John W. Fantuzzo

Research Interests and Current Projects

Dr. Fantuzzo is a national leader in school-based, early childhood education research and the use of Integrated Data Systems (IDS) in education to enhance the well-being of children from low-income households living in segregated disadvantaged communities in large urban centers. His work has included building and using scientific validated capacities at the macro- and micro-systems levels for various populations of vulnerable children (e.g., children in Head Start, maltreated children, children with emotional and behavioral problems, students with low reading and mathematics skills, children in foster care, and children victimized by domestic violence).

At the macro-level, he co-developed the Kids Integrated Data System (KIDS) for Philadelphia, which was one of the first fully integrated data systems (IDS) providing research and planning information to inform public services. Based on the success of KIDS, he partnered with Dennis Culhane to develop and co-direct Actionable Intelligence for Social Policy (AISP), a MacArthur-funded national network of integrated data systems. They developed a distinctive approach to building and using IDS in government, described in The Integrated Data System Approach: A Vehicle to More Effective and Efficient Data-Driven Solutions in Government. The network currently serves state and local governments, representing over 50% of the U.S. population.

Through AISP, Dr. Fantuzzo has promoted the use of IDS through (1) identifying best practices, (2) assisting in the development of local and state IDSs, and (3) using AISP Network sites to conduct large multi-site research. This model for integrating data across education, health, and human service agencies, both in Philadelphia and nationally, has been used to study how various risks monitored by health and social service agencies affect the educational well-being of vulnerable children and youth. Dr. Fantuzzo and his colleagues have published over 25 major population-based studies using IDS to produce quality evidence for community leaders advancing city-wide policies and practices for young children. He also conducted research for the Pennsylvania State Office of Child Development and Early Learning examining PA’s Quality Rating Improvement System and validating PA’s Kindergarten Entry Inventory, the states kindergarten readiness assessment for all PA children.

At the micro-level, Dr. Fantuzzo has developed and tested school-based interventions using large-scale randomized control trial designs, which can be found in the Department of Education’s What Works Clearinghouse. He was the principal investigator, along with Vivian Gadsden and Paul McDermott, for the development and validation of the Evidence-based Program for Integrated Curricula (EPIC), a comprehensive school-readiness program for Head Start, which was successfully tested with a randomized control trial across the School District of Philadelphia (SDP).

Dr. Fantuzzo is also the developer or co-developer of several published assessment tools validated for young children and families from low-income households that are used nationally and internationally. He completed a large longitudinal study with Paul McDermott examining the transition of Approaches to Learning Skills from Head Start to second grade using a vertically scaled multidimensional measure developed with Paul McDermott and Vivian Gadsden. He currently leads work resulting in the development and validation of a psychometrically valid assessment of classroom engagement that is in the School District of Philadelphia’s Kindergarten Report Card. He and his colleagues are developing, with support from the William Penn Foundation, practical “tool kits” of evidence-based activities that teachers can do in the classroom and parents can do at home to enhance engagement competencies.