The Office of Family Assistance has published a series of success stories from the HPOG program. Each of the dozen stories reflects the first-person narrative of an HPOG participant, drawn from Tribal and non-Tribal HPOG grantees, who has successfully completed the program and has entered into employment in allied health professions.

OFA PeerTA coordinated a multi-part training series for Tribal TANF programs seeking to improve case management outcomes. The facilitated online training series was delivered to assist frontline staff, client support specialists, lower-level managers, and others who may provide direct services or have direct engagement with participants. The bootcamp also created a small community of learning for participants.

 Webinar Series Details

Overarching Goals for Tribal TANF Programs:

• Enhance the case management skills of Tribal TANF staff to improve employment outcomes;
• Reduce the number of sanctions while improving work participation;
• Develop applicable products and tools to improve case management performance and employment outcomes; and
• Generate continuous dialogue across Tribal TANF programs resulting in long-term peer support and the sharing of best practices that improve employment outcomes

Webinar Topics/Dates: (Note - all times listed are Eastern Time)

• Improving Participant Engagement, Motivation and Participation – February 8, 1:00 – 2:30 p.m.
• Using Motivational Interviewing Techniques in Assessment – March 8, 1:00 – 2:30 p.m.
• Writing Effective, Efficient Case Notes that Support the Plan – May 3, 1:00 – 2:30 p.m.
• Improving Employment Outcomes – June 7, 1:00 – 2:30 p.m.

The Office of Family Assistance held a webinar on “Creating Tribal TANF and WIOA Partnerships to Connect Tribal Families to Employment” on July 20, 2016, from 2:00-3:15 p.m. ET. This webinar provided an opportunity to hear about partnerships between Tribal TANF agencies and local Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA) providers. Tribal employment and training agencies often face job placement challenges common to many remote and rural areas – namely, a small pool of employers, few job openings, and limited education and training opportunities in high demand labor areas. For these reasons, it is critical that Tribal TANF participants have the skills necessary to compete for jobs that already exist or are growing within the region. Local WIOA providers can help build the skills of Tribal TANF participants by providing job training and adult education services targeted to in-demand jobs in the region. Speakers from four organizations—Department of Labor, California Indian Manpower Consortium, Southern California Tribal Chairman’s Association, and Cankdeska Cikana Community College—discussed the innovative partnerships they have formed between Tribal TANF and WIOA to help move families toward self-sufficiency.

Speakers included:

• Athena Brown, Division Chief, U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration, Division of Indian and Native American Programs
• Yvette Yazzie, Pala Site Manager, Southern California Tribal Chairmen’s Association
• Christina Arzate, CIMC Workforce Development Coordinator III, California Indian Manpower Consortium
• Larry D. Anderson, Job Development Specialist, Cankdeska Cikana Community College

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Administration for Children and Families, Office of Family Assistance (OFA) Regions I through IV hosted the OFA Regions I-IV East Coast TANF Directors’ Meeting, Leveraging Partnerships to Help Families Achieve Economic Stability, on July 24-26, 2018 at the Westin Boston Waterfront in Boston, Massachusetts. The meeting convened representatives from TANF programs from Regions I-IV and provided TANF representatives with an opportunity to learn about promising practices, discuss shared challenges faced by TANF programs, and share ideas with peers from other states about how to respond to the needs of low-income families. The meeting also included practitioners and researchers who shared information about their own work, and who looked to TANF representatives and federal partners for future research opportunities. Representatives attended presentations from experts and program administrators, and worked with other states to think of innovative practices during Team Work sessions.

A webinar was held on February 27, 2018 from 2:00 to 3:30 p.m. to discuss the CVS Health Pharmacy Technician Training Program, which offers a free pathway for TANF recipients to complete pharmacy technician training and certification while being paid. A link to contact information by state for the CVS Health Pharmacy Technician Training Program is included.

The Administration for Children and Families (ACF), Office of Family Assistance (OFA) recently announced an application solicitation to award cooperative agreements to state agencies for participation in a TANF Policy Academy for Innovative Employment Strategies (PAIES). PAIES is a series of technical assistance activities developed to help state TANF programs design, plan, and implement innovative and comprehensive approaches to increase employment outcomes for TANF participants through coaching and career pathways. The PAIES work will document and disseminate emerging and promising strategies, and awardees will receive 18 months of funding, subject to funding availability. Applications are due May 29, 2018. For more information on coaching grants, please see https://ami.grantsolutions.gov/HHS-2018-ACF-OFA-FJ-1280. For more information on career pathways grants, please see https://ami.grantsolutions.gov/HHS-2018-ACF-OFA-FJ-1345.

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), Administration for Children and Families (ACF), Office of Family Assistance (OFA), held the Employment Excellence: Social Enterprise Experts' Listening Session at the Mayflower Hotel in Washington, D.C. on March 1-2, 2018. This meeting convened a select group of thought leaders so they could explore the evolution and current landscape of social enterprise organizations (SEOs), as well as SEO successes, needs, and challenges. Attendees also brainstormed potential avenues for the federal government to advance the SEO field, particularly in support of Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) participants and TANF-eligible populations.

The Office of Family Assistance hosted a webinar entitled “Opioid Use Disorder, Treatment, and Barriers to Employment Among TANF Recipients” on March 29, 2018. Opioid use disorder in the United States has skyrocketed since 2010, yet little contemporary research has been conducted on this surge’s effects on the TANF population. Existing research about the opioid crisis primarily focuses on its impact on the general population, while TANF-centered studies almost exclusively examine general substance use. Moreover, research shows opioid and substance use disorders pose significant barriers to employment for low-income individuals. Such an information gap makes it difficult to properly address TANF recipients’ needs for effective opioid use treatment. This interactive webinar explored how opioid use disorder affects TANF recipients and TANF-eligible individuals, as well as emerging strategies for assessing and treating these populations.

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), Administration for Children and Families (ACF), Office of Family Assistance (OFA), held the 2017 National Tribal Summit at the Renaissance Arlington Capital View Hotel in Arlington, Virginia on August 16-18, 2017. Sponsored by the Office of Family Assistance (OFA), the 2017 National Tribal TANF Summit brought together program administrators, stakeholders, and leaders. The event provided attendees with opportunities to interact with peers, hear from experts in the field, and share best practices and the latest self-sufficiency research, with the common goal of improving Tribal TANF programming to benefit families in need.

To help the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), Administration for Children and Families (ACF), Office of Family Assistance (OFA) better understand what is needed for organizations to successfully embed two-generation approaches in their service delivery, OFA created a year-long Community of Learning (COL) initiative to support 11 interested program teams from across the United States. Invited to participate were Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) programs, Tribal TANF/Child Welfare Collaboration (TTCW) grantees, Health Profession Opportunity Grants (HPOG) programs, and Healthy Marriage and Responsible Fatherhood (HMRF) programs. To mark the end of the year for the two-generation COL, OFA held the Two-Generation Community of Learning Capstone Event at the Hyatt Regency Bethesda Hotel in Bethesda, Maryland on September 18-20, 2017. This capstone and closeout of the COL brought together two-gen COL participants and provided them the opportunity to reflect on, celebrate, and acknowledge the progress that teams have made in implementing their whole family focus visions and strategies, as well as their next steps.