In Monroe County, New York, the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families program and New York State’s Safety Net program work in tandem to provide temporary cash assistance to qualifying individuals who have low incomes. To maintain access to the assistance, those enrolled in these programs are required to attend a series of meetings and activities intended to assess program applicants’ needs and connect them to services the county believes help people move toward economic self-sufficiency.

The Behavioral Interventions to Advance Self-Sufficiency-Next Generation (BIAS-NG) project aims to make human services programs work better for the people receiving services by reshaping program processes using lessons from behavioral science. The BIAS-NG team worked with Monroe County staff members to design and test two interventions that aimed to increase the attendance at required activities aforementioned. This Office of Planning, Research and Evaluation report describes the experiences of participants before the interventions, the steps of developing interventions informed by behavioral science, and the implementation and evaluation of those interventions.

Although the relationship between hardship and child welfare system, CWS, involvement seems straightforward, it is far more complicated. On average, families encountering the CWS tend to have lower incomes, and rates of CWS involvement are highest in the sections of New York with the highest concentrations of families with incomes below the poverty level. Among those who are involved with child welfare services, co-occurring conditions such as substance misuse and mental health challenges, which hardships exacerbate, are also correlated with CWS involvement regardless of income. This Urban Institute report examines the relationships between hardship and CWS involvement.

As part of the Building Evidence on Employment Strategies project, researchers conducted virtual interviews from November 2021 to April 2022 with staff members at ten workforce programs to learn how they were using technology to adapt their services during the pandemic. Most of the organizations used a hybrid model to blend in-person and virtual service delivery. This MDRC publication examines five key adaptations of the programs made to accommodate the new hiring context.

The YouthNPower: Transforming Care Collective launched the first direct cash transfer (DCT) pilot for youth transitioning from foster care in 2023 and designed with young people who have lived expertise in the child welfare system. This New York City pilot is part of a larger research and advocacy project to document the impact of unconditional cash support for young adults who have recently left the child welfare system to learn more about the conditions facing young people as they navigate life after foster care, and to advocate for policy and program changes that will enrich their lives and help them thrive. This Center for the Study of Social Policy recording highlights a panel that shared:

• An introduction to the intergenerational YouthNPower collective and its approach combining research, advocacy, and organizing;
• Information about the Direct Cash Transfer pilot design; and
• Preliminary findings of the pilot’s Participatory Action Research.

The Behavioral Interventions to Advance Self-Sufficiency-Next Generation (BIAS-NG) project aims to make human services programs work better for the people receiving services by reshaping program processes using lessons from behavioral science. This Office of Planning, Research and Evaluation newsletter provides insights from New York and Washington, focusing on improving employment and training services for Temporary Assistance to Needy Families clients.

On April 2, 2024, the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) announced the award of $10.5 million to fund the first year of four, five-year cooperative agreements aimed at developing strategies to assist youth and young adults with disabilities — particularly in underserved communities — in successfully transitioning into the workforce. This DOL news releasee announces that Connecticut DOL, Kansas Department of Commerce, Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development, and the New York DOL received the awards.

The field of workforce development helps job seekers enter and advance in the workforce, and it helps employers improve their hiring, training, and advancement practices. To optimize local workforce systems, practitioners must dismantle silos and create coherent systems and services that balance the needs of both workers and businesses. The Aspen Institute’s Economic Opportunities Program is hosting “Workforce Leadership Café,” a series of conversations with leaders who are contributing their talents and insights to this field of practice. Guests will include sponsors of local Workforce Leadership Academies and others who are exploring talent development and job quality in workforce development.

Remaining dates include:
• December 21, 2023: Workforce Solutions Alamo
• January 18, 2024: United Way of Central Maryland + Scranton Area Community Foundation
• February 1, 2024: The Greater Memphis Chamber
• February 15, 2024: Ohio Workforce Coalition and New York Association for Training and Development Professionals

The BOOST initiative connects families with low incomes to critical human services supports and educational and career pathways to advance multigenerational family economic success. In six cities — Baltimore, Green Bay, Hartford, New York City (Queens), Portland, and Syracuse — community colleges and human services nonprofits have partnered to support the economic advancement of families as part of the BOOST initiative. This Jobs for the Future brief explores how these partnerships can advance multigenerational family economic success and how to lean into their unique strengths as they seek to achieve this goal. It looks at how the sites are working to change policies and access funding to support their partnership goals. It also highlights practices and insights learned, with the intent of aiding and accelerating other efforts to follow this collaborative path.