Judith J. Carta

Judith J. Carta
  • Professor; Senior Scientist
  • Interim Director, Juniper Gardens Children's Project

Contact Info

Office Phone:
913-321-3143
Department Phone:
785-864-0556
Fax:
913-371-8522
Juniper Gardens, room #307

Personal Links

Biography —

Dr. Carta is a Senior Scientist in the Institute for Life Span Studies, and Professor of Special Education at the University of Kansas. Her science focuses on developing strategies to minimize the effects of poverty on children's outcomes and developing practices that teachers and parents can use to promote children's language, early literacy, and social outcomes. Her key research and policy interests include advancing the quality of children's caregiving environments, methods for monitoring the progress of young children, and strategies for promoting family engagement in early intervention programs. She has been the PI of several multi-site research projects and centers funded by the National Institutes of Health, the Institute of Educational Sciences, and the Administration on Children and Families. She currently co-directs the National Bridging the Word Gap Research Network. She was a member of the Federal Advisory Panel on Head Start Research and Evaluation, Division of Early Childhood's Commission on Recommended Practices, and served as the Editor of Topics in Early Childhood Special Education. Dr. Carta has authored and co-authored numerous articles, books, and chapters. She has mentored 19 post-doctoral fellows and advised dozens of doctoral students across multiple disciplines.

Dr. Carta specializes in response to intervention in Pre-K, evidence-based practices for young children, risk factors affecting children's development, monitoring progress in young children, and parenting interventions and effects on young children.

Web sites:
IGDI- http://igdi.ku.edu/
http://jgcp.ku.edu/judith-j-carta-phd
http://www.bwgresnet.res.ku.edu/


Juniper Garden Children's Project- http://jgcp.ku.edu/

Research —

Dr. Carta is Director of Early Childhood Research at the Juniper Gardens Children's Project, a Senior Scientist in the Institute for Life Span Studies, and Professor of Special Education at the University of Kansas. Her research focuses on developing strategies to minimize the effects of poverty on children's development and validating practices that teachers and parents can use to promote children's school readiness and prevent child neglect. She is currently the Principal Investigator of the national Bridging the Word Gap Research Network and has been the PI of several multi-site research projects funded by the National Institutes of Health, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the Institute of Educational Sciences, and the Administration on Children and Families. She was formerly the co-director of the Center for Response to Intervention in Early Childhood, and Co-PI of the Centers for the Prevention of Child Neglect. She is a co-author of many measures and interventions focused on young children including the Infant-Toddler Individual Growth and Development Indicators (IGDIs), the Teaching Pyramid Infant-Toddler Observation System (TPITOS), and the Ecobehavioral System for the Complex Assessment of Preschool Environments (ESCAPE). She serves on many editorial boards and national advisory boards including the Advisory Committee on Head Start Research and Evaluation.

Research interests:

  • early intervention for children growing up in poverty
  • progress monitoring of infants and young children
  • improving outcomes for children and families affected by multiple environmental risks
  • observational approaches for measuring quality of caregiving environments and interactions
  • family-centered comprehensive intervention and prevention efforts for children at-risk
  • classroom interventions that support young children's early literacy and social development
  • Multi-Tiered Systems of Support)

Teaching —

I teach a yearly Doctoral Seminar on Evidence-Based Practice in Early Intervention which is a required course of doctoral students in Early Childhood Special Education. I routinely act as a major advisor for Special Education doctoral students and serve on many doctoral comprehensive and dissertation committees in Special Education and Applied Behavior Science. I also act a post-doctoral mentor for 2 post-doctoral fellows who are part of our IES-funded post-doctoral fellowship program in Early Childhood at Juniper Gardens Children's Project and also have developed an Emerging Scholars program for 4 doctoral and post-doctoral scholars who are carrying out research related to Bridging the Word Gap Research Network and coordinate the mentorship of those 4 scholars.

Teaching interests:

  • evidence-based practices in early childhood special education
  • risk and protective factors affecting the development of young children
  • assessment of young children
  • early parenting interventions for promoting positive outcomes in children
  • effective classroom interventions for young children with disabilities
  • strategies for promoting school readiness
  • observational approaches for examining quality of caregiving environments
  • language interventions for children in poverty

Selected Publications —

Carta, J. J., Greenwood, C. R., & Abbott, M. (2019). Developing and Sustaining High Quality Tier 1 Early Literacy and Language Practices in an Early Education MTSS Framework [Book Chapters]. In Multi-tiered Systems of Support (MTSS) for Young Children: Driving Change in Early Education.
Carta, J. J. (2019). Introduction to Multi-tiered Systems of Support (MTSS) in Early Education [Book Chapters]. In Multi-tiered Systems of Support (MTSS) for Young Children: Driving Change in Early Education.
Carta, J. J., & Miller Young, R. (2019). Multi-Tiered Systems of Support for Young Children:  Driving Change in Early Education [Books]. Paul H. Brookes.
Greenwood, C. R., Schnitz, A., Irvin, D., Tsai, S., & Carta, J. J. (2018). Automated Language ENvironment Analysis (LENA): A Research Synthesis [Journal Articles]. American Journal of Speech-Language Pathology, 27(2), 853–867. https://doi.org/10.1044/2017_AJSLP-17-0033
McElhattan, T., & Carta, J. (2018). Readiness Skills [Journal Articles]. The Sage Encyclopedia of Intellectual and Developmental Disorders. Published.
Goldstein, H., Olszewski, A., Haring, C., Greenwood, C., McCune, L., & Carta, J. (2017). Efficacy of a Supplemental Phonemic Awareness Curriculum to Instruct Preschoolers with Delays in Early Literacy Development [Journal Articles]. Journal of Speech, Language, and Hearing Research, 60(1), 89–103.
Greenwood, C. R., Carta, J. J., Walker, D., Watson-Thompson, J., Gilkerson, J., Larson, A., & Schnitz, A. (2017). Conceptualizing a public health prevention-intervention for bridging the 30 million word gap. [Journal Articles]. Clinical Child and Family Psychology Review. Published. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10567-017-0223-8
Lefever, J., Bigelow, K., Carta, J., Irvin, D., Grandfield, E., & McCune, L. (2017). Long-Term Effects of a Cell-Phone Enhanced Parenting Intervention [Journal Articles]. Child Maltreatment, 22, 305–316.
Greenwood, C. R., Carta, J. J., Spencer, E., Guerrero, G., Kong, N. Y., Atwater, J., & Goldstein, H. (2017). The effects of a tier 2 vocabulary and comprehension storybook intervention on preschool children’s early learning:  A replication. [Journal Articles]. The Elementary School Journal, 116(4), 574–599.
Goldstein, H., Kelley, E., Greenwood, C., McCune, L., Carta, J. J., & Atwater, J. (2016). Embedded instruction improved vocabulary learning using automated storybook reading among high risk preschoolers. [Journal Articles]. Published.
Greenwood, C. R., Carta, J. J., Spencer E., Guerrero G, Kong N, Atwater J, & Goldstein H. (2016). The effects of a tier 2 vocabulary and comprehension storybook intervention on preschool children’s early learning:  A replication [Journal Articles]. Elementary School Journal, 116(4), 574–599.
Akers, L., DelGrosso, P., Snell, E., Atkins-Burnett, S., Wasik, B., Carta, J., Boller, K., & Monahan, S. (2016). Tailored teaching:  Emerging themes from the literature on teachers’ use of ongoing child assessment to individualize instruction. [Journal Articles]. Head Start Dialog, 18(4).
Carta, J. J., Jimerson, s. J., Burns, M., & VanDerHeyden, A. (2016). Advances in multi-tiered systems of support for prekindergarten children:  Lessons learned from 5 years of research and development from the Center for Response to Intervention in Early Childhood. [Book Chapters]. In Handbook of Response to Intervention (pp. 587–606). Springer.
Radesky, J., Carta, J. J., & Bair-Merritt, M. (2016). The 30 Million Word-Gap:  Relevance for Pediatrics. [Journal Articles]. JAMA Pediatrics. Published. https://doi.org/10.1001/jamapediatrics.2016.1486
Goldstein, H., Greenwood, C., Kelley, E., McCune, L., & Carta, J. (2016). Embedded Instruction Improves Vocabulary Learning During Automated Storybook Reading Among High-Risk Preschoolers [Journal Articles]. Published.
Carta, J. J., McElhattan, T., & Guerrero, G. (2016). The Application of Response to Intervention to Young Children with Identified Disabilities [Book Chapters]. In B. Reichow, B. Boyd, E. E. Barton, & S. A. Odom (Eds.), Handbook of Early Childhood Special Education (pp. 163–178). Springer.
Carta, J. (2015). Children Should Be Identified and Receive Special Education in Early Childhood [Book Chapters]. In B. Bateman, M. Tankersley, & J. Lloyd (Eds.), Enduring Issues  in Special Education: Personal Perspectives. Routledge.
Carta, J. J., Greenwood, C. R., Atwater, J., McConnell, S. R., Goldstein, H., & Kaminski, R. (2015). Identifying preschool children for higher tiers of language and early literacy instruction within a Response to Intervention framework [Journal Articles]. Journal of Early Intervention, 36(4), 281–291.
Greenwood, C. R., Carta, J., Goldstein, H., Kaminski, R., McConnell, S. R., & Atwater, J. (2015). The Center on Response to Intervention in Early Childhoo (CRTIEC):  Developing evidence-basedtools for a multi-tiered approach to preschool language and early literacy instruction. [Journal Articles]. Journal of Early Intervention, 36(4), 246–262.
Carta, J. J., Burns, M. K., & VanderHeyden, A. M. (2015). Advances in multi-tiered systems of support for prekindergarten children:  Lessons learned from 5 years of research and development from the Center for Response to Intervention in Early Childhood. [Book Chapters]. In S. R. Jimeserson (Ed.), The Handbook of Response to Intervention:  The science and practice of multi-tiered systems of support (2nd Ed.) (Issue 2nd, pp. 587–606).
Carta, J., Bigelow, K., Irvin, D., & Hemmeter, M. L. (2015). The Teaching Pyramid Infant-Toddler Observation System:  Observer’s Manual [Instructional Materials].
Guttentag, C. L., Landry, S. H., Baggett, K. M., Noria, C. W., Borkowski, J. G., Swank, P. R., Williams, J. M., Farris, J. R., Carta, J. C., & Warren, S. F. (2014). “My Baby and Me”: Effects of an early, comprehensive parenting intervention on at-risk mothers and their children. [Journal Articles]. Developmental Psychology, 50, 1482–1496.
Carta, J., Larson, A., Greenwood, C., & Walker, D. (2014). Bridging the Word Gap Research Network [Web Publishing (article, blog, etc.)].
Carta, J. J., PhD, Lefever, J., PhD, Bigelow, K., PhD, Borkowski, J., Phd, & Warren, S., PhD. (2013). Randomized trial of a cellular-phone enhanced home visitation parenting intervention.    [Journal Articles]. Pediatrics, 132(Suppl 2), 367–373. https://doi.org/10.154/peds.2013-1021Q
Lefever, J., Bigelow, K., Carta, J., & Borkowski, J. (2013). Prediction of early engagement and completion of a home visitation parenting intervention for preventing child maltreatment. [Journal Articles]. NHSA Dialog:  A Research to Practice Journal for the Early Childhood Field. Published.
Bigelow, K., Lefever, J., Carta, J. J., & Borkowski, J. (2013). Enhancing parent engagement and program completion in a home visiting parenting intervention through the use of cellular phones [Journal Articles]. NHSA Dialog, 16, 172–177.
Carta, J., & Greenwood, C. (2013). Future challenges and new directions in RTI [Book Chapters]. In V. Buysse & E. Peisner-Feinberg (Eds.), Handbook of response to intervention in early childhood. (pp. 421–431). Paul H. Brookes.
Kong, N., & Carta, J. (2013). Research synthesis of studies on responsive interaction intervention for children with or at risk for developmental delays [Journal Articles]. Topics in Early Childhood Special Education, 33, 4–17.
Greenwood, C. R., Carta, J. J., Atwater, J., Goldstein, H., Kaminski, R., & McConnell, S. R. (2012). Is a response to intervention approach to preschool language and literacy instruction needed?  [Journal Articles]. Topics in Early Childhood Special Education. Published.
Carta, J., Greenwood, C., Baggett, K., Buzhardt, J., & Walker, D. (2012). Research-based approaches for individualizing caregiving and educational interventions for infants and toddlers in poverty [Book Chapters]. In S. Odom, E. Pungello, & N. Gardner-Neblett (Eds.), Re-visioning the Beginning: The implications of developmental and health science for infant/toddler care and poverty (pp. 333–349). Guilford Press.

Selected Presentations —

Carta, J. J., Duran, L., Kaminski, R., & Miller Young, R. (10/31/2017). Implementing multi-tiered systems of support for young children: Challenging issues, creative solutions. Division of Early Childhood Conference. Portland, OR
Greenwood, C. R., & Carta, J. J. (9/30/2017). Doing science and doing good: 50 years of research at the Juniper Gardens Children’s Project. Invited Distinguished Education Lecture Series, Kansas State University. Manhattan, KS
Carta, J. J., Dickinson, D., & Troseth, G. (4/30/2017). Taking it to the Street: Can We Move the Needle on the Word Gap Through Population-Based Interventions?. Society for Research in Child Development. Austin, TX
Carta, J. (2/28/2017). Inspiring new initiatives for the next generation: Understanding the context. Early Childhood National Summit. Orlando, Fl
Miller Young, R., Carta, J., Hojnoski, R., & Wackerle-Hollman, A. (2/28/2017). MTSS for Young Children: An Effective Early Education Framework. National Association of School Psychologists. San Antonio, TX
Carta, J., Buzhardt, J., Walker, D., & Greenwood, C. (1/31/2017). Exploring strategies that pediatricians can implement to prevent language delays in the youngest children. Pediatric Grand Rounds. University of Kansas Medical Center
Carta, J., Needleman, R., & Mendelsohn, A. (10/23/2016). Bridging the Word Gap Research Network and Its Implications for Pediatrics. American Association for Pediatrics. San Francisco, CA
Carta, J. (9/7/2016 - 9/9/2016)
Carta, J. J., Tamis-LeMonda, C., & Rowe, M. (7/12/2016). Effective promotion of language development in infants and toddlers. National Research Conference on Early Childhood. Washington, DC
Carta, J. J. (5/23/2016). Fifty Years of Research on Children with Disabilities and Their Families: From Changing Behaviors to Transforming Lives. Symposium Honoring the 50 Year Anniversary of the Frank Porter Graham Center. University of North Carolina: Chapel Hill, NC
Carta, J. J. (4/30/2016). Bridging the Word Gap: What Wil It Take?. Pediatric Academic Societies. Baltimore, MD
Carta, J. J. (2/17/2016). Advancing the science for improving children's early language development. Conference for Research Innovation in Early Intervention. San Diego, CA
Carta, J. (12/31/2016). Delivering effective and efficient early language and literacy instruction in early childhood MTSS/RTI frameworks. 19th Annual RTI Innovations Conference. Milwaukee, WI
Carta, J. (10/31/2015). An Introduction to the Pyramid Model Infant-Toddler Observation System (TPITOS). Invited Workshop at the Head Start of Bernalillo County. Albuquerque, NM
Carta, J. J., Greenwood, C., Walker, D., & Larson, A. (10/31/2015). Bridging the Word Gap Research Network: Collaborating to Improve Language Outcomes. Division of Early Childhood Conference. Atlanta, GA
Carta, J. C., Mendelsohn, A., & McConnell, S. (10/31/2015). Cultural, Language, and other Familial Risk Factors Affecting Family Engagement. LENA Conference. Denver, CO
Carta, J., & Young, R. M. (10/31/2015). Delivering Core Instruction in Early Childhood Education Programs and Schools. Annual RTI Innovations Conference. Salt Lake City, UT
Carta, J., Guerrero, G., & McElhattan, T. (9/30/2015). Evidence-Based Language/Early Literacy Intervention for Early Education. Kansas Multi-Tiered System of Supports Symposium. Wichita, KS
Carta, J. C. (9/30/2015). Strengthening Tier 1 in Early Literacy/Language to Support a Multi-tiered System for Pre-Kindergarten Settings. Kansas Multi-Tiered System of Supports Symposium. Wichita, KS
Carta, J., Walker, D., & Greenwood, C. (4/30/2015). Bridging the Word Gap Research Network: A Federal Initiative to Improve Children's Language Environments. Power-Up: Blueprint for Kansas Early Childhood Conference. Lawrence, KS
Tamis-LeMonda, C., Carta, J., & Mendelsohn, A. (3/31/2015). Poverty-Related Disparities in Children’s Early Language Experiences and Language Development: Prevention, Intervention and Polic. Society for Research in Child Development. Philadelphia, PA
Clarke, B. L., Sheridan, S., Knoche, L., & Carta, J. (2/28/2015). Preschool language and literacy: Pilot test of a multi-tiered approach. National Association of School Psychologists Annual Convention. Orlando, FL
Carta, J., & Abbott, M. (1/31/2015). Universal Practices in MTSS/RtI in Early Education: Using Data-Based Approaches for Improving Tier 1 Practices. Illinois Sharing a Vision Early Childhood Webinar
Carta, J., Young, R. M., Greenwood, C., & Hosp, R. (10/31/2014). What Does Tiered Instruction Look Like in Pre-K?. RTI Innovations Conference. Salt Lake City, UT
Carta, J. How health care and early education are coming together to bridge the word gap. National Academy of Sciences Roundtable on Public Health Improvement. New York, NY

Awards & Honors —

Distinguished Educational Lecturer;
College of Education; Kansas State University
2017
Irvin Youngberg Award for Applied Sciences
Higuchi-KU Endowment Research Achievement Awards
2016
Bradley University Centurion Society
Bradley University
2015

Grants & Other Funded Activity —

Post-Doctoral Research Training Program in Special Education: Evidence-Base. US Dept of Education. $744000.00. Submitted 8/17/2017 (7/1/2018 - 6/30/2022). Federal. Status: Funded
Refinement of the Early Social Indicator, an Infant-Toddler Individual and Growth and Development Indicator for Universal Screening and Progress Monitoring. US Dept of Education. $1399997.00. Submitted 8/17/2017 (7/1/2018 - 6/30/2022). Federal. Status: Not Funded
The Effects of Promoting Engaging Early Literacy Interactions in Preschool Environments: Literacy 3D. US Dept of Education. $3300000.00. Submitted 8/4/2016 (7/1/2017 - 6/30/2021). Other. Status: Funded
Family TIES: A System to Promote Parent-Teacher Engagement and Positive Parent-Child Interactions to Improve School Readiness for At-risk Preschool Children. US Department of Education/Institute for Education Sciences. $1500000.00. Submitted 8/1/2014 (7/1/2015 - 6/30/2018). Federal. Status: Not Funded
Stepping Up Implementation of IGDI Technology to Improve Data-Based Decision Making for Infants and Toddlers with or at-risk for Disabilities. H327140024. Department of Education/Office of Special Education Programs. $2000000.00. Submitted 4/1/2014 (7/1/2014 - 6/30/2018). Federal. Status: Funded
Proposal for assessing early childhood teachers’ use of child progress monitoring to individualize teaching practices.. HHSP23320095642WC/HHSP23337041T. Administration for Children and Families/Office of Planning Research and Evaluation. (9/1/2012 - 12/31/2016). Status: Funded
Kansas City Pre-K Landscape Study.. Kansas City Pre-K Collaborative. $350000.00. Submitted 2/1/2014 (7/1/2014 - 11/30/2016). Foundation. Status: Funded
Bridging the Word Gap Research Network. UA6 MC 27762. Maternal and Child Health Bureau/Health Resources and Services Administration. $600000.00. Submitted 7/1/2014 (9/1/2014 - 8/31/2016). Federal. Status: Funded
Kansas City Pre-K Landscape Study.. Kansas City Pre-K Collaborative. $250000.00. Submitted 1/1/2017. Foundation. Status: Funded

Service —

National/International Service includes Membership of he Federal Advisory Panel on Head Start research and evaluation (appointed by Secretary Kathleen Sebelius); Member of the Division of Early childhood Recommended Practice Commission; Member of the DEC Committee to Develop a Position Paper on Child Abuse; Member of CEC Division of Research Early Career Award Committee; Program Coordinator and Co-Founder of the Conference for Research on Early Intervention; Reviewer for Health Resources Services Administration (HRSA) National Pediatric Network; Judge for HRSA Challenge Grant on Bridging the Word Gap; Program Committee for the LENA Conference; Program Committee for Teaching and Learning Summit (Packard Foundation); Search Committee for the Early Childhood Unified Faculty Position in the Department of Special Education

Local Community Service includes: Project EAGLE Governance Committee; Children's Campus of Kansas City Partnership Coordinator; MIssion Project Development Committee; Mission Project Membership Committee;

Juniper Gardens Children's Project Committees:
--Strategic Planning--Leadership Transition Committee
--Strategic Planning--Financing and Marketing Committee
--Space Committee