Monthly Archives: November 2011

State economic development policies: what works?

Posted on November 30, 2011 by

I delivered a speech about  state economic development policies on November 30, 2011. The presentation was made in D.C. at the 19th Annual State Fiscal Policy Conference of the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities. The text of my prepared … Continue reading →

Posted in Business incentives, Early childhood program design issues, Early childhood programs, Economic development, Incentive design issues

Top 9 reasons why universal access to pre-K makes sense

Posted on November 22, 2011 by

I was recently asked to give some key reasons why pre-K systems with broad or even universal access make sense. Here are my top 9 reasons. Political sustainability. Systems that help income groups that comprise a majority of voters are … Continue reading →

Posted in Distribution of benefits, Early childhood program design issues, Early childhood programs, Economic development | 1 Comment

How do payoffs differ between early interventions and late interventions?

Posted on November 15, 2011 by

A recent paper, by Susan Dynarski, Joshua Hyman, and Diane Whitmore Schanzenbach, has received some attention in the early education community, and elsewhere. The paper is entitled “Experimental Evidence on the Effect of Childhood Investments on Postsecondary Attainment and Degree … Continue reading →

Posted in Early childhood program design issues, Early childhood programs, Timing of benefits

Who creates jobs?

Posted on November 9, 2011 by

A few months ago I read the following quote in a local newspaper from a business leader, which expresses a commonly-held sentiment: “Government doesn’t create jobs…People opening that new pizza shop [or] that new dry cleaners – those are the … Continue reading →

Posted in Early childhood programs, Economic development | 3 Comments

The strengths and limitations of multiplier spending effects of early childhood programs

Posted on November 8, 2011 by

I have been asked by several people lately for my reactions to recent reports about the short-run multiplier and input-output effects on state economies of early childhood programs.  Over the years, these reports have been produced by America’s Edge, by … Continue reading →

Posted in Early childhood programs, Economic development

Does earlier intervention result in higher returns?

Posted on November 3, 2011 by

One intriguing figure in the new book, Childhood Programs and Practices in the First Decade of Life, examines the benefits per dollar of different early childhood and early school-age programs at different ages. (The figure is on p. 182, in … Continue reading →

Posted in Early childhood program design issues, Early childhood programs