Policies for Children in Immigrant Families

Nearly 20 percent of America’s children live in immigrant households. Evidence from the Census Bureau and from scholarly research shows that these children are more likely to live in poverty than native born children and are below average on many important measures of child development, including vocabulary and school achievement. But when they grow up, the children of immigrants will contribute to the American economy as well as the nation’s Social Security and Medicare Programs. As a result, scholars and policymakers are paying more attention to these children’s development.

In association with the release of the latest issue of The Future of Children—the last issue of the journal published by the David and Lucile Packard Foundation, which focuses on children in immigrant families—the joint Brookings-Princeton project, The Future of Children, will hold a public forum to discuss policy changes that could help promote the development of immigrant children. All upcoming issues of The Future of Children will be published by the Brookings Institution and Princeton University, who are co-sponsors of the Future of Children Project.