This special issue of the AAIDD journal Inclusion (v3, n4) is drawn from the work of the National Goals in Research, Practice, and Policy conference, held in August 2015. The conference brought together leaders in the field of intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD) for the purpose of summarizing the current state of knowledge in the field and developing a platform of national goals in research that will have the greatest impact on practice and policy. The articles in this special issue represent the goals developed by the leaders, presenters, and participants in the 10 strands of the conference:

• Self-determination and self-advocacy
• Social inclusion
• Education of children and youth
• Employment and economic self-sufficiency
• Long-term services and supports
• Health and wellness
• Justice
• Aging: Transitions in health, retirement, and late life
• Supporting families across the life course
• Workforce to support the health and community lives of people with IDD

Each article describes the rationale for the goals and their implications in terms of anticipated effects on policy and practice and improvements in the lives of people with IDD.

The co-editors of Inclusion are Michael Wehmeyer and Karrie Shogren of the University of Kansas. The co-editors of this special issue are Amy Hewitt of the University of Minnesota, Tamar Heller of the University of Illinois at Chicago, and John Butterworth of the University of Massachusetts Boston.