Purpose: With rising numbers of deportations over the last 2 decades, there has been a particular concern among educators and researchers that immigrant-origin students and their peers are experiencing educational consequences due to increased stress, anxiety, and fear of the unknown. This study examined the relationship between immigration…

Policymakers, child care providers, and parents face tradeoffs in determining how much to spend on child care, including how many hours to purchase, and the features of programs that might influence quality. Given these tradeoffs, it is useful to understand what constitutes quality, the cost of care features associated with quality, the effects of…

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…

This paper exploits a source of variation in the eligibility for federal nutrition programs to identify the program effects on food insecurity. Children are eligible for the WIC [Women, Infants and Children] program until the day before they turn 61 months old. The result is an age discontinuity in program participation at the 61-month cutoff.…

Understanding disparities in school readiness among America's children when they begin kindergarten is critically important, now more than ever. In today's 21st century global economy, it is expected that the great majority of children will complete high school ready to enter college or begin a career, and assume their civic responsibilities. This…

Inequalities in education outcomes such as test scores or degree attainment have been at the center of education policy debates for decades. Indeed, the first seminal national report on the state of U.S. education--the 1966 Coleman Report--examined some of these inequalities 50 years ago. Since then, researchers have examined performance gaps by…

Promoting marriage, especially among low-income single mothers with children, is increasingly viewed as a promising public policy strategy for improving developmental outcomes for disadvantaged children. Previous research suggests, however, that children's academic achievement either does not improve or declines when single mothers marry. In this…

This report describes the degree and nature of hardship among low-income and poor working and nonworking families in a nationally representative sample of kindergartners--the Early Childhood Longitudinal Study (Kindergarten Cohort). Five hardship indicators were examined: (1) lack of child health insurance; (2) child has not seen doctor at least…

This report confirms the detrimental effects of low family income on children by examining the well-being of children across all incomes and race-ethnicity groups in a nationally representative sample of children attending kindergarten and participating in the Early Childhood Longitudinal Study, Kindergarten Class of 1998-99. The sample included…