This case statement highlights the American Job Center in Central Pennsylvania (PA CareerLink®), which provides employment services to TANF (through the Employment Advancement Retention Network or EARN) and WIOA clients. With support from specialized staff at each step of the job seeking process, clients can access Job Connections workshops, assistance from job developers, and employer engagement opportunities. This PA CareerLink® also offers adult basic education services and a designated van to provide transportation assistance, among other services, for EARN clients.

Sections of the brief discuss joint service delivery, resource sharing, shared learning, and managing collaborative activities. Readers may also access links to the state TANF plan and funding information for more context and resources. This brief is part of the TANF Works! TANF/WIOA Collaboration Series, through which the Office of Family Assistance’s Integrating Innovative Employment and Economic Stability Strategies (IIEESS) initiative seeks to highlight innovative coordination strategies of TANF and WIOA programs to serve low-income or vulnerable populations.

Leadership and frontline staff in Adams and Jefferson Counties are making intentional changes to coordinate employment services for TANF and WIOA clients within their respective counties. This brief highlights joint TANF-WIOA efforts in each site, including the alignment of job readiness workshop content, the development of shared tools for tracking clients’ job placement, and cross-funded opportunities for both TANF and non-TANF clients (e.g., Adams County’s diversion program and Jefferson County’s information technology job training program). Through joint efforts and resource sharing, the Workforce Centers are working to break down silos between agencies as well as barriers faced by clients.

Sections of the brief discuss joint service delivery, resource sharing, shared learning, and managing collaborative activities. Readers may also access links to the state TANF plan and funding information for more context and resources. This brief is part of the TANF Works! TANF/WIOA Collaboration Series, through which the Office of Family Assistance’s Integrating Innovative Employment and Economic Stability Strategies (IIEESS) initiative seeks to highlight innovative coordination strategies of TANF and WIOA programs to serve low-income or vulnerable populations.

The International Economic Development Council (IEDC) will host a webinar on September 19, 2019 from 2:30 p.m. to 4:00 p.m. ET to identify and build workforce strategies that target underserved populations as part of a large economic development approach for communities. Presentations will be made by representatives from the Institute for Work and the Economy, Mid-America Regional Council, the National Skills Coalition, and the Brighton Center (a social service agency). Registration fees are required for both IEDC members and non-IEDC members.

This National League of Cities issue brief identifies the challenges that mental illness, substance abuse, and homelessness present to local communities. The brief profiles innovative approaches that city leaders have taken, including first responder-provider partnerships, first responder-led referral programs, and regional dedicated emergency psychiatric facilities. Examples are presented of how these approaches are tailored to the unique community needs in Seattle, Washington; Gloucester, Massachusetts; and Alameda County, California.

This Office of Planning, Research and Evaluation brief reviews the state of data availability and data quality related to community connections for home visitations. The brief identifies data sources that are available to stakeholders as well as data sets not readily accessible (for example, the number of clients referred for services) and the data not available but desired (such as the capacity or quality of community service providers). There is discussion about future opportunities to improve data availability, accessibility, and quality.

This Institute for Research on Poverty brief is a summary of an impact and benefit-cost analysis of the Child Support Noncustodial Parent Employment Demonstration Program (CSPED). Participating parents were given additional employment services to support economic self-sufficiency with the goal of increasing child support compliance. Analysis findings concluded that satisfaction with the child support system improved substantially for noncustodial parents when a customized approach was utilized; there were modest gains in child support enforcement compliance, earnings, and parenting. While short-term implementation costs outweighed benefits, it was expected that there would be more benefits than costs in the longer term.

This Casey Family Programs research to practice brief provides analysis about the costs of child maltreatment and the financial benefit of prevention and early intervention services. The study identifies the costs for children who experience abuse or neglect, including the risk of involvement with the criminal justice system, developmental delays, substance abuse challenges, low academic achievement, delinquency, and teen pregnancy, as well as diminished wages and future productivity. It also offers brief summaries of child maltreatment prevention and intervention programs and return on investment for these programs with Title IV-E funds directed by the Family First Prevention Services Act.

This Office of Planning, Research and Evaluation report examines the Minnesota Subsidized and Transitional Employment Demonstration (MSTED) program that is designed to increase employment outcomes for persons who receive benefits for more than six months under the state’s Minnesota Family Investment Program (Minnesota’s TANF program). This implementation study looked at the outcomes from November 2014 to December 2016 in three counties to identify gains in employment and earnings, reduced receipt of public assistance, and overall well-being. The study also analyzed how participants and employers experienced the program in terms of engagement and retention.

ASCEND at the Aspen Institute will host a webinar on August 28, 2019 from 4:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m. ET to discuss the implementation of the Restoring Education and Learning (REAL) Act. The REAL Act restores Pell Grant eligibility for incarcerated individuals, so that they can pursue postsecondary education. ASCEND representatives will moderate this webinar, which will feature presentations by representatives from the College and Community Fellowship, Vera Institute of Justice, and New York City Housing Authority.

This blogpost by the Deputy Assistant Secretary for Native American Affairs states that grant funded programs under the Administration for Native Americans support 187 projects. Program areas include the Social and Economic Development Strategies grant program, the Esther Martinez Immersion program, the Native Language Preservation and Maintenance program that supports survival of Native American languages and education, and the Environmental Regulatory Enhancement program that builds capacities of native organizations to protect tribes’ natural environments.