Does Head Start Do Any Lasting Good? Sep 01, 2011 By Chloe GibbsJens LudwigDouglas MillerMartha BaileySheldon Danziger Does Head Start Do Any Lasting Good? Head Start is a federal early childhood intervention designed to reduce disparities in preschool outcomes. The first randomized experimental study of Head Start, the National Head Start Impact Study (NHSIS), found impacts on academic outcomes of .15 to .3 standard deviations measured at the end of the program year, although the estimated impacts were no longer significant when measured at the end of kindergarten or first grade. Assessments that Head Start is ineffective based on the NHSIS results are in our view premature, given our currently limited understanding of how and why early childhood education improves long-term life chances. Many of the specific changes to Head Start that have been proposed could potentially wind up doing more harm than good. Does Head Start Do Any Lasting Good? NBER Working paper available here. The War on Poverty: A 50-year Retrospective Areas of focus Education Chloe Gibbs Jens Ludwig Douglas Miller Martha Bailey Sheldon Danziger