It’s that time of the year again where those of us at WCCF who love numbers get pretty excited. Today the Census Bureau began the release of its 2013 American Community Survey (ACS) health insurance coverage data. The figures released today show insurance status for the nation and by state. On Thursday more figures will be released that...
The number of regulated child care programs has dropped substantially in the last six years from 10,705 to 5,858, a 45% drop. The greatest decline by far was for family child care programs, both licensed and certified. The number of group child care centers stayed fairly stable. 71% drop for certified family child care providers: The...
from NIEER's Preschool Matters Today by Shannon Riley-Ayers, NIEER/CEELO Assistant Research Professor I remember the anticipation each fall as school was about to begin. So much was going on in my mind. Who was going to be in my class? What kind of year was it going to be? What were we going to learn? I was excited. I was nervous. These...
BadgerCare Insures More than 8,800 Workers and Dependents in Eight Fast Food Chains Fast food workers were back in the news early this month because they staged a brief strike in many communities to make the case for higher wages. Their efforts to educate the public prompted me to do a little research of my own by tapping an unusual...
As the United States continues to become a more diverse nation, much work remains to be done to ensure that all children, regardless of their race or ethnicity, have the opportunity to thrive. A policy report recently published by the Annie E. Casey Foundation found that children of color face immense barriers to success in key...
In the last 10 years two state programs that provide services to children and families have grown rapidly: 4-year-old Kindergarten (4K) and the Wisconsin Shares child care subsidy program. 4K enrollment has nearly tripled, with 93% of school districts now serving over 48,000 children; while Wisconsin Shares enrollment has grown over 50%...
In a Wisconsin State Journal article on Sept. 2, the first day of school for the 2014-15 school year, a number of changes for the Madison Schools are highlighted. Notable among them is a change in the student discipline code that can hopefully keep more youth in the classroom and reduce the number of youth suspended or even expelled....
The Medicaid (BadgerCare) expansion issue is going to be a significant topic of debate in the coming months – during campaign season and continuing into deliberations on the next biennial budget. The importance of the issue has been elevated by a number of developments, including the news that Wisconsin has a $93 million shortfall in...
The Wisconsin Shares child care subsidy program underspent by $20 million in the first year of the 2013-2015 biennial budget, according to the Department of Children and Families (DCF) website. The first year’s budget (July 1, 2013 to June 30, 2014) allocated $255 million for direct subsidy payments for child care services, but only...
Wisconsin’s Department of Children and Families (DCF) has again drawn down federal funds to continue and expand voluntary, evidence-based home visiting services to women during pregnancy and to parents with young children up to age five. Wisconsin has been very successful in expanding the program with federal funding and state match....
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