Early childhood education programs nationwide are more segregated than K-12 classrooms, according to a new study by researchers at the Urban Institute, a nonprofit research organization focused on public policy. Researchers found that early childhood programs overall are 20 percent more segregated than high schools. Compared to kindergarten and 1st grade, researchers found that early childhood programs are twice as likely to be serving 90 to 100 percent black or Latino children. Included in the study are private and public programs that serve at least five children who are between 0 and 5 years old. “Early childhood education is a key place for addressing—or exacerbating—issues of diversity, equity, and inclusion,” and racial and ethnic isolation isolation “can lead to missed opportunities for contact and kinship during a critical point in child development,” the study asserts.