Policy Analysis
The Total Economic Impact of Philadelphia’s Beverage Tax
Michael L. Lahr, Ye Yao, and Milagros Nores
Highlights Even without valuing health benefits to citizens of Philadelphia, the Philadelphia Beverage Tax (PBT) is likely to have a net positive effect on city residents. The total estimated economic impact of the PBT on Philadelphia’s overall economy
How did the Covid-19 pandemic impact child care use among infants and toddlers in New Jersey?
Allison Friedman-Krauss, W. Steven Barnett, & Zijia Li
Download (PDF) The Covid-19 pandemic upended the nation’s child care system and New Jersey is no exception. Over the last year, the Infant and Toddler Policy Research Center at the National Institute for Early Education Research (ITC@NIEER) conducted t
Who Would Attend UPK?
W. Steven Barnett and Kwanghee Jung
With Universal Pre-K (UPK) receiving renewed attention at national and state levels, one question that policy developers must address is how many families will participate if high quality preschool education is offered to all 3- and 4-year-olds at no c
Universal Pre-K: 5 FAQs
UPK_Fact_Sheet_2.3 Download (PDF) Question 1. Why does the United States need Universal Pre-K (UPK)? High quality preschool has been shown to benefit children from all backgrounds, though it has larger benefits for children in low-income homes. Yet, th
Ideas and Inspiration for Targeting Federal American Recovery Act Funds to Early Childhood Education
Lori Connors-Tadros, Rolf Grafwallner, and Mandy Sorge
Final_Policy_Brief_Ideas-and-Inspiration-for-Targeting-Federal-American-Recovery-Act-Funds-to-Early-Childhood-Education-June-4-21.pdf I. Introduction State early childhood administrators are planning to strategically invest the federal appropriations i
Taking Stock of City Pre-K Quality Policy and Practice: A Framework
Download Pre-K-Quality-Framework
Fact Sheet – New Jersey Abbott Preschool Program Longitudinal Effects Study through Grade 10 (APPLES-10)
Two decades ago, the New Jersey Supreme Court in Abbott v. Burke mandated that the state establish high quality preschool education in the 31 highest-poverty school districts. New Jersey created a pre-K program with high standards and a continuous impr
Funding High-Quality Pre-K for All
Karin Garver
The United States still struggles to provide high quality preschool education to the nation’s 3- and 4-year-olds. State-funded pre-K and Head Start serve less than 1 in 3 age-eligible children, and quality standards remain far too low in many of these
Guide to Support Pre-K Expansion: Advocating for High-Quality Preschool
GG Weisenfeld
Guide to Support Pre-K Expansion This brief is intended to provide information and guidance for advocates and other stakeholders, especially those new to this issue, as they seek to increase investments in high quality preschool in their states. The be
Impacts of Covid-19 on Preschool Enrollment and Spending
GG Weisenfeld
To understand the degree to which the Covid-19 pandemic affected young children’s learning and preschool experiences, the National Institute for Early Education Research (NIEER) conducted two nationally representative surveys of parents of children age
What Do We Know About Infant and Toddler Care in New Jersey?
W. Steven Barnett
Executive Summary Most of New Jersey’s nearly 300,000 children under age 3 receive nonparental child care. While highly diverse, this population widely shares a common characteristic: a high rate of parental labor force participation. This makes the af
Who Cares for Infants and Toddlers? Change from 2012 to 2019 and its Implications
W. Steven Barnett & Zijia Li
Executive Summary Although most children under age 3 are cared for by parents and other family members, the percentage in formal care increases with the age of the child and has been growing over time. Between 2012 and 2019 there was a shift toward cen
Exploring the Cost of High-Quality Infant and Toddler Care in New Jersey
Karin Garver
Introduction New Jersey’s youngest children and their families depend on an under-funded system of care with widely varying quality. The COVID-19 pandemic has exacerbated problems by reducing families’ ability to pay while also increasing costs. This r
Review of State School Reopening Plans and Implications and Suggestions for State Funded Pre-K Programs
NIEER has updated its Review of State School Reopening Plans and Implications and Suggestions for State Funded Pre-K Programs authored by GG Weisenfeld to include pre-K reopening plans that have occurred as of August 18, 2020 and steps states have take
NIEER Pre-K Data Snapshot: Pre-K and Kindergarten Entry Assessment (KEA) Alignment: 2018-2019 School Year
Kate Hodges
Assessments of children’s learning and development can be important tools for teachers, administrators, and even parents. Used together with other information, they may inform the teaching of individual children and—when aggregated—decisions about how
The “Why” Behind Kindergarten Entry Assessments
Karin Garver
Introduction The 2011 Race to the Top Early Learning Challenge Grant was instrumental in introducing to states the concept of systematically collecting and using data from formative assessments of children at kindergarten entry.1 By the 2018-2019 schoo
Special Report Access to High-quality Early Education and Racial Equity
Allison Friedman-Krauss and Steven Barnett
The death of George Floyd at the hands of Minneapolis police officers has focused the nation’s attention on the unequal treatment of Black Americans. Black children experience unequal treatment beginning at an early age, which contributes to inequaliti
Guide to Support Pre-K Expansion: Creating and Supporting a Highly Qualified Workforce during Pre-K Expansion
GG Weisenfeld and Lori Connors-Tadros
Guide to Support Pre-K Expansion One of the goals of pre-K programs funded by states is to support the learning and development of young children. Research finds that only high-quality programs can achieve positive, long-term outcomes in areas such as
Guide to Support Pre-K Expansion: Ensuring Adequate Resources for Expanding High Quality Pre-K
By Lori Connors-Tadros and GG Weisenfeld
Guide to Support Pre-K Expansion There are three critical steps to ensure adequate funding for high quality pre-K. First, fully specify quality standards, the number of children to be served, and a timeline to achieve these; then cost it out year-by-ye