Hispanic Children’s Participation in Early Care and Education: A Look at Utilization Patterns of Chicago’s Publicly Funded Programs

Author

Michael López

Todd Grindal

Wladimir Zanoni

Robert Goerge

In this brief, we examine the rates of participation in center and home-based ECE for low-income Hispanic and non-Hispanic 3- and 4-year-olds in Chicago. We drew on a rich and comprehensive set of linked administrative data on a representative sample of children from low-income families. These data span the years from their birth to their entry into Chicago Public Schools (CPS) kindergarten programs in 2013-2014. We also examine how ECE participation differs within the linguistically and culturally diverse group of low-income Hispanic families in the study sample.

The National Research Center on Hispanic Children & Families (Center) is supported by the Administration for Children and Families (ACF) of the United States (U.S.) Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) as part of two financial assistance awards (Award # 90PH0028, from 2018-2023, and Award # 90PH0032 from 2023-2028) totaling $13.5 million across the two awards with 99 percent funded by ACF/HHS and 1 percentage funded by non-government sources. The contents are those of the authors and do not necessarily represent the official views of, nor an endorsement, by ACF/HHS, or the U.S. Government. For more information, please visit the ACF website, Administrative and National Policy Requirement.