W. Steven Barnett is a Board of Governors Professor and Director of the National Institute for Early Education Research (NIEER) at Rutgers University. His research includes studies of the economics of early care and education in the areas of costs and benefits, the long-term effects of preschool programs on children's learning and development, and the distribution of educational opportunities. The author or co-author of more than 180 publications, Barnett’s research interests include the economics of human development and practical policies for translating research findings into effective public investments. His work includes the series of State Preschool Yearbooks providing annual state-by-state analyses of progress in public pre-K.