Invest Early: Early Childhood Initiative. Year 8 Evaluation Summary

Wilder Research. Available from: Amherst H. Wilder Foundation. 451 Lexington Parkway North, Saint Paul, MN 55104. Tel: 651-280-2700; Fax: 651-280-3700; e-mail: [email protected]; Web site: http://www.wilder.org/Wilder-Research

N

6

Early Childhood Education; Educational Finance; Program Evaluation; Screening Tests; Profiles; At Risk Students; Outcomes of Education; Young Children; Parent Attitudes; Academic Achievement; School Readiness; Family Environment; Achievement Gap; Program Effectiveness; Low Income Students; Grade 3; Grade 5

Wilder Research, in conjunction with the Invest Early leadership team and staff, is conducting a longitudinal evaluation of the program. Annual reports document the implementation and assessment of Invest Early and outcomes for the service system, families, and children. Highlights of this year eight summary include: (1) Invest Early is having county-wide impacts. The proportion of children receiving early childhood screens before age 4 has increased from 26 percent prior to Invest Early to an average of 38 percent each year since Invest Early. Moreover, the early childhood workforce is more educated; (2) Invest Early serves higher-risk and underserved populations. Fourteen percent of the children served this year are American Indian, up from four percent in 2006-07. American Indian children make up 6 percent of the child population in Itasca County, indicating Invest Early is reaching this typically harder-to-reach population; and (3) Invest Early prepares low-income students for school success. At the end of the year, 87 percent of all the Invest Early participants were in the normal range of development in all domains assessed. Kindergarten entry results show that Invest Early children have outperformed their low-income comparison peers for the last four years. [For "Invest Early: Early Childhood Initiative. Year 7 Evaluation Summary," see ED612508.]

ERIC

2021

ED612507