The promotion of marriage and two-parent families became an explicit public policy goal with the passage of the 1996 welfare reform bill. Marriage has the putative effect of reducing welfare dependency among single mothers, but only if they marry men with earnings sufficient to lift them and their children out of poverty. Newly released data from…

The promotion of marriage and two-parent families as a strategy to reduce welfare dependency continues to be a major public policy goal of the 1996 welfare reform. Based on the assumption that women will marry employed men and that their earnings will lift poor mothers and their children from public dependency, this objective raises important…

Utilizing a biographical approach and network analysis, this article examines one South Australian woman's life of public and Methodist social welfare service in the post-suffrage era. It is argued that although Kate Cocks (1875-1954) viewed her welfare work as "a God-given mission", as "practical Christian service", personal…

This article explores the politics surrounding the education of pregnant/mothering students. Utilizing Title IX, which guarantees the rights of pregnant/mothering students to an education equal to her peers, as an analytical lens, the author specifically identifies how absences in knowledge, research, and practice about the education of…

This report offers strategies to prevent unintended pregnancy in an era when the nation's welfare program has a changed mission, more money, and greater reach. The report discusses types of links between welfare offices and family planning services being developed in California, Georgia, and Washington, identifying barriers and challenges to…

Considers how different types of economic support, received soon after the birth of a first child, contribute to the later self-sufficiency of young, unmarried mothers. Findings suggest that certain economic supports assist these mothers and that life choices they make after their child's birth are important to self-sufficiency. (RJM)

The proceedings of a House of Representatives hearing on opportunities for self-sufficiency for single women in poverty are presented in this document. Included are statements presented by three panels consisting of experts in the field of welfare and employment policy, the General Accounting Office, and representatives of the National Association…

Analyzes public policy strategies to support single parent families with children in Western European countries. Compares and contrasts with American policy. (FMW)

This General Accounting Office study, commissioned by Daniel Patrick Moynihan, reflects concerns about rising caseloads and long-term dependence on welfare programs, such as Aid to Families with Dependent Children (AFDC). Attention has been focused the United State's welfare system, particularly on the rising number of teenage mothers. The forces…

The rapid impoverishment of women and their children has serious implications for the American family and for the nation. This report includes testimony before the Illinois Commission on the Status of Women from national and state representatives of women's organizations, social services agencies, advocacy groups, and civil rights organizations. A…

Although the vast majority of single mothers do not fit the description of an underclass, there is a small group of predominantly black single mothers concentrated in northern urban ghettos that is persistently weakly attached to the labor force, socially isolated, and reproducing itself. Although welfare programs are necessary for those who are…