This report by the National Council of La Raza concludes that investing in high-quality, comprehensive early childhood education programs could help narrow the growing school readiness gap between Latino and other children. The report also makes a series of recommendations for policy-makers to improve the quality of life and school readiness for Latino children in the U.S.

The Center for Law and Social Policy's (CLASP) child care and early education work focuses on promoting policies that support both child development and the needs of low-income working parents and on expanding the availability of resources for child care and early education initiatives.
Moving Forward: Head Start Children, Families, and Programs in 2003
Head Start Comprehensive Services: A Key Support for Early Learning for Poor Children

Evaluation Exchange, the evaluation periodical of the Harvard Family Research Project, addresses current issues facing program evaluators of all levels, with articles written by the most prominent evaluators in the field. This issue focuses on early childhood programs. Contributing authors offer a range of views on how best to communicate the importance of investing in a child's early years and how to improve early childhood programs and policies.

The Head Start Bureau, of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, added homeless preschoolers as a targeted population to be served in Head Start preschool programs. Background information on homelessness and its impact on young children, as well as implementation guidance can be found in this 1992 Information Memorandum (Log Number: ACF-IM-92-12).

This Congressionally-mandated study, conducted by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, quantifies the impact of Head Start separately for 3- and 4-year-old children across child cognitive, social-emotional, and health domains as well as on parenting practices.

This booklet from Project HOPE will help parents and shelter providers support children's early learning. Goals of the booklet include helping those working with young children to use everyday activities to encourage learning and growth, notice any concerns in a child's development, and locate resources for more information about early development.

This annotated minibibliography from the National Early Childhood Technical Assistance Center (NECTAC) provides a selection of resources that address the needs and educational rights of young children experiencing homelessness, as well as strategies for working with homeless children and their families in early childhood care and education programs.

This paper, published by the Center for Law and Social Policy (CLASP) provides general background on the legislation behind Title I, an overview of the available data on the use of Title I funds for preschool, and examples of how some states and local communities have used Title I funds for these programs. It also examines the U.S. Department of Education’s statutes, regulations, and guidance on the use of Title I funds for preschool and raises some unanswered questions.

Promoting the Well-Being of Children and Families, a policy paper series published by the National Center for Children in Poverty, documents effective strategies and highlights policy opportunities to promote the emotional health of young children and families. The publications in this series are intended to assist in the development of public policies that ensure the healthy development of children and their families.

Set for Success: Building a Strong Foundation for School Readiness Based on the Social-Emotional Development of Young Children compiles seven papers that present the latest scientific findings on the importance of social and emotional school readiness. The papers, published by the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation, also provide compelling evidence of programs that help to prepare young children for early school success.

This report from the National Center for Children in Poverty provides a unique picture of the policy choices states make to promote healthy development and school readiness. It reviews policies that promote healthy development, high-quality early care and education, and effective parenting for young children.
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