2026 NICE K12 CALL FOR PROPOSALS NOW OPEN!
The NICE K12 Cybersecurity Education Conference Call for Proposals will open today, April 20th, and run until 11:59 pm PST on June 5th, 2026! The 12th annual conference will be held on December 7-8, 2026, in New Orleans, Louisiana, with pre-conference workshops on December 6. The national event is hosted by the Internet Keep Safe Coalition (iKeepSafe) and funded by a cooperative agreement from the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST). This year’s conference theme is “Jazzing Up Cybersecurity Education: Amplifying Pathways, Building the Workforce.”
The 2026 NICE K12 Cybersecurity Education Conference brings together educators, professionals, and thought leaders in K12 cybersecurity education to promote collaboration, share innovative practices, and explore methods to enhance cybersecurity education in K12 settings. The NICE K12 Conference is known to cybersecurity-related educators and educational stakeholders as the best place to engage with pioneers leading the charge in classrooms, schools, districts, and regional and statewide cybersecurity education programs. It is the national hub for providing innovative teaching and learning resources for K12 educators to inspire their students to be the future cybersecurity workforce.
The NICE K12 Conference Planning Committee seeks proposals from organizations and individuals with varying perspectives, including K12 educators, school counselors, higher education faculty, employers and practitioners, non-profits, curriculum providers, research centers, and training and certification providers.
Topics should support the National K12 Cybersecurity Education Roadmap by aligning with one of the four conference tracks:
Increasing Cybersecurity Career Awareness
Promoting Multidisciplinary & Innovative Approaches to Cybersecurity Education
Designing Cybersecurity Career Pathways
Promoting Cyber Awareness.
Selection will prioritize proposals that infuse cybersecurity concepts into learning experiences that align with the NICE Workforce Framework for Cybersecurity (NICE Framework).