Early Care and Education

Research has shown that the first five years play an enormous role in a child’s ongoing development and future success. Since most kids are in a child care or preschool setting while their parents are at work, it’s critical that we invest in a high-quality early education system that provides the experiences kids need for healthy development.

Major Step Toward Increased Child Care Payment Rates

The Joint Finance Committee meeting actions on May 6 indicate that the Department of Children and Families (DCF) intends to increase child care provider reimbursement rates with a portion of funds available due to underspending. The current estimate is that there will be underspending of $10.7 million in 2013-14 and $12.0 million in...

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High Quality Preschool as Powerful Anti-Poverty Tool

About 20 percent of children in the US live in poverty, and these children face much greater physical and psychological risks than other children do. Research clearly shows us that investing in high quality early childhood education is a proven prescription to cure these ills. Cynthia Lamy's book, American Children in Chronic Poverty,...

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Interview with James Heckman

I was intrigued by a recent interview with James Heckman, Nobel Laureate economist from the University of Chicago, who has focused his work on how early childhood interventions affect society at large and the life skills and development of young children.

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High-Quality Early Education Leads to Health Benefits 30 Years Later

Last month the early childhood world got a healthy dose of good news. Analysis of data from North Carolina's famous Abecedarian Project, directed by Nobel laureate James Heckman, showed a surprising result. Children who participated in the program from birth to age 5 were in significantly better physical health 30 years later than their...

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Remarkable Progress in Wisconsin Home Visiting

In the last four years Wisconsin has made great strides to build and expand an evidence-based home visiting system.  Recent action in Washington bodes well for continuing sustainable funding as Congress extended the Maternal, Infant, and Early Childhood Home Visiting Program into 2015. Breakthrough in 2011 Support in Washington is good...

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