September 2004
By:
Thomas M. Fraker, Dan M. Levy, Irma Perez-Johnson, Alan M. Hershey, Demetra
S. Nightingale, Robert B. Olsen, and Rita A. Stapulonis
Mathematica Policy Research, Inc.
Project Director: Alan Hershey
Submitted to:
U.S. Department of Health and Human
Services
Office of the Assistant Secretary for Planning
and Evaluation
Project Officer: Alana Landey
Contract No.: 100-98-0009
MPR Reference No.: 8550-122
This report is available on the Internet at:
http://aspe.hhs.gov/hsp/wtw-grants-eval98/final04/
Printer Friendly Version (in PDF format - 279 pages)
Executive Summary (PDF version - 13 pages)
References
Appendix A: Summary of the WtW Tribal Study
Appendix B: Supporting Exhibits for Chapters IV and V: Enrollee Outcomes, Based on Data From the Second Follow-Up Survey
Appendix C: Standard Errors for Estimates of Enrollee Outcomes Presented in Appendix B
Appendix D: Supporting Exhibits for Chapters II, IV, and V: Enrollee Outcomes, Based on Administrative Data
Appendix E: Supporting Exhibits for Chapter II: Characteristics of Enrollees at Program Entry
Appendix F: Survey Weights and Statistical Methods
Appendix G: Brief Summaries of Selected Reports on the National Evaluation of the WtW Grants Program
Appendix H: Comprehensive Bibliography of Reports on the National Evaluation of the WtW Grants Program
I.1 Summary of Evaluation Findings
I.2 Lessons Learned From the Evaluation Regarding Program Design and Implementation
II.1 Study Sites for the Welfare-to-Work Evaluation
II.2 Demographic Characteristics of Welfare-to-Work Enrollees at Program Entry
II.3 Labor Market Assets and Liabilities of Welfare-to-Work Enrollees at Program Entry
II.4 Cumulative Years of Welfare Receipt by WtW Enrollees at Program Entry
II.5 Rates of Tanf Receipt by WtW Enrollees During the Year Prior to Program Entry
II.6 Employment Rates for WtW Enrollees During the Year Prior to Program Entry
II.7 Comparison of Employment Rates Prior to Program Entry for WtW Enrollees and All Tanf Recipients
III.1 Study Sites Classified by Program Model, With Key Elements of Program Design
III.2 Percentage of WtW Enrollees Who Received Any Employment Preparation Services During the Year after Program Entry
III.3 Percentages of WtW Enrollees Who Received Specific Types of Employment Preparation Services During the Year after Program Entry
III.4 Percentage of WtW Enrollees Who Received Any Skill Enhancement Services (Education or Training) During the Year after Program Entry
III. 5 Percentages of WtW Enrollees Who Received Specific Types of Skill Enhancement Services During the Year after Program Entry
III.6 Receipt of Services and Duration Until First Job in Study Sites Classified by Program Model
IV.1 Mean Numberof Months Until WtW Enrollees' First Job after Program Entry
IV.2 Employment Rates And Earnings Before and after Program Entry: all WtW Enrollees
IV.3 Percentage of WtW Enrollees Employed Sometime During the First and Second Years after Program Entry
IV.4 Rates of Departure by WtW Enrollees from the Initial Jobs In the First and Second Years after Program Entry
IV.5 Circumstances of Departure by WtW Enrollees from the Initial Job In the Second Year after Program Entry
IV.6 Percentages of WtW Enrollees Employed at Program Entry, one Year Later, and Two Years Later
IV.7 Mean Hourly Wage on the Principal Job Held by WtW Enrollees Two Years after Program Entry
IV.8 Change Between First and Second Year after Program Entry in Mean Hourly Wage on the Principal Job
IV.9 Percentages of WtW Enrollees With Fringe Benefits on the Principal Job Held Two Years after Program Entry
IV.10 Differences in Paid Leave on the Principal Jobs Held one and Two Years after Program Entry
IV.11 Differences in Health insurance and Pension Coverage on the Principal Jobs Held one and Two Years after Program Entry
IV.12 Mean Hours of Work on the Principal Job Held by WtW Enrollees Two Years after Program Entry
IV.13 Percentages of WtW Enrollees Satisfying the Tanf 30 Hrs./Wk. Work Requirement one and Two Years after Program Entry
IV.14 Perentage Distribution of WtW Enrollees by Hours Worked on All Jobs Two Years after Program Entry
V.1 Percentages of WtW Enrollees Who Received Assistance Through Support Networks During the Second Year after Program Entry
V.2 Percentages of WtW Enrollees Who Were Receiving Tanf Or Any Government Assistance Two Years after Program Entry
V.3 Tanf and Food Stamp Participation Rates Before and after Program Entry: Early WtW Enrollees
V.4 Changes in the Receipt of Ssi/Ssdi and Any Government Assistance Between the First and Second Years after Program Entry
V.5 Percentage Distribution of WtW Enrollees by Receipt of Tanf and Employment 2 Years after Program Entry
V.6 Changes in Employment and the Receipt of Tanf Between the First and Second Years after Program Entry
V.7 Mean Monthly Household income of WtW Enrollees, by Source, Two Years after Program Entry
V.8 Incidence of Household Poverty and Severe Poverty Among WtW Enrollees Two Years after Program Entry
V.9 Incidence of Household Poverty Among WtW Enrollees, by Employment Status, Two Years after Program Entry
V.10 Index of Material Distress Experienced During the Year by WtW Enrollees and their Households
V.11 Percentages of WtW Enrollees Who Experienced Either of Two forms of Homelessness During the Second Year after Program Entry
V.12 Percentages of WtW Enrollees and their Children Who Were Covered by Health insurance Two Years after Program Entry
V.13 Changes in Homelessness Among WtW Enrollees Between the First and Second Years after Program Entry
V.14 Changes in Health insurance Coverage Among WtW Enrollees and their Children Between the First and Second Years after Program Entry
This is the final report on a congressionally mandated evaluation of the Welfare-to-Work (WtW) grants program. Mathematica Policy Research, inc., (MPR) and its subcontractors the Urban institute (UI) and Support Services international (SSI), conducted the evaluation under contract with the office of the Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation (ASPE) in the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS). The authors of this report wish to acknowledge the contributions of many individuals at these organizations and elsewhere who contributed to the evaluation.
Much of the quantitative data for the evaluation were collected by MPR through surveys of WtW grantees and the individuals that they served. Shawn Marsh and todd Ensor were instrumental in conducting these surveys under the general direction of Rita Stapulonis. Jason Markesich was responsible for the system used to enroll individuals in the evaluation. Amang Sukasih, Sonya Vartivarian, Esther Friedman, and Donsig Jang designed and implemented procedures for weighting the survey data to be representative of all WtW enrollees in the study sites and for variance estimation. Daisy Ewell and Julie Sykes performed the statistical programming that was required to analyze data from the surveys and from state administrative systems.
Staff of the Urban institute had primary responsibility for collecting and analyzing qualitative data for the evaluation through visits to the study sites. the UI process analysis site visit team included Terri Thompson, Nancy Pindus, Carolyn O'Brien, Pamela Holcomb, Lynne Fender, Edgar Lee, and Jesse Valente. John Trutko of Capital Research Associates was also a member of the UI site visit team. Michael Eigner of UI and Deo Bencio of MPR conducted the programming for the analysis of the site visit data. Karin Martinson, also of UI, was a coauthor of an early report on WtW-funded services for noncustodial parents.
At MPR, Debra Strong, Michelle VanNoy, Jacqueline Kauff, Jeanne Bellotti, and Charles Nagatoshi also conducted process analysis site visits and were coauthors of many of the reports prepared under this evaluation. the late Walter Corson conducted quality assurance reviews of many of the evaluation reports, while Paul Decker performed that role for this final report. Caitlin Johnson edited this report and Alfreda Holmes produced it.
Walter Hillabrant and his colleagues at SSI, Mack Rhoades Jr. and Judy Earp, conducted this evaluation's targeted study of tribal WtW programs, resulting in four reports.
This evaluation received valuable support for staff with several U.S. Government agencies. in particular, Alana Landey, the ASPE project officer, gave consistently good advice and guidance over the full life of the evaluation. Useful comments on this and other reports on the evaluation were provided by Canta Pian and Kelleen Kaye at ASPE and by staff from other collaborating federal agencies, including Christine Cremer, Dennis Lieberman, and Roxie Nicholson at the Department of Labor; Ken Maniha at the Administration for Children and Families, HHS; and Mark Shroder at the Department of Housing and Urban Development.
Finally, we would like to thank the many administrators and staff of the local WtW-funded programs who contributed to this evaluation by providing information on their programs and assisting in the collection of baseline data on WtW participants, and the systems analysts who provided this evaluation with data from state administrative records.
To obtain a printed copy of this report, send the title and your mailing information to:
Human Services Policy, Room 404EFax: (202) 690-6562
You may also print the PDF version (279 pages).
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Last updated: 04/11/07