Margaret M. Clancy

CSD Policy Director,
Director of College Savings Initiative and SEED for Oklahoma Kids

Informed by CSD research, 401Kids Act introduced in U.S. Senate

On Wednesday, January 31, U.S. Sen. Bob Casey of Pennsylvania introduced federal legislation to create a national children’s account policy. The 401Kids Act is designed to empower all children, and particularly children from disadvantaged households, by providing a means for them to accumulate assets for developmental priorities like higher education.

Parents’ views of universal asset-building policies for children

A new study captures parents’ perspectives on the influence that Child Development Accounts can exert over children’s educational attainment and parental saving for children’s higher education. Successful policymaking depends on public support. In policies affecting children, parents’ understanding and opinions matter. A new study from Center for Social Development researchers Jin Huang, Sondra G. Beverly, […]

California launches nation’s largest Child Development Account policy

The state enrolls 3.4 million children in CalKIDs, which CSD experts helped to shape. Today Governor Gavin Newsom publicly launched CalKIDS, the California Kids Investment and Development Savings program. With 3.4 million children in the first cohort of enrollees and more than $1.8 billion in assets, CalKIDS leaves the starting gate as the nation’s largest […]

Child Development Accounts expand resources for higher education

New research from the Center for Social Development shows that a children’s account policy reduces obstacles to higher education. As the cost of higher education continues to grow, families in the United States struggle to save enough for children’s education. State 529 college savings plans are investment vehicles that assist families in meeting this need, […]

Financial Facts: SEED OK Child Development Accounts at Age 14

Clancy, M. M., Beverly, S. G., Schreiner, M., Huang, J., & Sherraden, M. (2022, June). Financial facts: SEED OK Child Development Accounts at age 14 (CSD Fact Sheet No. 22-20). Washington University, Center for Social Development. https://doi.org/10.7936/13ge-kt42

Policy Design for Child Development Accounts: Parents’ Perceptions

Beverly, S. G., Huang, J., Clancy, M. M., & Sherraden, M. (2022, January). Policy design for Child Development Accounts: Parents’ perceptions (CSD Research Brief No. 22-03). Washington University, Center for Social Development. https://doi.org/10.7936/nbdq-xa08

Transforming 529 College Savings Plans: Grow Assets for Everyone, Grow the Country

Sherraden, M., & Clancy, M. M. (2021). Transforming 529 college savings plans: grow assets for everyone, grow the country. In R. Boshara & I. Rademacher (Eds.), The future of building wealth: Brief essays on the best ideas to build wealth—for everyone (pp. 251–257). Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis & Aspen Institute. https://futureofwealth.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/09/Sec-5.pdf

Asset Building: Toward Inclusive Policy

Sherraden, M., Johnson, L., Clancy, M. M., Beverly, S. G., Sherraden, M. S., Schreiner, M., Elliott, W., III, Williams Shanks, T. R., Adams, D., Curley, J., Huang, J., Grinstein-Weiss, M., Nam, Y., Zhan, M., & Han, C. K. (2021, September 29). Asset building: Toward inclusive policy. In C. Franklin (Ed.), Encyclopedia of social work. https://doi.org/10.1093/acrefore/9780199975839.013.25

Prominent Child Development Account experts outline a nationwide policy

A group of experts and researchers is making the case for a nationwide Child Development Account (CDA) policy. The group, which includes CSD Founding Director Michael Sherraden and Policy Director Margaret Clancy, recently released the outline in a pair of CDA policy briefs. The briefs are entitled “The Case for a Nationwide Child Development Account […]

The Case for a Nationwide Child Development Account Policy: A Policy Brief Developed by CDA Experts and Researchers

Cisneros, J., Clancy, M. M., Elliott, W., III, Feinstein, A., Kanter, M., Karcher-Ramos, M., Kugler, C., Peachey, J., Quint, C., Shapiro, T. M., & Sherraden, M. (2021, August). The case for a nationwide Child Development Account policy: A policy brief developed by CDA experts and researchers (CSD Policy Brief No. 21-20). Washington University, Center for Social Development.

Redesigning College Savings (529) Plans to Achieve Inclusive Child Development Accounts: A Policy Brief Developed by CDA Experts and Researchers

Cisneros, J., Clancy, M. M., Elliott, W., III, Feinstein, A., Kanter, M., Karcher-Ramos, M., Kugler, C., Peachey, J., Quint, C., Shapiro, T. M., & Sherraden, M. (2021, August). Redesigning college savings (529) plans to achieve inclusive Child Development Accounts: A policy brief developed by CDA experts and researchers (CSD Policy Brief No. 21-21). Washington University, Center for Social Development.

New research: Child Development Accounts generate assets, positive outlook, and parental investments

New research from the Center for Social Development (CSD) shows that parents of newborns with Child Development Accounts (CDAs) respond by deepening their commitment to the child’s higher education and their own efforts to save for that education. The findings come from two newly released publications: a research summary of account and savings data from […]

Financial Outcomes in a Child Development Account Experiment: Full Inclusion, Success Regardless of Race or Income, and Investment Growth for All

Clancy, M. M., Beverly, S. G., Schreiner, M., Huang, J., & Sherraden, M. (2021). Financial outcomes in a Child Development Account experiment: Full inclusion, success regardless of race or income, investment growth for all (CSD Research Summary 21-06). St. Louis, MO: Washington University, Center for Social Development. https://doi.org/10.7936/fnjg-n539

Strategies for fostering full inclusion, building statewide CDA policies, and engaging communities among highlights at conference

What would it take to ensure that every child in every state has an account accumulating assets for education beyond high school? How would those assets shape the children and their families? State officials, researchers, nonprofit leaders, program managers, and funders gathered July 16 to take up those questions.

New Book Charts Global Progress of Child Development Accounts

Nearly 30 years after the publication of Michael Sherraden’s seminal Assets and the Poor, Child Development Account (CDA) policies and programs are emerging across the globe. Now, a new book edited by Jin Huang, Li Zou and Sherraden showcases the global context of those advancements.

2019 Media

This holiday season, give kids the gift they don’t know they wantIdaho State Journal, December 20, 2019 The community in which consumer debtor lawyers resideCredit Slips, December 18, 2019 St. Paul set to kickstart a college savings account for every newbornMinnPost, December 12, 2019 Even if your child is just a few years away from […]

Essential Policy Design Elements for Statewide Child Development Accounts

Clancy, M. M., Sherraden, M., & Beverly, S. G. (2019, December). Essential policy design elements for statewide Child Development Accounts (CSD Fact Sheet No. 19-47). St. Louis MO: Washington University, Center for Social Development. https://doi.org/10.7936/1rvq-dy43

Child Development Accounts at Scale: Sample State Legislation

Clancy, M. M., Sherraden, M., & Beverly, S. G. (2019, November). Child Development Accounts at scale: Sample state legislation (CSD Policy Summary No. 19-46). St. Louis, MO: Washington University, Center for Social Development. https://doi.org/10.7936/cptg-2n77

Illinois Approves Child Development Accounts for All Newborns

Illinois state capitol, Springfield, Illinois

Illinois became the most recent state in the U.S. to adopt universal Child Development Accounts on August 23, when Gov. J.B. Pritzker signed legislation to open a 529 college savings plan account with deposits for every child born or adopted in Illinois after Dec. 31, 2020.

Nebraska Approves Universal, At-Birth CDA Policy

Nebraska’s legislature today approved a universal Child Development Account (CDA) policy that will cover every resident born in the state on or after January 1, 2020.

Special issue highlights Child Development Accounts globally

Child Development Accounts take center stage in a newly released special issue of the Asia Pacific Journal of Social Work and Development. The sweeping, seven-article issue shows the global context of the emerging asset-building policy. “Many countries are exploring new policy innovations that encourage asset building,” said Michael Sherraden, who co-edited the issue and co-authored […]

CSD begins third phase of research on Child Development Accounts

With financial support from philanthropists, the Center for Social Development is conducting a third wave of research on Child Development Accounts (CDAs) in the Oklahoma 529 College Savings Plan. Wave 3 of the SEED for Oklahoma Kids (SEED OK) experiment expands the original CDA with an automatic, progressive deposit and extends the research to examine […]