On December 3, 2014, ORR hosted a webinar on the Annual Outcome Goal Plan (AOGP). The AOGP is required annually for of all states and Wilson-Fish agencies The webinar reviews each section of the AOGP, highlighting key points and important details.

Published by MDRC, this report highlights the early results on how program providers in New York City, Tulsa, and Cleveland implemented the WorkAdvance framework into a workable program. The WorkAdvance program encompasses sectoral as well as job retention and career advancement strategies. This report offers lessons learned to assist organizations seeking to implement a similar sector-focused career advancement program.

Stemming from the lessons learned of the initial conditional cash transfer program, this report provides key findings from the first two years of implementing Family Rewards 2.0. Launched during 2011 in the Bronx, New York and Memphis, Tennessee, Family Rewards 2.0 targets low-income families with children primarily in the ninth and tenth grade. In addition, the program seeks to provide financial stability for disadvantaged communities through conditioned-based rewards.

Published by the Center for Housing Policy, this report provides guidance on how housing authorities can implement both behavioral and cognitive science in improving programs. In addition, it offers direction that public housing authorities (PHAs) can utilize to design self-sufficiency programs aimed at meeting the needs of chronically low-income households.

Jobs-Plus is an evidence-based model used to help individuals that live in public housing find work. Published by MDRC, this guide assists users in implementing Jobs-Plus programming. In addition, it serves as a resource for practitioners to learn from others around the world who have had experience with the program.

This Crime Victims' Institute resource describes the strengths and limitations of several intimate partner violence (IPV) risk assessment instruments, including the Danger Assessment and Ontario Domestic Assault Risk Assessment. In addition, it summarizes a few studies that examined the predictive validity of various risk assessment instruments. Finally, it describes how risk assessment instruments are being used as part of IPV response protocols by first responders in certain States.

Beginning with an overview of the measures and state of economic mobility in America, this session, moderated by Sarah Sattelmeyer (The Pew Charitable Trusts), will address three key questions related to mobility, specifically: Do all Americans enjoy equal opportunity at birth, regardless of the financial and economic status of their parents? What factors help propel someone up the economic ladder or push them down? What role should public policy play in promoting economic mobility?

• Mobility and the Metropolis: How Communities Factor into Economic Mobility

Diana Elliott (The Pew Charitable Trusts)

• Hard Choices: Navigating the Economic Shock of Unemployment

Hannah Thomas (Brandeis University)

• Why Do Some Americans Leave the Bottom of the Economic Ladder, But Not Others?

Denise Wilson (Independent Contractor) (conference program description)

These presentations were given at the 2014 Welfare Research and Evaluation Conference (WREC).

Welfare is often touted as the area where rigorous social science research has been most sustained and has had the clearest impact on policy. Roundtable panelists will reflect on the history of this research, discussing questions including: Why were randomized experiments sustained over 40 years? What questions did this research answer well? How did the research inform and influence legislation, policy, and practice at the national and state levels? To what extent are lessons relevant to social policy research today and to other fields? What can be done to promote such rigorous research? Rebecca Maynard (University of Pennsylvania) will moderate this session, and Mark Greenberg (Administration for Children and Families) will serve as a discussant. Panelists are:

• Howard Rolston (Abt Associates)

• Judith Gueron (Independent Scholar)

• Ron Haskins (The Brookings Institution)

• Don Winstead (Don Winstead Consulting, LLC) (conference program description)

This presentation was given at the 2014 Welfare Research and Evaluation Conference (WREC).

Studies show that low-income families are more likely to be unbanked and “underbanked” than families with higher earnings. Lacking a bank account or depending on alternative financial services leads to significant financial barriers for low-income families that hinder economic growth and social mobility. This session will evaluate strategies that local and state human services agencies are testing to equip TANF recipients with the financial knowledge and resources they need to overcome barriers to financial security, including ACF’s Asset Initiative Partnership. Gretchen Lehman (Administration for Children and Families) will moderate this session.

• Financial Counseling and Financial Access for the Financially Vulnerable

Kasey Wiedrich (Corporation for Enterprise Development)

The presentation examines financial management strategies among low-income families.  Two research studies are described: Children's HealthWatch and Witnesses to Hunger.

• Building Economic Self-Sufficiency of TANF Clients Through Financial Education and Matched Savings

Kate Griffin (Corporation for Enterprise Development)

The presentation describes data from a financial education program for TANF recipients that provides training in budgeting and credit management.  The pilot was started in July 2013 with the Utah Department of Workforce Services.

• Financial Management Strategies of TANF and SNAP Recipients: Lessons for Policy Makers and Administrators

Mariana Chilton (Drexel University)

The presentation describes a completed research project that looks at the impact of the AFCO financial counseling program for families leaving TANF and entering into a work-ready context.

These presentations were given at the 2014 Welfare Research and Evaluation Conference (WREC).

There can be a tension between the time needed to implement rigorous policy evaluations and the immediate needs of policy makers for information. This session will explore methods to help policy makers generate and use evidence for decision making, even on short timelines. Michelle Derr (Mathematica Policy Research) will moderate this session. (conference program description)

• Using Rapid Cycle Evaluation Techniques to Test Regulatory Changes

Scott Cody (Mathematica Policy Research)

The presentation defines and explains the concept of rapid cycle evaluation, and how to utilize it to examine how programs such as SNAP and TANF respond to regulatory changes.

• Recognizing and Conducting Opportunistic Experiments

Alexandra Resch (Mathematica Policy Research)

The presentation describes opportunistic experiments and the benefits of this style of research, with an example from work done with school districts to create a culture of learning.

• Responding to Rapidly Changing Environments: The Benefits of Internal Evaluation Capacity

Angela Rachidi (New York City Human Resources Administration)

The presentation explains on rapid cycle evaluation is implemented in NYC by the Human Resources Administration, with an example from a pilot program involving SNAP centers.

These presentations were given at the 2014 Welfare Research and Evaluation Conference (WREC).