Institute for Early Childhood Development & Education

Leading cutting-edge research to transform the lives of young children and the adults who interact with them.

Highlights & Updates

Faculty

Dr. Julie Thompson Awarded $400,000 in THECB Funding

Dr. Julie Thompson has been awarded new funding to provide training to preschool and elementary school teachers, special education teachers, and paraprofessionals on evidence-based practices that promote the success of children with autism in their learning. Since 2020, Project TAPP has trained 2,221 teachers and paraprofessionals across 258 Texas school districts and 9 of Texas’s 20 regional Education Service Centers, reaching 13,149 children with autism. The new Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board (THECB) award provides $400,000 for 2026–2028, allowing the team to train an additional 750 practitioners and teach 3,000 more children.

Events

SEC Early Childhood Summit

The SEC Early Childhood Summit took place on September 22, 2026. This year's theme, Educator Well-Being Matters: Strengthening the Early Childhood Workforce, brought together educators, administrators, researchers, students, and community partners for a day of learning, networking, and collaboration.

The summit featured nationally recognized experts, including:

  • Dr. Kenya Wolff, University of Mississippi
  • Dr. Kyong-Ah Kwon, University of Oklahoma
  • Dr. Nelson Brunsting, University of Florida
  • Dr. Cynthia Wiltshire, University of Texas El Paso
  • Dr. Amanda M. Dettmer, Research Scientist, Yale Child Study Center, Director - Human and Animal Integrated Research (HAIR) Lab
  • Dr. Sebrina Doyle Fosco, Pennsylvania State University
  • Dr. Laura Lessard, University of Delaware

In addition to keynote presentations, attendees had the opportunity to engage with researchers on various topics including rural health, public health, cortisol studies, special ed/psychology and more.

Thank you for joining us for this important event as we work together to strengthen the early childhood workforce and the communities that support it.

Students

Mahoney Travel Fund Advances Undergraduate Research Opportunities

Congratulations to the first recipients of the Mahoney Travel Fund for undergraduate students in the Texas A&M University Institute for Early Childhood Development & Education. This generous gift made possible through the support of our valued partners Dr. Sue Mahoney ’94 ’02 and Patrick Mahoney ’71, provides students with opportunities to attend national and regional conferences across the country. Through these experiences, students were able to network with leaders in the field and present research developed under the mentorship of Texas A&M University Institute for Early Childhood Development & Education.

We are proud to recognize the following student award recipients: Stephanie Barrera, Samantha Hart-Ihnken, Catie Samson, Valeria de la Serna Gonzalez, and Rachel Williams.

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Resource Library

Research-Based Practices to Help Your Learner

Explore strategies, tools, and insights designed to support language, literacy, and meaningful learning experiences for children of all abilities.

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Creating Meaningful Writing Experiences for Children

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Not Just Handwriting and Spelling: Assessing Early Composing Skills

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Best Writing Practices for Emerging Bilingual Students

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Emerging Bilingual Children’s Writing Development: Similarities and Differences

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Browse the full library of research-based strategies, tools, and resources.

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Research in Action

Advancing Early Childhood Research Through Real-World Partnerships

Explore featured projects connecting research, practice, and community partnerships to support young children, families, and educators.

Project NEST

Strengthening inclusive early childhood education in rural Texas through workshops, coaching, and professional learning communities.

Learn about Project NEST

BiRDI Project

Addressing misidentification of developmental language disorder and dyslexia in young bilingual children through collaborative research.

Explore the BiRDI Project

The WRITE Project

The WRITE Project supports the development of early reading and writing skills in preschool-aged children through research-based classroom practices and professional learning for educators.

View the WRITE Project

Aggie Opportunities

Gain Hands-On Research Experience

Using an apprenticeship model, Institute faculty mentor students through each step of the research process — from idea generation to presenting and publishing research. Students at every level contribute to interdisciplinary projects in partnership with schools, clinics, and communities across Texas.

Explore Aggie Opportunities

How Will You Make an Impact in Early Childhood?

Choose a path to become a researcher, educator, or leader in early childhood.

Early Childhood Education (Ph.D.)

Conduct interdisciplinary research and develop the expertise to lead innovation in early childhood education, policy, and practice.

Explore the Ph.D.

Teaching Certification (EC–3)

Prepare to become a certified early childhood teacher through a hands-on, field-based program focused on EC–3 classrooms.

Become a certified teacher

Apply to Conduct Research

The Texas A&M University Children’s Centers at Becky Gates and Charlotte Sharp are interested in engaging in research and instructional projects that enhance our knowledge of children’s development, evidence-based practices for early education and family engagement and effective teacher development that aligns with the goals and interests of the Children’s Centers and the mission of Texas A&M University.

Each research or instructional project is reviewed by the Children’s Centers Research Review Committee to ensure that the rights of children and families are protected and that the research or Instructional project is practical in our unique settings.

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