Developing an Early Childhood Research Agenda for the Archdiocese of Boston: A Partnership between the Archdiocese of Boston, the Lynch Foundation, the University of Michigan Education Policy Initiative and Equity in Learning Lab, and MDRC

Dr. Christina Weiland (U-M), Dr. Meghan McCormick (MDRC), Dr. Rekha Balu (MDRC), and team will receive and process administrative data from the Archdioceses that will help accomplish three goals:

1. To understand the ins and outs of the currently available data for studying Archdiocese of Boston ECE programs, including administrative data, data collected for quality monitoring, financial data, marketing information, and enrollment data;
2. To examine current ECE programming and marketing elements in terms of their alignment with the best science of ECE and with behavioral science to support levels of enrollment that can enhance schools’ financial sustainability; and
3. To develop a research agenda together and make recommendations for research on Archdiocese of Boston ECE programs.

Together with Archdiocese and Lynch Foundation partners, the team from MDRC and U-M will develop a research agenda that can identify short, mid, and long term research avenues. This includes a discovery phase to establish the research plan, prioritization of research questions, identifying “early wins” for analysis, and longer-term, ongoing data collection strategies to support the work. This project involves working with partners to identify data sets, refine research questions, obtain access to people and materials to provide data, and ultimately provide memos outlining a future research agenda.