Early Childhood

“Equity is at the core of everything we do,” says Professor Dina Castro, director of the BU Wheelock Institute for Early Childhood Well-Being and Bahamdan Professor for Early
Childhood Well-Being. “That’s our commitment: to transform the ecosystems surrounding children that perpetuate inequities.”

The Institute for Early Childhood Well-Being fosters collaboration and innovation among researchers, scholars, and practitioners across disciplines, at BU and beyond. Its work
focuses on five key areas: conducting research, building local and global community partnerships, convening experts on early childhood well-being, leading public discussion
and policy development, and educating early childhood practitioners through student fellowships, joint degree programs, and professional development.

We consider it essential to use a holistic approach to early childhood development, one that takes into account family health, nutrition, economic security, social supports—all the
factors that contribute to child well-being and general public health. Naturally, then, BU Wheelock strives to take an equally holistic approach to preparing educators, counselors,
and others who will work with young children and their families, and to conducting research in this essential field. We also collaborate with our community partners to explore new
models of caring for children and helping to ensure that they grow up to be strong, healthy adults.

We also know that the expertise required to solve pressing problems in early childhood is already emerging in multiple fields of study. But disciplinary silos and a lack of coordination make it hard to apply that expertise in practice. So, in addition to the multidisciplinary projects at the Institute for Early Childhood Well-Being and our Center on the Ecology of Early Development (CEED), our collaborations include work with colleagues in BU’s School of Social Work, its Chobanian & Avedisian School of Medicine, Boston Medical Center, and more.

All of this work has the potential to transform children’s and families’ lives, and we are committed to finding reliable sources of support to ensure that it does.

How You Can Lead

• Build endowment for the Institute for Early Childhood Well-Being
• Support research fellowships, practicums, and early-stage community-based projects
• Fund research projects that bring together scientists from across BU focused on early childhood well-being