Direct certification has been described by policymakers and academics as a tool which may replace National School Lunch Program (NSLP) eligibility data (Douglas Geverdt, National Center for Education Statistics, personal communication, August 28, 2023). It suggests a policy future in which we change the metric of how we identify disadvantage. On…

Despite extensive research and investment, persistent disparities in educational achievement continue to be observed for children from disadvantaged backgrounds. Public health experts emphasize the significance of early language experience and caregiver talk, also known as "language nutrition," in improving children's outcomes. A large…

Many educational policies hinge on the valid measurement of student economic disadvantage at the school level. Measures based on free and reduced-price lunch enrollment are used widely. However, recent research raises questions about their reliability, particularly following the introduction of universal free lunch in certain schools and…

This short-term longitudinal study examined how economically-impoverished children's moral reasoning predicts specific aggressive subtypes. Children (N = 106, M[subscript age] = 52.78 months, 51% boys, ethnically diverse backgrounds) from urban Head Start programs completed a structured story-interview pertaining to moral reasoning and judgement…

Mindfulness-based interventions are increasingly recognized for their positive impact on children's physical, mental, emotional, and behavioral health. However, no mindfulness-based lifestyle interventions have focused on improving both the physical and mental well-being of economically marginalized preschoolers. Therefore, this one-group study…

(Purposes) There are two purposes of this history. The first was to describe how the EOA National Best Practices Clearinghouse identified, described, and evaluated evidence that was focused on effective educational practices for Gaining Early Awareness and Readiness for Undergraduate Programs (GEAR UP) and TRIO students who were economically…

A child's early years play a significant role in determining their chances later on in life, including their chances of social mobility. But the poorest children are already 11 months behind their peers when they start at primary school, with efforts to close the gap stalling, and evidence that the gap has started to widen once again in recent…

With the economic halt precipitated by the COVID-19 virus, states are starting to prepare for and beginning to address the budgetary squeeze that is sure to come absent of massive federal stimulus dollars. At the end of March, New York State was the first state to come out with a post-COVID-19 state budget (the Legislative Budget). In early April,…

Background: The majority of youth with mental health needs do not receive therapy services to treat their disorder, and unmet need is particularly high among racial and ethnic minorities and economically disadvantaged families in the population at large. Investigating whether these patterns emerge within systems of care can reveal opportunities to…

During the 2015-2016 school year, 1.3 million students nationwide experienced homelessness. Yet hardships like homelessness represent dynamic rather than static states, and so annual figures understate the cumulative risk that students face over time. Moreover, despite recent efforts to understand eviction and foreclosure as exploitative and…

COVID-19 was declared a pandemic by the World Health Organization and a public health emergency by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control in March 2020 (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention 2020). In the following months, families in the U.S. experienced financial hardships such as job and income loss, increasing food insecurity, and loss of…

This mixed-method multiple case study investigated nine elementary schools. Six "odds-beating schools," which serve relatively high numbers of economically disadvantaged children, achieved higher than predicted performance on state assessments when compared with three typically performing schools. The overarching research question…

Many districts and states have begun implementing incentives to attract high-performing teachers to low-performing schools. Previous research has found that these incentives are effective. However, effects on the schools and students these teachers leave behind has not been examined. This study focuses on the general equilibrium effects of…

The Great Recession and its immediate aftermath have brought increasing attention both to food insecurity among children and to the associated food safety net. This report examines how the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) functions as a component of the broader food assistance safety net for school-age children, focusing on…

In 2010, Congress authorized the Maternal, Infant, and Early Childhood Home Visiting (MIECHV) Program by enacting section 511 of the Social Security Act, 42 U.S.C. § 711, which also appropriated funding for fiscal years 2010 through 2014. Subsequently enacted laws extended funding for the program through fiscal year 2022. The program is…