Preschoolers Enrolled and Mothers at Work? The Effects of Universal Pre-Kindergarten

Maria Fitzpatrick

Working Papers from U.S. Census Bureau, Center for Economic Studies

Abstract: Three states (Georgia, Oklahoma and Florida) recently introduced Universal Pre- Kindergarten (Universal Pre-K) programs offering free preschool to all age-eligible children, and policy makers in many other states are promoting similar policies. How do such policies affect the participation of children in preschool programs (or do they merely substitute for preschool offered by the market)? Does the implicit child care subsidy afforded by Universal Pre-K change maternal labor supply? I present a model that includes preferences for child quality and shows the directions of change in preschool enrollment and maternal labor supply in response to Universal Pre-K programs are theoretically ambiguous. Using restricted-access data from the Census, together with year and birthday based eligibility cutoffs, I employ a regression discontinuity framework to estimate the effects of Universal Pre-K availability. Universal Pre-K availability increases preschool enrollment by 12 to 15 percent, with the largest effect on children of women with less than a Bachelor’s Degree. Universal Pre-K availability has little effect on the labor supply of most women. However, women residing in rural areas in Georgia increase their children’s preschool enrollment and their own employment by 22 and 20 percent, respectively, when Universal Pre-K is available.

Keywords: Preschool; Public Subsidies; Maternal Labor Supply (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: H52 I28 J13 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Pages: 61 pages
Date: 2008-03
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (4)

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https://www2.census.gov/ces/wp/2008/CES-WP-08-04.pdf First version, 2008 (application/pdf)

Related works:
Journal Article: Preschoolers Enrolled and Mothers at Work? The Effects of Universal Prekindergarten (2010)
Working Paper: Preschoolers Enrolled and Mothers at Work? The Effects of Universal Pre-Kindergarten (2008)
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