History & Stewardship
The Long-Term Home of the Pyramid Model
The Center on the Social and Emotional Foundations for Early Learning (CSEFEL) was funded between 2001- 2012 with the focus of promoting the social emotional development and school readiness of young children birth to age 5. CSEFEL was a national resource center funded by the Office of Head Start and Office of Child Care with the purpose of disseminating research and evidence-based practices to early childhood programs across the country. CSEFEL developed the Pyramid Model for Promoting the Social and Emotional Competence in Infants and Young Children.
In 2008, the U.S. Department of Education, Office of Special Education Programs funded the Technical Assistance Center on Social and Emotional Interventions (TACSEI) to support the inclusion of children with disabilities through the Pyramid Model. The result is that decision makers, caregivers and service providers developed an enhanced awareness of, understanding of, and ability to use evidence-based practices to improve the social-emotional outcomes for young children with, or at risk for, delays or disabilities.
While CSEFEL and TACSEI have ended, the demand for support for Pyramid Model training and technical assistance continues to increase. In an effort to meet this continued need, a new non-profit was created in January 2014 called the Pyramid Model Consortium as a way to continue the Pyramid Model work. The Pyramid Model Consortium consists of the founding members of the CSEFEL, TACSEI and the Pyramid Model.
Connections
NCPMI and PMC
The National Center for Pyramid Model Innovations (NCPMI) is a federally funded project established to disseminate effective use of the Pyramid Model to support young children’s social, emotional and behavioral development through a variety of training and technical assistance activities. The Pyramid Model Consortium (PMC) is a nonprofit, fee-for-service organization that, similarly, was established to disseminate high-fidelity use of the Pyramid Model. NCPMI and PMC have similarities and differences.
Similarities
Both NCPMI and PMC focus on the Pyramid Model as a framework for promoting effective practices for young children’s social-emotional development and both do so with training and technical assistance for states and local programs. Many of those who developed the Pyramid Model were involved in establishing PMC (in 2014) and are also faculty with NCPMI (beginning in 2017). NCPMI and PMC intend to establish a partnership in order to coordinate their activities.
Differences
NCPMI does not charge for services as it is funded by a 5-year grant that supports activities that are limited by time, work scope and resources. PMC, on the other hand, is a fee-for-service organization that can accommodate a greater range of requests involving Pyramid Model training and technical assistance.