Jamie Heng-Chieh Wu, Ph.D., is the associate director for Community Evaluation Programs at the Office of University Outreach and Engagement and a research assistant professor at the Department of Human Development and Family Studies. She conducts research and evaluation to examine the accessibility, quality and impacts of out-of-school time (OST) programming and early childhood education and care. Her community-engaged work focuses on increasing the use of data for improving equity in policy decision-making and promoting continuous program improvement.
She is currently the principal investigator of five statewide initiatives in Michigan, including the federally funded 21st Century Community Learning Centers OST programs, state-funded 32 OST programs, state-funded preschool programs for 4-year-olds—the Great Start Readiness Program and for 3-year-olds—the Strong Beginnings Program, and the Child Care Mapping Project. She also conducts research on youth-driven initiatives that emphasize youth voice and youth-adult partnerships. In 2018, Dr. Wu was recognized by the National Afterschool Association as one of the most influential people in afterschool research and evaluation.
Research and professional interests include:
- Out-of-school time program designs, quality, and impacts
- The accessibility and impacts of public preschool education
- 21st Century skills and social emotional learning (SEL)
- Data use in policy decision-making
Recent Publications
Wu, J. H., Akaeze, H. O., & Van Egeren (under review). Effects of a state pre-kindergarten program on the kindergarten readiness and attendance of at-risk four-year-olds. Early Childhood Education Journal.
Wu, J. H., Akaeze, H. O., Wilinski, B., & Morley, A. (under review). Middle-income families used public pre-k targeting low-income families: Lessons from a COVID policy change. Dimensions of Early Childhood.
Wu, J. H., Akaeze, H. O., Ressler, R. W., Miller, S. R., (Under Review). Using the Child Opportunity Index to examine equity in access to a state-funded preschool program. Early Childhood Research Quarterly.
Akaeze, H. O., Miller, S. R., Wu, J. H. (Under Review). Geographically Weighted Regression: A spatial lens for assessing equity in educational resources. AERA Open.
Wu, J. H. & Akaeze, H. O., (Under Review). Who attends public pre-kindergarten? A model-based approach to understanding similarities and differences among Michigan public pre-K students. Education Finance and Policy.
Recent Reports
Wu, J. H., Akaeze, H. O., Adesina, O., Yang, N., & Anderson, M. (2023). All work and no play? Academic impacts of leisure activity in out-of-school time programming. Michigan 21st Century Community Learning Centers Research Brief. Michigan State University.
Steve, M., Wu, J. H., & Herbowicz, T. (2023). The financial impact of the Great Start Readiness Program on participating Michigan families. Michigan State University.
Wu, J. H. & Weiss, J. (2022). Maximizing Youth Leadership in Your Programs. 21st Century Community Learning Centers Special Topic. 2022 Fall Kick-Off. East Lansing, MI: Michigan State University.
Wu, J. H., Weber, E., Van Egeren, L. & Akaeze, H. (2022). Great Start Readiness Program State Evaluation 2020-21 Annual Report. East Lansing, MI: Michigan State University.
Wu, J. H., Van Egeren, L. & Michigan State University Evaluation Team (2022). The Evaluation of Michigan 21st Century Community Learning Centers 2020-21 Annual Report. East Lansing, MI: Michigan State University.
Recent Presentations
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(March 2024)
All work and no play? Academic impacts of leisure activity in out-of-school time programming
Wu, J. H., Akaeze, H. O., Adesina, O., Yang, N., & Anderson, M. (2024, March). All work and no play? Academic impacts of leisure activity in out-of-school time programming. [Research Proposal]. 2024 Active Living Conference.
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(December 2023)
Program evaluation for community sustainability, part I: Theory and practice
Wu, J. H. (2023, December). Program evaluation for community sustainability, part I: Theory and practice. Invited speech at National Chung Hsiung University, Taiwan.
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(December 2023)
Program evaluation for community sustainability, part 2: The golden rules
Wu, J. H. (2023, December). Program evaluation for community sustainability, part 2: The golden rules. Invited speech at National Taichung University of Education, Taiwan.
