Supporting Parents with Children in the Child Welfare System

The National Center for Children in Poverty recently released the report Supporting Parents of Young Children in the Child Welfare System. The report was based on information from an emerging issue roundtable conducted in 2007 that brought together policymakers, philanthropists, researchers, leaders in child welfare, and practitioners. The report explores research, proposes criteria for effective programs, and discusses strategies that can be used at the local, state and national levels to improve mandated parent training for families with children in the child welfare system. The report suggests that, at minimum, states, courts and communities need to choose interventions based on their value from the perspective of cost, relative to the desired results and relative to competing alternatives. It goes on to provide seven recommendations on how to improve parenting education with a focus on results.

For more information on a Framework for Policy Success.

For policies to support Building Strong and Stable Families.

A Look at Federally Funded Education Programs

The federal government accounts for approximately 9 percent of the country’s total investment in K-12 education (state and local sources provide the rest). The, 151 different programs that this 166.9 billion dollars funded (over FY 2006, 2007, 2008) - included a variety of goals and were administered throughout the country in different ways. The U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) recently released their Overview of K-12 and Early Childhood Education Programs. This report to Congressional requestors, covers fiscal years 2006-2008, and addresses the federal expenditure on K-12 education, the characteristics of federally funded programs, and to what extent these programs complete evaluations. This report is a great tool for getting an overview of the programs funded by the federal government in the recent past, and to what degree those programs sought to determine their effectiveness.

Policies for ensuring Children are Healthy and Prepared to Succeed in School

For a Framework on Policy Success

Comprehensive Health Reform

Health care reform continues to be a controversial issue both for policy makers and constituents. With any large-scale change – people wonder whether the outcomes for their families will be better or worse than under the current system. To help appreciate these issues, the Urban Institute created, The Biggest Losers, Health Edition: Who Would Be Hurt the Most by a Failure to Enact Comprehensive Reforms?. The document addresses the groups, consistent of over 259 million Americans, that would be most affected if comprehensive health care reform is not passed: including 13.1 million self-employed people, 47.8 million people employed in firms of fewer than 100 workers, and 74.3 million people with income levels between 200-400 percent of the poverty level (according to 2008 data). The report is a good resource when considering the way that health care reform will serve families if it is passed, and what the future of health care would look like without reform.

For policies to ensure Children are Healthy and Prepared to Succeed in School.

A Safety Net that Works through Tough Economic Times

The way that programs serve families in times of increased need is a critical consideration when evaluating the effectiveness of the U.S. means-tested safety net. During the current economic downturn – two U.S. programs have responded very differently, according to a new report from the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, Creating a Safety Net that Works When the Economy Doesn’t: The Role of the Food Stamp and TANF Programs. According to the report, because food stamps are a federal entitlement program, they have been better equipped to respond to increased need. TANF, in the wake of a tough state budget climate, has responded unevenly to the fiscal crises serving far fewer families than food stamps. While the report cites several reasons for these differences – it creates a compelling argument for why measures of caseload reduction might create incentives for serving the fewest number of families – as opposed to a performance measure that would allow for states to serve their neediest families – while still emphasizing work – such as, measuring an increase in employment or earnings.

For more information on TANF.

Policies to support Family Economic Success.

The Next Challenge for Public Housing

The Urban Institute is holding a panel to address some of the future challenges critical for policymakers considering public housing. In the era of HOPE VI revitalization programs some residents have been left behind as the country’s most severely distressed public housing developments are replaced with mixed-income and private market housing options. Former residents with physical and mental health problems, weak employment histories, low literacy levels, drug or alcohol addiction, criminal histories, and serious credit problems are not seeing the benefits of the HOPE VI program. The panel will provide insight on options to serve vulnerable families - as local housing authorities, states and the federal government work to improve housing options across communities. The Chicago Family Case Management Demonstration will be used to provide an example of innovative options for moving forward.

To register for the March 11th, webinar of this panel.

The 2010 Census: Methodology, Implications & Myths

The 2010 census is important not just because it is provided for in the Constitution, but also because the census is used to determine the distribution of funds for several federal programs as well as the number of seats a state has in the U.S. House of Representatives. With the large-scale “counting” that is going to take place this year, the Brookings Institution created “Five-Myths About the 2010 Census and the U.S. Population”. This article, published in The Washington Post, dispels myths about population growth, demographic shifts and the impact of immigration.

For more information on the way the census is conducted.

For more information on the way that census data is used.

For common questions and answers about the 2010 census.

Asset Ownership and Debt in Families with Children

Assets play a large role in the economic success of families with children, but asset poverty and debt often struggle to cover bills, let alone save. A new brief from the National Center for Children in Poverty (NCCP) explores asset ownership and debt among families with children and examines disparities by race, gender of heads of family, and age of children. NCCP’s estimations of the financial assets of families with children and the proportion of families facing asset poverty and debt provide a picture of family financial insecurity and point to an area for policy intervention.

Policies to support family economic success.

Supporting the Needs of Children: The Interaction of Child Welfare and Schools

With research indicating that children in the child welfare system struggle academically, a new study looks at the ways in which child welfare workers interact with schools. The study examined several characteristics of child welfare workers and found that workers’ interactions with schools were related to caseload size, number of schools served, region of practice, and years of practice. These findings have important implications for the training and education of child welfare workers, the administration of the child welfare and educational systems, and the development of cross-system policy that holistically addresses the needs of children in care.

Policies to increase exits from foster care to permanence and policies to improve K-3 academic success.

Realizing the Racial Impacts of Legislation and Budgetary Measures

Racing the Statehouse: Advancing Equitable Policies 2010, a new report from the Applied Research Center, looks at state-level analyses of the racial impact of state-level legislative and budgetary measures. Through report cards, budget reviews, and progress reports compiled by state-level organizations, ARC identifies the positive and negative racial impacts of recent legislative and calls for policymaking addresses racial inequities and prevents unintended racial consequences.

Policies to reduce racial disparities in juvenile detention. Visit our homepage to sign up for email updates about forthcoming information on policies to reduce racial disparities in child welfare.

"The Three Faces of Work-Family Conflict"

A new report from the Center for American Progress reveals the disconnection between Americans’ widespread concern over work-family conflict and policymakers’ inability to pass legislation that addresses the issue. Analyzing data from the late 1970s to the late 2000s, the authors find that families across the economic spectrum experience work-family conflict but they experience it differently. Short-term and extended paid leave, greater workplace flexibility, freedom from discrimination, and high-quality, affordable child care emerge as shared needs across the spectrum of families, but an understanding of the specific conflicts faced by low- and middle-income and professional families is necessary for targeted, effective policy solutions. The authors identify ways to build a stronger coalition for policies that will support working families.

Policies to expand work supports.