W. Steven Barnett is a Professor of Education Economics and Public Policy and Director of the National Institute for Early Education Research (NIEER) at Rutgers University. His work includes research on early education and child care policy, the educational opportunities and experiences of young children in low-income urban areas, the long term effects of preschool programs on children’s learning and development, and benefit-cost analysis of preschool programs and their long-term effects. Dr. Barnett earned his Ph.D. in economics at the University of Michigan. Recent publications include Lives in the Balance, a benefit-cost analysis of preschool education based on a 25 year study, and, with co-editor Sarane Spence Boocock, Early Care and Education for Children in Poverty.

Title(s): Professor

Education: Ph.D., University of Michigan

Affiliations: Director, National Institute for Early Education Research.

Research interests:

Recent publications:

Barnett, W.S. (In press). Does Head Start have lasting cognitive effects? In E. Zigler & S. Styfco (Eds.) The Head Start Debates. New Haven, CT: Yale University Press.

Barnett, W.S. (2001). Preschool education for economically disadvantaged children: Effects on reading achievement and related outcomes. In S. Neuman and D. Dickinson (Eds.) Handbook of Early Literacy Research (pp. 421-443). New York, NY: Guilford Press.

Barnett, W.S. & Frede, E.C.(2001). And So We Plough Along: The Nature And Nurture of Partnerships for Inquiry. Early Childhood Research Quarterly,16(1), 3-17.

Barnett, W.S., & Boocock, S.S. (Eds.). (1998). Early care and education for children in poverty: Promises, programs, and long-term results. Albany, NY: SUNY Press.

Barnett, W. S. (1998). Long-term cognitive and academic effects of early childhood education on children in poverty. Preventive Medicine, 27(2), 204-207.

Barnett, W.S. (1996). Lives in the balance: Benefit-cost analysis of the Perry Preschool Program through age 27. Monographs of the High/Scope Educational Research Foundation. Ypsilanti, MI: High/Scope Press.

Barnett, W.S. (1993). Benefit-cost analysis of preschool education: Findings from a 25-year follow-up. American Journal of Orthopsychiatry, 63(4), 500-508.

Frede, E., Barnett, W.S., & Lupo, T. (2001). Measuring recommended practices for very young children with disabilities. In S. Golbeck (Ed.) Psychological Perspectives on Early Childhood Education: Reframing Dilemmas in Research and Practice (pp. 297-319). Englebrook, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Press.