Policy Matters
This work helps state leaders find research on effective policies in the areas most important to a family's opportunity and stability: employment, income and asset growth, health, education and healthy family relationships.
Key to a state's prosperity is the strength of its families, the health of communities and the efficiency of government investment -- all of which can be enhanced by adopting policies that improve opportunities for children and families. Policy Matters consists of a series of briefs, papers, guides for self-assessment and comparative reports on all 50 states. As policymakers pursue these goals, this evidence helps assess which policies can produce concrete, sustainable and cost-effective results.
The Policy Matters Series:
- Raising Educational Achievement offers recommendations for improving public elementary, secondary and post-secondary educational opportunities. Policy benchmarks are proposed for teacher quality, school quality, education finance and post-secondary access policies.
- Promoting Better Family Health examines potential for improving the health status of low-income families with a focus on policies that improve the health care service system, behavioral health and healthy environments.
- Improving the Economic Success of Families: Recommendations for State Policy offers specific policy recommendations and a unique approach for applying benchmarks to state family economic success policy decisions. (brief)
- Improving the Readiness of Children for School reviews what the early care and education field knows about school readiness and provides nine school readiness policies.
- Engaging Youth in Positive, Productive Roles provides an overview of issues affecting young people 8 to 24 years old and reviews trends in national and state-level youth policy efforts with several specific recommendations.
- Policy Matters: Twenty State Policies to Enhance States' Prosperity and Create Bright Futures for America's Children, Families and Communities identifies key policy measures in the areas of employment, asset building, health, education and family relationships, and presents data for each policy measure for each state.
- Encouraging Strong Family Relationships outlines how policy can support the well-being of families which adds to the stability and success of children in school. (brief)
- Promoting Child Safety, Permanence, and Well-Being through Safe and Strong Families, Supportive Communities, and Effective Systems focuses primarily on state child welfare agencies and their partners, which include the courts and systems responsible for health, mental health, education and other related services, and makes specific policy recommendations based on research and practice evidence.
