

On a single teacher’s salary, Dr. Marks decided the best way was to create a newsletter for teachers providing the information needed to assist them.

First, he sought the opinion of his dissertation committee head who also was department chair of the University of Texas Science Education department.  He encouraged Dr. Marks to pursue the project, but to do so as an academic journal.  The initially conceived newsletter was launched in Fall 1981 as the the “Journal of Computers in Mathematics and Science Teaching (JCMST)” and is still published by AACE, the nonprofit organization that Marks founded.

From there, the organization grew to include additional educational technology journals as well as international conferences, and the LearnTechLib digital library.

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Mailing address:
AACE
P.O. Box 719
Waynesville, NC 28786 USA