In February last year, the UNC Frank Porter Graham Child Development Institute (FPG) announced its 2025 Thelma Harms Early Childhood Education Award recipients. The award, which is named after Thelma Harms, PhD, FPG director of curriculum development emerita, is designed to further the understanding and improvement of early childhood program quality internationally.

Harms award funds typically cover travel for recipients to attend international conferences on early childhood programs, or consult, teach, or work collaboratively with a scholar from another country on issues impacting early childhood development.

The 2025 award recipients, Chih-Ing Lim, PhD, and Megan Vinh, PhD, both senior technical assistance specialists at FPG, have been using the funds to build on the partnership they’ve developed with the National Institute of Education at the Nanyang Technological University (NIE-NTU) in Singapore. This project, which began after the pair received funding from the UNC Global Partnership in 2022, promotes and supports the implementation of inclusive practices in early care and education environments in Singapore.

Lim and Vinh will utilize some of the award funds later this month as they give two presentations at the Inclusive Preschool Symposium 2026 on January 22. The symposium, which is organized by the NIE-NTU Centre for Research in Child Development, is focused on supporting all learners through designing and implementing inclusive learning environments for all preschoolers.

Lim and Vinh will first present, “Belonging Belongs with Us: Cultivating Mindsets that Welcome All Learners,” during which they will invite participants to examine how their beliefs, assumptions, and daily decisions shape belonging for young children with disabilities. Through guided reflection and practical tools, Lim and Vinh will explore how shifting adult mindsets can elevate expectations, strengthen inclusive practices, and create learning environments where every child is seen, valued, and supported.

And in their second presentation, “Sustaining What Works: Creating Playful Learning and Belonging for All Children,” Lim and Vinh will talk about how early childhood educators and teams can implement and sustain inclusive practices that support every child’s participation and learning. Grounded in Universal Design for Learning, Lim and Vinh will lay out practical strategies for designing playful, accessible environments that foster belonging for children with developmental needs and disabilities. Participants will have the opportunity to consider service delivery models that promote long-term implementation, effective collaboration, and continuity across settings. And together, Lim, Vinh, and the presentation attendees will reflect on what it takes to build inclusive classroom communities—and systems—that are both effective and sustainable.