Pamela Joshi, senior scientist and associate director of the Institute on Child, Youth and Family Policy (ICYFP), has been named to a National Academies of Sciences, Engineering and Medicine (NASEM) Committee on “Exploring the Opportunity Gap for Young Children From Birth to Age Eight.” The committee is tasked with studying the causes and consequences of opportunity gaps for young children, and making recommendations on how to improve conditions and promote success for children at home, in communities and in schools.
“I’m honored to join this timely effort. Addressing opportunity gaps for young children is more urgent than ever, and the committee's work can inform policymakers and institutions charged with the care of our children how to address these gaps and promote success for all children,” says Joshi, who has 20 years of experience conducting research and evaluating public policies relating to family and children’s health in diverse populations.
Joshi's research focuses on analyzing social policies from a racial/ethnic equity perspective. Her work asks whether the design, implementation and effectiveness of social policies and programs give all children equitable opportunities and resources for healthy development. Joshi has developed a novel equity-focused policy analysis framework, which she has applied to analyzing key social policies that affect families and children. Her areas of expertise include work and family policy (e.g., Family and Medical Leave), early childhood policies and programs (e.g., Head Start and subsidized child care), and immigrant families’ restricted access to the safety net. Her research has contributed to the evidence that social policies are an important social determinant of child health and development.
Joshi’s appointment comes just months after ICYFP Director Dolores Acevedo-Garcia was named to a NASEM Response and Resilient Recovery Strategic Science Initiative in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, to inform national policy for crisis response and recovery across the United States.