The Office of Family Assistance will host a webinar on Thursday, July 29, 2021 from 12 noon to 1:30 p.m. ET to engage TANF and tribal leaders and staff in conversation as they reimagine a post-pandemic TANF environment. This webinar will include a series of large group and small, rapid-fire break-out sessions. Each rapid-fire session will include questions that spark meaningful dialogue about TANF programs’ experiences during the pandemic and how they plan to transition back to in-person services. Participants will learn how TANF programs across the country are managing issues such as implementing safety protocols, balancing remote and in-person work, and reinstating TANF work requirements. Project IMPROVE will facilitate the session and capture and share lessons learned across the discussions.

The Office of Planning, Research and Evaluation has issued a Call for Papers for the Research and Evaluation Conference on Self-Sufficiency (RECS) 2022, to be held in-person from June 1-3, 2022 in Washington, DC. The Call invites proposals for full conference sessions, individual presentations, and roundtables on the following topics: TANF programs, policies, and populations; employment and mobility in the labor market; youth well-being and the transition to adulthood; strengthening families, fatherhood, marriages, and relationships; evaluating social programs, building evidence, and using data; and approaches to alleviate poverty and expand opportunity. A virtual information session on preparing and submitting a proposal will be held on July 22, 2021 from 4:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m. ET. Proposal submissions are due by August 27, 2021.

This Program Instruction (PI) identifies a change in Office of Family Assistance reporting requirements—specifically, that tribes that integrate TANF in a P.L. 102-477 plan are no longer required to submit quarterly reports. However, the PI notes the continuation of requirements of the Pandemic Emergency Assistance Fund (PEAF), such as funds to be spent on non-recurrent, short-term benefits and grantees needing to request allotments and reallotments. The PI also provides guidance on use of funds, reporting forms, and reporting requirements for tribes under the PEAF.

This Office of Planning, Research and Evaluation research-to-practice brief assesses how Tribal HPOG 2.0 grantees incorporated tribal culture and practices into their healthcare training programs. The Tribal HPOG 2.0 Program includes projects that connect eligible individuals with education and training in a healthcare-related field or occupation. Integrating tribal values into the curricula helped students to deliver culturally sensitive healthcare services. Attention is paid to how these grantees offered events and supportive services to connect students with their respective culture to build community and provide culturally specific gathering spaces for trainees of similar backgrounds.

This report examines how organizational culture, office design, and office procedures contribute to the client experience with TANF, the services offered, and the potential outcomes. It highlights examples of productive client-oriented office settings, organizational processes and culture, and the day-to-day influence of organizational culture on clients and frontline staff. The report’s findings are drawn from field interviews and observations at six TANF offices: Fairfax County’s Department of Family Services (Virginia); Mesa County’s Workforce Center (Colorado); New York City’s Human Resources Administration (New York); Owens Valley Career Development Center’s Tribal TANF Program (California); Santa Cruz County’s Human Services Department (California); and the Utah Department of Workforce Services.

The American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 amends Section 403 of the Social Security Act to create a new $1 billion Pandemic Emergency Assistance Fund (PEAF) for states, tribes, and territories to assist needy families impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. On April 15, 2021, the Administration for Children and Families’ Office of Family Assistance (OFA) hosted an informative webinar for tribes to learn about the PEAF. Participants heard from OFA’s TANF policy experts on how they can use this fund, its requirements, and the process for applying for the funds. OFA speakers included Susan Golonka, Acting Director; Stan Koutstaal, Division Director, Tribal TANF Management and Regional Operations; Deborah List, Associate Deputy Director; and Peter Germanis, Senior Policy Advisor and National Expert. In addition to this webinar, OFA hosted a separate webinar for territories. Also, additional guidance will be published with more information about the allocations formulas, how to request funds, and other general policy guidelines.

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Administration for Children and Families, Office of Family Assistance (OFA) held the 2021 Regions IV-VIII Tribal TANF and NEW Program Virtual Meeting entitled Moving Forward: Weaving Stories of Perseverance During COVID-19 on March 16-18, 2021. This virtual event brought together Tribal TANF and Native Employment Works (NEW) program representatives from OFA Regions IV-VIII and focused on how programs can best address the needs of families during the pandemic and beyond. The meeting included sessions on promising practices for innovation from Tribal TANF and NEW programs, ideas for program adaptations, strategies for customer engagement, and discussions on broadband access and technology.

A portion of the Maternal, Infant, and Early Childhood Home Visiting Program supporting home visits for mothers and families with young children is designated for home visiting in tribal communities. This Office of Planning, Research and Evaluation report is a systematic review of home visiting models within tribal communities and includes a description of the review process and findings. The report also includes information about the evaluated models and summary conclusions about the models’ effectiveness. The review was first published in February 2011, and the updated edition covers results from research through September 2018.

Coaching is a person-centered, strength-based way of working with others that helps them direct the changes they want to make in their own lives. On March 31, 2021, the Office of Family Assistance (OFA) hosted a PeerTA webinar introducing a new free resource that OFA is making available to all State and Tribal TANF agencies and Native Employment Works (NEW) programs – a 14-module eLearning Curriculum called “Coaching for Success.” Based on Public Consulting Group’s Human Services Coaching Framework, the curriculum aims at training employment case managers in how to leverage coaching techniques to improve their case management skills. The curriculum includes self-paced learning modules that will cover topics such as active listening, powerful questions, emotional intelligence, praise, and other important techniques that can elevate TANF case management services.

Speakers included: Deborah Joffe, Public Consulting Group and Paul Lefkowitz, Public Consulting Group.

The 20th Research and Evaluation Conference on Self-Sufficiency (RECS) was held virtually on October 13–15 and October 19–22, 2020. The conference sessions were organized in six thematic tracks: TANF Programs, Policies, and Populations; Employment and Mobility in the Labor Market; Youth Well-Being and the Transition to Adulthood; Strengthening Families, Fatherhood, Marriages, and Relationships; Evaluating Social Programs, Building Evidence, and Using Data; and Approaches to Alleviate Poverty and Expand Opportunity. A complete set of videos covering plenary and breakout sessions and a career panel is now available online.