Key Takeaways

  • An increasing number of children are enrolled either in the national Head Start program or in a state-based pre-K program.
  • State programs have had mixed effects, some positive and some negative.
  • A new Brookings study suggests that the typical state program could increase lifetime earnings by about $16,000.
  • The national Head Start program, in contrast, has had disappointing results for today’s children with little or no effect on academic or behavioral skills in elementary school.
  • But Head Start remains a valuable source of high-quality childcare for working parents with low incomes.

In the meantime, many American families are finding it extremely difficult to find decent and affordable childcare for their toddlers.  While we are waiting for more research to be done, let’s at least provide them with some relief. And let’s also recognize that paying childcare workers minimum wages is not reasonable if we care about them and the children in their care.

Read the full article about Head Start by Isabel V. Sawhill at Brookings.