Western Michigan University is building an innovative program to make welcome those students who were raised in foster care and to help them earn their diplomas without having to shoplift or trespass over the holidays. Many of the students have comfortable apartments on the campus, and a hall was kept open over the holiday break for dorm residents…

The Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) program is growing at an unsustainable pace. Over the past 40 years the number of disabled worker beneficiaries has increased nearly sixfold, rising from 1.5 million in 1970 to 8.2 million in 2010. Rapid growth in the rolls has put increasing pressure on program finances. The rapid rise in SSDI…

"The Education of Eros: is the first and only comprehensive history of sexuality education and the "problem" of adolescent sexuality from the mid-20th century to the beginning of the 21st. It explores how professional health educators, policy makers, and social and religious conservatives differed in their approaches, and battled over what gets…

For many youth who emancipate or age out of the foster care system when they turn 18, homelessness and incarceration, not higher education, are often the alternatives, say child welfare experts. This article describes how Dr. Ronald Carter, president of Johnson C. Smith University (JCSU) in Charlotte, North Carolina, has made foster care a part of…

Children living in lower-income and poor families are more likely to suffer from poor physical and mental health, engage in risky and delinquent behaviors, fare worse academically, and drop out of school than children from more advantaged backgrounds. Higher income does not guarantee protection from these risks, but is associated with a range of…

For the people behind the Lumina Foundation for Education, the term "network" has particular meaning. In fact, largely as a result of their work in a national college awareness and action campaign called KnowHow2GO, they have come to define networks in a specific way--and they ask their KnowHow2GO grantees and partners to form networks…

Individuals With Disabilities Education Act Amendments of 1997 (IDEA) requires that parents and students be involved in all aspects of the transition planning and decision-making process, and most teachers recognize that this involvement is vital to success. To fully participate effectively, students and their family members need to become…

This practice brief profiles three programs, two statewide and one local, that provide work opportunities to Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) recipients who are participating in vocational education programs. The authors selected programs that combine vocational education and paid work because this strategy reinforces the emphasis of…

This report focuses on the seven original Youth Transition Demonstration (YTD) projects selected for funding in 2003. Three of the original seven projects were selected for a national random assignment evaluation in 2005; however, this report only focuses on program operations prior to joining the random assignment evaluation for the three…

Time limits on benefit receipt became a central feature of federal welfare policy in the 1996 Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act (PRWORA). Proponents of welfare reform argued that the time limits in the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) program, would send a firm message to recipients that welfare is…

Babies and young children in the child welfare system have a high prevalence for physical, cognitive, and social-emotional delays--and often don't have access to the services and supports that could make all the difference. This is the book that will help professionals go beyond abuse prevention and ensure comprehensive healthy development of…

On February 5, 2008, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) published the final rules implementing changes in the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) program made by the Deficit Reduction Act of 2005 (DRA). While these rules do not affect the overall statutory limitations on counting education and training toward the…

This brief examines how decreased program participation has affected poverty since welfare reform, reviewing changes in poverty from 1996-1998 and comparing families' current economic status with a scenario that assumes full participation in government support programs. Data come from the 1997 and 1999 National Surveys of America's Families (NSAF)…

Describes "Project Learn," a program at the University of Alabama at Birmingham to assist individuals in getting off welfare by obtaining productive employment. Discusses the five components of the program: (1) referral/screening, (2) job placement, (3) case management, (4) mentoring, and (5) educational/employability skills. Includes…

In 1996, the US Congress passed the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act, changing the culture of welfare from a system of dependency to one of personal responsibility and economic self-sufficiency through workplace participation. Through the expert views of case managers and area employers of Wisconsin, this research…