OFA Webinar: Emerging Practices in Staff Training for TANF Programs

Record Description

As a part of the Systems to Family Stability (SFS) National Policy Academy technical assistance efforts, the Office of Family Assistance hosted a webinar on Emerging Practices in Staff Training for TANF Programs on Wednesday, September 21, 2016 at 3:00 PM ET, for the SFS sites, as well as the entire TANF field. Many Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) programs, and other programs serving low-income individuals and families, are seeking ways to better train their staff in the basics of providing public assistance benefits to needy families, which includes delivering curriculum on eligibility determination, data systems, developing comprehensive assessments and self-sufficiency plans, understanding executive functioning, and conducting motivational interviews. This webinar was designed to help the Systems to Family Stability National Policy Academy sites, the TANF field, and other human service system stakeholders understand how to assess their own training systems, become more familiar with components of effective training, and ultimately work to improve training systems in their state and local agencies. Presenters included: Lisa Washington-Thomas from the Office of Family Assistance; Carol Mizoguchi from the Office of Family Assistance, Bill Callahan from Washington State Department of Social and Health Services, and Charmaine Brittain with the Butler Institute for Families at the University of Denver.

Record Type
Posting Date
Combined Date
2016-09-21T11:00:00
Source
OFA Initiatives
SFS Category
Region
City/County
Publication Date
2016-08-31
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2016 OFA Regions I, II, III, and IV East Coast TANF Directors Meeting

Record Description

The 2016 Office of Family Assistance (OFA) Region I (Boston), Region II (New York), Region III (Philadelphia), and Region IV (Atlanta) East Coast TANF Directors Meeting was held on July 12‐14, 2016, in Providence, Rhode Island. The theme, Reflecting on the Past: Looking Forward to the Future, was an opportunity for TANF program directors and other key stakeholders to engage with peers about innovative ideas, strategies, and collaborations that promote economic and social well‐being for individuals, families, and communities. Meeting participants engaged with OFA leadership, their peers, and experts in the field to discuss some of the pressing challenges facing TANF participants and low‐income, vulnerable families today and ways that TANF programs can serve as a comprehensive support system for these families. Sessions focused on two‐generation approaches to breaking the cycle of poverty, TANF/WIOA coordination and implementation, career pathways and apprenticeships, targeting the hard‐to‐serve and executive functioning, and additional opportunities for TANF programs in 2016 and beyond. The context of these discussions was grounded in using data to measure program effectiveness and drive decision‐making.

OFA Releases FY 2015 TANF and MOE Financial Data

Record Description
This annual release from the Administration for Children and Families (ACF) draws on national data from fiscal year (FY) 2015 and shows that less than half of the $31.3 billion in TANF and maintenance-of-effort (MOE) funds were spent on the combination of basic assistance; work, education, and training activities; and child care. FY 2015 was the first year that states used a revised financial reporting form (ACF-196R), which clarifies and expands the list of expenditure categories and also improves the accounting methodology. This new level of detail shows that states spent about 15 percent of TANF and MOE funds on the combination of child welfare services, pre-kindergarten and Head Start programs, and services for children and youth.
Record Type
Posting Date
Combined Date
2016-08-14T20:00:00
Source
Region
City/County
Publication Date
2016-08-15

State of the Union: Poverty and Inequality Report, 2016

Record Description
The Poverty and Inequality Report from the Stanford Center on Poverty & Inequality examines the “state of the union” on poverty, inequality, and labor market outcomes. This annual report provides an analysis of evidence around such issues as poverty, employment, income inequality, health inequality, economic mobility, and educational access to allow for a comprehensive assessment of where the country stands.
Record Type
Posting Date
Combined Date
2015-12-31T19:00:00
Source
Region
City/County
Publication Date
2016-01-01

Webinar: Successful Collaborations between Child Support and TANF Programs

Record Description
Child Support and TANF programs work with many of the same clients and others, including noncustodial parents, who face similar and overlapping needs. Such needs may include increasing employment skills; removing barriers to employment; and addressing non-compliance with, or ability to pay, child support orders. There are a variety of ways these programs can work together to best support the families they serve. In this webinar, state programs shared processes for establishing and maintaining effective collaborations with key partners, enhanced services to incentivize participation and completion, recruitment and retention strategies, and other lessons learned. The webinar was held on August 23, 2016, from 1:00-2:30 p.m. ET.
Record Type
Posting Date
Combined Date
2016-08-23T09:00:00
Source
Region
City/County
Publication Date
2016-08-15
Section/Feed Type
Latest Information from Network (Home)

Improving Business Processes for Delivering Work Supports for Low-Income Families: Findings from the Work Support Strategies Evaluation

Record Description
This report by the Urban Institute describes findings of the Work Support Strategies (WSS) initiative, which helps states improve their service delivery, run programs more effectively, and modernize. Through technical assistance, grants, and peer learning, WSS aids state programs in Colorado, Idaho, Illinois, North Carolina, Rhode Island, and South Carolina. This report discusses business process redesign efforts undertaken by these states and the outcomes of these efforts.
Record Type
Posting Date
Combined Date
2016-02-29T19:00:00
Source
OFA Initiatives
SFS Category
Region
City/County
Publication Date
2016-03-01

Kentucky Community and Technical College System (KCTCS) Technical Assistance Request: Mobility Mentoring Essentials Training

Record Description

Kentucky has been providing education-focused and work participation-driven case management to the TANF population since 1998. The TA Requestor, Ms. Shauna King-Simms, Director of Transitional Education Programs at the Kentucky Community and Technical College System (KCTCS) heard a description of Crittenton Women’s Union’s (CWU’s) Mobility Mentoring® Model and was interested in integrating components of it into Kentucky’s program. Kentucky conducts similar case management activities with its Ready to Work and Work and Learn programs, but was interested in enhancing the current practices using this model. CWU is an economic mobility organization and the largest provider of transitional housing for homeless families in the greater Boston area. The organization provides job readiness training, parenting programs, and adult education. Almost 1,300 individuals are served each year. Ninety-two percent have a high school education or less. CWU’s clients are largely TANF participants with average earnings of $730 per month per family and the population is racially diverse. Their Mobility Mentoring® Model is the long-term developmental partnership between trained staff and program participants through which participants acquire the resources, knowledge, and skills necessary to attain and preserve economic independence.

The Kentucky Cabinet for Health and Family Services requested TA to support the integration of components of CWU’s Mobility Mentoring® Model for case management. The OFA PeerTA team agreed to support this request and created a TA plan with the following objectives:

  • Collaborate with CWU to provide Kentucky with a tailored, two-day training on CWU’s Mobility Mentoring® Model for their Ready to Work staff at the KCTCS system office in Versailles, Kentucky. The training was prepared to accommodate approximately 45 Kentucky Ready to Work staff and three staff from the Department for Community Based Services (a Kentucky TANF agency), with a maximum of 50 participants in total.
  • Support an outcomes-focused training that encourages implementation and sustainability of what is learned, so Kentucky can integrate the core concepts learned into their program(s) at a statewide level.
Record Type
Posting Date
Combined Date
2015-05-31T20:00:00
Source
Region
City/County
Publication Date
2015-06-01
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Attachment Size
Final Summary Report 255.86 KB

TANF Work Participation Rates, Fiscal Year 2014

Record Description
The TANF work participation rates for fiscal year (FY) 2014 have been released and posted on the OFA website. Nationwide, the overall work participation rate increased from 33.5 percent to 36.6 percent, and fewer states failed the work requirement in FY 2014 than in FY 2013. The national average overall rate for FY 2014 is 36.6 percent, up from 33.5 percent in FY 2013, while the two-parent rate is 30.8 percent, two percentage points lower than FY 2013’s 32.9 percent.
Record Type
Posting Date
Combined Date
2016-07-25T20:00:00
Source
Region
City/County
Publication Date
2016-07-26

Heartland Alliance’s National Initiatives on Poverty & Economic Opportunity Conference: A Nation that Works

Record Type
Posting Date
Combined Date
Sponsor
Heartland Alliance
Location
Chicago, Illinois
National/International
Topics/Subtopics
Event Date
-

National Conference of State Legislatures (NCSL) Legislative Summit

Record Type
Posting Date
Combined Date
Sponsor
National Conference of State Legislatures (NCSL)
Location
Chicago, Illinois
National/International
Topics/Subtopics
Event Date
-