To help the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), Administration for Children and Families (ACF), Office of Family Assistance (OFA) better understand what is needed for organizations to successfully embed two-generation approaches in their service delivery, OFA created a year-long Community of Learning (COL) initiative to support 11 interested program teams from across the United States. Invited to participate were Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) programs, Tribal TANF/Child Welfare Collaboration (TTCW) grantees, Health Profession Opportunity Grants (HPOG) programs, and Healthy Marriage and Responsible Fatherhood (HMRF) programs. To mark the end of the year for the two-generation COL, OFA held the Two-Generation Community of Learning Capstone Event at the Hyatt Regency Bethesda Hotel in Bethesda, Maryland on September 18-20, 2017. This capstone and closeout of the COL brought together two-gen COL participants and provided them the opportunity to reflect on, celebrate, and acknowledge the progress that teams have made in implementing their whole family focus visions and strategies, as well as their next steps.

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), Administration for Children and Families (ACF), Office of Family Assistance (OFA), held the Linking Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) Families to Employment and Economic Opportunities Meeting at the Renaissance Arlington Capital View Hotel in Arlington, Virginia on August 14-16, 2017. This meeting allowed Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) program representatives from around the country the opportunity to learn about promising practices and actionable implementation strategies to improve employment outcomes and economic independence among TANF families. Over the course of the meeting, attendees attended presentations from experts and program administrators, and participated in peer-moderated InfoSessions, OFA Regional breakout discussions, and a sharing session with OFA leadership. Almost 300 TANF representatives, State and Territory Human Service Commissioners, and federal partners attended the meeting.

On August 17, 2017, the Office of Family Assistance (OFA) sponsored a technical assistance site exchange for Ramsey County (Minnesota) Workforce Solutions to meet with staff from the Maryland Department of Labor, Licensing, and Regulation’s (DLLR) Division of Workforce Development and Adult Learning, and Maryland Department of Human Services’ Office of Workforce Development to discuss service delivery methods. During the site exchange, Ramsey County shared materials that reflect their approach to adopting and implementing a comprehensive, strengths-based, service delivery model, including how they built staff capacity through training on coaching, motivational interviewing, and executive functioning skills. (When using these materials, Mathematica, Goodwill Easter Seals of Minnesota, and Ramsey County Workforce Solutions should be credited.)

The Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA) is the first federal legislative reform of the public workforce system in over 16 years. It presents unique opportunities to increase the economic opportunities and stability of disadvantaged jobseekers. The state of Maryland became one of only 29 states and 2 territories that opted to develop a Combined State Plan which aligns its workforce and Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) programs across the state, requiring its 12 Local Workforce Areas to design distinct implementation plans responsive to the population needs in each of Maryland’s 24 counties (and Baltimore City). This report, developed through the Office of Family Assistance, details Maryland’s TANF/WIOA Alignment Process.

Social capital refers to the resources and support that people can access by virtue of their networks – from family, friends, and neighbors, to teachers, colleagues, and social services staff. Greater social capital is associated with greater mobility and wellbeing, through access to information, support, and reinforcement of positive norms. It has also been associated with greater resilience, the capacity to adapt positively to risk or adversity. Research indicates that organizations can be a source for helping individuals build social capital through opportunities for peer networking and assuming leadership roles, which may heighten motivation to persist in achieving education and employment goals (Sabol & Chase-Lansdale, 2014). OFA sponsored a webinar that explored how TANF and other social service programs can be a source to help participants build social capital that will support their journey to self-sufficiency.

In this three-part video podcast series, Paul Rada from the Truman Medical Center Behavioral Health unit in Kansas City, Missouri presents information and strategies for TANF programs to better serve participants experiencing toxic stress. This resource is intended to aid TANF program administrators and staff in: 

• Understanding the concepts of toxic stress and trauma‐informed care (TIC)
• Distinguishing between toxic stress, trauma, PTSD, and specific related interventions
• Explaining and applying toxic stress and TIC principles within TANF serving systems—specifically as they relate to improving employment outcomes and achieving program goals
• Identifying administrative areas within TANF programs that can be assessed for TIC integration, as well as opportunities for cultural/organizational change which integrates TIC principles
• Understanding methods for TANF participants to assess levels of toxic stress and apply appropriate coping strategies.

For long-term employment and career advancement, it is important that clients are placed in jobs that align with their education, experience, interests, and skills, as well as local labor market information (LMI). Workers can utilize assessment data and labor market information (LMI) to help clients make informed decisions about their career aspirations, including potential earnings, projected number of job openings, and entry level education needed.

The Online Work Readiness Assessment (OWRA) has linked work experiences and career interests of individuals with LMI to strengthen client pathways toward self-sufficiency. In this facilitated webinar, attendees learned how programs have used assessment data and LMI to enhance the types of services offered to clients and improve employment outcomes. The webinar also explored the comprehensive OWRA tool and its LMI functionality. The interactive webinar was held on December 6, 2017 from 2:00 p.m. to 3:30 p.m.

To learn more about OWRA and access a variety of resources, visit https://peerta.acf.hhs.gov/owra.

This practice brief highlights the efforts of four Office of Family Assistance, Systems to Family Stability National Policy Academy teams that redesigned their TANF case management systems to support client coaching and motivational interviewing strategies. The Academy was an 18-month initiative that supported TANF programs in designing and creating collaborative systems across agencies to improve family economic security.

The purpose of this OFA Program Instruction is to transmit the renewed form ACF-202 and instructions for completing that form, which states must use to report caseload reduction information for fiscal year 2018 and thereafter.