Advances in understanding the effects of early education have benefited public policy and developmental science. Although preschool has demonstrated positive effects on life-course outcomes, limitations in knowledge on program scale, subgroup differences, and dosage levels have hindered progress. We report the effects of the Child-Parent Center Education Program on indicators of well-being up to 25 years later for over 1,400 participants. This established, publicly-funded intervention begins in preschool and provides up to 6 years of service in inner-city Chicago schools. Relative to the comparison group receiving the usual services, program participation was independently linked to higher educational attainment, socioeconomic status (SES) including income, health insurance coverage as well as lower rates of justice-system involvement and substance abuse. Evidence of enduring effects was strongest for preschool, especially for males and children of high school dropouts. The positive influence of 4 or more years of service was limited primarily to education and SES. Dosage within program components was mostly unrelated to outcomes. Findings demonstrate support for the enduring effects of sustained school-based early education to the end of the third decade of life.

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Identification of the early determinants of substance abuse is a major focus of life course research. In this study, we investigated the child, family, and school-related antecedents of the onset and prevalence of substance abuse by age 26 for a cohort of 1,208 low-income minority children in the Chicago Longitudinal Study. Data onon well-being have been collected prospectively since birth from administrative records, parents, teachers, and children. Results indicated that the prevalence of substance abuse by age 26 was 32 percent (self reports or criminal justice system records) with a median age of first use of 17. Probit regression analysis indicated that substance abuse prevalence was primarily determined by gender (males had a higher rate), trouble making behavior by age 12, school mobility, and previous substance use. Family and peer predictors included involvement in the child welfare system by age 9, parent expectations for school success at age 9, parent substance abuse by children's age 15, and deviant peer affiliation by age 16. Age of first substance use was predicted by gender and race/ethnicity (males and Blacks had earlier incidence), involvement in the child welfare system, and family risk status at age 8. As with prevalence, the pattern of predictors for males was similar to the overall sample but the magnitude of effects was stronger.. The predictors of the timing of substance use dependency were gender, family conflict by age 5, involvement in the child welfare system, social maturity at age 9, adolescent school mobility, and school dropout by age 16. Findings indicate that the promotion of family involvement and positive school and social behavior can reduce the risk of substance abuse.

Until the last year, public funding for preschool education had been growing rapidly over a decade with most state programs providing one year of preschool for four year olds. Fewer three year olds are enrolled in preschool. To investigate the importance of enrollment duration, this study is the first to estimate long-term dosage effects of years of preschool. We use data from a cohort of 1,500 students in the Chicago Longitudinal Study who enrolled in the Chicago Public Schools in the mid-1980s. Many of these students participated in a high-quality preschool program called Child-Parent Centers (CPC) for one or two years. To address selection with multiple treatments, we employ inverse propensity score weighting. Relative to children who attended one year of CPC preschool, the two-year group is significantly less likely to receive special education or be abused or neglected or to commit crimes. The findings provide support for the long-term benefits of greater exposure to preschool.