Enhancing Early Education

Housed in the School of Education and Human Development, the newly launched Institute for Early Childhood Development & Education will transform the lives of young children and the adults who interact with them, including families, educators, clinicians and health providers.

The most comprehensive of its kind in the state, the institute’s hallmark is its interdisciplinary approach to researching the early childhood sector. Faculty from disciplines such as education, engineering, psychology and nutrition will create research that addresses complex issues in early childhood to guide the next generation of early childhood scholars and practitioners and inform policy in Texas and beyond. As a result, teachers can better understand how to meet the needs of young students inside and outside the classroom.
 

“We will empower faculty and community partners in early childhood to generate and disseminate rigorous research-to-practice initiatives that transform the lives of young children and their families,” said Dr. Hope Gerde, the institute’s director.

The institute will partner with Texas A&M University’s Becky Gates Children’s Center to provide research-backed solutions directly to children, families and educators while giving early childhood education students at Texas A&M a real-world demonstration and training ground.