Division of Research
  1. UH Home
  2. Division of Research
  3. SCBC Study

Division of Research

The Space City Birth Cohort Study

The Space City Birth Cohort Study brings together researchers from the University of Houston, Baylor College of Medicine, and Texas Children's Hospital to better understand how young children learn language and why some experience language difficulties.

Established through an $11.8 million grant from the National Institutes of Health, the Space City Birth Cohort Study is one of the largest studies of early language development ever conducted, following thousands of children across the Greater Houston area. 

The Projects. One Mission

 Discover how our specialized research teams collaborate across Prevalence, Etiology, and Developmental Pathways. 

Project 1

Prevalence

How common are language difficulties, and how can we identify them earlier?Partnering with Texas Children's Hospital pediatric network to track thousands of toddlers through age four, examining early communication, family, health, and environmental factors.

University of Houston & Baylor College of Medicine

Project 2

Etiology

Uncovering the biological, genetic, and social causes of language challenges.Following ~2,400 children using advanced data science and AI to study how genetics, neighborhood resources, healthcare access, and social factors interact in real-world settings.

University of Houston & Baylor College of Medicine

Project 3

Pathways

Why do some children catch up while others experience lasting difficulties?Examining language alongside attention, memory, thinking, and motor skills in English, Spanish, and bilingual children to identify unique developmental pathways.

University of Houston

Leadership & Institutional Researchers

Uniting pediatricians, speech-language pathologists, geneticists, data scientists, and neuroscientists across Houston.

University of Houston Team
Principal Investigators & Directors: Leading overall study governance, longitudinal behavioral tracking, monolingual/bilingual assessment development, and cognitive pathway analysis across Projects 1, 2, and 3.

Baylor College of Medicine Team
Genetics & Data Science Leads: Directing biological sampling, genetic sequence profiling, and AI/machine learning models to analyze the biological and environmental etiology of speech delays.

Texas Children's Hospital Team
Clinical & Pediatric Partners: Managing pediatric clinic recruitment, health records integration, parent engagement, and translating research findings directly into clinical practice guidelines.