Scholars at the Wellesley Centers for Women have studied the ability of public schools to prepare young children for lifelong learning and have shaped local, state, and federal policies. Our groundbreaking research, policy development, and training programs set the standards for out-of-school time, and continue to inform the field in new areas, including physical activity programming.
2019 - 2023
The National Institute on Out-of-School Time (NIOST), an action project of WCW, is working with five out-of-school time programs in Philadelphia, PA, to enhance and implement program quality assessment, literacy skill-building best practices, and continuous program quality improvement.
2018 - 2022
This culturally responsive STEM program seeks to increase underserved girls' interest and confidence in science and math.
Ongoing since 2017
The Work, Families & Children research group (WFC) at the Wellesley Centers for Women serves as a research partner to James Bell Associates in an evaluation of the Children’s Investment Fund’s Early Education and Out-of-School Time (EEOST) Capital Grant Program in Massachusetts.
Ongoing since 2017
In partnership with the Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (ESE), and the Minnesota Department of Education (MDE), researchers at American Institutes for Research and the National Institute on Out-of-School Time (NIOST) at the Wellesley Centers for Women are undertaking a study that explores how high-quality out-of-school time (OST) programs can promote participants’ literacy development and the role social and emotional learning (SEL) may play in supporting the development of literacy-related skills.
Ongoing since 2017
This study examines whether extended participation in high-quality OST programs is positively associated with the development of literacy skills and social emotional learning skills.
Ongoing since 2016
Provide site visits to programs seeking MA-QRIS Levels 3 and 4.
Ongoing since 2016
The Massachusetts QRIS Validation Study, led by Joanne Roberts, Ph.D., in collaboration with UMass Donahue Institute, involved the collection of quality observations and child assessments in ECE programs participating in the QRIS system.
Ongoing since 2015
State Monitoring Activities with Tracking, Synthesis and Analysis, and Technical Assistance in Implementing a Successful State.
2015 - 2026
The National Institute on Out-of-School Time partnered with four other organizations to support school-age children in low-income families.
Ongoing since 2015
National Institute on Out-of-School Time (NIOST) is a partner to the U.S. Department of Education, 21st CCLC Program along with Global Evaluation & Applied Research Solutions, Inc. (GEARS).
Ongoing since 2015
National Institute on Out-of-School Time (NIOST) is serving as the research and evaluation study partner to BridgeUP: STEM an initiative of the American Museum of Natural History (AMNH) in Manhattan, New York.
Ongoing since 2014
Pilot survey to assess uptake of the NAA Healthy Eating and Physical Activity (HEPA) standards
Ongoing since 2014
Funding for NIOST to develop and distribute tools and materials for self-assessment and continuous program improvement.
Ongoing since 2014
This award provides funding for an Afterschool Matters Initiative Practitioner Fellowship group in New York City from fall 2014 to fall 2015.
Ongoing since 2014
Georgia Hall and Jean Wiecha edit a special issue of New Directions or Youth Development (NDYD) to promote awareness on how OST programs reduce the risk of obesity and chronic disease.
Ongoing since 2014
Project identifying ways to improve the regional and statewide efficiency of the distribution of state supported child care, examining the needs of eligible families in the context of the availability of the support, and considering the balance of quality early education and work supports
Ongoing since 2014
Open Circle receives grant to expand service reach in school districts
Ongoing since 2014
This project data aims to demonstrate that full participation in federal meal programs results in kids eating three meals a day.
Ongoing since 2013
Funding will support refining plans for growing and scaling Open Circle to serve large school districts across the U.S.
Ongoing since 2013
NIOST will evaluate a new online learning program.
Ongoing since 2013
NIOST will assist with the implementation of a new afterschool program.
Ongoing since 2013
Implementation and dissemination of physical activity program for out-of-school time
Ongoing since 2013
NIOST will provide expertise on OST field-building, research support, and technical assistance delivery of the Healthy Out-of-School Time (HOST) Campaign.
Ongoing since 2012
NIOST support of PSAYDN Quality Committee and statewide Older Youth QRIS targeting.
Ongoing since 2012
This study evaluates the Regular AfterZone and AfterZone Summer Scholars programs.
Ongoing since 2012
In March 2012, the PSAYDN Quality Committee began to convene a broad range of stakeholders from across Pennsylvania to begin envisioning a statewide Older Youth QRIS targeting those programs not currently eligible for participation in the existing QRIS system, Keystone STARS.
Ongoing since 1987
The National SEED ProjectSM is a peer-led professional development program that creates conversational communities to drive personal, organizational, and societal change toward greater equity and diversity.
Ongoing since 2011
NIOST is working with the Wyoming Afterschool Alliance to build the internal capacity to improve quality in a wide variety of afterschool programs using NIOST’s APAS system.
Ongoing since 2011
The goal of this project is to produce a reliable and valid measure of teachers’ educational beliefs and knowledge of child development and ECE pedagogy that can be used to validate the effectiveness of professional development programs and interventions, as well as, to provide valuable feedback in applied settings regarding ECE teachers’ professional development needs and classroom appropriateness.
Ongoing since 2010
This study will test the Afterschool Program Practices Tool's (APT) stability and accuracy as a measure of afterschool program quality.
Ongoing since 2010
NIOST is conducting a longitudinal physical activity study in the five elementary schools in Natick with a particular focus on “BOKS,” a before-school physical activity program sponsored by Reebok. There are over 400 grade K-2 participants enrolled in the study.
Ongoing since 2009
This project will focus on the BOKS program, which aims to improve kids' academic performance and overall health using physical activity to jump start children's brains in the morning.
Ongoing since 2009
This project will analyze and prepare a report on credentialing and certification models related to professional development learning in afterschool staff and administration.
Ongoing since 2007
The primary objective of this project is to manage the continuation of the well established Afterschool Matters Initiative, which includes several publications and a Research Grantee program, in addition to planning for the national expansion of a related action/research writing initiative.
Ongoing since 2007
The National Institute on Out-of-School Time will lead research aspects in Career Pathway's San Diego and Long Beach sites.
Ongoing since 2006
APAS is an assessment system that helps programs link quality and youth outcomes together in a comprehensive and integrated fashion. It was developed to help address the accountability challenge that faces afterschool programs.
Ongoing since 2005
NIOST with its partners has pursued multiple levels of investigation and utilized a menu of field-tested tools to gather extensive data to inform the continued development and sustainability of the Boston Summer Learning Project and school-year OST programs.
Ongoing since 2001
National Institute on Out-of-School Time (NIOST) began a partnership with the Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (MADESE) in 2001 to develop assessment tools and a menu of technical assistance activities to support the MA 21st CCLC programs.
Ongoing since 1999
This group of inter-related research projects seeks to understand the state of early care and education in Massachusetts and make recommendations for quality outcomes.
Dismantling systems of privilege and oppression to ensure a fairer world.
Ongoing since 1986
Assessing Child Care Issues in Working Families This long-term program brings together research on employment, work and family issues, and child care as a support for working families.
Ongoing since 1985
Study of working conditions and impact on health Working Conditions and Health is a group of inter-related research projects with a common interest in understanding the relation of working conditions to the physical and mental health of workers.
Ongoing since 1979
NIOST supports the healthy development of children, families, and communities, and advances the OST field through our research, training, advocacy, and tools.
2018 - 2019
Open Circle is adapting its elementary school social and emotional learning curricula and interactive and experiential professional development for integration into Grades 5- 6 at Equity Lab Charter School during the 2018-2019 school year, the first step toward an expansion into middle school.
2018 - 2019
Lindsay served as an external evaluator to the Wellesley College McNair Scholars Program, which employs evidence-based practices to increase the number and proportion of low-income, first-generation, and underrepresented minority women who are prepared for rigorous graduate study in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) fields.
2017 - 2018
Funded by William T. Grant Foundation in 2013-2015, the purpose of Afterschool Program Practices Tool (APT) II Study was to develop and test drive a multi-pronged online reliability training designed to improve rating accuracy for youth program observations.
2013 - 2016
This pilot project aimed to improve quality in early childhood education and care.
2015 - 2016
The primary goals of this project are to describe the quality of Boston Public School early childhood programs in public schools and in community-based programs, and examine the contributions of current Boston Public School initiatives to quality programs.
2013 - 2016
The goal of this study is to enhance rater accuracy of the Afterschool Program Practices Tool (APT).
2012 - 2016
The National Institute on Out-of-School Time (NIOST) provided technical assistance to support nine U.S. cities as they developed, refined, and expanded their work to improve afterschool program quality.
Ongoing since 2012
The Wellesley Centers for Women will develop appropriate assessments, collaborate with the Office for Institutional Research and team members to collect date, conduct data analyses, prepare reports, and provide feedback from the evaluation to Science Center and College representatives.
2011 - 2012
The goal of this collaborative project was to invite public discourse about overcoming barriers to educational equity for girls of color in order to affect educational policy and practice. The specific goal of the project was to create a multi-media strategy in two phases in order to stimulate conversation amongst multiple constituencies.
2011 - 2012
The purpose of this project is to inform the Massachusetts board of Early Education and Care (EEC) of the resources that will best serve families and communities in supporting the holistic development of children, youth, and families.
2010 - 2011
This project evaluates how much high school seniors know about the labor market impacts related to their study choices and how additional information affects their application process and choices among alternative study places.
2011 - 2014
The aim of this three-year initiative is to expand the influence of the National SEED Project on Inclusive Curriculum (Seeking Educational Equity and Diversity), to make its model of schooling inclusiveness for all children and families, including its innovative professional development practices, more widely known and available to educators in the United States.
2011 - 2012
This is a study of the relation between fathers’ high levels of involvement in childrearing and various family outcomes: quality of the marriage, the mother's report of social support, the quality of the mother-child relationship and of the father-child relationship, and the quality of family interactions when the children are in elementary school.
2010 - 2011
This study investigated the effective practices and support offered in an arts-based afterschool programs to reduce the dropout rate among high school students.
2010 - 2012
The National Institute on Out-of-School Time (NIOST) conducted a research study on After-School Gets Moving, a physical activity training resource tool for out-of-school time (OST) professionals.
2010 - 2011
This research study uses quantitative and qualitative data collection methods and multiple regression modeling to examine healthy eating and physical activity opportunities in a national sample of out-of-school time programs.
2009 - 2011
An evaluation of physical spaces in Massachusetts child care settings.
2008 - 2011
The project combined out-of-school time (OST) professional advisors, the National Institute on Out-of-School Time (NIOST), and NASA experts from across the agency to use research-based strategies to develop afterschool activity guides adapted from NASA Planetary Science formal education curricula.
2007 - 2009
The FasTracKids Research Study is a 19-month international study aimed at examining the link between participation in FasTracKids enrichment programs and child outcomes (children 4 and 5 years old). FasTracKids Enrichment Centers offer a variety of classes and activities designed to promote early learning, develop creative thinking and problem solving, build verbal communication, promote leadership and personal growth, and encourage a lifelong love of learning.
Ongoing since 2007
During this phase of work, National Institute on Out-of-School Time (NIOST) will design and develop two additional measurement tools—a youth survey (SAYO-Y) and a family survey (SAYO-F). These two tools will be used by Massachusetts Department of Education grantees to better understand youth needs, their program experiences and help pinpoint areas where youth may benefit from additional support.
2007 - 2012
The CLLIP Research and Evaluation Project is designed to assess the impact of a literacy intervention for low-income poor performing school districts in the state of Ohio.
2007 - 2013
This project provided a comprehensive picture of the quality of Boston's Early Care and Education programs for infants, toddlers, and preschoolers, in both centers and family child care homes.
2007 - 2012
The primary purpose of the study was to provide a picture of child care usage among Massachusetts low-income families.
1991 - 2010
This study, funded by the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development, seeks to determine the relationship between children's early experiences and their developmental outcomes.
2006 - 2010
While girls do well in science and math courses in middle school, they are less likely to enroll in higher-level STEM courses in high school, thus few will choose these subjects for a college major, and even fewer will complete such a major or go on to pursue a STEM career. The increased knowledge generated by this study will inform ways to increase the participation of girls and other under-represented groups (e.g., racial and ethnic minorities, low-income youth) in sustained STEM study and employment.
2006 - 2014
Assessing Preschool and Kindergarten Programs The Work, Families & Children team has conducted a series of studies for the Boston Public Schools (BPS), including the BPS K1 and K2 Programs Needs Assessment, and a 2007-08 follow-up study.
2006 - 2006
This project prepared a report to describe the prevalent health practices and concerns in early care and education programs in Massachusetts, as part of a larger project of the Schott Fellowship in Early Care and Education.
2003 - 2005
This was an evaluation of a program that aimed to increase the number of middle school girls interested in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics.
2005 - 2008
This project seeks to help scientific researchers better communicate their findings on gender as it relates to science, technology, engineering and math to key audiences: media, advocates, policy makers, public.
2004 - 2005
This project was an evaluation of an all-girls program that provides technology resources, female mentors, and a learning environment to improve girls' attitudes toward and understanding of computers.
2004 - 2006
This project led to the development of a teacher's manual that links curriculum on bullying and harassment directly to national education standards, based on Bullyproof curriculum.
2004 - 2009
Researchers focused on aspects of school readiness, including social and language development, along with other data such as hours in care, so as to better understand the ways in which a child's growth is influenced by situational factors.
2004 - 2005
This project was centered around the question of research, funding, and results: was it possible to implement gender equity in a school over just three years?
2004 - 2006
This study examines the varying quality of child care in Massachusetts and across the nation, and its effect on children's performance and family functioning.
2004 - 2005
WCW researchers participated in a study, led by Dr. Valora Washington and under the auspices of the Bessie Tartt Wilson Children’s Foundation, to evaluate the child care voucher system in Massachusetts.
2004 - 2005
The Capacity Study describes the current early education and care (EEC) workforce in Massachusetts and evaluates the capacity of the State’s higher education system to meet the increased demand for a qualified workforce in early education and care.
2003 - 2005
This project sought to identify the most successful elements of afterschool programs in Massachusetts; including staff, policymaking, funding, and program/activity participation.
2001 - 2005
This study followed a random sample of hundreds of children and 100 child care centers in order to examine links between family income, the quality and cost of child-care, and infant language and social development.
2001 - 2002
This study sought to examine full-day, year round child care for preschool-age children in Maine to better illuminate links between the quality and the costs of early child care in Maine.
2000 - 2004
The goal of the Massachusetts Cost and Quality Study was to examine full-day, year-round, community-based center care for preschool-age children (2.9 years to 5 years) and for infants and toddlers, pre-k classrooms in the public schools and family child care programs.
1999 - 2000
This three-year evaluation project was designed to measure the outcome of SCOPE, an inquiry-based science enrichment program for upper-elementary and middle-school aged girls.
Completed in 2006
This was an evaluation of a national project that fosters more positive attitudes and stronger affiliations among middle school teachers, students, and parents within school communities.
Completed in 2006
This study examined the ways in which youth participate in the League: how do they experience the democratic ideals of a debate program? How do they come to consider and participate in democracy?
2000 - 2002
This project connected high-level leaders from different cities and states to educate them on the dynamic landscape of after-school programs. in hopes of directing the influence, funding, and high expectations of these leaders towards a "critical mass" of associated initiatives across the country.
Completed
This long-term project was designed to assess gender equity educational materials which were created in relation to the development of Title IX.
1998 - 2001
This was an evaluation of materials/programs to help educators teach spatial relations and geometry through the use of storytelling, and its benefits for girls and boys.
1998 - 2008
One of the major developmental tasks of preschoolers is to develop empathy; this project researches and designs curriculum in order better understand and cultivate empathy at a young and critical age.
1994 - 1998
Experiences in Boston After-School Programs This study was created to better understand how children spend their after-school time, and how it may be best used to improve growth and learning. The study was stratified by ethnicity and took into account gender and social class.
1987 - 2021
Open Circle provided evidence-based social and emotional learning (SEL) curriculum and professional development for elementary schools.