No abstract

The rapid expansion of charter schools has fueled concerns about their impact on traditional public schools. I estimate the effect of charter openings on traditional public schools in Massachusetts and North Carolina by comparing schools near actual charter sites to those near proposed sites that were never occupied. I find charter openings reduced public school enrollment by around 5 percent and reduced White enrollment in North Carolina. I find no impact on student achievement, and my 95 percent confidence intervals rule out effects larger than ± 0.05 standard deviations. I find no effects on attendance or suspensions. (JEL H75, I21, I28, J15)

The ability to speak and understand a host country’s primary language is strongly associated with measures of immigrant integration. We estimate the causal effects of English language training for adult immigrants on participants’ civic and economic outcomes using randomized enrollment lotteries from a public adult education program in Massachusetts. Participation doubles voter participation and increases annual earnings by $2,400 (56 percent). Increased tax revenue from earnings gains cover program costs over time, generating a 6 percent return for taxpayers. Ours is the first randomized evaluation of adult English language training as a standalone intervention in the United States. (JEL D72, H75, I21, I26, J15, J24, J31)