Dr. Harms was widely known as the lead co-author of the Early Childhood Environment Rating Scale (ECERS), an observational framework that transformed how educators, researchers, and governments evaluate early learning settings. Developed during her tenure as Director of Curriculum Development at the Frank Porter Graham Child Development Institute at the University of North Carolina–Chapel Hill, ECERS — created with Richard Clifford and Debby Cryer, and later with Noreen Yazejian — became one of the most widely used measures of early childhood program quality.
Born in Manhattan on July 16, 1925 to Benjamin and Ida Ostrowsky, she graduated from Brooklyn College and earned master’s degrees in English Literature and German from the University of Wisconsin–Madison. She married the artist Norman L. Harms in 1946, who predeceased her.
From 1959 to 1975, she earned her doctorate in Early Childhood Education and served as Head Teacher at the University of California–Berkeley, Harold E. Jones Child Study Center, working alongside students and researchers while closely examining classroom practice. There, she began developing checklists to help teachers observe classrooms more carefully, focusing not only on curriculum but on how space, materials, relationships, and routines shaped children’s experiences. These tools became the foundation of her later work.
Published in 1980 as the Early Childhood Environment Rating Scale, her framework translated research and classroom experience into observable indicators of quality, allowing programs not only to be assessed but to identify paths for improvement. Related scales for infant and toddler care (ITERS), family child-care homes (FCCERS) and school-age programs (SACERS) followed, extending the framework across early childhood settings.
The scales spread rapidly, becoming embedded in Head Start programs, state quality rating systems, universal pre-kindergarten initiatives, and professional training programs in the United States and abroad. Translated into more than 20 languages and used in over 30 countries, they reflected shared principles of child development across differing educational traditions.
Dr. Harms helped write and produce Raising America’s Children, a public broadcasting series developed with the North Carolina Center for Public Television, and collaborated with Debby Cryer on the seven-volume Active Learning Series for children from infancy through kindergarten. She lectured and conducted trainings internationally.
The family will announce details about memorial gatherings to be held in Chapel Hill, NC, and Berkeley, CA in the coming months. Those wishing to participate may send their name and contact information to ThelmaHarmsMemorial@gmail.com. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to The Thelma Harms Early Childhood Education Fund at UNC. Go to: https://give.unc.edu/donate?p=fpgi&f=488813 and click “Give Now” under the fund name.
