Knopf, Herman T.

Research Scientist,
Anita Zucker Center for Excellence in Early Childhood Studies

College of Education
University of Florida
1345 Norman Hall
PO Box 117050
Gainesville, FL 32611-7052
Phone: 352-273-4287
Fax: 352-392-2655
hknopf@ufl.edu

Research Biography

Dr. Knopf’s research interests include child care accessibility, parent selection of child care, early childhood workforce professional development, and use of administrative data. He is collaborating with policymakers in both South Carolina and Florida to develop a Child Care Access Index that measures the extent to which vulnerable children and families have reasonable access to high-quality early education and care. He is engaged in several community-based initiatives that work to bridge the research-to-practice divide by implementing evidence-based practices in local early care and learning settings.

Dr. Knopf has a three-fold mission to strengthen several systems in his research projects for the U.S. Administration for Children and Families, Office of Planning Research and Evaluation, and the South Carolina Department of Social Services. He is (1) providing professional development to childcare providers; (2) measuring and supporting child and family access to quality childcare services; and (3) coordinating efforts to leverage existing resources to ensure children with and without special needs receive care that supports early development and learning.

As a result of his work, he collaborated with the South Carolina Department of Social Services to found the Child Care Policy Research team, which uses state administrative data to answer research questions related to early childhood policy and practices to support positive outcomes.

Degrees

Ph.D. in Curriculum and Instruction, 2004
University of Florida

M.Ed. in Early Childhood Education, 1998
University of Florida

B.A. in Special Education, 1997
University of Florida

Key Professional Appointments

Research Scientist, Anita Zucker Center for Excellence in Early Childhood Studies, University of Florida, 2016–Present

Research Director, Yvonne & Schuyler Moore Child Development Research Center, University of South Carolina, Columbia, 2013–2016

Associate Professor of Early Childhood Education, University of South Carolina, Columbia, 2010–2016

Southeastern Conference Visiting Scholar, University of Florida, 2016

Assistant Professor of Early Childhood Education, University of South Carolina, Columbia, 2004–2010

Activities and Honors

ACTIVITIES
Professional or Learned Societies

• Steering Committee for the Child Care Research and Policy Consortium, 2009–Present
• President, South Carolina Early Childhood Association, 2011–2012
• President-Elect, South Carolina Early Childhood Association, 2010–2011
• Associate Editor for the Journal of Early Intervention, The Research Journal of the Division of Early Childhood of the Council for Exceptional Children, 2008–2010
• Public Policy Commission Chair, Southern Early Childhood Association, 2008–2010
• Member-at-Large, Elected Position, to the Southern Early Childhood Association Board of Directors, 2006–2010
• Vice President, South Carolina Early Childhood Association, 2009–2010

Statewide and Local Community Service

• Board of Directors, Children’s Center, University of South Carolina, 2013–Present
• Advisory Board to the Children’s Center, University of South Carolina, 2005–2011
• Lexington County 1st Steps Board of Directors, Columbia, South Carolina, 2005–2009
• Vice Chairman of the Alachua County Child Care Advisory Board, 2003–2004

Current Membership in Learned Societies

• Council for Exceptional Children, Division of Early Childhood
• Society for Research on Child Development
• Southern Early Childhood Association
• Child Care and Early Education Policy Research Consortium

HONORS
Leonard Maiden Spirit of Service Award, College of Education, University of South Carolina, 2009

Two Thumbs Up Award, Office of Student Disability Services, University of South Carolina, 2005

Grants

Knopf, H. T., (PI), Rao, V., Dueno, S., Tester D. (Co-Investigators). Management and Administration of South Carolina Child Care Resource and Referral Network. Project funded by the South Carolina Department of Social Services. July 1, 2016–June 30, 2021, Budget: $8,543,797

Knopf, H. T., (PI), Rao, V., & Tester D. (Co-PIs), Sherlock, P. (Research Assistant). Administrative Data to Inform State CCDBG Subsidy Policies. Project funded by the US Administration for Children and Families, Office of Planning Research and Evaluation. Grant ID: 90YE0176. October 1, 2015–February 28, 2017, Budget: $148,502

Googe, H. S. (PI) & Knopf, H. T. (Co-PI). SC Gateways: Preschool Initiative. Project Funded by SC Department of Education/USDE. October 1, 2015–September 30, 2016, Budget: $100,399

Knopf, H. T. (PI) & Googe, H. S. (Co-PI). Building a Statewide System for Inclusion. Project funded by the South Carolina Department of Social Services. 2012–2017, Budget: $2,118,198

Knopf, H. T. (PI). Management and Administration of South Carolina Child Care Resource and Referral Network. Project funded by the South Carolina Department of Social Services. 2011–2016, Budget: $6,767,842

Selected Publications

Books and Chapters

Browder, J., & Knopf, H.T. (2014). Being a man in the early childhood classroom: Challenging some assumptions about our roles and responsibilities. In L. W. Waston (Ed.) It takes team effort: Men and women working together to enhance chidlren’s lives. Redleaf Press.

Williams, R., & Knopf, H.T. (2014). Being in the minority: Comparing and contrasting the perspective of two early childhood professors. In L. W. Waston (Ed.). It takes team effort: Men and women working together to enhance chidlren’s lives. Redleaf Press.

Brown, W. H., Knopf, H. T., Conroy, M. A., Googe, H. S., & Greer, F. (2013). Preschool inclusion and response to intervention (RTI) for children with disabilities. In V. Buysse & E. Peisner-Feinberg. Handbook of response to intervention (RTI) in early childhood. Baltimore: Paul H. Brookes.

Marshall, K., Brown, W. H., Conroy, M. A., & Knopf, H. (2011). Early intervention and prevention of disability: Preschoolers. In J. M. Kauffman & D. P. Hallahan (Eds.), Handbook of special education (pp. 703-714). New York: Routledge.

Decker, C. A., Decker, J. R., Freeman, N. K., & Knopf, H. T. (2009). Planning and Administering Early Childhood Programs (9th ed.). Columbus, OH: Pearson Merrill Prentice-Hall.

Peer Reviewed Articles

Parsons, A. A., Walsemann, K. M, Jones, S. J., Knopf, H., & Blake, C. E. (2016). Parental involvement: Rhetoric of inclusion in an environment of exclusion. Journal of Contemporary Ethnography. DOI: 10.1177/0891241616676874

Parsons, A. A., Walsemann, K. M, Jones, S. J., Knopf, H., & Blake, C. E. (2016). The influence of dominant obesity discourse on child health narratives: A qualitative study. Critical Public Health. DOI: 10.1080/09581596.2016.1164298

Swick, K., Knopf, H., Williams, R., & Fields, E. (2013). Family-school strategies for responding to the needs of children experiencing chronic stress. Early Childhood Education Journal.

Tanyel, N., & Knopf, H.T. (2011). Does using digital media in assessment affect teacher practices in infant and toddler classrooms? International Journal of Early Years Education, 19(4), 297-311.

Lavenda, O., Hunter, B., McInerney, N., Bolick, L., Haselden, C., Tester, D., Knopf, H., & Ha, Y. (2011). Administrative data as children’s well-being indicators: The South Carolina data bridge project. Child Indicators Research, 4(3), 493-451. DOI: 10.1007/s12187-010-9096-9

Knopf, H.T., & Brown, M. (2009). Lap-reading with kindergartners: So much more than literacy development. Young Children, 64(5), 80-87.