Center for Early Childhood Education and Intervention (CECEI)

Dr. Christy Tirrell-Corbin (PI, HDQM) and Dr. Brenda Jones Harden (Co-PI, HDQM) received $1,275,000 in funding from the Maryland State Department of Education (MSDE) for an Implementation and Impact Evaluation of Maryland's Infant and Early Childhood Mental Health Support Services (IECMHSS) Program. The IECMHSS Program is intended to improve the ability of staff, programs, and families to prevent, identify, treat, and reduce the impact of social, emotional and other mental health problems among children birth through 5 years old. The evaluation will inform the public about the reach and effectiveness of the program in meeting the stated goal of creating fundamental shifts in early childhood professionals’ beliefs, attitudes, and practices to support more effective caregiving for all children, regardless of race, gender, class, or a myriad of other factors.

The CECEI was honored to host our second Virtual Colloquium. Dr. Iheoma U. Iruka, Research Professor in the Department of Public Policy at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and the Founding Director of the Equity Research Action Coalition at Frank Porter Graham Child Development Institute, presented on the topic, “Ensuring Equitable Learning Opportunities: Ensuring Justice in Early Care and Education.” Learn more about the colloquium.

CECEI hosted a table at Maryland Day on Saturday, April 30, 2022, with glitter bottle and finger painting activities for children and families, with the help of five volunteers.

CECEI, Principal Investigator Dr. Christy Tirrell-Corbin, is beginning work on Breaking Down our Silos: Creating a Trauma Informed Research, Policy and Practice Partnership (TI-RPPP), which is the next iteration of what has been known as the Trauma Sensitive Pedagogy (TSP) project. This project is funded by Bainum Family Fund. CECEI will continue the implementation of the Trauma Sensitive Pedagogy (TSP) project through June of 2022, while simultaneously creating a Trauma-Informed Research, Policy and Practice Partnership focused on bringing siloed stakeholders together to collaboratively identify and address both core and systemic trauma-related issues.

Dr. Christy Tirrell-Corbin (PI, HDQM) and Dr. Brenda Jones Harden (Co-PI) at CECEI were awarded funding from the Maryland State Department of Education for an external evaluation of the Efficacy of Infant and Early Childhood Mental Health Consultation (IECMHC) project which supports the provision of early childhood mental health services across the State. 

CECEI Executive Director Dr. Christy Tirrell-Corbin was quoted in The Washington Post about Sesame Street’s debut of a family with two dads during Pride Month, noting that the program has always been “ahead of the curve in terms of modeling diversity in all forms.”

The Division for Early Childhood of the Council for Exceptional Children's 37th Annual International Conference on Young Children With Disabilities and Their Families spotlights Executive Director of CECEI Dr. Christy Tirrell-Corbin as a keynote presenter. In her presentation, she discusses the critical work of early childcare educators and interventionists in low-resourced communities, the personal challenges they often face in these roles, and the promise of comprehensive community schools in addressing these challenges.

CECEI was honored to co-sponsor a virtual talk with the Language and Literacy Research Center (LLRC) with Dr. Kathy Hirsh-Pasek about re-defining and re-conceptualizing education. In her virtual presentation titled “Reimagining Education: A view from the science of learning,” Dr. Hirsh-Pasek, Professor of Psychology at Temple University and a Senior Fellow at the Brookings Institution, spoke to the impact of COVID-19 and how it presents the opportunity to “reimagine” early childhood education. Learn more about the talk and watch the full event recording.

In an EdSurge op-ed, Dr. Carlomagno Panlilio of PSU and Dr. Christy Tirrell-Corbin, Executive Director of CECEI, discuss trauma that educators are experiencing related to COVID-19, along with approaches that can help reduce the burden.

Executive Director of CECEI Dr. Christy Tirrell-Corbin, Dr. Carlomagno Panlilio of Penn State University, & Dr. J. Bart Klika, Chief Research Officer with Prevent Child Abuse America, write op-ed in The Hill, "The epidemic behind the mask: COVID-related education inequities."

CECEI is currently hiring. See our Career Opportunities page for more information on available positions.