NYU Global TIES for Children

What NYU Global TIES for Children does

NYU Global TIES for Children is an international research center housed within NYU Steinhardt School of Culture, Education, and Human Development, founded around 2015 by Larry Aber and Hirokazu Yoshikawa. The center conducts rigorous, cross-disciplinary research — including randomized controlled trials, longitudinal cohort studies, biomarker research, and psychometric instrument validation — focused on early childhood and primary school-aged development in contexts of conflict, crisis, and displacement. It serves governments, multilateral organizations (UNICEF, World Bank, IDB), humanitarian NGOs (BRAC, IRC, Sesame Workshop), and local academic institutions across more than a dozen countries in Latin America, Sub-Saharan Africa, the Middle East, South Asia, the Caribbean, and Europe.

The center operates a portfolio of named research projects and measurement instruments: the iRRRd prenatal birth cohort tracking nearly 2,900 Rohingya and host community families in Bangladesh; the LEARN capacity-building network for early-career scholars in Ghana and Colombia; the Engage project on playful learning; the RHELP remote learning pilot in Haiti; a School Streets evaluation in Tirana; and the Play to Learn / Ahlan Simsim consortium with Sesame Workshop, BRAC, and IRC reaching over 23 million children across MENA. Core proprietary measurement assets include the PLAY Toolkit, the IDELA-E child assessment tool adapted for Rohingya contexts, and the HOLAS Interactive Framework for measuring holistic learning outcomes in emergencies.

Global TIES is a non-commercial, grant-funded academic entity wholly owned by New York University. It generates no commercial revenue; all operating support comes from research grants and partnerships with foundations (LEGO Foundation, Jacobs Foundation, Van Leer Foundation, J-PAL, The Agency Fund), bilateral and multilateral institutions (IDB, World Bank), and government counterparties. The center's go-to-market is publication-driven — peer-reviewed journal articles, policy briefs, conference presentations, and direct engagement with policymakers — rather than product sales. Pricing is not applicable as no commercial products or services are offered.

Name

NYU Global TIES for Children

Legal name

Global TIES for Children

Website

https://globaltiesforchildren.nyu.edu

Company type

Private

Founded year

2015

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

NYU Global TIES for Children is an NYU Steinhardt research center conducting rigorous studies on early childhood development in conflict and crisis settings across 13+ countries, serving governments, multilateral organizations, and humanitarian NGOs.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

International Development Research Services

NAICS

Educational Services (611), Child and Youth Services (62411), Social Assistance (624), Other Individual and Family Services (624190)

SIC

Services-Educational Services (8200), Services-Social Services (8300)

akta.pro primary industry

Education Access & Quality (International Development) (BPAGABAE)

akta.pro secondary industries

Intergovernmental Education Cooperation & Bilateral/Multilateral Programs (EDADALAA), Maternal, Newborn, Child & Adolescent Health (MNCAH) Partnerships (HLAJAOAG)

Keywords

• International development research
• Early childhood development
• Humanitarian program evaluation
• Culturally responsive measurement
• Longitudinal cohort research

Headquarters

HQ city

New York

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Research Grants and Foundation Funding: As an NYU-based research center, Global TIES operates primarily through research grants from foundations, governments, and multilateral organizations. Funding supports research activities, program evaluations, and capacity building initiatives.

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

NYU Global TIES for Children is an international research center that conducts cross-disciplinary applied research and program evaluations on early childhood development in conflict, crisis, and displacement settings. It delivers research projects (e.g., iRRRd, LEARN, Engage, RHELP, Play to Learn, School Streets), develops culturally responsive measurement tools, and builds research capacity in low- and middle-income countries through training, mentorship, and policy advising for governments and multilateral partners.

Product overview

NYU Global TIES for Children is an international research center that combines cutting-edge and cross-disciplinary research to support initiatives enabling children, caregivers, teachers, and communities to thrive. The organization operates a portfolio of research projects including: Engage (student engagement), iRRRd (longitudinal birth cohort study), LEARN (scholar capacity network), RHELP (remote learning in Haiti), School Streets evaluation (Albania), Play to Learn (humanitarian ECD with Rohingya communities), and Ahlan Simsim (Middle East media program). Additional offerings include the PLAY Toolkit for measuring playful learning and the Buenos Aires Fellowship for students. The center focuses on early childhood development, primary school-aged children, measurement & metrics, and capacity strengthening & policy advising across crisis-affected and vulnerable contexts.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Engage Research project focused on strengthening student engagement in early childhood and primary education across diverse contexts through playful learning approaches.
• iRRRd Longitudinal Study Prenatal birth cohort study on intergenerational transmission of trauma and child development in contexts of adversity, following nearly 2,900 refugee and host community families in Cox's Bazar, Bangladesh.
• LEARN (Leverage, Empower, Advance Research Network) Capacity exchange network for early-career child development scholars in Colombia and Ghana, providing training in measurement, psychometrics, longitudinal methods, and grant-writing, with 20 scholars across the two cohorts.
• Remote and Hybrid Early Learning Program (RHELP) Remote learning pilot in Haiti testing hybrid early learning models for children ages 4-6 in crisis settings, in partnership with GHESKIO, FAES, and IDB.
• School Streets Evaluation Evaluation of child-friendly school streets initiative in Tirana, Albania, studying the impact of transforming streets around public primary schools into pedestrian-friendly spaces.
• Play to Learn Partnership program with Sesame Workshop, BRAC, and IRC, funded by the LEGO Foundation, providing early childhood development services for children affected by crisis, including Humanitarian Play Labs in Rohingya camps.
• Ahlan Simsim Arabic version of Sesame Street developed for the Middle East region, evaluated by Global TIES for its impact on Jordanian children's emotional development; the TV program has reached 23 million+ children across MENA.
• PLAY Toolkit Culturally responsive measurement toolkit for assessing how caregivers and teachers support children's engagement in learning, with observation and survey tools for children from birth to 12 years across home, centre, and school settings.
• IDELA-E (IDELA Extended) Culturally and contextually adapted child assessment tool for Rohingya children in Cox's Bazar, Bangladesh, capturing learning and development across five domains: fine and gross motor, emergent literacy, emergent numeracy, socio-emotional, and executive function.
• HOLAS Interactive Framework Comprehensive framework for measuring holistic learning outcome measurement systems in emergencies and protracted crises, developed for use in Colombia and Peru.
• Global TIES Fellowship in Buenos Aires Experiential learning program for NYU Steinhardt undergraduates providing community-engaged research placement in Buenos Aires with $3,500 award support.

Quantifiable outcome

• Ahlan Simsim TV program viewed by 23 million+ children across MENA region, with demonstrated improvements in Jordanian children's emotional development
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers5 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature4 records

Partnerships

17 partnerships are on record, tiered core and supporting.

• BRACcoreImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerImplementing partner for Play to Learn project, operating Humanitarian Play Labs in Rohingya camps in Bangladesh.
• Sesame WorkshopcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCore partner in Play to Learn consortium, developing media-supported ECD programs including Ahlan Simsim and Watch, Play, Learn.
• International Rescue Committee (IRC)coreImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerImplementing partner for Play to Learn, providing healing classrooms and education services in crisis settings.
• Universidad de Los AndescoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerAcademic partner for LEARN project in Colombia, co-hosting methods workshops and supporting local scholar development.
• University of Cape CoastcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerAcademic partner for LEARN project in Ghana, co-hosting annual methods workshops and supporting regional research capacity.
• GHESKIOcoreImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerLocal implementing partner in Haiti for the Remote and Hybrid Early Learning Program (RHELP) and data collection activities.
• icddr,bcoreImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerResearch partner in Bangladesh for the iRRRd prenatal birth cohort study, providing scientific expertise and local operations.
• University of California, DavissupportingStrategic or Co-development PartnerAcademic partner for iRRRd study, contributing expertise to the prenatal birth cohort research in Bangladesh.
• Van Leer FoundationsupportingStrategic or Co-development PartnerPublisher of Early Childhood Matters journal; collaborated on New York launch event hosted by Global TIES.
• Qendra MarrëdhëniesupportingImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerLocal partner in Albania for evaluating child-friendly city programs including the Tirana School Street initiative.
• World BanksupportingStrategic or Co-development PartnerHosted inaugural Nutrition & Early Years Advisory Group (NEYAG) meeting; collaborated on webinars regarding early childhood education and digital environments.
• Society for Research in Child Development (SRCD)supportingGTM or Marketing PartnerInternational organization providing mentorship and research networks for LEARN scholars.
• International Society for the Study of Behavioural Development (ISSBD)supportingGTM or Marketing PartnerInternational organization providing mentorship and research networks for LEARN scholars.
• Innovations for Poverty Action (IPA)supportingImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerImplementing partner in Colombia for Watch, Play, Learn evaluation and co-leading surveys on teenage addiction risk factors.
• Institute For Fiscal StudiessupportingGTM or Marketing PartnerCo-host of THRIVE Conference where Global TIES presented keynote on scaling ECD programs.
• RTI InternationalsupportingImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerPartner in Engage project Community of Practice convening; developing Engage tools for playful learning.
• EDC (Education Development Center)supportingImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerOrganizer of Engage Community of Practice convening with LEGO Foundation.

Scale indicators6 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Emerging players

• BRAC: BRAC runs Humanitarian Play Labs in Rohingya camps as the field implementation arm of Play to Learn and is one of the world's largest ECD-at-scale NGOs operating in similar low-income contexts as Global TIES's research.
• Sesame Workshop: Sesame Workshop co-developed Ahlan Simsim and Watch, Play, Learn, the media-ECD programs that Global TIES evaluates; comparable in the niche intersection of mass-media ECD and rigorous evaluation in MENA and LMICs.
• International Rescue Committee (IRC): IRC delivers ECD and education-in-emergencies programming (Healing Classrooms) in conflict settings as an implementing partner in Play to Learn; overlaps with Global TIES on humanitarian ECD but is fundamentally an implementer rather than a research center.

Direct peers

• Education Development Center (EDC): EDC designs and evaluates education and ECD programs globally, including in crisis settings, and is a co-organizer of the LEGO-funded Engage Community of Practice with Global TIES.
• J-PAL (Abdul Latif Jameel Poverty Action Lab): J-PAL applies randomized evaluations to education, health, and child development programs in developing countries; it is a direct funder/peer of Global TIES and shares its RCT-driven, evidence-to-policy orientation.
• RTI International: RTI International is a large research institute conducting ECD and education impact evaluations in LMICs and co-convenes the Engage Community of Practice; it competes for the same grant-funded evaluation work as Global TIES.
• Innovations for Poverty Action (IPA): IPA runs rigorous impact evaluations (often RCTs) on anti-poverty programs in LMICs, with a workforce and methodological focus closely mirroring Global TIES's ECD evaluation work — IPA is also a documented partner on Colombia evaluations.

Regional players

• icddr,b: icddr,b is a Bangladesh-based research institution and the operational/scientific partner on the iRRRd prenatal cohort; comparable as a multidisciplinary LMIC research center but anchored to Bangladesh rather than operating globally.

Broad incumbents

• Save the Children: Save the Children runs large-scale ECD and education-in-crisis programs globally, generates internal evidence, and shapes donor priorities — overlapping with Global TIES on refugee/displaced children policy and programming.
• UNICEF Office of Research - Innocenti: UNICEF Innocenti is a globally established research arm producing policy evidence on child wellbeing and ECD, with comparable longitudinal and cross-country measurement work but vastly greater institutional resources.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/UC4g9y-F7IyvV7Xv6bXc7H3g
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/nyuglobaltiesforchildren

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles7 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about NYU Global TIES for Children