All Work
Early Childhood Education
Child Care: What Parents Want — What Children Need (with Jenet Erickson)
Family researcher Jenet Erickson sheds new light on the role of work and childcare in child, maternal, and family well-being, and the care preferences of women with young children.
The Miracle of Language: How Parents Build Babies' Brains (with Dana Suskind)
Dr. Dana Suskind explains the power of nurturing language environments in children's development, and the vital role parents play as architects of their children’s brains.
A Common-Ground New Child Care Agenda That Includes Parents
Katharine Stevens joins a panel at a Senate event to discuss a new, cross-partisan report proposing common-ground policy solutions for families with young children.
Why Homemakers Matter (with Ivana Greco)
Katharine talks with Ivana Greco about her unusual path from Harvard-educated attorney to full-time "stay-at-home mom," caring for her toddler and homeschooling her two young sons.
The Crucial Role of Nurturing Care in Early Childhood (with Phil Fisher)
Dr. Phil Fisher joins the podcast to discuss his pioneering work on the effects of early stressful experiences on young children’s development.
“The Brain Development Revolution”: Early Childhood and Public Policy (with Ross Thompson)
Ross Thompson joins the podcast to discuss current knowledge in developmental science, and how brain science has been used to shape public policy in early childhood.
How Family Policy Debates Sometimes Ignore the Family Itself
Dr. Katharine Stevens joins host Nic Dunn of the Sutherland Institute to help recenter true pro-family policy at the core of public debates and offer policymakers and voters a framework for a better approach.
Capita’s Approach to Advancing Child and Family Flourishing (with Joe Waters)
Katharine Stevens is joined by Joe Waters, co-founder and CEO of Capita, to discuss Capita's origins and work to improve the lives of children and families.
Why Marriage Matters for Family and Child Well-Being (with Brad Wilcox)
Brad Wilcox, professor of sociology and director of the National Marriage Project at the University of Virginia, discusses the decline in marriage among lower-income adults and explains its role in family strength and well-being.
Building a Roadmap for Prenatal-to-3 State Policy (with Cynthia Osborne)
Cynthia Osborne discusses the work of the Prenatal-to-Three Policy Impact Center and describes the state-level policies and strategies highlighted in the Center’s recently-released 2023 State Policy Roadmap.
Empowering Parents and Scaling Preschool Success (with Art Rolnick)
Katharine Stevens interviews economist Art Rolnick about his nationally recognized work with the Minnesota Early Learning Scholarships program, a parent-choice-driven model providing scholarships to parents with children from ages prenatal to five.
How Early Childhood is the Foundation of Social Capital (with Chris Bullivant)
Katharine Stevens interviews Chris Bullivant about why social capital matters to a thriving society, and how the foundation of social capital is formed through children’s secure attachment established in the birth-to-three period.
Parenting Is the Key to Early Development and Social Mobility – Part 2 (with James Heckman and Jorge Luis Garcia)
In the second part of this two-part conversation, Katharine Stevens continues her discussion with economists James Heckman and Jorge Luis Garcia about their pioneering research on how improving parenting is the essential mechanism of effective early childhood programs.
Parenting Is the Key to Early Development and Social Mobility (with James Heckman and Jorge Luis Garcia)
In the inaugural episode of CCFP's new podcast, Katharine Stevens interviews renowned economists James Heckman and Jorge Luis Garcia about their collaborative research on the power of early childhood interventions to promote social mobility and build human capital.
A Flawed Agenda for America’s Young Children: Build Back Better’s Blueprint for Early Care and Education
Is Build Back Better really dead? Katharine B. Stevens analyzes the childcare and universal preschool provisions of BBB, revealing a detailed legislative blueprint of an increasingly influential vision for America’s young children: federally-controlled preschool programs for all children from birth onwards.
Raising Young Children at Home
Our core policy goal must be to reinforce the fundamental bonds of family: elevating — rather than displacing — the vital role of parents in raising their own children, especially during the first, foundational years of development.
Supporting Parental Choice in Early Education
Katharine B. Stevens joins an expert panel at RISE 2023 to discuss the policy and practice of supporting a mixed delivery system and parental choice in early education.
Is Expanding Publicly Funded Childcare in the Best Interests of Children?
Boosting access to high-quality childcare for children from disadvantaged families is an important policy goal. But a large, non-targeted expansion of publicly funded childcare will not be in the best interests of young children overall.
“Sons and Daughters of Working Mothers: Successes and Challenges”
The question of childcare is fundamentally about with whom and in what environments young children spend the critical first years of their lives. A growing focus on other policy goals is causing us to leave out this essential piece of the family picture.
Katharine Stevens on Her New Think Tank and the Need for Better Early Childhood Policy
Katharine Stevens joins Naomi Schaefer Riley and Ian Rowe on Are You Kidding Me? to discuss the importance of families in child development, how to better utilize existing systems to improve outcomes for children, and the role of public policy in creating cultural change.