National Head Start Association

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Researchers Letter to Congress

March 2011

Dear Member of Congress,

We understand that due to growing federal deficit, we are entering a period of significant cuts to non-security discretionary spending. At a time when America's economic survival and global competitiveness is at stake, while child poverty in America is also soaring, we consider cuts to Head Start and Early Head Start extremely short-sighted. As researchers, we offer some facts about Head Start that are worth remembering:

Head Start improves the odds and the options for at-risk kids for a lifetime. Kids that have been through Head Start and Early Head Start are healthier, more academically accomplished, more likely to be employed, commit fewer crimes, and contribute more to society.

Simply put: Head Start works. It's been proven.

Studies of Head Start programs found that Head Start increases educational achievement: raising test scores, decreasing the need for children to receive special education services and making it less likely that children will repeat a grade.[i] Head Start graduates are also more likely to graduate from high school and attend college.[ii]

Head Start's impact on child health is impressive. Likely because of its required medical screenings, vaccinations, and emphasis on nutrition, Head Start reduces by as much as 50 percent the mortality rates for 5- to 9-year-olds.[iii] A Head Start child is 19 to 25 percent less likely to smoke as an adult.[iv] And Head Start parents receiving health literacy decreased annual Medicaid costs by $232 per family.[v]

Head Start graduates are 12 percent less likely to be booked or charged with a crime.[vi] This reduction translates into savings for crime victims, local, state, and federal governments, and the American taxpayer.

The National Impact Study of Head Start found that children attending Head Start made significant cognitive and socio-emotional gains compared with the control group children during the Head Start year and were in better health compared to the control group children.[vii]

And it's not just the at-risk kids who benefit. Head Start and Early Head Start also provide improved parenting skills and practices.[viii] Head Start's emphasis on parental involvement contributes to the upward mobility of Head Start parents by helping to move them out of poverty,[ix] and that Early Head Start parents are much more likely to participate in job training programs and more likely to have a job.[x] At a time when unemployment rate is hovering close to 10%, Head Start and Early Head Start are critical gateways to employment.

As the 112th Congress evaluates domestic discretionary spending, we urge you to look at the substantial research showing that Head Start and Early Head Start programs have a long history of not only being a wise investment and saving local, state, and federal taxpayers money but also a critical safety net for our most vulnerable citizens.

Multiple studies demonstrate that Head Start is an astoundingly smart investment. For every $1 invested in Head Start, we get a Return On Investment (ROI) ranging from $7 to $9.[xi] As James Heckman, a Nobel Laureate in Economics at the University of Chicago, recommended to the National Commission on Fiscal Responsibility and Budget Reform: "Early Head Start and Head Start are programs on which to build and improve-not to cut."[xii] That's why we ask that Congress to provide $8.2 billion in Fiscal Years 2011 and 2012 to ensure that Head Start and Early Head Start can maintain their current enrollment levels.

Sincerely,

Edward Zigler, Ph.D. Sterling Professor of Psychology, Emeritus Director Emeritus, The Edward Zigler Center in Child Development and Social Policy Yale University	Kathleen McCartney, Ph.D. Dean & Gerald S. Lesser Professor in Early Childhood Development Harvard Graduate School of Education Harvard University	Mary Abbott, Ph.D. Associate Research Scientist University of Kansas
Linda Albi, M.S. Adjunct Faculty Field Experience Coordinator Early Intervention Master’s Program University of Oregon	LaRue Allen, Ph.D. Professor New York University	Jennifer Astuto, Ph.D. Assistant Director, Assistant Research Professor Child and Family Policy Center, Department of Applied Psychology New York University
Jane Atwater, Ph.D Assistant Research Professor University of Kansas	Stephen J. Bagnato, Ed.D. Professor of Pediatrics & Psychology University of Pittsburgh	Jessica V. Barnes, Ph.D. Associate Director of University-Community Partnerships Michigan State University
Steven Barnett, Ph.D. Co-Director National Institute for Early Education Research Rutgers University	Sandra Barrueco, Ph.D. Assistant Professor of Psychology Fellow of the Institute for Policy Research & Catholic Studies The Catholic University of America	Lauren Barton, Ph.D. Early Childhood Development Researcher SRI International
Diane Becker, NCCJTS, ILCSW Founder Avenue For Change	Linda S. Beeber, Ph.D., APRN-BC, FAAN Professor, School of Nursing University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill	Katherine Renee Behring, M.Ed Early Childhood Education Consultant University Settlement
Lisa Berlin, Ph.D. Research Scientist Duke University	Ilene Berson, Ph.D. Professor of Early Childhood Education University of South Florida	Kathryn Bigelow, Ph.D. Assistant Research Professor Juniper Gardens Children's Project University of Kansas
Charles Bleiker, Ph.D. Associate Professor Florida International University	Mary Boat, Ph.D. Associate Professor Early Childhood Education and Director of Graduate Studies University of Cincinnati	Patti Bokony, Ph.D. Assistant Professor University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences
Rosemary Bolig, Ph.D. Professor of Early Childhood Education University of the District of Columbia	Neil W. Boris, M.D. Professor Tulane University	John Borkowski, Ph.D. Research Professor of Psychology Andrew J. McKenna Family University of Notre Dame
Kelly K. Bost, Ph.D. Associate Professor University of Illinois	Lisa Boyce, Ph.D. Research Assistant Professor Utah State University	Isabel Bradburn, Ph.D.Research Director, Child Development Center for Learning and Research Virginia Tech University
Robert Bradley, Ph.D.Professor Arizona State University	Linda Brekken, Ph.D. Director SpecialQuest Consulting Group Napa County Office of Education	Christopher Brown, Ph.D.Assistant Professor of Political Science
David L. Brown, Ph.D. Professor of Early Childhood Education William L. Mayo Texas A&M University-Commerce	Jan Brown, M.Ed.	Holly Elissa Bruno, J.D. Adjunct Professor Wheelock College
Deborah A. Bruns, Ph.D. Associate Professor Southern Illinois University of Carbondale	Margaret Burchinal, Ph.D. Senior Scientist Frank Porter Graham Child Development Institute The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill	Barbara M. Burns, Ph.D. Professor University of Louisville
M. Susan Burns, Ph.D. Associate Professor George Mason University	Virginia Buysse, Ph.D. Senior Scientist University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill	Victoria Carr, Ed.D. Associate Professor University of Cincinnati
Judith Carta, Ph.D. Senior Scientist/Professor Juniper Gardens Children’s Project University of Kansas	Dina C. Castro, Ph.D. Senior Scientist FPG Child Development Institute University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill	Eun Kyeong Cho, Ed.D.Assistant Professor University of New Hampshire
Audrey Clark, Ph.D. Professor Emeritus California State University Northridge	Jantina Clifford, Ph.D. Assistant Professor University of Oregon	Richard M. Clifford, Ph.D. Senior Scientist FPG Child Development Institute University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
David Cohen Director Education, Research & Outreach Sesame Workshop	Cynthia Garcia Coll, Ph.D. Charles Pitt Robinson and John Palmer Barstow Professor Professor of Education, Psychology & Pediatrics Brown University	Marliee Comfort, Ph.D. Partner Parenting Assessment Research & Development & Dissemination Comfort Consults, LLC
Nicola Conners-Burrow, Ph.D. Research Associate Professor University of Arkansas for Medical Science	Gina A. Cook, Ph.D. Research Scientist Utah State University	Rob Corso, Ph.D. Assistant Research Professor Vanderbilt University
Leslie Couse, Ph.D. Associate Professor of Early Childhood Education University of New Hampshire	Diane Craft, Ph.D. Professor State University of New York at Cortland	Danielle Crosby, Ph.D. Assistant Professor University of North Carolina at Greensboro
Flavio Cunha, Ph.D. Assistant Professor University of Pennsylvania	Janet Currie, Ph.D. Sami Mnaymneh Professor of Economics Columbia University	Lois-ellin Datta, Ph.D. President Datta Analysis
Andrea DeBruin-Parecki, Ph.D. Associate Professor and Graduate Program Director Early Childhood Old Dominion University	Michelle DeKlyen, Ph.D. Associate Research Scholar Princeton University	Susanne A. Denham, Ph.D. Professor Department of Psychology George Mason University
Sarah Dennis, Ph.D Facilitator with the New Schools Project Erikson Institute	Cynthia DiCarlo, Ph.D. Associate Professor Louisiana State University	Susan Dickstein, Ph.D. Associate Professor Department of Psychiatry and Human Behavior Brown Medical School
Laurie Dinnebeil, Ph.D. Professor and Daso Herb Chair, Inclusive ECE University of Toledo	Sebreana Domingue Research Associate UL Lafayette	Catherine Donahue, Ed.D. Associate Professor Wheelock College
Anne Douglass, Ph.D. Assistant Professor College of Education and Human Development University of Massachusetts Boston	Jason Downer, Ph.D. Senior Research Scientist University of Virginia	Marilyn C. Dumont-Driscoll, Ph.D., M.D. Associate Professor University of Florida College of Medicine
Carolyn Pope Edwards, Ed.D. Willa Cather Professor Departments of Psychology, and Child, Youth, and Family Studies University of Nebraska	Kristen Ehrhardt, Ph.D. Professor and Unit Coordinator Western Michigan University	Pam Elwood, Ph.D. Consultant of EC Kent State University
Richard Fabes, Ph.D. Dee and John Whiteman Distinguished Professor of Child Development Dee and John Whiteman Arizona State University	Richard Faldowski, Ph.D. Associate Professor University of North Carolina at Greensboro	Beverly Falk, Ed.D. Professor School of Education, The City College of New York
Michaela L. Z. Farber, M.S.W., Ph.D. Associate Professor National Catholic School of School of Service The Catholic University of America	Edward G. Feil, Ph.D. Senior Research Scientist Oregon Research Institute	Jason Kane Feld, Ph.D. Vice President Corporate Projects Assessment Technology, Inc.
Anne L. Fetter, Ph.D. Scientifically Based Researcher Research Consulting & Design	Richard Fiene, Ph.D. Professor of Human Development and Family Studies & Psychology Penn State University	Barbara H. Fiese, Ph.D. Professor and Director Family Resiliency Center University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
Janet Filer, Ph.D. Associate Professor Department of Early Childhood and Special Education University of Central Arkansas	Hiram E. Fitzgerald, Ph.D. Associate Provost and University Distinguished Professor Michigan State University	Roseanne L. Flores, Ph.D. Associate Professor Hunter College of the City University of New York
Susan Fowler, Ph.D. Professor University of Illinois	Ellen Frede, Ph.D. Co-director and Research Professor National Institute for Early Education Research Rutgers University	David Frisvold, Ph.D. Assistant Professor of Economics Emory University
Victoria R. Fu, Ph.D. Professor Child and Adolescent Development Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University	Michael Fultz, Ed.D. Associate Professor University of Wisconsin-Madison	Kathleen Cranley Gallagher, Ph.D. Scientist UNC-Chapel Hill, Frank Porter Graham Child Development Institute
Sukhdeep Gill, Ph.D. Associate Professor Pennsylvania State University	Walter Gilliam, Ph.D. Associate Professor of Psychiatry and Psychology Yale University School of Medicine	Herbert P. Ginsburg, Ph.D. Professor of Psychology and Education Jacoh H. Schiff Foundation Teachers College Columbia University
Mark R. Ginsberg, Ph.D. Dean and Professor College of Education and Human Development George Mason University	Marika Ginsburg-Block, Ph.D. Program Coordinator and Associate Professor of School Psychology University of Delaware	Carla B. Goble, Ph.D. Professor of Child Development George Kaiser Family Endowed Tulsa Community Colleg
Michael K. Godfrey, Ph.D. Professor Brigham Young University-Idaho	Phil Gordon, Ph.D. Partner Comfort Consults, LLC.	Sandra Graham-Bermann, Ph.D. Professor of Psychology and Psychiatry University of Michigan
Liane Grayson, Ph.D. Senior Research Analyst Minnesota Department of Human Services	Beth Green, Ph.D. Director of Early Childhood and Family Support Center for Improvement of Child and Family Services Portland State University	Katy Gregg, Ph.D. Assistant Professor Georgia Southern University
Carolyn Griess, Ph.D. (ABD) Faculty Penn State University	Jennifer Grisham-Brown, Ed.D. Professor University of Kentucky	Christina J. Groark, Ph.D. Co-director, Office of Child Development University of Pittsburgh
Judy Grossman, Ph.D. Associate Director Center for the Developing Child and Family Ackerman Institute for the Family	Alison Wishard Guerra, Ph.D. Assistant Professor UC San Diego	Sarika S. Gupta, Ph.D. Postdoctoral Fellow Early Childhood Special Education Leadership/Policy University of Colorado Denver
Trevor Hadley, Ph.D. Professor of Psychology and Psychiatry University of Pennsylvania	Rena Hallam, Ph.D. Associate Professor Department of Human Development and Family Studies University of Delaware	Brenda Jones Harden, Ph.D. Associate Professor University of Maryland
Sanna Harjusola-Webb, Ph.D. Assistant Professor Kent State University	Martha Elizabeth Harmon, M.A. Writer and Consultant Research for Different Educational Facilities	Thelma Harms, Ph.D. Scientist Emeritus Frank Porter Graham Child Development Institute The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
Kathleen Hebbeler, Ph.D. Program Manager SRI International	Mary Louise Hemmeter, Ph.D. Associate Professor Vanderbilt University	Barbara Henderson, Ph.D. Professor of Education San Francisco State University
Blythe Hinitz, Ed.D. Professor The College of New Jersey	Deborah L. Hintz-Knopf Program Manager in Education, Mental Health, Disabilities for Head Start Agency University of Wisconsin-Stout	Alice Sterling Honig, Ph.D. Professor Emerita of Child Development Syracuse University
Diane M. Horm, Ph.D. Director, Early Childhood Education Institute GKFF Endowed Chair University of Oklahoma-Tulsa	Peter Huffaker, M.B.A., M.A. Partner Child Care Results	Elisa A. Huss-Hage, M.Ed. Professor Owens Community College
Jason Hustedt, Ph.D. Assistant Professor Department of Human Development and Family Studies University of Delaware	Alissa Huth-Bocks, Ph.D. Associate Professor Eastern Michigan University	Mark S. Innocenti, Ph.D. Director Research & Evaluation, Center for Person with Disabilities Utah State University
Iheoma Iruka, Ph.D. Investigator Frank Porter Graham Child Development Institute University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill	Jean Ispa, Ph.D. Professor University of Missouri	Carroll Izard, Ph.D. Trustees Distinguished Professor of Psychology University of Delaware
Gera Jacobs, Ed.D. Professor of Early Childhood Education University of South Dakota	Kristen Roorbach Jamison, Ph.D. Research Associate University of Virginia	Abigail Jewkes, Ph.D. Assistant Professor Hunter College, City University of New York
Lawrence J. Johnson, Ph.D. Dean, College of Education, Criminal Justice, and Human Services University of Cincinnati	Sharon Lynn Kagan, Ed.D.	Lilian G. Katz, Ph.D. Professor Emerita & Co-Director of the Clearinghouse on Early Education and Parenting University of Illinois
Kristen Clarke Kellems, J.D. Research Associate University of Oregon	Margaret King, Ed.D Professor Emerita Ohio University	Elisa Klein, Ph.D. Associate Professor of Human Development University of Maryland, College Park
Christopher Kloth Senior Consultant ChangeWorks of the Heartland	Mary Maguire Klute, Ph.D. Senior Director of Research and Evaluation Clayton Early Learning Institute	Lisa L. Knoche, Ph.D. Research Assistant Professor Nebraska Center for Research on Children, Youth, Families and Schools
Laura Kohn-Wood, Ph.D. Associate Professor Associate Chair and Program Director University of Miami, School of Education	Jon Korfmacher, Ph.D. Associate Professor Erikson Institute	Jonathan B. Kotch, M.D. Carol Remmer Angle Distinguished Professor of Children’s Environmental Health University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
Richard Lambert, Ph.D. Professor University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill	Faith Lamb-Parker, Ph.D. Professor Bank Street College of Education	Deborah J. Leong, Ph.D. Professor Emerita Department of Psychology Metropolitan State College of Denver
Joan Lieber, Ph.D. Professor University of Maryland, College Park	Linda Likins National Director Devereux	Maura Linas, Ph.D. Assistant Research Professor Juniper Gardens Children's Project University of Kansas
Christopher Lloyd, Ph.D, LCSW Assistant Professor of Social Work University of Arkansas at Little Rock	Michael L. Lopez, Ph.D. Executive Director National Center for Latino Child & Family Research	Janice Lovell, M.Ed. Higher Education Grant Director Tennessee State University
Duane Lowe, Ed.D. Adjunct Faculty California State University Long Beach	Julie Lumeng, M.D. Assistant Professor of Pediatrics University of Michigan	Catherine Lugg, Ph.D. Professor of Education Rutgers - the State University of New Jersey
Robert Lynch, Ph.D. Professor of Economics Washington College	Shelley Macy, M.A. Early Childhood Education Faculty Northwest Indian College	Mary Maggitti, Ph.D. Professor Emerita West Chester University
Katherine Magnuson, Ph.D. Associate Professor University of Wisconsin-Madison	Christopher A. Mallett, Ph.D., Esq. Professor Cleveland State University	Patricia Manz, Ph.D. Associate Professor & Program Director of School Psychology Lehigh University
Rebecca A. Marcon, Ph.D. Professor University of North Florida	Sheila Marcus, M.D. Child and Adolescent Psychiatrist University of Michigan	Smita Mathur, Ph.D. Assistant Professor University of South Florida Polytechnic
Wayne A. Mayfield, Ph.D. Research Associate University of Missouri	Rosemary McAuliffe State Senator (1st Legislative District) Washington State	Lisa McCabe, Ph.D. Research Associate Family Life Development Center Cornell University
Robert B. McCall, Ph.D. Co-Director Office of Child Development, and Professor of Psychology University of Pittsburgh	Sandee McClowry, Ph.D., RN Professor New York University	Cindy McGaha, Ph.D. Associate Professor Appalachian State University
Robert McGivern, Ph.D. Professor San Diego State University	Lorraine McKelvey Ph.D. Assistant Professor University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences	Elizabeth McLaren, Ed.D. Assistant Professor of Education Morehead State University
Christine McWayne, Ph.D. Associate Professor Director of Early Childhood Education Tufts University	Sara Michael-Luna, Ph.D. Assistant Professor Queens College-CUNY	Jon Miles, Ph.D. Director Searchlight Consulting, LLC.
Alison Miller, Ph.D. Assistant Research Professor University of Michigan School of Public Health	Gayle Mindes, Ed.D. Professor of Education DePaul University	Kathleen M. Minke, Ph.D. Professor University of Delaware
Cheryl Mitchell, Ph.D. The James M. Jeffords Center University of Vermont	Simona Montanari, Ph.D. Assistant Professor California State University, Los Angeles	Bruce Moore, O.D. Chair Department of Specialty and Advance Care New England College of Optometry
Amanda Moreno, Ph.D. Associate Director Marsico Institute for Early Learning and Literacy University of Denver	April Morris, M.S. Partner Child Care Results	Jennifer Mosley Manager of Research Teaching Strategies
Kimberly Murphy Research Assistant University of Oregon	John Neisworth, Ph.D. Professor Emeritus Special Education/ Early Intervention Pennsylvania State University	Dana Nelson, Ph.D. Lecturer University of Washington
Stacey Neuharth-Pritchett, Ph.D. Assistant Professor University of South Florida Polytechnic	Julie Nicholson, Ph.D. Director, Leadership Program in Early Childhood Visiting Assistant Professor, Mills College	Patricia Nunley, Ed.D. Guest Lecturer Mills College and School of Education & Child Development Professor San Francisco City College
Cindy O’Dell, Ed.D. Professor Cleveland State University	Sue Offutt, Ph.D. Executive Director National Louis University	Leslie Oppenheimer, M.Ed. ECE Curriculum Coordinator University of Maryland
Marissa Owsianik, M.A. Advanced Doctoral Candidate New York University	Mariela Paez, Ed.D Associate Professor Boston College	Gail Perry, Ph.D. Editor/Researcher National Association for the Education of Young Children
Roger Phillips, Ph.D. Development Psychologist & Consultant	Ruth Piker, Ph.D. Assistant Professor California State University, Long Beach	Peggy Daly Pizzo, M.Ed. Senior Scholar Stanford University
Douglas Powell, Ph.D. Distinguished Professor Purdue University	Kristie Pretti-Frontczak, Ph.D. Professor Kent State University	Elizabeth Pungello, Ph.D. Scientist Frank Porter Grahman Child Development Institute University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
Amanda Quesenberry, Ph.D. Assistant Professor Illinois State University	C. Cybele Raver, Ph.D. Director, Institute of Human Development and Social Change New York University	Aisha Ray, Ph.D. Senior Vice President for Academic Affairs and Dean of Faculty Erikson Institute
Erin E. Reid, Ph.D. Postdoctoral Research Associate University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign	Wendy Robeson, Ed.D. Senior Research Scientist Wellesley Centers for Women Wellesley College	JoAnn Robinson, Ph.D. Professor, Director of Early Childhood Education and Early Intervention Department of Human Development & Family Studies University of Connecticut
James Rodriguez, Ph.D. Associate Professor California State University, Fullerton	Leigh Rohde, M.Ed. Project Director Institiute on Disability University of New Hampshire	Yeon Sun Ro, Ph.D. Assistant Professor Penn State University
Donald A. Rock, Ph.D. Senior Research Scientist Educational Testing Service	M. Victoria Rodriguez, Ed.D. Associate Professor Lehman College, CUNY	Lori Roggman, Ph.D. Professor Utah State University
Rene P. Rosenbaum, Ph.D. Associate Professor Michigan State University	Sharon Rosenkoetter, Ph.D. Associate Professor Emeritus Oregon State University	Beth Rous, Ed.D. Association Professor Department of Educational Leadership Studies University of Kentucky
Susan Sandall Ph.D. Associate Professor, Special Education University of Washington	Rosa Milagros Santos, Ph.D. Associate Professor University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign	George Scarlett, Ph.D. Professor Tufts University
Ilene Schwartz, Ph.D. Chair and Professor, Special Education Director, Haring Center College of Education University of Washington	Ronald Seifer, Ph.D. Professor and Research Director Brown University and E.P. Bradley Hospital	Michael Seliger, Ph.D. Dean Bronx Community College of the City University of New York
Rachel Schiffman, Ph.D., RN Professor and Associate Dean College of Nursing University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee	Jacqueline Shannon, Ph.D. Associate Professor Brooklyn College, City University of New York	Susan M. Sheridan, Ph.D. Professor George Holmes University University of Nebraska-Lincoln
Diana T. Slaughter-Defoe, Ph.D. Constance E. Clayton Professor in Urban Education University of Pennsylvania	Kathleen Snow Adjunct Professor	Susan Spieker, Ph.D. Professor University of Washington
Jane Squires, Ph.D. Professor Director of Center on Human Development University of Oregon	Ann M. Stacks, Ph.D. Assistant Professor Wayne State University	Martha D. Staker, RN, M.S., M.A. Director and Principal Investigator Project EAGLE University of Kansas Medical Center
Prentice Starkey, Ph.D. Senior Project Director WestEd	Amanda Stein, Ph.D. Early Childhood Special Education Leadership Postdoctoral Fellow University of Colorado Denver	Deborah Stipek, Ph.D. James Quillen Dean of the School of Education and Professor Stanford University
Billy Stokes, Ed.D. Director, Picard Center for Child Development University of Louisiana at Lafayette	Joseph J. Stowitschek, Ed.D. Research Professor Emeritus University of Washington	Paul Strand, Ph.D. Associate Professor Washington State University Tri-Cities
Susan Straub, M.S.W. Director The Read To Me Program	Dorothy Strickland, Ph.D. Samuel DeWitt Proctor Professor of Education, Emerita Rutgers - the State University of New Jersey	Kaveri Subrahmanyam, Ph.D. Professor of Psychology & Acting Chair California State University, Los Angeles
Jean Ann Summers, Ph.D. Research Professor University of Kansas	Mallary Swartz, Ph.D. Lecturer Eliot-Pearson Department of Child Development Tufts University	Teri Talan, Ed.D. Associate Professor National-Louis University
Angela Tookes Program Coordinator Family Foundations Early Head Start Office of Child Development University of Pittsburgh	Dana Tuller Interlochen, MI	Anne Turner-Henson, DSN, RN Professor University of Alabama at Birmingham, School of Nursing
Anne Turner-Henson, DSN, RN Professor University of Alabama at Birmingham, School of Nursing	Deborah Lowe Vandell, Ph.D. Professor and Chair of the Department of Education University of California, Irvine	Sue Vartuli, Ph.D. Associate Professor Early Childhood Education University of Missouri-Kansas City
Joan I. Vondra, Ph.D. Professor of Applied Developmental Psychology (Retired) University of Pittsburgh	Alisha Wackerle-Hollman, Ph.D. Research Associate University of Minnesota	Dale Walker, Ph.D. Associate Research Professor Junpier Gardens Children’s Project University of Kansas
Shavaun Wall, Ph.D. Professor of Education The Catholic University of America	Kathleen Wallner-Allen, Ph.D. Senior Study Director Westat	Roberta B. Weber, Ph.D. Faculty Research Associate Oregon State University
Janette C. Wetsel, Ph.D. Associate Professor University of Central Oklahoma	Marcy Whitebook, Ph.D. Director and Senior Researcher, Center for the Study of Child Care Employment University of California at Berkeley	M. Jeanne Wilcox, Ph.D. Professor and Director Infant Child Research Programs Arizona State University
Angela Wiley, Ph.D. Associate Professor University of Illinois	Jo Ann Williams, M.Ed. Executive Director Child Development, Inc.	Adam Winsler, Ph.D. Professor of Applied Developmental Psychology George Mason University
Edyth J. Wheeler, Ph.D. Professor Towson University	Leanne Whiteside-Mansell, Ed.D. Professor University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences	Linnie Green Wright, Ph.D. Assistant Professor Boston College Graduate School of Social Work
Noreen Yazejian, Ph.D. Scientist FPG Child Development Institute University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill	Meryl Yoches Doctoral Student University of Maryland, College Park	Hiro Yoshikawa, Ph.D. Professor of Education Harvard University
Marlene Zepeda, Ph.D. Professor California State University, Los Angeles	Chun Zhang, Ph.D. Professor Fordham University

[i] Barnett, W. (2002, September 13). The Battle Over Head Start: What the Research Shows. Presentation at a Science and Public Policy Briefing Sponsored by the Federation of Behavioral, Psychological, and Cognitive Sciences; Barnett, W. and Hustedt, J. (2005). Head Start's lasting benefits. Infants & Young Children, 18 (1): 16-24; Ludwig, J. and Miller, D. (2007). Does Head Start improve children's life chances? Evidence from a regression discontinuity design. The Quarterly Journal of Economics, 122 (1): 159-208.

[ii] Ludwig, J. and Miller, D. (2007). Does Head Start improve children's life chances? Evidence from a regression discontinuity design. The Quarterly Journal of Economics, 122 (1): 159-208.

[iii] Ibid.

[iv] Anderson, K.H., Foster, J.E., & Frisvold, D.E. (2009). Investing in health: The long-term impact of Head Start on smoking. Economic Inquiry, 48 (3), 587-602.

[v] Herman, A. (2005, Fall). Making a Difference in Head Start Families' Health Care. Dialog Briefs, 9(1): 4.

[vi] Garces, E., Thomas, D. and Currie, J. (2002, September). Longer-Term Effects of Head Start. American Economic Review, 92 (4): 999-1012

[vii] US Department of Health and Human Services. (2010, January). Head Start Impact Study Final Report - Executive Summary. The control group children were supposed to only consist of children who did not receive Head Start services, but a significant proportion of the control group received Head Start services anyway.

[viii] US Department of Health and Human Services. (2010, January). Head Start Impact Study Final Report; U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Administration for Children and Families. (2004). Making a difference in the lives of infants and toddlers and their families: The impacts of Early Head Start, Volume I. Washington, DC.

[ix] Oyemade, U., V. Washington, and D. Gullo. (1989). The Relationship between Head Start Parental Involvement and the Economic and Social Self-Sufficiency of Head Start Families. Journal of Negro Education. 58, 1, 13.

[x] U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Administration for Children and Families. (2004). Making a difference in the lives of infants and toddlers and their families: The impacts of Early Head Start, Volume II: Final technical report appendices. Washington, DC.

[xi] Ludwig, J. and Phillips, D. (2007). The Benefits and Costs of Head Start. Social Policy Report. 21 (3: 4); Meier, J. (2003, June 20). Interim Report. Kindergarten Readiness Study: Head Start Success. Preschool Service Department, San Bernardino County, California.

[xii] Heckman, J. (2010). Letter submitted to the National Commission on Fiscal Responsibility and Budget Reform.