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Drawing on the full breadth of intellectual resources available across Harvard University’s graduate schools and affiliated hospitals, the Center generates, translates, and applies knowledge in the service of improving life outcomes for children in the United States and throughout the world.

Mission

The Center on the Developing Child at Harvard University was founded in 2006 on the belief that the vitality and sustainability of any society depend on the extent to which it expands opportunities early in life for all children to achieve their full potential and engage in responsible and productive citizenship. We view healthy child development as the foundation of economic prosperity, strong communities, and a just society, and our mission is to advance that vision by using science to enhance child well-being through innovations in policy and practice.

Specifically, the Center is committed to

  • Building a unified science of health, learning, and behavior to explain the early roots of lifelong impairments;
  • Leading the design, implementation, and evaluation of innovative program and practice models that reduce preventable disparities in well-being;
  • Catalyzing the implementation of effective, science-based public policies through strategic relationships and knowledge transfer; and
  • Preparing future and current leaders to build and leverage knowledge that promotes the healthy development of children and families and brings high returns to all of society.

Fact Sheet: Mission and Activities (PDF) >>


Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

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Center Director & Staff

Get to know the Center’s director and the staff members at our Cambridge, Mass., office. More >>

History & Current Context

Learn how the Center came to be and how recent scientific advances have made this a time of opportunity. More >>

Funders

Read a list of our major funders and find out how to become a Center supporter. More >>

Press Information

See information and resources for media members and others. Includes contacts for press inquiries and speaker/presentation requests. More >>


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