Studying large public social programs can be a challenge for social scientists. Recent technological developments have allowed researchers to use big data — data sets that combine survey and administrative data — to examine how social programs work…

The Urban Institute was contracted by a Washington State housing authority to evaluate its 2013-2016 Student and Family Stability Initiative that provided supportive housing and employment to homeless or vulnerable families with elementary-aged…

This blog post from the Administration for Children and Families (ACF) provides an overview of conversations about ACF priorities that staff had at the recent American Public Human Services Association’s 2018 National Health and Human Services…

This report from the Office of the Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation is a required annual report to Congress on indicators and predictors of welfare dependence. The report provides data on benefits provided only by Temporary Assistance…

This blog post from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services is the fourth installment of the “Self-Sufficiency Series: Solutions from the Field” and highlights Children First SHARP (Supporting Parents, Holistic Case Management, Access to…

This report from the Urban Institute shares the experiences of women who have received TANF cash assistance for more than five years in the District of Columbia. Recently, the District changed their policy to do away with the five-year time limit…

This brief from the Urban Institute explores building evidence capacity within federal agencies, which has been identified as a priority within the 2017 report from the bipartisan Commission on Evidence-Based Policymaking created by Congress. The…

This report from the Department of Labor provides an overview of the state of the field related to career pathways programs. The report provides a synthesis of the existing research in the field on this type of program, offers various research…

This report from the Office of Planning, Research and Evaluation (OPRE) describes major welfare and family self-sufficiency research that was sponsored by OPRE in Fiscal Year 2017. The five areas of research explored by OPRE projects are: Temporary…