The report is about the effectiveness of the YoungStar system which provides consumers with a simple 5 Star rating system for the quality of early care and education (ECE) programs for children ages 0 to 5. It also explores what was learned from a recent research study of YoungStar, Wisconsin's child care quality rating and improvement system. The…

The authors' recent research has revealed that most afterschool programs in Milwaukee County have received relatively low ratings, and that their biggest hurdle to improving their scores often involved the educational qualifications of program staff. In light of the potential consequences of that finding--which include the possibility that the…

This policy brief draws on research and evaluations of efforts in Tennessee, California, and Wisconsin to describe different approaches to reducing class size in kindergarten through third grade. Tennessee implemented a randomized experiment to investigate the effectiveness of smaller classes; California used a statewide approach; and Wisconsin…