University of Virginia

The University of Virginia’s Center for Advanced Study of Teaching and Learning (CASTL), a center at the Curry School of Education at the University of Virginia, focuses on the quality of teaching and students’ learning. CASTL’s aim is to improve educational outcomes through the empirical study of teaching, teacher quality, and classroom experience from preschool through high school, with particular emphasis on the challenges posed by poverty, social or cultural isolation, or lack of community resources.

University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

Frank Porter Graham is a multidisciplinary institute at The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. The institute’s mission is to cultivate and share the knowledge necessary to enhance child development and family well being. Through a variety of grants and contracts, we conduct research and provide outreach services. Most of the institute’s work addresses young children ages birth to 8 years. We have a special focus on children who experience biological or environmental factors that challenge early development and learning. “FPG.Advancing Knowledge.Enhancing Lives.” is the philosophy that guides our daily work. Sam Odom directs the institute’s 64 researchers, a staff of 225 and 49 students working on more than 56 projects. Disciplines affiliated with FPG include anthropology, audiology, biostatistics, education, epidemiology, nursing, occupational therapy, pediatrics, physical therapy, psychiatry, psychology, public health, social work, sociology, and speech and hearing sciences. We believe that research should make a difference, encompass a wide range of child and family topics, address cultural perspectives and practices, and embrace collaboration with the society it seeks to impact.

University of North Carolina at Greensboro

The Department of Human Development and Family Studies (HDFS) at the University of North Carolina at Greensboro is committed to excellence in teaching, research, and service regarding human development and close relationships across the lifespan. The Department has a vibrant undergraduate program with over 450 students, and a highly respected graduate program with approximately 60 masters’ and doctoral students from around the world and across the nation. HDFS faculty research focuses on early care and education, child and adolescent development, and family studies, and is aimed at examining the biological, psychological, social and cultural foundations of development and their implications for families. The department has over 4 million dollars in external funding a wide range of research interests, as well as 8 research programs and centers including the Family Research Center, Child & Family Research Network, North Carolina Rated License Assessment Project, Right (Research Investigating Growth and Health Trajectories) Track focusing on developmental trajectories of early disruptive behavior, the STAR Project, a joint effort by the Psychology and HDFS to learn more about preschool children and their transition into kindergarten, C.A.P. UNCG which looks at the development of attention and memory in young children, and the Early Childhood Leadership and Policy Network.

University of California at Los Angeles

The Center for Improving Child Care Quality (CICCQ) in the UCLA Graduate School of Education and Information Studies conducts high-quality, policy-relevant research focusing on improving the early care and education environments of young children. The Center is directed by Dr. Carollee Howes, a nationally and internationally recognized early childhood expert who has been an advisor on several national studies, including the National Head Start Families and Children’s Experiences project, and a collaborator in several others, including the Early Head Start Research and Evaluation Project and the Multi-State Study of State Pre-K programs. The research staff at CICCQ utilizes expertise in the areas of child development, professional development, child care quality, attachment, and observational and survey research methodology to conduct basic applied research and policy-driven research at the local, state, and national levels.

CICCQ takes a collaborative approach to the local evaluation process, building relationships with community partners to inform research, practice, and professional development. The Center has assisted numerous community-based agencies in evaluating the effectiveness of their programs to improve the quality of early care and education programs. CICCQ also works with local government and policy groups, including the Los Angeles County First 5 Commission, the Los Angeles County Office of Child Care, and the newly launched Los Angeles Universal Preschool.