http://www.mdrc.org Welfare & Barriers to Employment Publications, Fast Facts, Issue Focus Briefs, and Videos from MDRC us-en © 2007 MDRC 2010-06-23 Brad Petrie <brad.petrie@mdrc.org> Brad Petrie <brad.petrie@mdrc.org> http://www.mdrc.org/images/site/nav_logo.gif http://www.mdrc.org http://www.mdrc.org/sps/go.cgi?c=4labTad9095d6WrYpuhE This report presents the final implementation and impact findings for 12 programs in the national Employment Retention and Advancement project, sponsored by the federal Administration for Children and Families. These programs attempted to promote steady work and career advancement for current and former welfare recipients and other low-wage workers, most of whom were single mothers. http://www.mdrc.org/sps/go.cgi?c=46Nyg93C93UmC4_hVziG Interim results from a random assignment evaluation of the National Guard Youth ChalleNGe Program, an intensive, residential program for high school dropouts, show that young people who had access to ChalleNGe were much more likely than those in the control group to have obtained a high school diploma or a General Educational Development certificate. They were also somewhat more likely to be working, in college, or enlisted in the military. http://www.mdrc.org/sps/go.cgi?c=zt48D2XstP2V5VuYV6AE This policy brief offers early findings from a demonstration testing whether earlier access to health care and related services for new Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) beneficiaries who lack health care coverage would lead to improved outcomes. So far, the intervention has increased the use of health care services and reduced the reported unmet health care needs of the project participants. http://www.mdrc.org/sps/go.cgi?c=nuf3Lth8WSKyEoIF9Lf0 Nearly one in seven 18- and 19-year-olds are disconnected from the worlds of school and work. In a labor market that values education and skills, these young people are at a serious disadvantage. How can we build on the early promise of several current youth programs? http://www.mdrc.org/sps/go.cgi?c=SZ4epgbtxvK0DxKxXOPl The size and costs of the two largest federal disability programs, Social Security Disability Insurance and Supplemental Security Income, have increased dramatically in the last decade. Can more disability beneficiaries work and reduce their dependence on cash assistance -- without increasing poverty? http://www.mdrc.org/sps/go.cgi?c=g4hMtplof90hlJjhn2HF Many local, state, and federal agencies have mounted ambitious reentry initiatives to reduce recidivism among the 700,000 people who are released from prison each year, but there is little hard evidence about which approaches are effective. While a handful of rigorous studies are underway -- and some promising results are starting to emerge -- a much larger, more systematic series of evaluations is needed. http://www.mdrc.org/sps/go.cgi?c=gSYNzf83_dPUaYCnjbFY The most effective strategy for increasing welfare recipients employment and earnings is neither to help them find jobs first nor to encourage them to enroll in education and training programs first. Find out what works best in this seven-minute video presentation, which summarizes the findings from 16 years of rigorous research in sites across the country. http://www.mdrc.org/sps/go.cgi?c=fgGIw6vryyl8XMZzUqHd http://www.mdrc.org/sps/go.cgi?c=TgtScBOQAkcrWbgjJ4h_ http://www.mdrc.org/sps/go.cgi?c=dSRedMUYFXLHq98OpOh3