The Perry Preschool Project is one of the most famous studies on the effects of attending preschool and is often a core topic in bachelor’s in early education programs.1 Conducted from 1962 to 1967, the Perry Preschool Project provided a high-quality preschool education to 3- and 4-year-old African American children who were living in poverty and deemed to be at high risk of school failure. By the time these preschool participants were 27–40 years of age, they had a number of successes as compared with the control group of students who had not attended preschool. The Perry Preschool Project showed that preschool attendees:
Had a 44% higher high school graduation rate.
Earned a median monthly income that was 42% higher than those who did not attend preschool.
Were 26% less likely to have received government assistance.
Encountered 50% fewer teen pregnancies.
1Source: https://evidencebasedprograms.org/programs/perry-preschool-project