The role of educational nonprofits in the early school achievement of children from diverse backgrounds

Abstract

Nonprofit organizations represent a potentially powerful source of intervention for struggling public educational services, yet little is understood concerning the relationship between nonprofit providers and the educational outcomes of children. This study uses national data sets from the National Center for Educational Statistics and the National Center for Charitable Statistics to examine the associations between three theoretically derived nonprofit measures (competitor, intervener, and youth developer nonprofits) and student academic outcomes in math and reading over the crucial school-entry transition period. Results indicate that the number of nonprofits in a community display some positive associations with math and reading score gains, but that these associations must be carefully interpreted in regards to the heterogeneity of nonprofit service and the socio-economic context of the child.