Many students who begin post-secondary education at a community college find transferring to a four-year college problematic. New research finds that the percentage of tenured faculty at a community college has a greater impact on successful transfers than agreements alone.

Is it true that children in elementary schools are doing just fine while older students are the ones who need attention? A new Foundation for Child Development policy brief argues such myths mask the needs for reforming Pre-K to Third Grade, when children acquire the cognitive, social, and academic skills that form the foundation for later learning.

"The fact is that extended early-childhood intervention has been proven to work. We have little to show, on the other hand, for our vast expenditures on Title I in its current form," said Ed Zigler, long-time policy advocate for young children and founder of Head Start. Title 1 is the major federal funding stream for elementary and secondary schools for programs serving large numbers of disadvantaged students.

Only about 10 percent of students from foster care enroll in higher education -- with less than 2 percent earning bachelor's degrees. This Casey Family Programs resource can assist colleges in improving their support for students coming from foster care.

Oklahoma's universal pre-K program has shown dramatic benefits for Hispanic students who participate in high-quality preschool programs. These children, especially those from Spanish-speaking homes, improve their English and cognitive development skills and are more likely to be prepared for kindergarten than those not enrolled.

In 2007, 1.7 million children under age 18 had a parent in prison—an 82 percent increase 1991, disproportionately affecting children of color. Children of incarcerated parents are more likely to drop out of school, engage in delinquency, and subsequently be incarcerated themselves. This Sentencing Project brief evaluates Department of Justice data and offers policy recommendations to support parent/child relationships and minimize the harm to children.

Kids’ Carpentry is a year-round after school program designed especially for boys and girls, kindergarten through the sixth grade. Since 1982 we have been teaching kids the safe use of woodworking hand tools. Children work together and independently on boats, trucks, bird feeders, clocks, doll furniture, airplanes, games and many other projects. In addition to the fun these kids have, they also gain quality experiences in measuring, applied mathematics such as fractions, and hands-on experience with a variety of carpentry tools. By visualizing, planning and building projects, children develop valuable abstract reasoning capabilities and fine motor skills. Children can select from a wide range of project choices supplied by the teacher and are also encouraged to design and build based on their own needs and imaginations. Our Socratic style of teaching empowers the children to become good problem-solvers and independent thinkers!

MDRC's report on an Opening Doors project in Louisiana finds that performance-based financial scholarships combined with student counseling helped low-income students stay and succeed in community college.

This Century Foundation publication explores early literacy practices that led to New Jersey's dramatic improvement in test scores and academic improvement among poor, minority students.

Is a trip to the zoo a luxury or an important learning opportunity? A new National Research Council report stresses that trips and TV documentaries can significantly contribute to scientific understanding. Such settings and programs may also support academic gains for young people from groups historically underrepresented in science.