Research and Evaluation Projects
To build the evidence base for state investments in children, the Prenatal-to-3 Policy Impact Center aims to determine what works, for whom, and under what conditions. To answer these questions, the Research and Evaluation team conducts rigorous analyses of state policies, as well as program evaluations of state and local initiatives. Our work informs policymakers and practitioners about which policies and programs truly promote the health and wellbeing of children and families. We primarily work with clients in state government and the nonprofit sector.
The Center’s Research and Evaluation team includes data analysts and research associates with skillsets in quantitative, qualitative, and mixed-method research; data manipulation and analysis; and the use, linking, and analysis of large administrative datasets. Team members’ expertise spans many subjects, including public health, child development, psychology, and law.
Featured Publications
 | Workgroup Recommendations to Inform the 2022 Child Care Workforce Strategic PlanHouse Bill (H.B.) 619, passed in 2021 during the 87th Legislature of Texas, directs the Texas Workforce Commission (TWC) to prepare a child care workforce strategic plan to improve the quality of the infant, toddler, preschool, and school-age child care workforce in Texas. A Workgroup, guided by the Prenatal-to-3 Policy Impact Center’s Research and Evaluation Team, provided a series of recommendations for state and local government entities and educational institutions to raise workforce quality and support the child care sector. This 189-page report also outlines how other states are funding their improvements to early childhood education. The Child Care in Crisis: Texas Case Study briefs (below) highlight four key takeaways from the full report. |
 | Child Care in Crisis: Texas Case StudyIn this research brief series, Child Care in Crisis: Texas Case Study, read about national child care issues through original findings from Texas, home to more than 10% of the nation’s children. Data from the Texas Director Survey and feedback from the Workgroup guided the development of the Workgroup Recommendations to Inform the 2022 Texas Child Care Workforce Strategic Plan (above), a comprehensive set of 11 recommendations to stabilize the industry and raise workforce quality. Data collected to develop the recommendations forms the basis of this new research brief series. These four briefs explain the specific issues facing the child care industry and what states can do to support early childhood educators and child care businesses, as well as ensure that all families have access to high-quality child care. |
 | Implementing a State Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) in Pennsylvania: A Benefit-Cost AnalysisRigorous research shows that federal and state EITCs increase overall employment and earnings, particularly for single mothers, leading to better economic, social, and health outcomes for families. Pennsylvania has had its own tax forgiveness program for decades, providing relief to millions of families each year, but the state remains without an EITC. This report offers an estimate for the new costs of the proposed refundable state EITC, beyond Pennsylvania’s current expenditures for its existing tax forgiveness program, as well as estimates for the benefits to the state and to families. Our analysis demonstrates that the annual public benefits of the elective state EITC program would outweigh its costs, with an estimated ratio of approximately 7 to 1 with a 10% credit. The program would improve the quality of life for Pennsylvania’s workers and families, while offering significant returns to the state government through increased economic activity, greater tax revenue, and reduced spending on public assistance and human services programs. |
 | Implementing a Refundable State Earned Income Tax Credit in South Carolina: A Benefit-Cost AnalysisThe federal earned income tax credit (EITC) is an anti-poverty program that incentivizes employment in the U.S. Only available to workers with earned income, the federal EITC provides an annual lump-sum tax credit to families with low incomes to reduce or eliminate tax liability. Most states offer a state-level EITC to supplement the federal credit, typically providing a set percentage of a household’s federal benefit. Research suggests that federal and state EITCs increase employment and earnings and improve families’ economic, social, and health outcomes. State EITCs can also increase tax revenue and reduce public assistance spending for federal and local governments. Eligible tax filers in South Carolina can currently claim a nonrefundable state EITC, with a credit worth 125% of the federal credit beginning in tax year 2023. |
NOTE: The featured publications (below) were published prior to the Center moving to Vanderbilt University in the Spring of 2022 from the Child and Family Research Partnership located at the LBJ School of Public Affairs, The University of Texas at Austin.
 | An Updated Estimation Model of the Cost of Raising Children in TexasThe Texas Office of the Attorney General Child Support Division (OAG) contracted with Dr. Cynthia Osborne and the Prenatal-to-3 Policy Impact Center’s Research and Evaluation Team to update the estimation model for the cost of raising children in Texas (Texas CORC). Considering economic data on the cost of raising children is a required element of the quadrennial child support guideline review process. The Texas CORC, presented in this report, provides the OAG with a Texas-specific estimate that, importantly, estimates the cost of raising children across two households, reflecting the reality of many children whose parents have a child support order. |
 | Texas Home Visiting: Assessing Early Experiences of COVID-19 StudyThe Texas Department of Family and Protective Services (DFPS) Prevention and Early Intervention (PEI) Division receives formula grant funding through the Maternal, Infant, and Early Childhood Home Visiting (MIECHV) program to oversee the implementation of Texas Home Visiting programs (THV). PEI contracted with Dr. Cynthia Osborne and the Prenatal-to-3 Policy Impact Center’s Research and Evaluation Team to conduct a study of 30 MIECHV-funded home visiting programs in Texas during the COVID-19 pandemic to examine the changes in delivery of services and the evolving needs of Texas families and home visiting providers. |
 | AVANCE Parent Child Education Program School Readiness Evaluation Findings: Dallas, TexasThe AVANCE Parent-Child Education Program (PCEP) adopts a two-generation approach that aims to increase parenting knowledge and promote school readiness among low-income Latino families. AVANCE PCEP provides parenting education sessions, community resources, home visitation, and early childhood education to families with children from birth through three years of age. AVANCE contracted with Dr. Cynthia Osborne and the Prenatal-to-3 Policy Impact Center’s Research and Evaluation Team to conduct an impact evaluation of the AVANCE PCEP program throughout Texas. The goal of the evaluation is to rigorously examine how participation in AVANCE PCEP is associated with school readiness and whether educational benefits from participation in the program are sustained through third grade. |
 | CPS Professional Development: Summary of Findings from the Evaluation of the CPD Training ModelIn January 2015, the Texas Department of Family and Protective Services (DFPS) began using the CPS Professional Development (CPD) training model to train and equip new caseworkers. The CPD model takes an experiential approach to training to provide new caseworkers with a better understanding of the reality of their job early in training. The CPD model then aims to better prepare caseworkers who are a good fit for their new role, thereby increasing staff competency, work quality, workforce stability, and ultimately outcomes for families. DFPS contracted with Dr. Cynthia Osborne and the Prenatal-to-3 Policy Impact Center’s Research and Evaluation Team to conduct an implementation and outcomes evaluation of CPD to examine whether the training model is associated with improvements in caseworker preparedness, retention, and quality. |
Prenatal-to-3 Policy Clearinghouse
An ongoing inventory of rigorous evidence reviews of state-level policies and strategies that impact the prenatal to age 3 developmental period.