Association for Public Policy Analysis & Management

Special Events: Symposium: Can Preschool Programs Implemented on a Broad Scale Have Lasting Impacts?

Chair: Ajay Chaudry - Consultant Speakers: Dale Farran - Vanderbilt University; Sara Mead - Bellwether Associates; Russ Whitehurst - Brookings Institute; and Hiro Yoshikawa - New York University Although the public perception is that high quality preschool programs can significantly boost the development of poor children, there is lively debate about whether national implementation of a preschool program such as the one proposed by the Obama administration would produce lasting impacts on the intellectual and social development of poor children. Debate in this symposium will address four issues: 1) whether small-scale model programs can produce lasting impacts and if so on what outcomes; 2) whether national scale-up of preschool programs can produce lasting impacts on most preschool children who participate; 3) what should be the characteristics of an ideal national program and what local entities should implement the program?; and 4) how much would a national program cost?