About the Director
Meet Tricia Hanley
Director, Graduate Program in Child Development Program
Director, Child Development Institute
Observing a child at play offers a window into their inner world, an understanding of who they are as an individual and how they make sense of their experiences and the world around them.
About Tricia’s Dual Role in the Children, Childhood and Education Collaborative at Sarah Lawrence College
The programs that Tricia directs are part of Sarah Lawrence College’s Children, Childhood, and Education Collaborative. The Collaborative brings together faculty expertise, programs, and centers to collectively provide a context and framework for undergraduate and graduate students, education professionals, and parents to train for, engage with, and participate in the fields of early childhood education, elementary education, and child development.
Tricia has a dual role at the college as Director of the Graduate Program in Child Development and Director of the Child Development Institute (CDI). More about CDI below:
The Child Development Institute was established in 1987 to develop programs for early childhood and elementary school teachers, administrators, child development professionals, parents and the community at large.
More than three decades later, the Child Development Institute honors its innovative legacy of thought leadership and progressive education with regular offerings such as:
- Lectures and panels that engage the expertise of psychologists, educators, sociologists, and other professionals
- Collaboratively engaging with organizations that want to partner
- Developmental research studies
- Intensive seminars and accredited workshops for teachers
- Community Adventure Play Experiences (CAPE) for children in our surrounding communities
You can learn more about the programs that make up the Collaborative here.
Teaching Experience and Directorship at Sarah Lawrence College
Tricia was a member of the Early Childhood Center (ECC) faculty at Sarah Lawrence from 2007-2012. Prior to joining the Child Development Institute (CDI) as Director, Tricia was a head teacher, administrator, supervisor, parent advisor, and regular attendee of CDI professional development programs and events. She became the director of the Child Development Institute here in 2018 and the director of the Graduate Program in Child Development in 2022.
Education
Tricia earned her BA from Columbia University and her MSEd and MA from Sarah Lawrence College. She is a graduate of both the Art of Teaching and Child Development Masters Programs.
Research Interests
Tricia is personally and professionally dedicated to early childhood education and development. She is particularly interested in attachment and the essential role of play in children’s lives. She is currently in the fourth year of a longitudinal study of children’s outdoor play.
Watch, Listen and Read
Embracing Play: Conversation with Tricia Hanley and Cindy Parson Puccio
CDI’s 2025 Annual Conference, featured a full day of conversations and workshops focused on the importance of play in children’s lives and the need for adults to create and sustain crucial play opportunities for children in their homes, schools, and community spaces. Play, in all these contexts, is essential for supporting intellectual, social, and emotional well-being of children and adults. Watch the recordings here.
Sarah Lawrence College Recognized for Yonkers Library Children's Room
4/25/2023
The Yonkers Public Library unveiled its most recent collaboration with Sarah Lawrence College: The Cove, an indoor play space.
“Sarah Lawrence College and the Yonkers Public Library have a long history of partnership,” said Hanley. “The Child Development Institute and Yonkers Public Library share a commitment to supporting healthy development of children and families in our community. We are excited to continue to find new ways to strengthen this partnership and support each other's work.”
Read more here.
How Remote Working Could be Changing Children’s Futures
Meredith Turits 2/24/2022
In this BBC article, Kim Ferguson, Dean of Graduate & Professional Studies, and Tricia Hanley MS Ed '08 MA '13, Director of the Child Development Institute, shared expert advice on how parents can navigate working from home and the influence it may have on children. Read it here.