Research is at the heart of all we do at the UNC Frank Porter Graham Child Development Institute. As one of the nation's foremost multidisciplinary centers devoted to the study of children from infancy to adolescence, our scientists are committed to conducting research and evaluation studies that improve children's lives, support families, and inform public policy.
Learn more about our current projects by clicking on the links below. Change the project end date to view completed projects. And to stay up to date on news and events related to our work via social media, visit our Project Digital Directory.
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The project team will research national trends and relevant models of governing and delivering early childhood special education systems, including but not limited to implementation of the federal Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), quality and control measures, and innovative approaches in other states and jurisdictions that hold the potential for enhancing the effectiveness, efficiency, or accountability of the early childhood special education system in the state.
This study will iteratively develop and test an adapted professional development model to be used with the Advancing Social-communication And Play intervention.
The K-12 Coherent Instructional Systems portfolio of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation’s U.S. Program seeks to support a cohort of provider-local education agency partnerships focused on implementing coherent instructional systems (CIS) built around high-quality middle-years mathematics curricula in contexts that serve Black, Latino, and/or English Learning-designated students, and students who are experiencing poverty.
As a Learning Partner for the Effective Implementation Cohort (EIC), the National Implementation Research Network (NIRN) at UNC-Chapel Hill's Frank Porter Graham Child Development Institute seeks to support the cohort of Provider-Local Education Agency partnerships in their implementation and measurement efforts related to their scale-up of high-quality mathematics curricula.
FPG statisticians will collaborate with Mathematica Policy Research and Child Trends to design a study to develop stronger instruments to measure child care quality for infants and toddlers.
The goals of this project were to: (1) develop a reliable and valid executive function (EF) battery for use with young children in the context of large-scale studies; (2) establish the psychometric properties of this battery; and (3) provide normative data on the battery in the context of an epidemiologically derived, racially and economically diverse sample of 600 children.
This project intends to conduct an independent, unbiased evaluation of the MECK Pre-K program that will be longitudinal in scope, tracking cohorts of MECK Pre-K students in Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools through 5th grade. Given the longitudinal nature of the evaluation and the need to track multiple cohorts, it is expected that this project will span 10 years. The focus of that evaluation will cover three key areas: program characteristics; program implementation and quality; and student outcomes.
The Mental Health, Earlier ALACRITY Research Center addresses a key element of the NIMH 2020-2025 Strategic Plan Goal 3: Strive for Prevention and Cures: advancing preventive interventions in a developmentally appropriate manner as early in life and illness course as possible, to prevent or forestall mental illnesses and associated dysfunction.
This study will examine the psychometric properties of the Reading-Tiered Fidelity Inventory (RTFI). RTFI was developed to document the levels of a tiered reading program in elementary and middle schools in Michigan. The UNC-CH team will provide factor analyses and other psychometric analyses of the data that the Michigan Integrated Behavior and Learning Support Initiative collected. They will support the staff in developing evaluation skills they can apply to future projects.
This is a collaborative project with Michigan's Integrated Behavior and Learning Support Initiative (MIBLSI) to develop blended learning (lessons pairing eLearning modules and onsite training) for Positive Behavior Interventions & Supports (PBIS) within Michigan public school systems.
This is a collaborative project with Michigan’s MTSS Technical Assistance Center (MiMTSS) to develop blended learning (pairing data captured from eLearning and/or other activities with onsite training) to support Multi-Tiered Systems of Supports (MTSS) within Michigan public school districts.
This grant supports a staff person with early childhood expertise to assist the Mid-South Regional Resource Center's staff and states in providing technical assistance on issues related to early intervention and early childhood special education.
The Minnesota Department of Education is seeking support for the capacity development of its team in advanced implementation practices. To support the development of implementation capacity, the National Implementation Research Network at the UNC Frank Porter Graham Child Development Institute proposes providing a blended model of implementation practice and implementation research to inform the future development of the Minnesota Department of Educations' implementation science infrastructure.
The FirstSchool team will deploy an online course to promote student communication in PreK through third grade education. Participants in the online course will include PreK through third grade teachers and administrators. The course will begin in September 2018 and conclude in May 2019.
The Monitoring the Global and Domestic Tobacco Epidemic program aims to monitor the global tobacco epidemic, enhance tobacco control programs in high-burden countries, and measure reductions in e-cigarette use by integrating retail sales data into national surveys. The CDC Foundation supports the CDC in implementing the Global Tobacco Surveillance System (GTSS), enhancing country capacity to design and evaluate tobacco control interventions, and monitoring WHO FCTC and MPOWER components. The Global Adult Tobacco Survey (GATS) systematically tracks adult tobacco use. Contractors on the GATS Sample Review Committee will ensure high-quality, nationally representative samples using established protocols and quality assurance guidelines.
This purpose of this project is to conduct an evaluation of Montana’s Maternal and Early Childhood Home Visiting (MECHV) Program. Major tasks to be completed include analysis of existing data, surveys of program staff, interviews with key stakeholders, and document reviews. The evaluation will contribute vital information related to home visiting programs within the early care and education system for policy makers, program administrators, and other stakeholders in Montana.
This study utilizes three large-scale early childhood education datasets (NCEDL, SWEEP and LAExCELS) to explore how children’s engagement, measured by moment-to-moment time sampling, varies within classrooms and explores if variation in levels and quality of child engagement and activity type/setting is associated with children’s outcomes.
WA OSPI is seeking support for the capacity development of their state and regional Multi-Tiered Systems of Support (MTSS) staff in best practices of implementation science to support implementation of evidence-based practices with their participating local education agencies (LEAs). To support development of internal implementation capacity, the National Implementation Research Network (NIRN) will provide virtual training, coaching, and consultation supports.
The multi-level implementation supports for Triple P team within the Impact Center at Frank Porter Graham Child Development Institute is currently supporting the scale-up and expansion of the Triple P System of Interventions in North Carolina. For this project, the team embedded in the NC Triple P Support System will provide direct implementation support to nine NC Triple P regions to aid and support local, regional, and state partners’ scale-up of Triple P.
NCEDL was created to provide national leadership and advance knowledge in early childhood development and learning. It aimed to enhance cognitive, social and emotional development of children birth through eight years and to support families.
The Frank Porter Graham Child Development Institute is partnering with ZERO TO THREE to support the National Center on Early Childhood Development, Teaching, and Learning through four major activities: 1) building implementation science capacity; 2) designing and supporting a performance evaluation; 3) providing cross-sector partnership and leadership with activities conducted by the National Center; and 4) providing content area expertise.
The National Center on Parent, Family, and Community Engagement (NCPFCE) was established to strengthen the capacity of Head Start, Early Head Start, and child care communities to achieve positive, enduring outcomes for the children and families they serve. NCPFCE's goal is to promote exemplary practices for family and community engagement in support of children’s school readiness and healthy development; parent leadership and advocacy; family economic mobility; community partnerships; individualized support for families; and staff-family relationships that are equitable and culturally and linguistically responsive. Researchers will conduct evaluation activities for the Region I FEM Academy, as well as support the ongoing operations and project management tasks. The evaluation data collection will focus on the post-academy phase, including a 6-month follow-up. The findings from the evaluation will be compiled into summary evaluation reports.
The National Center on Parent, Family, and Community Engagement (NCPFCE) by the Administration for Children and Families, Office of Head Start, in partnership with the Office of Child Care is one of four National Centers that develop evidence-based best practices for Early Head Start and Head Start programs across the country, as part of a comprehensive Office of Head Start Training and Technical Assistance System. The goal of this project is to support family well-being, effective family and community engagement, and children’s school readiness, including transitions to kindergarten.
The National Center on Parent, Family, and Community Engagement (NCPFCE) by the Administration for Children and Families, Office of Head Start, in partnership with the Office of Child Care is one of four National Centers that develop evidence-based best practices for Early Head Start and Head Start programs across the country, as part of a comprehensive Office of Head Start Training and Technical Assistance System. The goal of this project is to support family well-being, effective family and community engagement, and children’s school readiness, including transitions to kindergarten.
The National Center on Parent, Family, and Community Engagement (NCPFCE) funded by the Administration for Children and Families, Office of Head Start in partnership with the Office of Child Care is one of four National Centers that develop evidence-based best practices for Early Head Start and Head Start programs across the country, as part of a comprehensive Office of Head Start Training and Technical Assistance System. The goal of this project is to support family well-being, effective family and community engagement, and children's school readiness, including transition to kindergarten.
The National Clearinghouse on Autism Evidence and Practice (NCAEP) is conducting a systematic review of the current intervention literature targeting individuals on the autism spectrum. NCAEP is a continuation of the evidence review that was completed by the National Professional Development Center on Autism Spectrum Disorder.
NECTAC was supported by the U.S. Department of Education's Office of Special Education Programs (OSEP) under the provisions of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA). NECTAC served Part C-Infant and Toddlers with Disabilities Programs and Part B-Section 619 Preschool Programs for Children with Disabilities in all 50 states and 10 jurisdictions to improve service systems and outcomes for children and families.
This project consists of planning and implementing an evaluation of The Educare Learning Network, a consortium of programs nationwide providing high quality learning environments for at-risk children from birth to 5 years. The evaluation will document the features of Educare and how implementation of the model contributes to program quality and links to child and family outcomes.
The mission of the National Implementation Research Network is to contribute to the best practices and science of implementation, organization change, and system reinvention to improve outcomes across the spectrum of human services.
