November 2025

AERA member Hirokazu Yoshikawa has been awarded the 2025 Klaus J. Jacobs Research Prize for his outstanding contributions to early childhood development. The Jacobs Foundation presented the award at a ceremony on November 14 in Zürich, Switzerland.

Established in 2009, the Klaus J. Jacobs Research Prize recognizes exceptional research that advances children’s learning and development around the world.

Yoshikawa is the Courtney Sale Ross Professor of Globalization and Education at New York University’s (NYU) Steinhardt School, a professor of applied psychology and university professor at NYU, and cofounder of Global TIES for Children. His research focuses on policy, advocacy, and practice partnerships centered on immigration, early childhood, youth development, and poverty reduction. He also played a pivotal role in embedding early childhood development into the UN Sustainable Development Goals.

In its announcement, the foundation praised Yoshikawa for showing “how rigorous science, when rooted in lived experience and community engagement, can drive meaningful, lasting change for children and families,” noting his “work continues to redefine what’s possible in child development research, policy, and practice on a global scale.”

“We are thrilled to celebrate Dr. Yoshikawa for this prestigious recognition,” said AERA Executive Director Tabbye Chavous. “He has expanded the reach of education research by keeping children’s lived experiences at the center of scholarship and by helping translate evidence into real change for communities around the world.”

Yoshikawa received his PhD in psychology from NYU. He is a fellow of the National Academy of Education and the American Academy of Arts and Sciences.