United States: Process Overview
Published: 2010
Table of Contents
Goal of the report
We sought to identify outstanding charities in the area of US equality of opportunity whose work is proven, cost-effective, and scalable (i.e., has room for more funding). We conducted the research below during 2010, and as of 2011, we have de-prioritized further work on this cause (more in our discussion of GiveWell's 2011 priorities).
We do not claim that charities with these qualities are the only ones that should be funded, but rather that they are a good fit for individual donors, or people who are:
- Looking to give $250,000 or less in a year, and therefore unlikely to be able to fund personalized projects or hire their own staff (or philanthropic advice).
- Without personal/firsthand knowledge of particular charities' effectiveness - essentially starting with no or very limited knowledge of their options.
- Without the time or capacity to visit charities' operations on the ground, develop relationships with charities, etc. - looking to give effectively but also quickly.
Also see our blog post on small, unproven charities, which argues that such donors should focus on what is proven, cost-effective and scalable.
Process for identifying and selecting charities
Generating a list of potential charities
We sought to find charities in this cause whose programs had been rigorously evaluated, preferably in a randomized controlled trial. Our page on the need for rigorously evaluated programs provides more information on why we rely on this criterion. In order to identify promising charities:
- We checked every program listed on the following sites (each of which provides a list of programs that have been rigorously evaluated): (a) ChildTrends,1 (b) Coalition for Evidence-Based Policy, and (c) MDRC.2
- We asked for charity recommendations that met the above criterion from the members of the Alliance for Effective Social Investing3 and David Anderson at Coalition for Evidence-Based Policy.4
- In addition, we considered:
- National charter school networks (e.g., KIPP, Achievement First, Green Dot).
- Organizations for which we had knowledge of a randomized controlled trial of their programs but whose trials did not appear on one of our source sites.
- The DC Central Kitchen, an organization we reviewed as part of our participation in a panel at Social Capital Markets (SoCap) 2010 conference.
Narrowing the field
The process described immediately above generated a list of both charities and programs. We initially narrowed the field by examining programs (i.e., when a charity was recommended to us we examined the programs it focuses on) and excluding any programs for which one of the following held:
- We could not identify a charity running the program.
- For each program, we checked whether the source itself (e.g., ChildTrends) provided a link to a charity running the program. We also conducted a Google search for the name of the program to identify charities running the program.
- We excluded charities which listed the program among many programs they run, without evidence that the program accounted for a majority of their activities.
- The summary information available for the evaluation had one of the following issues:
- The source's summary of the program reported that the program had no statistically significant positive impacts.
- The source only reported statistically significant effects at the p.1 as opposed to p.05 level.
- The evaluation was not yet completed and had not published any results assessing impact.
- The reported evaluation was not a randomized controlled trial. (More on why we used this heuristic)
- The program was "outclassed" by another similar program with a stronger track record, i.e. the program focused on achieving a goal for which we already had a program with a stronger case for impact. For instance, we did not investigate charities running home visitation programs for young children as the Nurse-Family Partnership likely "outclassed" them in achieving this goal. For programs in this category, we have provided a link (click the name of the program) to a more detailed explanation.
The programs that were not eliminated in this process are designed priority programs.
Examining promising charities
Any charity focusing on a priority program was investigated in more depth, to determine the extent to which it meets our criteria. Note that when assessing the extent to which a charity is "proven," we included specific attention to both
- Evidence of impact - i.e., whether there are any evaluations rigorously demonstrating that the charity's primary program(s) is/are effective.
- Ongoing monitoring - i.e., the process by which the charity assesses the ongoing quality of its program and the likelihood that they are achieving comparable results to programs shown to work in past rigorous evaluations.
The table below provides links to these in-depth evaluations.
All programs and charities considered
The table below provides a full list of all the programs and charities we considered, the source for each, whether it met our initial heuristics, and additional information if relevant.
Each item links to a program or charity review (or both), if available.
| Name | Source | Conclusion |
|---|---|---|
| KIPP | Charter school | Standout |
| Nurse-Family Partnership | Coalition for Evidence-Based Policy | Past top-rated charity with limited room for more funding |
| Incredible Years Series (Invest in Kids) | ChildTrends | Reviewed |
| Career Academies (National Academy Foundation) | Coalition for Evidence-Based Policy | Reviewed |
| Big Brothers/Big Sisters | Coalition for Evidence-Based Policy | Reviewed |
| Enhanced Services for the Hard-to-Employ (Center for Employment Opportunities) | MDRC | Reviewed |
| New Hope Project | ChildTrends | Reviewed |
| Experience Corps | ChildTrends | Reviewed |
| Harlem Children's Zone | Independent knowledge of a randomized controlled trial | Reviewed |
| Teach for America | MDRC | Reviewed |
| The Children's Agenda | David Anderson, Coalition for Evidence-Based Policy | Reviewed |
| DC Central Kitchen | Participated in panel at SoCap 2010 | Full review not completed |
| Center for Employment Training Replication | MDRC | Full review not completed |
| SMART – Start Making a Reader Today | Coalition for Evidence-Based Policy | Full review not completed |
| Success for All | ChildTrends | Full review not completed |
| Teen Outreach Program (TOP) | ChildTrends | Full review not completed |
| Building Educated Leaders for Life (BELL) Summer Learning Program | ChildTrends | Full review not completed |
| Reach Out and Read | ChildTrends | Full review not completed |
| Brief Strategic Family Therapy | ChildTrends | Outclassed by Big Brothers/Big Sisters |
| Creating Lasting Connections | ChildTrends | Outclassed by Big Brothers/Big Sisters |
| Friendly PEERsuasion | ChildTrends | Outclassed by Big Brothers/Big Sisters |
| Keep a Clear Mind | ChildTrends | Outclassed by Big Brothers/Big Sisters |
| Sembrando Salud | ChildTrends | Outclassed by Big Brothers/Big Sisters |
| Ready to Learn | ChildTrends | Outclassed by Experience Corps |
| Families First | ChildTrends | Outclassed by Invest in Kids |
| Achievement First | Charter school | Outclassed by KIPP |
| Green Dot Public Schools | Charter school | Outclassed by KIPP |
| Replications | Charter school | Outclassed by KIPP |
| The SEED Foundation | Charter school | Outclassed by KIPP |
| Uncommon Schools | Charter school | Outclassed by KIPP |
| JobStart | MDRC | Outclassed by National Academy Foundation |
| Healthy Steps for Young Children | ChildTrends | Outclassed by Nurse-Family Partnership |
| Home Instruction Program for Preschool Youngsters (HIPPY) | ChildTrends | Outclassed by Nurse-Family Partnership |
| Nurturing Program for Teenage Parents and Their Families | ChildTrends | Outclassed by Nurse-Family Partnership |
| Parents as Teachers | ChildTrends | Outclassed by Nurse-Family Partnership |
| Project CARE | ChildTrends | Outclassed by Nurse-Family Partnership |
| Transactional Model of Early Home Intervention | ChildTrends | Outclassed by Nurse-Family Partnership |
| Communities in Schools | Alliance for Effective Social Investing | Evaluation not a randomized controlled trial |
| Accelerated Academics Academy | ChildTrends | No impact |
| Action Schools! British Columbia | ChildTrends | No impact |
| Adolescent Social Action Program | ChildTrends | No impact |
| Adventure Island | ChildTrends | No impact |
| Aggressors, Victims & Bystanders | ChildTrends | No impact |
| AIDS-preventive intervention | ChildTrends | No impact |
| Bay Area School Reform Collaborative | MDRC | No impact |
| Boot Camp | ChildTrends | No impact |
| Building Early Language and Literacy | ChildTrends | No impact |
| Cambridge-Somerville Youth Study | ChildTrends | No impact |
| Comprehensive Child Development Program | ChildTrends | No impact |
| DARE (Drug Abuse Resistance Education) | ChildTrends | No impact |
| DC HOPE | ChildTrends | No impact |
| Direct Instruction and Mediated Learning | ChildTrends | No impact |
| Discharge From Parole | ChildTrends | No impact |
| Employment Retention and Advancement | MDRC | No impact |
| Ending Violence | ChildTrends | No impact |
| Families and Schools Together | ChildTrends | No impact |
| Families United to Prevent Teen Pregnancy (FUPTP) | ChildTrends | No impact |
| Family Planning Clinic Support Services | ChildTrends | No impact |
| Fit for Life Boy Scout Badge | ChildTrends | No impact |
| Formative Assessments of Student Thinking in Reading (FAST-R) | MDRC | No impact |
| Griffin-Spalding Middle School Academy | ChildTrends | No impact |
| Healthy for Life Project (HFL) | ChildTrends | No impact |
| Heritage Keepers Life Skills Education | ChildTrends | No impact |
| High School Smoking Prevention Program | ChildTrends | No impact |
| Home Visitation Trial for Urban Women | ChildTrends | No impact |
| Hospital and Home Support Interventions During Infancy | ChildTrends | No impact |
| Hutchinson Smoking Prevention Project (HSPP) | ChildTrends | No impact |
| Impaired Minds Produce Actions Causing Trauma (IMPACT) | ChildTrends | No impact |
| Kids Can Bike | ChildTrends | No impact |
| Making A Difference! | ChildTrends | No impact |
| Minnesota Competence Enhancement Project (MCEP) | ChildTrends | No impact |
| My Choice, My Future! | ChildTrends | No impact |
| Paint Creek Youth Center | ChildTrends | No impact |
| Parent-Child Assistance Program | ChildTrends | No impact |
| Parent-Targeted Intervention for Adolescent Substance Use Prevention | ChildTrends | No impact |
| Peer Intervention Program | ChildTrends | No impact |
| Phonological Awareness Training (PAT) | ChildTrends | No impact |
| Postponing Sexual Involvement | ChildTrends | No impact |
| Professional Development in Math Study | MDRC | No impact |
| Project ACCEL | ChildTrends | No impact |
| Project ALERT | ChildTrends | No impact |
| Project Ploughshares Puppets for Peace (P4) | ChildTrends | No impact |
| Project SNAPP | ChildTrends | No impact |
| Project Taking Charge | ChildTrends | No impact |
| Recapturing the Vision | ChildTrends | No impact |
| Safer Choices | ChildTrends | No impact |
| School Choice Scholarships Program | ChildTrends | No impact |
| SEARCH/TEACH Tutoring | ChildTrends | No impact |
| Skill-based intervention on condom use | ChildTrends | No impact |
| Teen Court | ChildTrends | No impact |
| Teens in Control | ChildTrends | No impact |
| The McMaster Teen Program | ChildTrends | No impact |
| Twelve Together | ChildTrends | No impact |
| Untitled Clinic-Based Bicycle Helmet Promotion | ChildTrends | No impact |
| Untitled Prevention Intervention for Hispanic Couples | ChildTrends | No impact |
| Virtual Environment Technology to Prevent Teen Smoking | ChildTrends | No impact |
| California Works for Better Health | MDRC | Evaluation not a randomized controlled trial |
| Chicago's New Communities Program | MDRC | Evaluation not a randomized controlled trial |
| Dreamkeepers and Angel Fund Emergency Financial Aid | MDRC | Evaluation not a randomized controlled trial |
| Extended-Service Schools | MDRC | Evaluation not a randomized controlled trial |
| Foundations for Success | MDRC | Evaluation not a randomized controlled trial |
| High School Reform Conference Series | MDRC | Evaluation not a randomized controlled trial |
| Instructional Leadership Study | MDRC | Evaluation not a randomized controlled trial |
| Learning Communities Demonstration | MDRC | Evaluation not a randomized controlled trial |
| Literacy in Libraries Across America | MDRC | Evaluation not a randomized controlled trial |
| Neighborhood Jobs Initiative | MDRC | Evaluation not a randomized controlled trial |
| Project GRAD | MDRC | Evaluation not a randomized controlled trial |
| Project on Devolution and Urban Change | MDRC | Evaluation not a randomized controlled trial |
| Protecting You/Protecting Me (PY/PM) | ChildTrends | Evaluation not a randomized controlled trial |
| Scaling Up First Things First | MDRC | Evaluation not a randomized controlled trial |
| School-to-Work Transition Project | MDRC | Evaluation not a randomized controlled trial |
| Supporting Healthy Marriage | MDRC | Evaluation not a randomized controlled trial |
| Talent Development | MDRC | Evaluation not a randomized controlled trial |
| Accelerated Benefits Demonstration | MDRC | Evaluation in progress |
| Achieving the Dream: Community Colleges Count | MDRC | Evaluation in progress |
| AutoSave | MDRC | Evaluation in progress |
| Building Strong Families | MDRC | Evaluation in progress |
| Coordinated Care for High-Cost Medicaid Recipients with Disabilities | MDRC | Evaluation in progress |
| Evaluation of the Content Literacy Continuum | MDRC | Evaluation in progress |
| Head Start CARES Project | MDRC | Evaluation in progress |
| New York City Small Schools of Choice Evaluation | MDRC | Evaluation in progress |
| Performance-Based Scholarship Demonstration | MDRC | Evaluation in progress |
| Reintegration of Ex-Offenders Random Assignment Evaluation | MDRC | Evaluation in progress |
| Response to Intervention (RtI) Programs for Struggling Elementary Readers | MDRC | Evaluation in progress |
| TANF/SSI Disability Transition Project | MDRC | Evaluation in progress |
| Texas Developmental Summer Bridge Study | MDRC | Evaluation in progress |
| The Camden Regional Equity Demonstration Project | MDRC | Evaluation in progress |
| The Developmental Education Initiative | MDRC | Evaluation in progress |
| Transitional Jobs Reentry Demonstration | MDRC | Evaluation in progress |
| Youth Corps | MDRC | Evaluation in progress |
| Career Beginnings | ChildTrends | Summary did not report significance at 5% significance level |
| Parent-Child Home Program | ChildTrends | Summary did not report significance at 5% significance level |
| Preventive Alcohol Education Program | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Seeking Safety | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Parenting Adolescents Wisely (PAW) Program | ChildTrends | No charity |
| ¡CuÃdate! | ChildTrends | No charity |
| 21st Century Community Learning Centers | ChildTrends | No charity |
| 5-A-Day Power Plus Program | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Abecedarian Project | Coalition for Evidence-Based Policy | No charity |
| Accelerated Schools | MDRC | No charity |
| Active Programme Promoting Lifestyle in Schools (APPLES) | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Adolescent Alcohol Prevention Trial (AAPT) | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Adolescent Community Reinforcement Approach | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Adolescent Coping with Stress | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Adolescent Training and Learning to Avoid Steroids Program (ATLAS) | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Afrocentric Peer Counseling | ChildTrends | No charity |
| AIDS Education and Counseling in an Office Setting | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Alcohol Misuse Prevention Study (AMPS) | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Alcohol Skills Training Program | ChildTrends | No charity |
| AlcoholEdu for College | ChildTrends | No charity |
| All Stars | ChildTrends | No charity |
| All4You | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Al's Pals | ChildTrends | No charity |
| American Heart Association (AHA) Physical Activity Intervention | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Amity Prison Therapeutic Community | Coalition for Evidence-Based Policy | No charity |
| Anger Coping Program | ChildTrends | No charity |
| ARREST (AIDS Risk Reduction Education and Skills Training Program) | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Arthur Television Program | ChildTrends | No charity |
| ASSESS | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Athletes Targeting Healthy Exercise & Nutrition Alternatives (ATHENA) | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Attachment and Biobehavioral Catch-Up | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Be Proud! Be Responsible! | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Becoming A Responsible Teen (BART) | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Behavioral Weight Control Programme | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Behavioral Weight Loss Program for Children and Their Parents | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Bicultural Competence Skills Program (BCSP) | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Bienestar Health Program | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Block the Sun, Not the Fun | ChildTrends | No charity |
| BrainPower | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Breakthrough To Literacy (BTL) | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Brief Alcohol Screening and Intervention of College Students (BASICS) | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Canada's Earnings Supplement Project | MDRC | No charity |
| Canada's Self-Sufficiency Project | MDRC | No charity |
| Canadian Self-Sufficiency Project | Coalition for Evidence-Based Policy | No charity |
| Canvassing program | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Carolina Abecedarian Project | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Carrera Adolescent Pregnancy Prevention Program | Coalition for Evidence-Based Policy | No charity5 |
| CASASTART | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Case-Management Program for Academic Enhancement | ChildTrends | No charity |
| CAST (Coping and Support Training) | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Catch 'Em Being Good | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Check and Connect | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Child and Adolescent Trial for Cardiovascular Health (CATCH) | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Child Health Supervision | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Child Parent Psychotherapy for Family Violence (CPP-FV) | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Children Are People Too (CAP) | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Children Get a Head Start on the Road to Good Nutrition Head Start Curriculum Guide | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Children of Divorce Intervention Program (CODIP) | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Class Action - Project Northland Phase 2 | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Clinic-Based AIDS Education Programs for Adolescent Females | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Clinician-based Cognitive Psychoeducational Intervention for Families | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Cognitive Behavior Therapy | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Cognitive Behavioral Family Intervention (CBFI) | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Cognitive/Affective Empathy Training Program | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Cognitive-Behavioral Intervention for Trauma in Schools | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Cognitive-Behavioral Training Program for Behaviorally Disordered Adolescents | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Cognitively Guided Instruction | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Cognitive-Relaxation Coping Skills (CRCS) | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Communication Skills Condom Use Program | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Communication Skills Training program (CST) | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Communities Mobilizing for Change on Alcohol | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Comprehensive Oral Hygiene Training Program | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Computer-Delivered Sexual Risk Reduction Intervention | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Condom Intervention With Women | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Condom Promotion Videos for College Students | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Conflict Resolution Training Program | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Connecticut's Jobs First | MDRC | No charity |
| Consulting Program for Teachers to Prevent Vandalism | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Contingent Math Tutoring | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Coping Cats | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Coping With Depression (CWD-A) | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Culturally Appropriate STD/AIDS Education in a Clinic Setting | ChildTrends | No charity |
| DaisyQuest | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Dance for Health | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Dare to be You | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Dartmouth Prevention Project | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Dialogic Reading | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Diet and Exercise Program for Families | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Dietary Intervention Study in Children (DISC) | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Doors to Discovery | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Draw the Line/Respect the Line | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Early Head Start | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Early Intervention Program for Adolescent Mothers | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Early Literacy and Learning Model | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Early Risers | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Early Start | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Early Training Project | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Eddie Eagle GunSafe Program and Behavior Skills Training Gun Safety Program | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Emergency Department-Based Asthma Intervention | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Enhanced Managing Pressures Before Marriage (MPM) | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Equipping Youth to Help One Another (EQUIP) | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Evaluation of Academic Instruction in After-School Programs | MDRC | No charity |
| Evaluation of Child Care Subsidy Strategies | MDRC | No charity |
| Evaluation of the National Guard Youth ChalleNGe Program | MDRC | No charity |
| Even Start | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Everybody's Different | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Eye Movement Desensitization and Processing (EMDR) | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Facts & Feelings | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Familias Unidas | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Families and Schools Together (American Indian adaptation) | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Family Matters | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Family Therapy as a Supplement to Dietary Counseling for Obese Children | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Family/Media Approach to HIV Prevention | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Family-Based Behavior Modification Program to Target Obesity | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Fast Track Prevention Project | ChildTrends | No charity |
| First Step to Success (FSS) | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Florida's Family Transition Program | MDRC | No charity |
| Focus | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Focus on Families | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Focus on Kids | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Fostering Individualized Assistance Program (FIAP) | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Foundations of Learning Project | MDRC | No charity |
| FRIENDS Program | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Functional Family Therapy | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Gimmie 5 (4th and 5th Grade Students) | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Gimmie 5: A Fresh Nutrition Concept for Students | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Girlfriends for KEEPS | ChildTrends | No charity |
| GO GIRLS! | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Good Behavior Game | Coalition for Evidence-Based Policy | No charity |
| Guiding Good Choices (formerly Preparing for the Drug Free Years) | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Head Start | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Head Strong | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Health Belief Model Intervention to Increase Condom Use Among High-Risk Female Adolescents | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Healthy Families New York (HFNY) | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Healthy Start Program | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Healthy Weight Regulation Curriculum | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Hear and Say Reading with Toddlers | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Heart Smart School Health Promotion | ChildTrends | No charity |
| High 5 | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Hip-Hop to Health Jr. | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Home Visiting Intervention for Depressed Mothers and Their Infants | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Home Visiting to Vulnerable Families by Nurses | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Home-Based Nurse Intervention (INT) | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Homebuilders | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Howard Street Tutoring Program | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Hygiene Intervention for Child Care Centers | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Hygiene Intervention for Preschool Students | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Hygienic Intervention in Child Day-Care Centers | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Infant Health and Development Program (IHDP) | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Informed Parents and Children Together (ImPACT) | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Intensive Supervision Program in Detroit, Michigan | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Interactive Book Reading | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Interpersonal Psychotherapy for Postpartum Depression | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Interpersonal Skills Program | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Intervention to Increase Father Involvement | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Job Corps | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Job Opportunities and Basic Skills Training Program (JOBS) | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Job Training Partnership Act | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Jobs-Plus Community Revitalization Initiative for Public Housing Families | MDRC | No charity |
| Kaiser Kids Sun Care Program | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Keepin' it R.E.A.L. | ChildTrends | No charity |
| KindergARTen Summer Camp | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Know Your Body | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Leadership Education Through Athletic Development (LEAD) | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Learning Language and Loving It: The Hanen Program for Early Childhood Educators | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Let's Begin with the Letter People | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Life Skills Training (LST) | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Lifestyle Education for Activity Program (LEAP) | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Linking the Interests of Families and Teachers (LIFT) | ChildTrends | No charity |
| LionsQuest "Skills for Adolescence" | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Los Angeles Jobs-First GAIN | MDRC | No charity |
| Los Angeles Jobs-First Greater Avenues for Independence (GAIN) Program | Coalition for Evidence-Based Policy | No charity |
| Making Proud Choices! | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Marvelous Me | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Mastery Learning | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Mathletics | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Mentor-Implemented Violence Prevention Intervention for Assault-Injured Youth | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Metropolitan Area Child Study (MACS) | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Middle School Physical Activity and Nutrition (M-SPAN) | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Midwestern Prevention Project | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Minnesota Family Investment Program | MDRC | No charity |
| Minnesota Family Investment Program (MFIP) | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Monetary Incentive Program | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Montreal Prevention Experiment | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Motivational Brief Intervention for High-Risk College Student Drinkers | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Moving to Opportuniy program (MTO) | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Multidimensional Family Therapy (MDFT) | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Multidimensional Treatment Foster Care | Coalition for Evidence-Based Policy | No charity |
| Multisystemic Therapy | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Multisystemic Therapy for Juvenile Offenders | Coalition for Evidence-Based Policy | No charity |
| My Baby U | ChildTrends | No charity |
| National Evaluation of Welfare-to-Work Strategies | MDRC | No charity |
| New Beginnings | ChildTrends | No charity |
| New Chance | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Next Generation | MDRC | No charity |
| Nuestras Familias | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Nutrition and Physical Activity Self-Assessment for Child Care (NAP-SACC) | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Obesity-Focused Active Parenting | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Ohio Learning, Earning, and Parenting Program (LEAP) | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Ohio's Learning, Earning, and Parenting Program | MDRC | No charity |
| Online Treatment for Pediatric Recurrent Pain | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Opening Doors | MDRC | No charity |
| Opportunity NYC Demonstrations | MDRC | No charity |
| Osteoporosis Prevention and Self-Management Course | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Parent Education Group for Families Affected by Depression | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Parent Management Training - Oregon Model (PMTO) | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Parental Training and Contingency Contracting for Overweight Children | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Parent-Child Interaction Therapy | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Parenting Through Change (PTC) | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Parent-Mediated Treatment Program | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Parents' Fair Share | MDRC | No charity |
| Peacebuilders | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Peer Coping Skills Training (PCS) | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Peer-led HIV Prevention Education | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Penn Prevention Program (PPP) | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Perry Preschool Project | Coalition for Evidence-Based Policy | No charity |
| Phonological Awareness Training and Letter Knowledge Training | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Physical Activity and Teenage Health (PATH) | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Physical Training Program for Obese Children | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Picture Exchange Communication System (PECS) | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Plan a Safe Strategy Program (PASS) | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Planet Health | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Portland Job Opportunities and Basic Skills (JOBS) Program | Coalition for Evidence-Based Policy | No charity |
| Positive Action Family Program | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Positive Action Program | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Positive Parenting | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Positive Prevention | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Positive Youth Development Program | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Preventing Adolescent Problems | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Primary Project | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Problem Solving for Life | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Problem Solving Program for Childhood Obesity | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Professional Development in Reading Study | MDRC | No charity |
| Progresa Poverty Program | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Project 4-Health | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Project AIM (Adult Identity Mentoring) | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Project Aware | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Project BELONG | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Project CHARM | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Project EX | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Project Iris | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Project Northland | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Project RESPECT | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Project SAFE (Strengthening America's Families and Environment) | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Project Sixteen | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Project SPARK | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Project Support | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Project TALC | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Project Toward No Tobacco Use (Project TNT) | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Project Towards No Drugs | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Project Transition | MDRC | No charity |
| Project TRUST | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Project WIN | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Promoting Alternative Thinking Strategies (PATHS) | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Promoting Emergent Math Skills and Math Interest in Preschool-Aged Children | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Quantum Opportunities Program (QOP) | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Raising Healthy Children | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Reach for Health Service Learning Program | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Reaching Educators, Children and Parents (RECAP) | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Read to Achieve Summer Literacy Day Camp | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Reading One-to-One | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Ready, Set, Leap! | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Real Men | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Reconnecting Youth | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Reducing Children's Television Viewing to Prevent Obesity | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Reducing Sedentary Behavior | ChildTrends | No charity |
| RELATE Program for Teens | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Reproductive Health Counseling for Young Men | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Resolve It, Solve It | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Responding in Peaceful and Positive Ways | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Restorative Justice Conferencing | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Riverside Greater Avenues for Independence (GAIN) Program | Coalition for Evidence-Based Policy | No charity |
| Safe Child Program | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Safe Dates | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Safe Performance Curriculum | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Safe Teen Work Project | ChildTrends | No charity |
| SAFEChildren | ChildTrends | No charity |
| San Quentin Squires Program | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Saving Sex for Later | ChildTrends | No charity |
| School Attendance Demonstration Project | ChildTrends | No charity |
| School Nurse-Delivered Adolescent Smoking Cessation Counseling Intervention | ChildTrends | No charity |
| School-Based Cardiovascular Exercise and Nutrition Program with Parent Participation | ChildTrends | No charity |
| School-Based Intervention to Reduce Aggressive Behavior in Maladjusted Adolescents | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Schools and Homes in Partnership (SHIP) | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Schools Without Failure (SWF) | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Second Step | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Self Sufficiency Project (SSP) | ChildTrends | No charity |
| SHAPEDOWN | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Signs of Suicide Prevention Program | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Sistering, Informing, Healing, Loving, and Empowering (SiHLE). Simon: correct program name seems to be Sistering, Informing, Healing, Living, and Empowering | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Skills for Academic and Social Success | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Smoke Free Class Competition | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Social Aggression Prevention Program (SAPP) | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Social Cognitive Training (SCT) | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Social Influences Curriculum | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Social Learning Parent Training | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Social Problem-Solving (SPS) | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Social Skills and Academic Skills Training for Rejected Boys | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Social Skills Training Program for Children With ADHD | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Social Skills Training Program for Children's Social Functioning | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Social Skills Training Program for Pre-Adolescent Girls with Few Friends | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Sound Foundations | ChildTrends | No charity |
| South Oxnard Challenge Program (SOCP) | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Spit Tobacco Intervention for High School Athletes | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Stanford Adolescent Heart Health Program | ChildTrends | No charity |
| STAR (Stop, Think, Ask, Respond) Parenting Program | ChildTrends | No charity |
| STARS (Start Taking Alcohol Risks Seriously) for Families | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Staying Connected With Your Teen | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Steps to Respect Bullying Prevention Program | ChildTrends | No charity |
| STOP Technique and the Insight Program | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Strengthening Families Program for Parents and Youth 10-14 (Formerly Iowa Strengthening Families Program) | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Strong African American Families (SAAF) | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Structured Learning Training (SLT) | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Student Support Partnership Integrating Resources and Education (SSPIRE) | MDRC | No charity |
| Students Managing Anger Resolution Together (SMART) Talk | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Study of Mentoring in the Learning Environment (SMILE) | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Summer Career Exploration Program | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Summer Training and Education Program (STEP) | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Sunny Days, Healthy Ways | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Superkids/Superfit | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Talking Parents, Healthy Teens | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Targeted Messages for HIV Prevention | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Teach Baltimore | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Teaching Students to be Peacemakers | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Team Assisted Individualization (TAI) for Math | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Team Building Exercise Program | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Technical Skills Condom Use Program | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Teen Intervene | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Teen Talk | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Teenage Parent Demonstration | ChildTrends | No charity |
| TeenSTAR | ChildTrends | No charity |
| The Aban Aya Youth Project | ChildTrends | No charity |
| The Adolescent Transitions Program – Parent and Teen Focus | ChildTrends | No charity |
| The Adolescent Transitions Program – Parent Focus | ChildTrends | No charity |
| The Buddy System | ChildTrends | No charity |
| The Coping Power Program | ChildTrends | No charity |
| The Enhanced Reading Opportunities Study | MDRC | No charity |
| The Family Bereavement Program (FBP) | ChildTrends | No charity |
| The Family Health Project | ChildTrends | No charity |
| The Insiders Juvenile Crime Prevention Program | ChildTrends | No charity |
| The Reading First Impact Study | MDRC | No charity |
| The UK Employment Retention and Advancement Project | MDRC | No charity |
| The Youth AIDS Prevention Project (YAPP) | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Three Generations Project | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Tobacco Policy Options for Prevention (TPOP) | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Toddlers Without Tears | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Too Good For Drugs | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Tools of the Mind | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Trauma-Focused Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy (TF-CBT) | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Triple P-Positive Parenting Program | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Tutoring with the Lindamood Phonemic Sequencing reading curriculum | Coalition for Evidence-Based Policy | No charity |
| UCLA Family Development Project | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Untitled Fitness and Nutrition Intervention | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Untitled Health Care Program for First-Time Adolescent Mothers and their Infants | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Untitled Information-Based AIDS Intervention | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Untitled Lifestyle-Focused Physical Activity Intervention | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Untitled Nutrition Education Behavior Change Strategy | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Untitled Program for Siblings of Children with Disabilities | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Untitled School Based Suicide-Prevention Program | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Untitled School-based Exercise Education Program | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Untitled School-based Physical Activity Intervention | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Untitled School-based Physical Training Intervention | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Untitled Social Cognitive AIDS Intervention | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Untitled Social Cognitive Theory-Based Intervention | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Upward Bound | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Varying Maternal Involvement in a Weight Loss Program | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Varying the Timing of an HIV-Prevention Intervention | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Vermont's Welfare Restructuring Project | MDRC | No charity |
| Video-Based STD Patient Education | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Voluntary Summer Reading Intervention | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Washington State Client-Centered Pregnancy Prevention Programs | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Western Australian Schools Physical Activity and Nutrition (WASPAN) | ChildTrends | No charity |
| What Could You Do? | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Who Do You Tell | ChildTrends | No charity |
| WIC Nutrition Education Demonstration Study | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Wisconsin Works | MDRC | No charity |
| Woodrock Youth Development Project (WYDP) | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Work Advancement and Support Center Demonstration | MDRC | No charity |
| You Can't Say You Can't Play | ChildTrends | No charity |
| Youth Corps | ChildTrends | No charity |
Ongoing updates
The above steps were completed between February and November of 2010.
We plan to revisit our recommended charities in this cause annually, seeking updates on their progress and funding needs and revising their ratings as appropriate. Otherwise we are not currently planning ongoing updates in this cause, as it has been deprioritized. Therefore, we will continue to stand by our recommended charities, but cannot commit to actively searching for more promising charities over time.
Sources
- Alliance for Effective Social Investing. Homepage. http://www.alleffective.org/ (accessed October 21, 2010). Archived by WebCite® at http://www.webcitation.org/5tdf48toX.
- ChildTrends. List of all programs (A-Z). http://www.childtrends.org/Lifecourse/allprograms_menu.htm (accessed Otober 21, 2010). Archived by WebCite® at http://www.webcitation.org/5tdeJnJQl.
- Coalition for Evidence-Based Policy. About this site. http://evidencebasedprograms.org/wordpress/?page_id=9 (accessed October 21, 2010). Archived by WebCite® at http://www.webcitation.org/5tdfDMWJS.
- MDRC. Homepage. http://www.mdrc.org/ (accessed October 21, 2010). Archived by WebCite® at http://www.webcitation.org/5tdeU07Po.
- 1
ChildTrends, "List of All Programs (A-Z)."
- 2
MDRC, "Homepage."
- 3
Alliance for Effective Social Investing, "Homepage."
- 4
Coalition for Evidence-Based Policy, "About this Site."
- 5
An email from a Children's Aid Society representative to GiveWell on December 7, 2012, indicates that Children's Aid Society implements the Carrera Adolescent Pregnancy Prevention Program in New York City.