About 61 percent of school districts used direct certification in the NSLP in the 2001-02 school year, the same share as in 1996. Direct certification increased the number of children certified for free meals by about 400,000 and slightly increased overall NSLP participation. Under direct...

Using data from Mathematica's experimental evaluation of charter schools, this methodological study examines the validity of four different comparison group approaches to test whether these designs can replicate findings from a well-implemented random assignment study.

Under the policy of direct certification for free school meals, school districts certify for free meals those enrolled students who are in households getting food stamps or welfare, based on information shared by state food stamp and welfare agencies. Students in these eligible households are...