Gerard Costa is a NJ licensed developmental psychologist, a Professor in Family Science and Human Development at Montclair State University (NJ), and an Associate faculty in the Infant and Early Childhood Development Ph.D. program at Fielding Graduate University.  He holds a Ph.D. in Developmental Psychology from Temple University, a faculty certificate in the Brazelton Touchpoints model, a Clinical Mentor Endorsement in Infant Mental Health, and is a Training Leader in DIRFloortime.  He founded the Center for Autism and Early Childhood Mental Health at Montclair State University and the YCS Institute for Infant and Preschool Mental Health in New Jersey and is past president of the NJ Association for Infant Mental Health and the International Council on Development and Learning (ICDL). In 2021, he was awarded the Weatherston Leadership in Infant Mental Health award by the Alliance for the Advancement in Infant Mental Health.  He is the author of articles and book chapters on autism, infant mental health and professional formation, and Co-editor of the new volume (2025), Uniting Infant Mental Health and the Pyramid Model: Connecting Principles and Practices to Improve Outcomes (Brookes Publishing).