WHERE DO HEAD-START ATTENDEES END UP - ONE REASON WHY PRESCHOOL EFFECTS FADE OUT

This study investigates the relationship between preschool experience and the quality of schools subsequently attended as young adolescents. In particular, we differentiate the characteristics of middle-grade s chools attended by eighth graders who earlier experienced Head Start, other preschool programs, or did not attend preschool. School quality is defined in terms of social composition, academic rigor, safety, and social relations. After accounting for family background and demograp hics, we find that former Head Start attendees are educated in middle- grade schools of significantly lower quality than their counterparts w ho did not attend preschool, and particularly compared to peers who at tended other preschools. No matter how beneficial Head Start was initi ally for its young participants, such benefits are structurally underm ined if students are subsequently exposed to schooling of systematical ly lower quality. The low quality of middle-grade schools attended by former Head Start participants explains, in part, why Head Start effec ts fade over time.