Child Trends’ Post

A new case study from OPRE describes approaches child care and early education licensing agencies from four states use to offer technical assistance to providers.

A new OPRE report summarizes key shifts in child care and early education research made during the COVID-19 pandemic. These findings can inform future research with the CCEE workforce, families, and children that is responsive, flexible, and equitable.

New U.S. Census Bureau data show that nearly 14% of children under age 18 in the United States lived in poverty in 2023. Child Trends’ new blog from Christina Padilla and Dana Thomson explores the two main factors that influence annual changes in child poverty—shifts in economic conditions and shifts in social policy—and what happened in 2023 that could have led to the increase. https://lnkd.in/e3k93K7g  

The Kinship Diversion Estimation Tool can help child welfare agencies gain a better understanding of how and when caseworkers are diverting children to kin. This Child Trends and Annie E. Casey Foundation resource offers step-by-step instructions, sample emails, and more for agencies to easily gather information.

Learn whether states oversee and track kinship diversion arrangements and what resources are available for children and kinship caregivers in diversion arrangements in a new Annie E. Casey Foundation brief. The brief is part of AECF’s Family Ties project, for which Child Trends surveyed state child welfare administrators in all 50 states, Washington D.C., and Puerto Rico. https://lnkd.in/eS-aWs-R

Decades later, Kenneth and Mamie Clark’s famous doll study continues to underscore the complex ways in which institutional racism impacts Black children’s development and well-being. Mavis Sanders and Dominique Martinez's new Child Trends blog explains how the Clarks’ work—and more contemporary research—should inform future research on Black children’s well-being. https://lnkd.in/g-2saiKN

Please join Child Trends and APHSA -- American Public Human Services Association on September 24 at 1:00 pm ET to hear Mavis Sanders, Dominique Martinez, Quiana Lewis Wallace, PhD, MPH, and Shana E. Rochester describe Child Trends' priorities for advancing Black child and family well-being, the importance of community-engaged research, and more. Register today! https://lnkd.in/evGsstkJ

A new Child Trends brief from Zipi Diamond, Rowan Hilty, Kathryn Tout, and Jennifer Cleveland reflects on the methods and measures they used to understand early care and education (ECE) quality and children’s experiences in Minnesota’s Parent Aware Rated programs. The author’s findings can inform approaches ECE researchers and state leaders use to measure and understand how ECE program quality and other factors come together to shape children’s healthy learning and development. https://lnkd.in/dD6Ma9mN

Identity formation is an important part of adolescence and young adulthood. However, for young people in foster care, this may be challenging. A new Child Trends blog suggests that to help young people develop healthy racial identities, child welfare agencies can train adults who work in the child welfare system in cultural competency and help young people make positive connections with kin. https://lnkd.in/etWQ8cWq

A new Child Trends brief from Vanessa Sacks and Michael Bradley explores practices for incorporating positive youth development approaches into soliciting young adult workers’ opinions and implementing their suggestions in the workplace. Employers can attract and retain young adult talent by using positive youth development approaches, which focus on young adults’ strengths, growth, and relationships. This brief was was developed as part of the Annie E. Casey Foundation’s Generation Work initiative. https://lnkd.in/euEDHBp8