The Kansas Department for Children and Families is improving employment retention for participants in its Successful Families Program (TANF) with a new staffing strategy. By creating the specialized roles of “Career Navigators” and “Transitional Retention Specialists,” the program offers TANF participants individualized career development services, connections to employers and employment opportunities, and post-employment services to help navigate the cliff effect and support job retention.

This brief is part of the Emerging Practice Series of the Office of Family Assistance’s Integrating Innovative Employment and Economic Stability Strategies (IIEESS) initiative, which highlights the strategies of TANF agencies and their partners to help low-income individuals gain and sustain meaningful employment. Each brief describes an emerging practice that has been implemented in one site, an overview of the program model, and the results that have been achieved. Compelling stories of participants’ success and suggestions from TANF agency staff to their peers provide actionable insights and on-the-ground perspectives.

The Oklahoma Department of Human Services has adopted an innovative approach to preparing Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) participants for employment: fully integrating relationship skills education into its work readiness program. By transforming its TANF orientation process to focus on soft skills development and navigating workplace relationships, the agency’s integrated approach is laying a foundation for helping TANF participants obtain and sustain employment.

This brief is part of the Emerging Practice Series of the Office of Family Assistance’s Integrating Innovative Employment and Economic Stability Strategies (IIEESS) initiative, which highlights the strategies of TANF agencies and their partners to help low-income individuals gain and sustain meaningful employment. Each brief describes an emerging practice that has been implemented in one site, an overview of the program model, and the results that have been achieved. Compelling stories of participants’ success and suggestions from TANF agency staff to their peers provide actionable insights and on-the-ground perspectives.

Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) programs play a critical role in helping families move toward employment, stability, and long-term economic mobility, including through the use of career pathways, which are connected sequences of education, training, and work experiences that help individuals progress through chosen fields. STAR has created a catalog of career pathway toolkits to help TANF programs plan career pathway initiatives. 

To accompany the Career Pathways Toolkit Catalog, these Starter Pathways are designed to help TANF administrators and staff navigate the toolkits more efficiently and intentionally. 

Users can begin with Starter Pathways to identify where to start planning based on their role and quickly access the most relevant toolkit sections based on their career pathways goals.

This National Center for Diligent Recruitment resource describes what it means to build a “Kin-First” child welfare system that prioritizes placing children with relatives or familiar caregivers when out-of-home care is needed. It offers principles and practices for supporting kin caregivers with the right resources and engagement. TANF programs can use the kin-first framework to inform partnerships and service planning, especially when working with relatives raising children by aligning cash assistance, work supports, and family stability services with kinship-centered approaches.

This resource from the Grandfamilies & Kinship Support Network explains how Family First Prevention Services Act reimbursement can be used for services that help Native children and families before deeper child welfare involvement occurs. It offers practical guidance on eligible programs and supports that honor traditions and community strengths. For TANF programs serving Native families, this can inform cross-system coordination and funding alignment — helping connect participants to culturally grounded supports that reinforce family wellbeing alongside TANF’s economic goals.

This Child Welfare Playbook strategy highlights the value of tribal family coaches – community-based supports who work with families to navigate systems, build strengths, and connect to resources in culturally grounded ways. For TANF programs serving Native communities, this strategy provides a practical idea for how partnerships and staffing models can be designed to improve engagement, trust, and access to supports that promote both economic stability and family strengthening. Integrating or aligning with family coach roles can enhance service responsiveness and outcomes.

The Administration for Children and Families (ACF) and the State of Iowa are launching a first-of-its-kind partnership to modernize Iowa’s child welfare information system, creating a new, user-friendly technology platform designed to improve caseworker efficiency and strengthen services for children and families. This initiative is built on user-centered design and robust data and aims to free frontline staff from outdated systems, enabling better decision-making that supports family stability and permanency. Alongside the launch of ACF’s new Child Welfare Technology Incubator to help other states scale similar innovations, this effort aligns with broader federal goals to improve outcomes and keep families safely together.

The Office of Family Assistance (OFA) is excited to offer the opportunity to receive technical assistance on strengthening employment and relational outcomes for Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) participants by integrating new and effective approaches for meeting the economic and social needs of families. State and Tribal TANF programs and their partner organizations that support TANF purposes are welcome to express interest in receiving technical assistance to strengthen employment and relational outcomes of customers.

The Family Routes Initiative supports the integration of evidence-based Healthy Marriage and Responsible Fatherhood (HMRF) practices, approaches that help build and sustain healthy marriages, strengthen positive father-child interactions, and build skills employers seek (e.g., soft skills, goal setting, self-regulation, accountability, and personal responsibility).

What Does the Family Routes Initiative Offer?

Selected participants may receive:

• Tailored assistance aligned to program goals and context
• Support adapting evidence-based HMRF practices for local needs
• Practical tools and resources to strengthen family outcomes

To express interest, please contact: familyroutes@deloitte.com.

This California Department of Financial Protection and Innovation guide provides practical tips for couples on managing money together. It covers how to communicate about finances, set shared goals, create a budget, and decide whether to combine or separate accounts. TANF programs can share this resource with participants to help strengthen financial communication, planning, and teamwork in households to support family stability and long-term economic security.