Insights from behavioral economics, which combines findings from psychology and economics, suggest that an improved understanding of human behavior and decision-making could inform program design and improve outcomes. OPRE’s Behavioral Interventions to Advance Self Sufficiency (BIAS) project designs and tests behaviorally-informed program innovations for ACF programs. This session will share early findings and lessons learned from BIAS’s work with child support agencies in Texas and Ohio. (conference program description)

• Behavioral Economics and Social Policy: Designing Innovative Solutions for Programs Supported by the Administration for Children and Families

Lashawn Richburg-Hayes (MDRC)

The presentation gives an overview of how behavioral concepts are being applied to social policy within the context of the Behavioral Interventions to Advance Self-Sufficiency (BIAS) Project.

• Using Behavioral Economics to Help Incarcerated Parents Apply for Child Support Order Modifications

Mary Farrell (MEF Associates)

Michael Hayes (Texas Office of the Attorney General)

The presentation describes the Texas pilot of the Behavioral Interventions to Advance Self-Sufficiency (BIAS) Project, a program designed to increase the number of incarcerated, non-custodial parents who apply for child support order modifications.

• Using Behavioral Economics to Increase Timely and Regular Child Support Payments

Peter Baird (MDRC)

Susan Brown (Franklin County Child Support Enforcement Agency

The presentation describes the Franklin County, Ohio pilot of the Behavioral Interventions to Advance Self-Sufficiency (BIAS) Project, an initiative to increase the total amounts of child support collected and the frequency of payments.

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

Recent research shows stalled or declining economic opportunity and upward mobility for today’s families. For low-income families, limited economic opportunity has lasting impacts on their and their children’s overall well-being. This panel discussion, moderated by Jeannie Chaffin (Administration for Children and Families), will address policy levers and approaches to improve economic mobility for low-income families, focusing on programs and populations of interest to ACF. Panelists are:

• Greg Acs (The Urban Institute)

• Aparna Mathur (American Enterprise Institute)

• Ida Rademacher (Corporation for Enterprise Development) (conference program description)

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

On November 5, 2014, the Office of Refugee Resettlement hosted a webinar on the ORR-6 Performance Report. The webinar included a review of each section of the ORR-6, highlighting key points and important details, and a question and answer session with ORR personnel.

Authored by the Office of Community Services, Compassion Capital Fund (CCF), this guidebook is aimed at better equipping nonprofit organizations with the knowledge and information needed to identify, validate, and promote effective practices that will help improve their organization and the quality of services they provide within their communities.

In response to Section 743 of the Consolidated Appropriations Act, RTI International released a report that explores hunger and food security in America. The report outlines determinants, consequences, and responses to food insecurity, with the hope of spurring policy and program development to address this issue.

Released by The Institute for Research on Poverty, this policy brief focuses on hard-to-employ individuals and the different ways to improve work opportunities, earnings, and incomes for this target population. The brief includes detailed analysis of child poverty trends in the U.S. as well as policy recommendations on stabilizing the income of the hard-to-employ.

This report evaluates the implementation and results from the Newark Prisoner Re-entry Initiative Replication (NPRIR). Formally known as the Prisoner Re-entry Initiative (PRI) Model, it seeks to help ex-offenders successfully transition into paid employment opportunities. Offenders who participate in the initiative receive intensive case management and work readiness assistance. In addition, participants are assisted with their job searches as well as job placement. The final report includes extensive information on partnerships, project services, quantitative data on participants, and much more.

This interactive resource aims at pairing employers and highly skilled job seekers through the utilization of both a Web site and a mobile application. Paired with the Web site, www.mississippiworks.org, as well as iPhone and Android mobile applications, it creates a remote-based system that streamlines the employment process for job seekers and employers. In addition, job seekers are able to filter their search criteria based on job type, location, or education requirements.

This online framework, from the Head Start Early Childhood Learning & Knowledge Center's National Center on Parent, Family, and Community Engagement, is a research-based approach to program change designed to help Head Start programs achieve outcomes that lead to positive and enduring change for children and families. The framework provides research, resources, and regulations related to program foundations, program impact areas, family engagement outcomes, and child outcomes.

The Working Poor Families Project released a policy brief that outlines ways that states can encourage two-generation strategies within programs to continue to help adults achieve economic success while maintaining strong, stable families. The brief includes an in-depth history of poverty and two-generation strategies in the United States, and offers specific recommendations to support and stimulate these efforts within states.