When people struggle to make ends meet, public benefit programs have the potential to help them meet their basic needs for food, housing, health care, and cash. Yet many families and individuals do not participate in the programs that could help…

The COVID-19 pandemic has been especially challenging for American families with children. The U.S. Surgeon General as well as the American Academy of Pediatrics, the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, and the Children’s…

The Health Profession Opportunity Grants (HPOG) program offers education, training, support services, and employment assistance to prepare Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) recipients and other adults with low incomes for occupations…

This report summarizes the design and implementation of MyGoals for Employment Success (MyGoals), an experimental employment coaching demonstration program, launched in early 2017. The program aims to help recipients of housing assistance in…

Over 3.2 million North Carolinians are poor or near poor, and many more experience economic instability and challenges over time. This report examines the ways that women in North Carolina are caught in the crosshairs of irreconcilable social and…

There are more than 2.5 million children in the U.S. growing up in “grandfamilies,” meaning they are being raised by relatives (grandparents, aunts, uncles, siblings, etc.) or close family friends without their parents in the home. Research shows…

When the COVID-19 pandemic forced schools to close, everything changed. Many meal providers found themselves rapidly adapting their operations to reach kids in their communities. This report presents innovations in child nutrition programs…

Largely due to the opioid crisis, the federal government has increased its focus on and funding for programs that address both treatment and employment outcomes for people with substance use disorder (SUD). Programs that combine employment…

The COVID-19 pandemic and its economic fallout have caused major disruptions for many workers and their families, particularly individuals working in jobs with low wages. This report and its accompanying brief summarize the experiences that 41…

Human-Centered Design (HCD) is a process and a mindset for addressing complex problems by designing solutions with those who will ultimately use the solution (i.e., end users). Because of its inherent focus on end users or recipients of services…