Ana Whitaker

Whitaker and Kunjapur named Gerard J. Mangone Young Scholars | UDaily Young, promising scholars recognized for their outstanding research

Honored to receive the Mangone Young Scholars award from the University of Delaware. I'm lucky to be supported by incredible colleagues and to be in a department that encourages and values early career researchers. 🩷

www.udel.edu/udaily/2025/...

Why are preschool programs becoming less effective? Public preschool programs are heralded as an effective policy tool for promoting the development and lifelong well-being of children from low-income families. Recent preschool evaluations report dive....

Excited to share our new publication in JPAM - "Why are preschool programs becoming less effective?"

onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1...

#EdPolicy #EarlyChildhood #QuantResearch #RCTs

*gatekeep? Idk - this news is too good not to share!!

Pureology Hydrate Disguised as Costco Signature Shampoo - The CostPro Costco’s Kirkland Signature Moisture Shampoo is Pureology Hydrate Shampoo in disguise with the Costco Kirkland Shampoo label and the low Costco price.

Not one to gate keep (sorry not sorry for the non-work post):

thecostpro.com/pureology-hy...

Evidence-Based Education Policy Research | Live Handbook Explore evidence-based education policy research at our digital hub. Access data-driven insights to improve learning outcomes and shape effective policies.

Developing a syllabus for the upcoming academic year? Consider including the AEFP Live Handbook. It provides a dynamic, evolving collection of insights from education finance and policy experts. A digital hub for evidence-based education policy research: livehandbook.org/

These results suggest it may be time to revisit and refine how we define and measure “quality” in ECE.

#EarlyChildhood #EducationResearch #ECEPolicy #ChildDevelopment

Using data across 4 studies, we found that:

• Structural features (like ratios, teacher ed) were linked to classroom quality only when regulations were low.
• Once structural standards improved, those links weakened.
• Classroom process quality didn’t significantly predict preschoolers’ outcomes.

Our paper empirically examining the early childhood education structure-process-outcome model is out now in Developmental Psychology.

psycnet.apa.org/record/2026-...

HHS announced today they will consider Head Start a welfare program, not an education program, and will subject it to new citizenship requirements. This goes against decades of legal precedence that all children in America have a right to education. Announcement here. www.hhs.gov/press-room/p...

Recent Immigration Raids Increased Student Absences Local immigration raids expanded dramatically across the U.S. during the first two months of 2025. Anecdotal accounts suggest that these raids increased student absences from schools because parents f...

edworkingpapers.com/ai25-1202

Great flash talks this morning from @chloergibbs.bsky.social and @anawhit.bsky.social about the impacts of early childhood education policies, part of the new AEFP Live Handbook! #AEFP2025

Evidence-Based Education Policy Research | Live Handbook Explore evidence-based education policy research at our digital hub. Access data-driven insights to improve learning outcomes and shape effective policies.

Objective, comprehensive, rigorous, timely, and useful:
A digital hub for evidence-based education policy research.

#EdResearch #EdPolicy

livehandbook.org

💜💛

📢 Another new post-doc position at @UChicago! The Committee on Education seeks an early childhood development scholar from any relevant discipline. EOE/Vet/Disability. Work with us @HarrisPolicy @HarrisBIPLab among other units.
voices.uchicago.edu/coed/about-ies

Agree - just found some working papers on here yesterday.

Yes! Please share! Twitter was helpful in introducing me to new research and I’m hopeful we build that same vibe over here too.

Here's a good read for those intro to research/grad school courses.

Community has been essential to my success and something I strive to promote and create in the spaces I join.

Thank you!

Love to be added to this incredible list! Thanks for sharing!

We are hiring in our brand new Social Work program!

Happy to answer any questions about UD's College of Education and Human Development. I have really fabulous colleagues :)

Check out the position in the link below.

careers.udel.edu/en-us/job/50...

Yay!

Going to #APPAM2024? Check this out!

I'm hoping to stop by this happy hour. If you are going to APPAM and want to connect, send me a chat/email!

Starter packs are a really smart idea. Makes this site much less daunting/easier to navigate. Also really helpful to share with students and for them to build their online community.

ECE folks - reach out to Pia to get added to the starter pack!

Thanks to @piacar.bsky.social for putting this starter pack together!

Given the new followers (hello 👋!), I want to reshare this starter pack on ECE policy and research.

This list is full of really smart, thoughtful folks and I expect the group to just keep growing!

go.bsky.app/SpVmXZP

Well this is great news!

Thanks to @piacar.bsky.social for putting this early care and education policy and researcher starter pack together!

Glad we are continuing a community in a new space

go.bsky.app/SpVmXZP

So glad I logged onto this app at the exact time to see this reminder :)