A 50-cent-per-pack tax on cigarettes and other tobacco products has been endorsed by California voters to fund early childhood services under Proposition 10, California Children and Families First Act of 1998. In compliance with the legislative requirement of Result-Based Accountability (RBA) on revenue spending, this report delineates evaluation…

In 2022, the Center for the Study of Social Policy and Project SPARC conducted research to better understand the barriers experienced by parenting students participating in CalWORKs, California's cash assistance program for families with children. This brief highlights findings from the research on who parenting students are and their experiences…

Neonatal abstinence syndrome (NAS) is a public health issue that affected more than 2% of live births in Kentucky in 2017. We analyzed data from Kentucky's early intervention (EI) program and the mandatory statewide NAS registry to learn more about how families of children with NAS utilize EI services. Out of 1,113 children in the study, 32% were…

California voters decided to collect a 50 cent-per-pack tax on cigarette and other tobacco products and use the money to fund early childhood services under Proposition 10, California Children and Families First Act of 1998. In compliance to the legislative requirement of Result-Based Accountability (RBA) on the revenue spending, this report…

For more than two decades, California has been charging a 50 cent-per-pack tax on cigarette and other tobacco products and using the money to fund early childhood services under Proposition 10, California Children and Families First Act of 1998. In response to the legislative requirement of Result-Based Accountability (RBA), this report delineates…

In recent years, the federal Department of Education (ED), and state and local educational agencies (SEAs and LEAs, respectively) have been increasing the emphasis on the need to engage parents and families of students in their children's education. Initiatives have sprung up across the fifty states and Washington, D.C. to help officials at the…

California ranks on top of the nation for supporting health and wellbeing of young children with statewide comprehensive programs. As part of the backbone support, voters passed Proposition 10 in 1998 to fund early childhood services with a 50 cent-per-pack tax on cigarette and other tobacco products. This report delineates evaluation findings…

Background: With opioid misuse rates increasing dramatically over the past two decades, an entire generation of children faces a heightened risk of adverse physical, mental, and behavioral health outcomes. Parent-Child Interaction Therapy (PCIT) is an evidence-based intervention for children aged 2-to-7 years and their caregivers that improves…

In this dissertation, I examine how two major social programs in Kentucky--state-funded preK and Family Resource and Youth Service Centers--impact children's outcomes across the state, including racial, ethnic, and economic equity through elementary school. In each chapter, I will analyze how early childhood opportunities relate to outcomes…

The Minnesota Subsidized and Transitional Employment Demonstration (MSTED) is testing the effectiveness of subsidized employment for individuals enrolled in the Minnesota Family Investment Program (MFIP), Minnesota's Temporary Assistance for Needy Families program, who were unable to find employment after participating in the state's existing…

This report delineates evaluation findings from 43 programs that received over $8 million of state investment through Proposition 10 to support early childhood services in Kern County, California during Fiscal Year 2018-2019. To address results-based accountability of the state investment from a 50 cent-per-pack tax on cigarette and other tobacco…

Earning a college degree has long been critical to unlocking many high-paying jobs -- and, as a result, to economic mobility and security. Increasingly, however, the traditional "norm" of a college student--one who enrolls straight out of high school, receives some support from their parents, lives on campus, and does not have…

This report contains evaluation findings from 43 programs that received a total of around $10 million state investment through Proposition 10 to support early childhood services in Kern County, California during Fiscal Year 2017-2018. The Kern County Children and Families Commission (First 5 Kern) was established on December 15, 1998 by Ordinance…

This document discusses a range of policy and practice options that states can undertake to increase college student access to public benefits. The Center for Law and Social Policy, Inc. (CLASP) has leveraged its hands-on policy and cross-issue technical assistance expertise to identify these options. Many states have already implemented one or…

Compared to unpaid leave, paid family leave may better help working parents balance the competing needs of job and family early in a child's life, among other advantages. Yet the United States remains one of only two countries in the world without a statutory national paid maternity leave policy, and one of the only high-income countries that…