During the COVID-19 pandemic the federal government enacted an unprecedented package of social safety net measures, including broad-based cash transfers in the form of expanded unemployment insurance (UI), a series of economic impact payments (EIPs), and the expanded Child Tax Credit (CTC). It is well known that these measures-- especially the…

Children whose families experience socioeconomic disadvantage are at risk for poor sustained attention, a foundational skill related to goal-oriented behaviour, self-regulation and kindergarten readiness. Maternal parenting behaviours and parenting stress are theorised developmental pathways linking socioeconomic status (SES) to children's…

College attendance has increased significantly over the last few decades, but dropout rates remain high, with fewer than half of all adults ultimately obtaining a postsecondary credential. This project investigates whether one-on-one college coaching improves college attendance and completion outcomes for former state aid recipients identified as…

Bucky's Tuition Promise (BTP) at the University of Wisconsin--Madison offers generous financial aid to low-income, in-state students. Unlike many similar programs at other public universities, financial eligibility for BTP depends solely on a family's Adjusted Gross Income (AGI), rather than on the Expected Family Contribution (EFC) from the Free…

Pell Grants are the cornerstone of federal financial aid for students with low income who are enrolled in postsecondary education. Currently, these grants are available only to those who seek an initial undergraduate degree or credential requiring at least a typical semester of instruction. Because these rules may restrict access to programs…

This appendix volume supplements report NCEE 2025-005r, describing the effects of two experimental Pell Grant expansions: the first allowed income-eligible students with a bachelor's degree to obtain this form of federal financial aid for short-term occupational training programs and the second allowed income-eligible students to obtain this aid…

Faced with the problem of how to measure the magnitude of economic disadvantage in the populations served by schools or districts, researchers addressing school finance topics have invariably turned to the fraction of students eligible for free- or reduced-lunches (FRPL). But the facile dependence on FRPL may be problematic. A large and growing…

Much of modern education has focused on developing individuals' skills to be productive parts of society. The developed skills can become enablers of financial stability, independence and economic security. Yet, on a relative basis, considerably less effort is expended on building the financial skills for individuals to preserve their wealth and…

Children from lower socio-economic status families, at times, experience particular difficulties when entering school. These children may be equipped with different skill sets not recognized at school. Many countries, including Singapore, are increasingly concerned about the quality of early education. Paramount to quality is also the inclusion…

Purpose: Children who have late language emergence, or are late talkers (LTs), have substantially lower vocabulary levels than their peers, on average. Notably, differences in how researchers define "who" comprises LTs can lead to inconsistencies across findings. The current study examined how the number of children identified as LTs…

The reconciliation bill House Republicans passed outlines several proposed changes to higher education financing, including a new risk-sharing formula that would have colleges pay back a portion of their students' unpaid student loan bills. The amount colleges must pay is based on borrowers' unpaid loan payments each year (missed payments or…

Postsecondary education and middle-skills occupational training are viewed as important paths to higher-paying jobs and careers. Lifelong learning pathways geared toward working learners aged 25 and older also seem essential for career advancement and professional growth in the current job market. However, many learners face financial and other…

We quantify the total stock of balances eligible for the Biden administration's 2022 student loan forgiveness proposal and examine which groups would have benefited most. Up to $442 billion in loans were eligible. Those who would have benefited most were younger, had lower credit scores, and lived in lower- and middle-income neighborhoods. We also…

The Child and Dependent Care Credit (CDCC) subsidizes child care costs for working families. In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 increased the CDCC's generosity during 2021 only. I find that while the CDCC is of relatively little value in its current form, increases in eligibility rates and conditional…

We present a model of endogenous schooling and earnings to isolate the causal effect of parents' education on children's education and earnings outcomes. The model suggests that parents' education is positively related to children's earnings, but its relationship with children's education is ambiguous. Identification is achieved by comparing the…