The Administration for Children and Families' Office of Family Assistance (OFA) hosted the "Strategies to Assist Noncustodial Parents in Improving Economic Well-Being" webinar. This webinar showcased several programs making headway in this area. TANF programs and their safety-net partners increasingly understand the importance of engaging noncustodial parents while also holding them accountable for the economic and social growth of their children. Barriers such as unemployment, underemployment, or incarceration can hinder noncustodial parents from providing for their children even when many want to do so. The Webinar featured three programs.

1. North Dakota PRIDE is a partnership between North Dakota's Department of Human Services, Job Service North Dakota, the Child Support Enforcement Division, and eight judicial district courts throughout the state. The program refers parents with unpaid child support obligations to Job Service North Dakota for employment support.

2. Kansas Child Support Savings Initiative is a partnership between Kansas Child Support Services and the state Treasurer's Office to empower noncustodial parents to save money for their children's education. Noncustodial parents open 529 savings accounts for their children and for every dollar they put into the account, the State reduces their child support arrears by two dollars.

3. Couples Advancing Together is a program of the Center for Urban Families in Baltimore, Maryland that provides employment development, case management services, and healthy relationship skills training to couples with children who currently receive public benefits through the Maryland Department of Social Services. Completion of the Couples Advancing Together program qualifies participants for a 10% reduction in any child support arrears they owe to the State of Maryland, which is helpful to those who are noncustodial parents to children outside their primary family unit.

The Bureau of Labor Statistics released a spotlight web feature that provides statistics about wages and jobs in the United States. The feature pulls data from the Occupational Employment Statistics program and emphasizes STEM jobs. Users are able to view spotlight occupational data by required educational level.

The Pew Research Center outlines the characteristics of U.S. fathers who lived with their children younger than 18 in 2012 and did not work outside the home. The report juxtaposes this information with counterparts in earlier years and includes Census data about this population since 1989. Authors of the report also compare the characteristics of stay-at-home fathers with fathers who work for pay outside the home, as well as with stay-at-home mothers.

The Federal Reserve Board released a report that explores the ongoing decline of the labor force participation rate in the United States. The report provides analyses of the sources that may have contributed to the decline in the participation rate over the last decade and outlines a number of policy implications.

The Center for Law and Social Policy released a report that analyzed 2013 Census data and determined that the national poverty rate fell by half of a percentage point. Authors of the report noted that poverty for children was down by almost two percentage points, but still noted that children and young adults still face the greatest risks. The report includes a series of next steps to further address poverty among children, young adults, and families, including strengthening the safety net, ensuring parents can work and raise children, and improving pathways to education and careers.

The Institute for Research on Poverty released a policy brief that explores additional ways to encourage self-sufficiency and well-being among vulnerable families beyond employment. Authors of the brief highlight training and education systems, information and incentives for community colleges, and on-the-job training at the secondary school level as potential cost-effective ways to build skills and earnings among this demographic.

The Bureau of Labor Statistics released a guide on occupations in the United States. Users may filter by pay amount, education level, and projected number of open jobs.

The Employment and Training Administration, Department of Labor released a mentoring guidebook to be used within local workforce programs and agencies. The authors indicate that youth are more likely to achieve positive outcomes in academics, social settings, career development, health, and safety if they have supportive relationships with older adults. The guidebook is intended to assist in development and implementation of mentorship programs to improve employment, education, and training outcomes among youth.

This report compiles and analyzes information from seven father self-sufficiency/employment programs that were rigorously evaluated. Common implementation themes emerged, including: partnering with job placement and other agencies to serve low-income fathers; enabling vocational specialists to assist fathers on a one-to-one basis; offering a comprehensive range of services to help fathers overcome self-sufficiency barriers; and using incentives to recruit fathers.

The Literacy Information and Communication Systems (LINC) Initiative, under the U.S. Department of Education established the Moving Pathways Forward: Supporting Career Pathways initiative to assist States in advancing career pathways systems that support low-skilled adults who are transitioning to postsecondary education and employment. This three-year initiative provides career pathways resources for interested stakeholders, as well as offer technical assistance to States.