Youth who receive Supplemental Security Income (SSI) benefits experience disparate educational, employment, and economic outcomes when compared to youth with disabilities who do not receive these entitlements. Promoting the Readiness of Minors in Supplemental Security Income (PROMISE) was a 6-year national research demonstration project that…

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…

Tests of a sample of 106 welfare recipients in Arkansas found that 53 percent were literate, contrary to the federal assumption that most recipients are illiterate. Concludes that specific job training and specific occupational literacy, rather than general literacy, programs would best meet the needs of the unemployed. (DM)

In response to federal welfare reform legislation, Arkansas created the Transitional Employment Assistance (TEA) program in April 1997. The goal of this Kids Count report is to increase awareness regarding issues underlying the early implementation of TEA, focusing on caseload reductions, demographic composition of the caseload, level of support…

In 1997, the Transitional Employment Assistance (TEA) program was established in Arkansas as the state's version of welfare reform. Although there has been a 44 percent decrease in TEA cash assistance since the program's inception, questions continue regarding the impact of welfare reform on families with children. This report highlights some of…

A STUDY WAS DESIGNED TO DETERMINE THE EFFECTS OF AN ENRICHMENT PROGRAM ON THE INTELLIGENCE SCORES, PERSONALITY, AND SCHOLASTIC ACHIEVEMENT SCORES OF ELEMENTARY SCHOOL CHILDREN. THE SUBJECTS CONSISTED OF 574 CHILDREN, 222 OF WHOM ARE WELFARE RECIPIENTS, IN THE FIRST, SECOND, AND THIRD GRADES IN THREE RURAL ARKANSAS SCHOOLS. ONE SCHOOL, THE…

Access to affordable, quality child care is a major barrier to successful employment for many families. About one-fifth of families return to welfare within a few months of leaving, with lack of accessible child care and transportation being the most frequently cited reasons. These issues are likely to be compounded in the rural South. Information…

This document examines microenterprise development as an employment option for Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) recipients. The document begins with a brief discussion of the feasibility of self-employment as an option for TANF recipients, particularly in a slow economy. The next section answers policy questions pertaining to the…

A study of 3 schools in a severely impoverished rural Arkansas school district sought to determine the effects of an enrichment program initiated in one of the schools. Efforts were also made to determine and compare the achievement and resultant gains in intelligence, personality, and academic advancement of welfare recipient and non recipient…

Using data from several government and private sources and interviews with working families, this report examines the Arkansas economy, how Arkansas working families have fared economically in recent years, and their current challenges. The report offers suggestions about how the state can provide the tools families need to continue to move up the…