Nishank Varshney, PhD

Education and Child Development
Munroe-Meyer Institute
985450 Nebraska Medical Center
Omaha, NE 68198-5450

402-559-7368
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Professional Summary

Nishank Varshney, PhD is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Education and Child Development at the UNMC Munroe-Meyer Institute. He obtained his PhD in Public Affairs from the Humphrey School of Public Affairs, University of Minnesota. Dr. Varshney’s research interests focus on evaluating the short and long-term impacts of early childhood education programs with an emphasis on economic evaluation (cost-benefit analysis). Additionally, his research focuses on identifying ways of scaling up effective programs through increased public and nonprofit investments using innovative financing mechanisms such as social impact investing. Dr. Varshney conducts program evaluations for projects related to early childhood education and community well-being, with an aim to expand access to quality early childhood education for all children.

Specialty Certifications

• Early Childhood Policy, University of Minnesota

Education

• PhD Public Affairs, Humphrey School of Public Affairs, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN, 2023
• Master of Public Policy, Humphrey School of Public Affairs, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN, 2018
• MSc (Hons.) Mathematics, Birla Institute of Technology & Science, Pilani, Rajasthan, India, 2014
• BE (Hons.) Electronics & Instrumentation, Birla Institute of Technology & Science, Pilani, Rajasthan, India, 2014

Research Interests and Projects

• Early Childhood Education
• Infant and Maternal Health
• Preschool Development Grant
• Community Well-Being
• Cost-Benefit Analysis
• Social Impact Financing

Publications on PubMed

Selected Publications (within the last 5 years)

• Temple, J., & Varshney, N. (2023). “Using Prevention Research to Reduce Racial Disparities in Health Through Innovative Funding Strategies: The Case of Doula Care.” Prevention Science, 1- 11. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11121-023-01497-2
• Varshney, N., Temple, J. A., & Reynolds, A. J. (2022). “Early Education and Adult Health: Age 37 Impacts and Economic Benefits of the Child-Parent Center Preschool Program.” Journal of Benefit-Cost Analysis 13: 57–90, https://doi.org/10.1017/bca.2022.4
• Varshney, N., Lee, S., Temple, J. A., & Reynolds, A. J. (2020). “Does early childhood education enhance parental school involvement in second grade?: Evidence from Midwest Child-Parent Center Program.” Children and Youth Services Review, 117, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.childyouth.2020.105317
• Sarin, A., Dongre, A., Khanghta, P., Varshney, N., Gaur, A., & Sengai, A. (2018). “Implementation of section 12 (1)(C) of the Right to Education Act.” Economic and Political Weekly, Vol.53(8), P. 31-38. http://hdl.handle.net/11718/20428

Professional Affiliations

• American Evaluation Association
• Society for Prevention Research
• Association for Public Policy and Management