Hsiu-Wen Yang, PhD, a technical assistance specialist at the UNC Frank Porter Graham Child Development Institute (FPG), and Wendy Morgan, PhD, a senior implementation specialist at FPG, are among a group of researchers at UNC to receive the most recent Translating Innovative Ideas for the Public Good (TIIP) Awards. Their work will focus on using artificial intelligence (AI) to help early childhood educators plan and adapt learning activities for children with disabilities.

Launched in 2023 by Innovate Carolina’s Design and Innovation for the Public Good team, the TIIP Awards help UNC-Chapel Hill faculty and staff turn their research into real-world impact for communities across North Carolina. Each award provides up to $50,000 in funding and encourages projects to use human-centered design to move ideas from the lab or classroom into practical, community-focused solutions. Human-centered design emphasizes collaborating closely with people in communities to better understand problems and co-create and test new ideas, products and ventures as desirable, feasible and viable solutions that improve well-being.

Morgan, whose extensive and diverse background includes graphic design, writing, and research, works to develop learning experiences that provide professional development and technical assistance. After joining FPG in 2016, Morgan championed the Institute’s innovative learning ecosystem, which supported the ability to collect customized and meaningful xAPI (Experience API) learner activity data from learning objects across project websites. Today, with the goal of creating the best strategy for each project, Morgan develops e-learning as well as blended learning strategies, and delights in bringing concepts and practices that work to people in the field. 

Yang, who is formally trained as an occupational therapist, focuses on developing practical resources, tools and interventions that support professionals and families in using evidence-based practices to work with children with disabilities. Despite the well-documented benefits of educational environments that foster belonging and shared learning, many young children with disabilities still face barriers to full participation in early learning experiences alongside their peers.

With their new project, Morgan and Yang want to address these gaps by working directly with early childhood educators to understand the challenges they face in creating more effective learning environments for these children. Through this collaborative process, the research team will co-develop an AI-powered tool called AccessPlay that helps educators plan and adapt activities for children with disabilities in both home and classroom settings. Designed to fit into educators’ everyday workflows, AccessPlay aims to be a practical, widely shareable resource that supports improved learning outcomes.

“The goal of this project is not to replace professional judgment, but to strengthen and build on professionals’ expertise, supporting them in planning learning experiences for all children with confidence,” said Yang. “We will use a design-thinking approach to ensure the tool directly addresses the real-world challenges faced by early childhood educators.”

“The goal of this project is not to replace professional judgment, but to strengthen and build on professionals’ expertise, supporting them in planning learning experiences for all children with confidence,” said Yang. “We will use a design-thinking approach to ensure the tool directly addresses the real-world challenges faced by early childhood educators.”

In 2025, Morgan and Yang co-chaired the FPG Next incubation group centered around innovative technology and data science in education. Yang shared that she truly appreciated the opportunity to co-lead the FPG Next Incubation group with Morgan, which sparked the development of this project.

"This project not only highlights the potential of innovative uses of technology in early childhood education," said Yang, "but also represents a promising and creative approach to supporting and retaining the early childhood workforce. In addition, it reflects the core mission of the FPG Next Incubator by fostering multidisciplinary collaboration and bringing together diverse expertise to address challenges in the field."

"This project not only highlights the potential of innovative uses of technology in early childhood education," said Yang, "but also represents a promising and creative approach to supporting and retaining the early childhood workforce. In addition, it reflects the core mission of the FPG Next Incubator by fostering multidisciplinary collaboration and bringing together diverse expertise to address challenges in the field."

Morgan also expressed her appreciation of getting to partner with Yang. "On a personal level, I thoroughly enjoyed leading the FPG Next incubation group with Hsiu-Wen," said Morgan, "and this project is a wonderful combination of our complementary expertise, so I’m grateful to have the opportunity to continue to work together.”

 "The project itself is a perfect use case for AI innovation; it fills a gap and supports a critical need for both children and professionals," said Morgan. "I hope that with the help of Innovate Carolina, we can co-design the product with the people it is meant to support and move it into scalable practice."

Morgan sees their project as an ideal application of AI advancement. "The project itself is a perfect use case for AI innovation; it fills a gap and supports a critical need for both children and professionals," said Morgan. "I hope that with the help of Innovate Carolina, we can co-design the product with the people it is meant to support and move it into scalable practice."

Read the full story from Innovate Carolina to find out how all the UNC TIIP Award Winners are using their award funding to tackle real-world challenges with human-centered design projects that provide public good to North Carolina communities.