Early Childhood Focus - Cost-Benefit Analysis of Chicago Child-Parent Center Program Released

Results of a cost-benefit analysis study of the Chicago Child-Parent Center Program (CPC) show that the economic benefits of the program's early childhood education and comprehensive services outweigh the program's costs. Study authors, Aurthur Reynolds, UW-Madison and Judy Temple, Northern Illinois University, found that attendance in the preschool program for 18 months - averaging a cost of $6,692 per child - generated a return to society of $47,759 per participant.

The cost-benefit analysis integrated the findings of The Chicago Longitudinal Study, conducted through the CPC Program since 1986. The Chicago Longitudinal Study is an on-going investigation of the effects of an early and extensive childhood education and intervention program in Chicago.

Full article available at News at University of Wisconsin, Madison

Full Cost-Benefit Analysis available in the Winter 2003 issue of Educational Evaluation and Policy Analysis

"What these numbers indicate is that the earlier the intervention takes place, the greater the return," says Aruthur Reynolds, one of the study's authors.

Based on their analysis, the researchers found that attendance in the preschool program for 18 months - averaging a cost of $6,692 per child - generated a return to society of $47,759 per participant. This figure includes increased taxes on earnings due to educational attainment ($7,243), savings to the criminal justice system ($7,130), reductions in school remedial services ($4,652) and averted tangible costs to crime victims ($6,127).

"Each of these benefits exceed the cost of just one year of the preschool program, which costs about $4,400," explains Reynolds. The economic benefits also exceeded program costs when the participants attended preschool for one or two years, attended only the school-age program or attended the entire program, lasting between four to six years.

Overall, every dollar invested in the preschool program returned $7.14 in individual, educational, social welfare and socioeconomic benefits. Every dollar invested also generated $3.85 to the general public through government and crime-victim savings. Comparatively, every dollar invested in the school-age program and the extended program returned $1.66 and $6.11, respectively.

The Child-Parent Center Program, federally funded by Title I of the No Child Left Behind Act, serves low-income Chicago children ages 3-9 years. The program offers comprehensive services and emphasizes literacy skills and parental involvement.

Reynolds carefully notes that not all early education childhood programs will produce the same economic return. "Many programs don't have the level of quality that the CPCs offer," he says, adding that CPC classes take place in public schools, are taught by teachers with bachelor's degrees and certification in early childhood, and offer a breadth of services to both child and parent.


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