The Office of Planning, Research, and Evaluation is funding the Building Evidence on Employment Strategies (BEES) project to conduct an evaluation of a supportive housing program in Portland, Oregon. The program, operated by Central City Concern, provides treatment for substance use disorder (SUD) along with housing and employment services. This OPRE project profile provides a short overview of the Central City Concern’s supportive housing program, including the program’s employment services, and describes the study to be carried out by the project team.

Access to basic needs is key to a successful transition to adulthood, but gaps in the safety net leave many young people without the supports they need. To address these gaps, human services agencies are increasingly recognizing the importance of engaging young people with lived experience navigating safety net programs. This Urban Institute fact sheet highlights strategies human services agencies can use to authentically engage young leaders in improving safety net services. It draws on insights from a series of workgroups with staff at human services agencies and youth-serving nonprofits, as well as young leaders working with agencies to make benefits more accessible for other young people.

Learning and employment records (LERs) could play a critical role in advancing skills-based hiring practices and ensuring they are implemented equitably. LERs are digital records of an individual’s formal and informal learning and employment and can be used to represent diverse experiences on the job or inside the classroom. SkillsFWD is a new initiative on a mission to catalyze a more equitable skills-based hiring ecosystem and announced inaugural grants to fund projects solving challenges around LERs. This U.S. Chamber of Commer Foundation resource names the six grant-winning teams that will spearhead diverse projects across the country, generating replicable models and sharing original learnings and insights

Colleges across the United States have invested to develop credential-stacking programs. Their target students are often working adults who don't have the time or the money to get a college degree. These programs allow them to earn a series of credentials over time that can get them to the same place. If used effectively, stackable programs can provide low-income students with a path to the middle class. This RAND resource explains stackable credentials and provides data as well as lessons learned from high-value programs

The Office of Planning, Research & Evaluation released an Excel workbook of data collection templates designed as a resource to support current and future Tribal TANF-Child Welfare Coordination (TTCW) grantees in their data collection planning. The included templates are intended to support the planning, collection, and reporting of TTCW program data. This resource includes a data collection template, a client anecdotes tracker, and a reporting planner template.

While a significant portion of college students are eligible for safety net benefits, many do not access the support they need. Students may not realize they are eligible for benefits or struggle to complete the application or recertification processes. This Urban Institute fact sheet highlights how human services agencies can improve outreach to college students eligible for safety net benefits. It draws on insights from a series of workgroups with staff at human services agencies and youth-serving nonprofits, as well as young leaders.

Employment coaching involves trained staff working collaboratively with participants to help them set individualized goals related to employment and providing motivation, support, and feedback as participants work toward those goals. Recently, there has been growing interest among policymakers, practitioners, and researchers in using employment coaching to assist Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) recipients and other adults with low incomes become economically mobile. This video accompanies a Office of Planning, Research and Evaluation report which highlights the evaluation that was designed to assess the implementation and effectiveness of the four programs participating in the Employment Coaching for TANF and Related Populations study. The report answers the following research questions: In what contexts were programs implemented? How did the designs of the programs vary and differ? How was coaching implemented across programs?

The Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta published a case study that analyzes a workforce development program in Washington, D.C., which was created to help families navigate the loss of government benefits when their employment income increases. The paper frames the discussion around a hypothetical family receiving support from all major federal public assistance programs, including those managed by the Administration for Children and Families that help families with income assistance, child care, and utility payments.

The Administration for Children and Families (ACF) Office of External Affairs and Office of Regional Operations hosted the “Less Poverty, More Prosperity: States Tackle Benefit Cliffs” convening, bringing together 17 states that have all taken steps to address the cliff effect in their communities, as well as parents with lived experience, businesses, and non-profit and philanthropic organizations. This ACF blogpost discusses how ACF and its partners are working to shed more light on this issue and how it impacts children, families, and communities.

The Office of the Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation released U.S. Federal Poverty Guidelines Used to Determine Financial Eligibility for Certain Programs for 2024. There are three tables, including poverty guidelines for the 48 contiguous states and the District of Columbia, Alaska, and Hawaii. This webpage offers additional resources, prior Department of Health and Human Services’ poverty guidelines and Federal Register references, and frequently asked questions.