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California

5 Top Takeaways from the Prenatal-to-3 Policy Impact Center’s Summit

New State Policy Roadmap Published

Mark Swartz·November 17, 2022·4 min read

Last month, the Prenatal-to-3 Policy Impact Center (PN-3) at Vanderbilt University hosted the 2022 Research to Policy Summit to mark the publication of its annual State Policy Roadmap.

Three Zaentz Fellows Look Forward to Sparking Systemic Change

Mark Swartz·July 15, 2022·3 min read

The Zaentz Early Education Initiative at the Harvard Graduate School of Education (HGSE) emphasizes research that drives policy and practice,...

The Quality Trap: The Movement to Reconsider QRIS

Mark Swartz·June 3, 2022·5 min read

Developed in the 1990s, Quality Rating and Improvement Systems (QRIS) aim to increase the availability of high-quality early education programs,...

The Child Care Sector Starts to Flex Its Muscles

Elliot Haspel·May 17, 2022·4 min read

Child care has traditionally been a politically quiet sector. I don’t mean there hasn’t been resolute advocacy, but that has largely (though certainly not entirely) happened behind the scenes -- at least in the U.S. there isn’t a long history of major public actions such as protests and strikes.

Lily Mei: Understanding Diversity to Strengthen Education

The Editors·March 30, 2022·8 min read

As Fremont (CA) Mayor Lily Mei notes, for four of the past five years, Fremont has been listed as the happiest city in the U.S. The city also boasts incredible diversity, drawing families across multiple backgrounds and a range of languages. One area where that diversity pays off is in education. With some 35,000 kids and 42 schools, Fremont has focused on building new early learning centers, high-ranking schools and equitable access, including with special-needs pre-K programs.

Sharing the Findings from Better Life Lab: Improving Child Care Assistance and Investment

Part 4 of a 5-Part Series

Rebecca Gale·August 23, 2022·10 min read

Our country is in a child care crisis, exacerbated by the pandemic, which has shown how difficult it is for...

Reading Their Way to Better Parenting: Baby Book Projects Show It Can Be Done

K.C. Compton·July 7, 2022·7 min read

An unfortunate fact about the health care and child development information physicians try to cover during well-child checkups is that...

“Clarissa’s Battle” and the Campaign for Child Care Subsidies

Talking to the director and the title subject of an important new documentary

Mark Swartz·May 24, 2022·4 min read

“Clarissa’s Battle” tells the story of a 10-year campaign for a tax increase to subsidize child care in Alameda County,...

AlegreMENTE: A “Happy” New Two-Gen, Spanish-Language-First Museum Exhibition

Mark Swartz·April 7, 2022·3 min read

A field trip inside the mind—it may sound like a psychedelic rock song, but that’s the big idea behind AlegreMENTE...

Pippin Dew: Investing in Early Education Delivers Incredible Long-Term Returns

The Editors·March 30, 2022·3 min read

For a community looking to address various social challenges, Vallejo, CA is starting with early childhood learning. As City Councilmember Pippin Dew says, programs such as the new First 5 Center not only help set children for future education success, but also helps families be the most productive they can be.