Author Archives: timbartik

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About timbartik

Tim Bartik is a senior economist at the Upjohn Institute for Employment Research, a non-profit and non-partisan research organization in Kalamazoo, Michigan. His research specializes in state and local economic development policies and local labor markets.

The fading and re-emergence of preschool’s effects

Posted on September 21, 2011 by timbartik

In some of my recent presentations, I have been using a slide that shows how preschool’s effects, even when they fade in test score effects as students progress in K-12, can re-emerge even stronger in effects on adult outcomes.  (For … Continue reading →

Posted in Early childhood program design issues, Early childhood programs | 1 Comment

Soft skills and educational reform

Posted on September 19, 2011 by timbartik

Paul Tough, who wrote the wonderful book “Whatever It Takes” about Geoffrey Canada and the Harlem Children’s Zone, has a good article in the September 18 New York Times magazine.  The article looks at how both a top private school … Continue reading →

Posted in Early childhood programs, Uncategorized | Comments Off on Soft skills and educational reform

Top 5 reasons why investing in early childhood education can drive better local job creation

Posted on September 16, 2011 by timbartik

In understanding the connection between early childhood education and local economic development, I think that people intuitively get how early childhood programs can lead to a “better path” of skills acquisition. People intuitively understand from their own experiences, and those … Continue reading →

Posted in Early childhood programs, Economic development | 3 Comments

Preschool teachers and President Obama’s jobs proposal

Posted on September 13, 2011 by timbartik

There have been some blog posts about making sure that early childhood programs are included in any new jobs legislation.  It is therefore important that the just-released (on September 12) text of the “American Jobs Act” proposed by President Obama … Continue reading →

Posted in Early childhood program design issues, Early childhood programs, National vs. state vs. local | 2 Comments

Interpreting the conflicting evidence on Head Start effectiveness

Posted on September 12, 2011 by timbartik

The evidence on the effectiveness of Head Start is mixed. On the one hand, the recent random assignment study of Head Start found that test score effects of Head Start mostly disappeared by the end of first grade. On the … Continue reading →

Posted in Early childhood program design issues, Early childhood programs, Local variation in benefits, National vs. state vs. local | Comments Off on Interpreting the conflicting evidence on Head Start effectiveness

Obama’s jobs plan

Posted on September 9, 2011 by timbartik

President Obama proposed a $450 billion jobs plan in his address to Congress on September 8. Several reporters have asked me for my opinion on this plan. I think this plan is best described as an ambitious, “kitchen sink” approach … Continue reading →

Posted in Business incentives, Economic development, Incentive design issues | Comments Off on Obama’s jobs plan

Job creation policies: Minnesota’s MEED program vs. Georgia Works

Posted on September 2, 2011 by timbartik

There is a huge need for job creation in the U.S. Given the length and severity of the recession, we are short around 12 million jobs compared to what would be needed to be at pre-recession labor market conditions. I’ve … Continue reading →

Posted in Business incentives, Economic development, Incentive design issues, National vs. state vs. local | 3 Comments

Synergies between early childhood programs and K-12 systems

Posted on August 31, 2011 by timbartik

One important issue is whether the rate of return to investing in high-quality early childhood programs varies with the quality of the subsequent K-12 system. This is an important issue because if there are such synergies, such synergies potentially add … Continue reading →

Posted in Early childhood program design issues, Early childhood programs | Comments Off on Synergies between early childhood programs and K-12 systems

Steve Barnett’s powerpoint on recent findings from early childhood studies

Posted on August 26, 2011 by timbartik

Steve Barnett’s recent presentation, at the July 22nd National Business Leader Summit sponsored by the Partnership for America’s Economic Success, included some important summaries of recent research on early childhood programs. (Barnett is co-director of the National Institute for Early … Continue reading →

Posted in Early childhood programs | Comments Off on Steve Barnett’s powerpoint on recent findings from early childhood studies

Cost-effective short-term job creation policies

Posted on August 24, 2011 by timbartik

The U.S. economy is clearly in need of short-term job creation policies. The economy is short at least 12 million jobs, compared to what would be required to match pre-recession employment-to-population ratios. Unless something dramatic changes, these slack labor market … Continue reading →

Posted in Business incentives, Early childhood programs, Economic development, Timing of benefits | 1 Comment