What I’m Reading

Hi everyone! I’m introducing a new series to the blog! Each week (at least that’s the goal), I’ll post a short list of articles from around the web that I’ve read. The articles will deal with issues related to children and families. I’m starting this as a way to (a) keep myself accountable and focus on reading more relevant and staying current on child and family social policy, and (2) encourage and promote good quality information about these important topics on the internet. All too often I see news roundups that fail to focus on domestic issues that impact children and families from across the sociodemographic spectrum. So I’d like to do my part, and spread the news.

As the first iteration of this series, I want to start with a fabulous news consolidation subscription: The Skimm. The Skimm is a free email subscription service that gives you daily highlights of what’s going on in the news – domestically and internationally. They are a fast-growing start-up and are becoming noticed everywhere. They were even recently featured in Business Insider for their book recommendation list. They have an app, and post guides for relevant political issues. Try it yourself using my referral link, and see if you like it!

Here’s what I’ve been reading this week:

Child Care Aware put together recommendations based on research related to access to child care, child care deserts, and supply and demand.

Attending child care can have multigenerational benefits.

Focusing on inequalities in education might be more important than encouraging grit.

Three part series on how college’s use big data: Part 1: Who knew, the College Board sells student data to schools (featuring: my alma mater). Part 2: Some colleges recruit locally. Part 3: Is it sustainable to keep purchasing names and target higher ed marketing? (featuring: Posse shoutout!)

Making loan payments should be easier than it is, and it’s only getting worse.

A three part blog series on New America addresses some opportunities and challenges with the Every Student Succeeds Act of 2015: Part 1: Family engagement is important to student academic success. Part 2: How ESSA can help student transitions. Part 3: ESSA and early learning programs.

What have you guys read this week?