WHAT THE RESEARCH SAYS

State Economies Would Benefit from Investments in Higher Education for Single Mothers

New research from IWPR finds that every state in the country would see economic returns on investments in higher education for single mothers, who currently number nearly 2 million undergraduates in the United States. IWPR released 51 state fact sheets and a briefing paper with a national overview, which shares state and national estimates on the costs and benefits of investing in single mothers' educational attainment and also provides policy recommendations for postsecondary institutions and policymakers.

>>Read the national briefing paper, Investing in Single Mothers’ Higher Education: National and State Estimates of the Costs and Benefits of Single Mothers’ Educational Attainment to Individuals, Families, and Society.

>>Find the fact sheet for your state.

>>Read coverage in Diverse Issues in Higher Education, Philadelphia Inquirer, and the Los Angeles Times.

Mothers Work 300 More Hours Per Year than They Did 40 Years Ago

Mothers work 300 more hours per year than they did in 1977, while fathers’ hours at work are broadly unchanged, according to a new IWPR report analyzing trends in paid hours worked among women and men. As work hours have increased, the report notes that policies have not kept pace with the shifting realities of working families. The report underscores how the dual trends of overwork and lack of paid time off has created barriers to women’s advancement at work and exacerbated gender inequality at home.

>>Read the report, Gender Inequality, Work Hours, and the Future of Work.

>>Read coverage of IWPR’s research on work hour inequality in CityLab and CBS News.

The IWPR Welcomes Dr. C. Nicole Mason as New President and CEO

As one of the nation’s foremost intersectional researchers and scholars, Dr. C. Nicole Mason brings a fresh perspective and a wealth of experience to IWPR. For the past two decades, Dr. Mason has spearheaded research on issues relating to economic security, poverty, women’s issues, and entitlement reforms; policy formation and political participation among women and communities of color; and racial equity.

We are working to grow our dynamic team that is committed to leveraging our groundbreaking research for policy change at the local, state, and federal levels.

We are looking for a Vice President of Research, Senior Director of Communications, and other positions research, communications, and operations.

NEW RESEARCH & RESOURCES

Increased Family Supports and Place-Based Policies Could Help Reverse Effects of Declining Geographic Mobility

A new report by the Institute for Women’s Policy Research (IWPR) finds an across-the-board decline in the number of people who move for their jobs. The analysis finds that these trends cannot be explained by demographic changes, such as the increase in married, dual-earning couples or the aging of the population. The report explores a number of factors that may account for this decline, including the sharp increase in the costs of housing in the areas with high job growth, stagnant real wages in many lower and middle skill jobs, and difficulties of finding affordable child care in new locations.

>>Read the report, Geographic Mobility, Gender, and the Future of Work

>>Read the first two reports in the series, The Future of Care Work: Improving the Quality of America’s Fastest-Growing Jobs and Gender Inequality, Work Hours, and the Future of Work

College Partnerships with Head Start Programs Can Support College Students with Children

Head Start, the largest early childhood education program in the country, represents a strong potential support for parents living in poverty while pursuing higher education. IWPR analysis finds that nearly two in three single student parents with children under six (65 percent) meet income eligibility requirements for Head Start. The program does not have work requirements for families to be eligible to participate, and Head Start program standards include a specific directive to help parents set and make progress toward self-sufficiency goals, including through education and training.

>>Read the report, Head Start-College Partnerships as a Strategy for Promoting Family Economic Success: A Study of Benefits, Challenges, and Promising Programs.

Women's Employment & Pay Equity

USA Today | Store closings: Who are the biggest victims of the retail apocalypse (December 17)

CBS News | The decimation of “pink-collar” office jobs (December 12)

The Nation | The Robots Are Coming for Our Jobs (November 27)

The Wall Street Journal | The Gender Gap: How the Economic Experience Shapes Politics (November 18)

Washington Post | Hundreds of journalists anonymously reveal their salaries on viral spreadsheet, challenging workplace taboo (November 14)

Bloomberg | Hard at Work: Prime-Age Americans in Workforce Hits Decade High (November 2)

Market Watch | White workers are more likely than black or Latino Americans to have a good job — even with the same level of education (October 17)

Income Security

The New York Times | At Food Pantries, Addressing the Needs of Women (December 17)

NPR | The New Realities Of Work And Retirement (Oct 2)

Equity in Higher Education

KCUR 89.3 NPR | A College Degree Can Lift Single Moms Out Of Poverty, But Few In Kansas Or Missouri Get State Help (December 27)

The Washington Post | ‘A drop in the bucket’: Parents in college need child care, but federal dollars fall short (November 30)

Diverse Issues in Higher Education | Booker Proposes Bill to Support Student Parents at Community Colleges and Minority Serving Institutions (November 21)

Quartz | Here’s a way to increase college completion rates (November 17)

Inside Higher Ed | Head Start for Campus Childcare (October 31)

Diverse Issues in Higher Education | Report: Head Start-College Partnerships Improve Success for Student Parents (October 31)

NPR | Vital Federal Program To Help Parents In College Is 'A Drop In The Bucket' (October 24)

Washington Monthly | The Invisible Students on Campus (October 16)

The New York Times | Free College, Even for Adults (October 10)

Paid Leave

Ms. Magazine | Feminists Sound Off on This Week’s Progress for Paid Leave (December 10)

Construction Dive | Study finds maternity benefits for construction tradeswomen financially feasible (November 21)

Des Moines Register | During Iowa visit, Kamala Harris said she plans to guarantee six months paid family leave (October 7)

Huff Post | 2 Million Federal Workers Don’t Get Paid Family Leave. That Might Change.(October 4)

Health & Safety

Al Jazeera | Financial abuse: The ties that bind domestic violence victims (October 25)

Forbes | Domestic Violence Has A Financial Impact Too (Oct 17)

Dame | Abortion Access Is an Economic Issue for Everyone (October 14)

Self | What Serena Williams Wants You to Know About Financial Abuse (September 26)

Gender Equity

CBS News | American women are working more but “overwork” is holding them back (December 4)

Bloomberg | ‘Next Big Thing’ at Risk as Fewer Women, Minorities Get Patents (November 25)

Washington Monthly | Still Missing: The Women Wonks (November - December)

Reuters | Kept awake by worries, Melinda Gates pledges $1 billion to women's rights (October 2)

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