This study utilized a basic interpretive design to explore the experiences of parents/guardians who enrolled their children in the Build Our Kids for Success Program (BOKS) and autoethnography to explore the experiences of the researcher while implementing the BOKS program. In-depth interviews were conducted with 15 individuals representing 13…

The federal Office of Child Support Enforcement (OCSE) created the Behavioral Interventions for Child Support Services (BICS) demonstration in 2014. The goals of the demonstration were to use insights from behavioral science to develop interventions that could improve child support services and increase parent engagement, and to encourage the…

Background: Despite evidence that social network members influence the eating behaviors of adults, no study to date has had the primary aim of examining children as support partners for parents in a weight loss intervention. Aim: To evaluate parent adherence with eating/exercise goals and weight loss in a 6-month study engaging children as support…

This study examined the impacts of structured relationship-building teacher home visits conducted in grades 1-5 as part of a family engagement program in the District of Columbia Public Schools. Using a matched comparison group research design, the study measured the impacts of the home visits on student disciplinary incidents and attendance. The…

Structured relationship-building teacher home visits have emerged as a promising method to increase parent engagement and improve student outcomes, but there is limited evidence on their effectiveness. The District of Columbia Public Schools (DCPS) partnered with the Regional Educational Laboratory Mid-Atlantic to rigorously evaluate the impacts…

The "Impacts of Home Visits on Students in District of Columbia Public Schools" study examined the impacts of structured relationship-building teacher home visits conducted in grades 1-5 as part of a family engagement program in the District of Columbia Public Schools. Using a matched comparison group research design, the study measured…

The District of Columbia (DC) Opportunity Scholarship Program (OSP) is the only federally funded private school voucher program in the United States. Created in 2004, the OSP aims to provide low-income families with access to higher quality schools than those otherwise available to them. Congress' 2011 reauthorization of the OSP required an…

Compared to unpaid leave, paid family leave may better help working parents balance the competing needs of job and family early in a child's life, among other advantages. Yet the United States remains one of only two countries in the world without a statutory national paid maternity leave policy, and one of the only high-income countries that…

The District of Columbia Opportunity Scholarship Program (OSP) was created by Congress to provide tuition vouchers to low-income parents who want their child to attend a private school. The Scholarships for Opportunity and Results (SOAR) Act of 2011 also mandated an evaluation of the OSP program. This report examines impacts one year after…

This study examines a community-wide effort to promote greater access to books through the mechanisms of physical and psychological proximity. It addresses the seasonal summer slide through an innovative book distribution program in neighborhoods identified as book deserts. Four low-income neighborhoods were provided with vending machines used to…

This qualitative research study was designed to explore the perceptions of parents with low income regarding the effects of involvement in a comprehensive preschool program on their children's development and on the families' quality of life. A purposeful sample of parents who became actively involved in the preschool community was interviewed…

Too many talented students who go to under-resourced schools do not achieve their full potential. Though they may perform very well relative to their classmates, these students do not receive the same kinds of academically challenging opportunities throughout their educational journey as do their counterparts in better-resourced public and private…

J.C. Nalle is a Community School located in the Marshall Heights neighborhood of Ward 7 in Washington, D.C. The community in which J.C. Nalle is located, historically one of the more economically disadvantaged areas of the city, has experienced a number of changes in recent years. This report of evaluation findings begins with an introduction to…

This report presents a new framework for designing family engagement initiatives that build capacity among educators and families to partner with one another around student success. Based in existing research and best practices, the "Dual Capacity Building Framework for Family-School Partnerships" is designed to act as a scaffold for the…

An evaluation of the Truancy Court Diversion Program (TCDP) found that despite significant implementation challenges, parent-child communication and youths' attitudes towards school both improved. A voluntary program for middle school students at risk for chronic truancy, TCDP involves judicially-led sessions that address student attitudes…