Program Structure and Service Delivery in Eleven Welfare-to-Work Grant Programs

Contract No.: 100-98-0009MPR Reference No.: 8550-121Program Structureand Service Deliveryin Eleven Welfare-to-WorkGrant ProgramsJanuary 2001Demetra Smith Nightingale(The Urban Institute)Submitted to: Submitted by:Department of Health and Human ServicesMathematica Policy Research, Inc.Office of the Assistant Secretary for Planning andP.O. Box 2393 EvaluationPrinceton, NJ 08543-2393Hubert H. Humphrey Building, Room 404E(609) 799-3535200 Independence Avenue, SWWashington, D.C. 20201Urban Institute (subcontractor)Project Officer: Alana LandeyProject Director: Alan HersheyCo-Principal Investigators:Thomas Fraker (Mathematica)Demetra Nightingale (Urban Institute) ii iiiACKNOWLEDGMENTSThis report is part of a congressionally-mandated evaluation of the Welfare-to-Work (WtW)Grants program, being conducted by Mathematica Policy Research, Inc. (MPR), and itssubcontractors the Urban Institute and Support Services International (SSI). This is an interimreport from the process analysis component of the evaluation, and several individuals from allthree research organizations contributed substantially.Much of the information in this report is based on structured site visits to each of the elevenWtW grantee programs included in the evaluation. The process analysis site visit teams consistedof: Demetra Nightingale, Terri Thompson, Nancy Pindus, Carolyn O’Brien, Pamela Holcomb,and Lynne Fender of the Urban Institute; Alan Hershey, Irma Perez-Johnson, Jaqueline Kauff,Debra Strong, and Charles Nagatoshi of MPR; Mack Rhoades of SSI; John Trutko of CapitalResearch Associates; and Burt Barnow of the Institute for Policy Studies at Johns HopkinsUniversity. Each contributed to portions of this report.We owe particular gratitude to the over 300 individuals in the eleven local programs whogenerously shared their time and experiences with us during the in-depth site visits. Theirknowledge and insights are essential to understanding the potential of various programinterventions.Very helpful comments were provided by federal reviewers, particularly Alana Landey andCanta Pian at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and Cheryl Turner at the U.S.Department of Labor.Opinions expressed are those of the authors and do not represent official positions of the U.S.Department of Health and Human Services, Mathematica Policy Research, Inc., or the UrbanInstitute, its trustees or sponsors. iv vCONTENTSChapter PageEXECUTIVE SUMMARY................................................................................ ixI.INTRODUCTION................................................................................................................... 1A. WELFARE REFORM CONTEXT .................................................................................... 2B. CHANGES IN THE WELFARE-TO-WORK GRANTS PROGRAM LEGISLATION.................................................................................................................. 5C. OBJECTIVES AND DESIGN OF THE EVALUATION.................................................. 6D. THE PROCESS ANALYSIS ............................................................................................. 8E. STUDY SITES .................................................................................................................10II.PROGRAM ENROLLMENT AND PARTICIPATION ...................................................... 13A. PROGRAM START-UP .................................................................................................. 13B. TARGETING ...................................................................................................................30III. PROGRAM SERVICES ....................................................................................................... 33A. PARTICIPANT ASSESSMENT ..................................................................................... 33B. SUPPORTIVE SOCIAL SERVICES............................................................................... 37C. EMPLOYMENT AND WORK ACTIVITIES................................................................. 39IV. PROGRAM STRUCTURE................................................................................................... 43A. ADMINISTRATIVE STRUCTURE ............................................................................... 43B. SERVICE DELIVERY STRUCTURE ............................................................................ 48V.CONCLUDING OBSERVATIONS ..................................................................................... 57 viCONTENTS (continued) PageAPPENDIX A: WTW PROGRAMS IN THE STUDY SITES— GENERAL INFORMATION ............................................................................. 61APPENDIX B: PROFILES OF WTW GRANT PROGRAMS IN ELEVEN STUDY SITES ..........................................