Millions of American children live in families with incomes below the poverty line. A robust body of evidence suggests that a lack of adequate family economic resources compromises children’s ability to grow and achieve success in adulthood, hurting them and the broader society as well. Recognizing this challenge to America’s future, congress asked the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine to conduct a comprehensive study of the cost of child poverty in the United States, and to identify evidence-based programs and policies for reducing the number of children living in poverty by half within 10 years. One year ago today, the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine released its groundbreaking report, A Roadmap to Reducing Child Poverty. In the past year, this report has been the subject of Congressional briefings and significant media coverage.
This report is one of a group of recent publications that promote the health and well-being of all children and youth. All are free to download.
A Roadmap to Reducing Child Poverty
The strengths and abilities children develop from infancy through adolescence are crucial for their physical, emotional, and cognitive growth, which in turn help them to achieve success in school and to become responsible, economically self-sufficient, and healthy adults. Capable, responsible, …
The Promise of Adolescence: Realizing Opportunity for All Youth
Adolescence—beginning with the onset of puberty and ending in the mid-20s—is a critical period of development during which key areas of the brain mature and develop. These changes in brain structure, function, and connectivity mark adolescence as a period of opportunity to discover new …
Vibrant and Healthy Kids: Aligning Science, Practice, and Policy to Advance Health Equity
Children are the foundation of the United States, and supporting them is a key component of building a successful future. However, millions of children face health inequities that compromise their development, well-being, and long-term outcomes, despite substantial scientific evidence about how …
For children and youth, summertime presents a unique break from the traditional structure, resources, and support systems that exist during the school year. For some students, this time involves opportunities to engage in fun and enriching activities and programs, while others face additional …
Healthy mental, emotional, and behavioral (MEB) development is a critical foundation for a productive adulthood. Much is known about strategies to support families and communities in strengthening the MEB development of children and youth, by promoting healthy development and also by preventing …
Communities in Action: Pathways to Health Equity
In the United States, some populations suffer from far greater disparities in health than others. Those disparities are caused not only by fundamental differences in health status across segments of the population, but also because of inequities in factors that impact health status, so-called …