The Welfare and Family Self-Sufficiency Learning Agenda (WFSSLA) was developed by the Office of Planning, Research and Evaluation’s Division of Economic Independence and the Office of Family Assistance (OFA). It guides the development and execution of the Division and OFA’s activities to learn how TANF and other human services best support the self-sufficiency and economic well-being of children and families with low incomes. The WFSSLA includes briefs for workstreams, or focal domains, to build knowledge about effectively fostering family economic security, stability, and self-sufficiency. Each brief synthesizes learning to date in that area based on key Division of Economic Independence projects; discusses select remaining gaps in knowledge; lists learning questions to inform future learning activities; and includes a table listing current Division projects pertaining to the workstream.

The Skills and Experience for the Careers of Tomorrow (SECTOR) program provides employment and training services, cognitive behavioral interventions, and connections to mental health and substance use disorder services for people with previous legal system involvement. It uses a sector-based approach, which connects individuals to training opportunities that offer a livable wage, career advancement opportunities, and benefits for job seekers. The model anticipates that behavioral health, well-being, employment, and earnings improvements will reduce future interactions with the criminal legal system. This MDRC report presents the findings of the SECTOR program evaluation as part of the Los Angeles County Reentry Integrated Services Project. The evaluation focuses mainly on employment and criminal legal system contact and whether SECTOR successfully connects individuals to mental health and substance use disorder services.

In 2014, three Ohio community colleges set out to adapt a developmental student support model pioneered by the City University of New York (CUNY) called Accelerated Study in Associate Programs (ASAP). This program requires students to attend school full time and provides support services for three years, including enhanced advising, financial aid, and career counseling, to help them graduate with an associate’s degree quickly. In this Evidence First podcast episode, MDRC talks with Christine Brongniart, the University Executive Director of CUNY ASAP, and Colleen Sommo, a senior research fellow in MDRC’s Postsecondary Education policy area, to learn more about the replication of CUNY ASAP and the latest findings from MDRC’s study of the Ohio program, including increased earnings and doubled graduation rates.

A work-based learning quagmire has arisen related to SNAP. Benefit recipients enrolled in subsidized work-based learning programs offered through their SNAP Employment and Training (E&T) are paid a reasonable wage in these transitional jobs; as a result, they are no longer eligible for SNAP and are forced off their training program. This sudden and unexpected decrease in or loss of government benefits that often occurs with an increase in wages is referred to as a benefit cliff. This American Public Human Services Association brief explains work-based learning and how it differs from unsubsidized employment, as well as possible solutions to benefit cliffs.

WorkforceGPS will host a virtual session on September 13, 2023 from 2:00 p.m. to 3:00 p.m. EDT to discuss how to expand relationships with employer sponsors for apprenticeships. This webinar will highlight the risks of relying on a single contact for planning, such as lack of expansion, decreased enrollments, or potential termination due to internal shifts or turnover while uncovering strategies for securing leadership buy-in.

Students who face barriers to success need accessible pathways to economic mobility, but low income and low tolerance for debt present challenges. Strategies at all levels of education, as well as after they enter the workforce, could provide support to achieving their career goals. This Urban Institute report describes results from a survey of career and technical education program administrators, with insights about strategies that can support students in getting jobs that offer pathways to economic stability and long-term upward mobility.

Unemployment insurance (UI) exists to provide temporary partial wage replacement during periods of involuntary unemployment while beneficiaries are actively seeking reemployment. The Reemployment Services and Eligibility Assessments (RESEA) program provides UI eligibility assessments and reemployment services to beneficiaries. This Upjohn report provides an evaluation plan, including a logic model, for PY 2020 for the state of Maryland. It also outlines anticipated ways that future annual RESEA evaluations can build on evidence about program and services impacts as well as special evaluations of program and services refinements and extensions.

Team-based case management is an innovative approach that removes redundancies and emphasizes coordination across the multiple organizations that may be serving the same participant. This guide describes how team-based case management can benefit SNAP E&T participants and provides an implementation checklist and resources for State agencies considering this approach. It highlights innovative approaches from Kentucky, Vermont, and Washington, highlighting how each State adopted team-based case management during the 2014 Farm Bill E&T pilot projects.

Economic Mobility Pathways will host a virtual session on September 27, 2023 from 3:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m. EDT during which youth-centered programs will share their innovative strategies in the outreach, engagement, and implementation of holistic economic mobility coaching practices for youth and young parents. Topics include differences in goal setting, community building, managing burnout, and more.

Workforce GPS will host a virtual session on September 11, 2023 from 3:30 p.m. to 4:30 p.m. EDT that will provide an overview of the many professional development resources available to veteran service providers through National Veterans’ Training Institute. Staff from the Employment and Training Administration, the Veterans’ Employment and Training Service, and Management Concepts will provide a refresher on the roles and responsibilities of workforce development staff to ensure effective, integrated, and seamless service delivery to veterans.