Recent research shows that when work and education programs are combined, low-income families have improved outcomes. This research is from MDRC and provides evaluation information from programs that include education components to increase earnings of low-wage workers. Specifically, performance-based scholarships can have a large positive effect on academic achievement among a single-parent student population that faces multiple barriers to completing college.

This Webinar, entitled “TANF Rule Implementing the DRA,” was sponsored by the United States Department of Health and Human Services, Administration for Children and Families, Office of Family Assistance. This Webinar featured staff from the Office of Family Assistance, who discussed major changes from the Interim Final to the Final Rule. The Final Rule takes effect on October 1, 2008, the beginning of fiscal year 2009.

New regulations to strengthen welfare reform were published February 5, 2008 in the Federal Register. The changes to the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) program will help move individuals off of the welfare rolls and into the workplace by giving states the flexibility to design their own effective welfare-to-work initiatives.

This newsletter is from the What Works Clearinghouse and provides an overview of the New Chance program. The program supports TANF recipients who have dropped out of school through GED preparation, life skill training, parenting programs, childcare assistance, and case management. New Chance was found to be successful in helping participants complete education.

This toolkit was authored by the Council for Labor and Economic Growth, Low Wage Worker Advancement Committee and provides information on how employers can support employees. Employers can often provide work supports to help retain workers by helping workers to build assets, which in turn, reduces employer turnover. Specifically, the Council provides strategies to help employers inform workers of asset building programs in the community.

This report is from the Hard-to-Employ Demonstration and Evaluation Project, which is funded by the Administration for Children and Families and the Office of Planning, Research and Evaluation within the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS). Specifically, this report provides information on the program, the research design, and an overview of the four participating programs.

This Webcast was sponsored by the National Governors’ Association and the American Public Human Services Association (APHSA). Researchers present finds from a national study of state TANF directors on the changes implemented as a result of the Deficit Reduction Act of 2005.

This document presents 2008 data from the Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates (SAIPE) program of the U.S. Census Bureau. The SAIPE program produces poverty estimates annually for all school districts in the United States, as well as poverty and median household income estimates annually for all counties and states.

Child support is crucial for supporting low-income families; it makes up on average about 30 percent of family income. Authored by the Congressional Research Service, this report addresses the effects of adopting the changes made through the Deficit Reduction Act in terms of child support pass-through and disregard. Authors review possible indirect behavioral effects of implementing this policy.

The National Governors Association sponsored a meeting in November 2007 on promising practices and evidence-based approaches to help families attain employment, advance to better jobs, and sustain self-sufficiency. This webpage provides an overview of presentations and event sessions from this meeting.