As the authorizing agency, the U.S. Department of Education provides a variety of information and services to facilitate and support comprehensive school reform. The majority of the activities for CSR occur within the Department's Office of Elementary and Secondary Education (OESE), and the Institute for Education Sciences (IES).

• The Institute for Education Sciences (IES) The Institute for Education Sciences consists of the National Center for Education Research, the National Center for Education Statistics and the National Center for Education Evaluation and Regional Assistance. The Institute’s National Center for Education Research (NCER) furnishes support for new research and development centers dedicated, in part, to CSR: the Regional Educational Laboratories (RELs) and the National Research and Development Centers.

  The Institute for Education Sciences also established the What Works Clearinghouse (WWC) in 2002 to provide educators, policymakers, researchers, and the public with a central and trusted source of scientific evidence of what works in education.

• Office of Elementary and Secondary Education (OESE) The mission of the Office of Elementary and Secondary Education is to promote academic excellence, enhance educational opportunities and equity for all of America's children and families, and to improve the quality of teaching and learning by providing leadership, technical assistance and financial support.

  Within the Office of Elementary and Secondary Education, the Comprehensive School Reform (CSR) Office has the primary administrative responsibility for the CSR program. The CSR Office’s web site contains information about the origins and purpose of the CSR Program, funding allocations to states, state coordinator contact information and administrative procedures.

  Additionally, OESE’s School Support and Technology Programs and Grants fund the Comprehensive Regional Assistance Centers to assist states, school districts, and schools as they work to meet the needs of children served under ESEA.