ACF Annual Welfare Research and Evaluation Conference

10th Annual ACF/OPRE Welfare Research & Evaluation Conference

2007 Draft Agenda

Sunday, June 3, 2007
4:00-7:00 p.m.	Pre-Registration and Information Desk Open
Monday, June 4, 2007
8:00 a.m.–6:00 p.m.	Registration and Information Desk Open
9:00–9:15 a.m.	Welcome and Opening Remarks Naomi Goldstein Director, Office of Planning, Research and Evaluation (OPRE) Administration for Children and Families (ACF)
9:15–10:45 a.m.	Plenary I: Unmarried Fathers’ Contributions to Children—Findings from the Fragile Families Study Irwin Garfinkel Professor of Contemporary Urban Problems Columbia University School of Social Work
10:45–11:00 a.m.	Break
11:00 a.m. –12:30 p.m.	Breakout Sessions Building Strong Families *Implementation Analysis of the Building Strong Families Program* M. Robin Dion, Mathematica Policy Research Heather Zaveri, Mathematica Policy Research Employment Retention and Advancement Promoting Stable Employment and Wage Progression: Promising Programs in the United States and the United Kingdom Gayle Hamilton, MDRC Richard Hendra, MDRC James Riccio, MDRC A Retrospective Look at Welfare Reform A Retrospective Look at Welfare Reform June O'Neill, Baruch College Robert Rector, Heritage Foundation Isabel Sawhill, The Brookings Institution Three Perspectives on Work Participation Increasing TANF Work Participation: Findings from the Colorado Works Evaluation Mary Farrell, The Lewin Group Did Welfare Reform Change Participation Dynamics Among Single Mothers? Evidence from Maryland David Stevens, The Jacob France Institute Do Policies Move State Work Participation Rates? Caroline Danielson, Public Policy Institute of California Child Care Child Care Subsidies and Employment: Policy Impacts on Usage and Stability Elizabeth Davis, University of Minnesota Deanna Schexnayder, University of Texas at Austin Roberta Weber, Oregon State University
12:30–2:00 p.m.	Lunch (on your own)
2:00–3:30 p.m.	Plenary II: The Other Marriage Penalty David Blankenhorn President of the Board, Center for Marriage and Families Institute for American Values
3:30–3:45 p.m.	Break
3:45–5:15 p.m.	Breakout Sessions Child Support Topics Arrears Management: Nine-State Study Elaine Sorensen, The Urban Institute Research into Incarcerated Obligors Jane Venohr, Center for Policy Research Minorities and Child Support Participation Hillard Pouncy, Princeton University Using Vouchers to Promote Customer Choice in Public Service Delivery Using Vouchers in Government Training Programs: Findings from the Individual Training Account Experiment Sheena McConnell, Mathematica Policy Research Understanding Vouchers as a Tool to Expand Client Choice in HHS Programs: Lessons from the Experiences of the TANF and CCDF Programs Gretchen Kirby, Mathematica Policy Research Using Vouchers to Deliver Substance Abuse Treatment and Recovery Services: The Access to Recovery Program Andrea Kopstein, Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration TANF Topics State Experiences with Families Reaching the TANF Time Limit Mary Farrell, The Lewin Group Welfare Returns and Temporary Time Limits Vicky N. Albert, University of Nevada, Las Vegas On Working Towards Self-Sufficiency: A New Look at Work, Welfare and Poverty Diana Pearce, University of Washington Understanding Marriage and Fertility Decisions Behavioral Impacts of Four Title V, Section 510 Abstinence Education Programs Barbara Devaney, Mathematica Policy Research Poor Women’s Fertility and Reproductive-Related Behavior: An Analysis of Welfare Reform Using the National Survey of Family Growth Diana Romero, Columbia University Employment, Earnings and Entry into Marriage and Cohabitation: Evidence from the Job Corps Program Arif Mamun, Mathematica Policy Research Understanding Teenage Fertility Decline Jacob Alex Klerman, RAND Overcoming Barriers to Work Early Findings from the Evaluation of the Center for Employment Opportunities’ Prisoner Reentry Program Dan Bloom, MDRC The New Jersey Substance Abuse Program and Results from the CASASTEP Program Based on Survey Data Jon Morgenstern, MDRC Teaching Self-Sufficiency: 30-Month Impacts of a Home Visitation and Life Skills Education Program for Hard-to-Employ TANF Recipients Andrew Burwick, Mathematica Policy Research
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Tuesday, June 5, 2007
8:00 a.m.–6:00 p.m.	Registration and Information Desk Open
9:00–10:30 a.m.	Plenary III: Achieving High Work Participation Rates—State Perspectives on the Opportunities and Challenges LaDonna Pavetti Senior Fellow Mathematica Policy Research, Inc. Estelle Richman Secretary of Public Welfare State of Pennsylvania Mary Dean Harvey Director, Division of Family and Children Services Georgia Department of Human Resources Sarah Brenna Program Manager Utah Department of Workforce Services
10:30–10:45 a.m.	Break
10:45 a.m. –12:15 p.m.	Breakout Sessions Employment Strategies From Getting By to Getting Ahead: Navigating Career Advancement for Low-Wage Workers David Seith, MDRC Betsy Tessler, MDRC Promoting Job Retention and Advancement Among TANF Recipients by Supporting Employers to Implement Workplace Support Practices Anthony Mallon, Virginia Commonwealth University Innovative Employment Approaches and Programs for Low-Income Workers and Families Karin Martinson, The Urban Institute Fatherhood Men Who Father Children with More Than One Woman: A Contemporary Portrait of Multiple Partner Fertility Cassandra Logan, Child Trends Lessons from the Partners for Fragile Families Demonstration Project: Implementation Findings/Understanding Young Fathers Pamela Holcomb, The Urban Institute The Relationship Context of Early Fatherhood: National Estimates Based on Multiple Surveys H. Elizabeth Peters, Cornell University Beyond Cash Assistance: Examining the Modern Safety Net The Invisible Safety Net Janet Currie, Columbia University A Reexamination of Welfare States and Inequality in Rich Nations Timothy Smeeding, Syracuse University Economic Outcomes for Single Mothers Employment Stability and Earnings Mobility Among Single Mothers Fredrik Andersson, Cornell Institute for Social and Economic Research The Dynamics of Employment and Earnings Among Single Mothers Following Poverty Exits Anu Rangarajan, Mathematica Policy Research TANF Caseload Composition and Leavers Gregory Acs, The Urban Institute Pamela Loprest, The Urban Institute Supporting Healthy Marriage and Encouraging Father Involvement: Lessons from Two Studies Supporting Healthy Marriage: Design, Methodology, Early Lessons and Progress to Date Barbara Goldman, MDRC Emerging Research on Economically Disadvantaged Couples David J. Fein, Abt Associates Supporting Father Involvement in Low-Income Families: Interventions for Fathers and Couples Carolyn Pape Cowan, University of California, Berkeley Philip Cowan, University of California, Berkeley
12:15–1:45 p.m.	Lunch (on your own)
1:45–3:15 p.m.	Breakout Sessions Child Care How Child Care Subsidy Policies Are Working for Providers: Insight from Five Communities Gina Adams, The Urban Institute Meeting the Need? A Description of Providers Supported by the Child Care and Development Fund Monica Rohacek, The Urban Institute Putting Research Findings into Practice The Diffusion of Research Evidence at the State and Local Level: Are the Research Results of Evaluations of Federally Funded Social Programs Employed by State and Local Governments? Swati Desai, New York Human Resources Administration Douglas Besharov, American Enterprise Institute David Heaney, Maximus Richard Larson, Maryland Department of Human Resources Don Winstead, Florida Department of Children and Families Strategies for Meeting TANF Work Participation Rates Using Sanction Policies and Procedures to Encourage Participation in Work Activities Jacqueline Kauff, Mathematica Policy Research Using Program Data to Achieve Higher Work Participation Rates Jeffrey Max, Mathematica Policy Research Using Work-Study to Support Participation in Vocational Education Programs LaDonna Pavetti, Mathematica Policy Research Providing Work Opportunities and Support for TANF Recipients with Disabilities Michelle Derr, Mathematica Policy Research Response to Social Crises: Disaster and Refugee Services A Survey of Families’ Experiences with Hurricane Katrina Ronald Kessler, Harvard Medical School The Disaster Response During Hurricanes Katrina and Rita Harriet Kornegay, Food and Nutrition Service of the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) Brenda Lisi, Food and Nutrition Service of the USDA Evaluation of Refugee Social Service and Targeted Assistance Formula Grant Programs Sam Elkin, The Lewin Group Healthy Marriage Marriage and Caste in America Kay Hymowitz, Manhattan Institute for Policy Research Promises I Can Keep: Why Poor Women Put Motherhood Before Marriage Maria Kefalas, St. Joseph’s University Examining Relationship Choices for Low-Income Couples Natasha Cabrera, University of Maryland
3:15–3:30 p.m.	Break
3:30–4:30 p.m.	Plenary IV: How Partnerships with Community- and Faith-Based Organizations Can Help Reach Underserved Populations Brent Orrell Deputy Assistant Secretary for Policy and External Relations, ACF
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Wednesday, June 6, 2007
8:00 a.m.–12:30 p.m.	Registration and Information Desk Open
9:00–9:15 a.m.	Closing Remarks Naomi Goldstein Director, OPRE ACF National Association for Welfare Research and Statistics Announcement Marilyn Edelhoch Director, Research and Evaluation South Carolina Department of Social Services
9:15–10:45 a.m.	Plenary V: Low-Wage Workers Exploring Gender Differences in Employment and Wage Trends Among Less-Skilled Workers Rebecca M. Blank Joan and Sanford Weill Dean, Gerald R. Ford School of Public Policy; Henry Carter Adams Collegiate Professor of Public Policy; and Professor of Economics, University of Michigan Chutes and Ladders: Navigating the Low-Wage Labor Market Katherine S. Newman Professor of Sociology and Public Affairs Woodrow Wilson School, Princeton University
10:45–11:00 a.m.	Break
11:00 a.m.–12:30 p.m.	Breakout Sessions Other Programs for Low Income Families Effects of Housing Choice Vouchers on Welfare Families: Neighborhood Location, Household Composition, and Housing Status Gregory Mills, Abt Associates Improving Work Supports: Illinois as Case Study Nancy Cauthen, Columbia University Leaving Welfare in Vermont: Employment, Recidivism, and Use of Other Supportive Programs for 2003 Leavers Leslie Black-Plumeau, Black-Plumeau Consulting, LLC Rethinking Childcare Research Overview Douglas Besharov, American Enterprise Institute The "Quality" of Early Care and Education Settings: Definitional and Measurement Issues Jean Layzer, Abt Associates Child Outcome Measures in the Study of Child Care Quality Martha Zaslow, Child Trends Discussant Nick Zill, Westat TANF Topics State Approaches to Helping TANF Recipients with Barriers to Work: Now and in the Future Pamela Loprest, The Urban Institute Changing Patterns of Addiction and Public Aid Receipt: Tracking the Unintended Consequences of Welfare Reform Laura Schmidt, University of California, San Francisco Assessing Change Implementation of TANF at the Local Level Michael Fishman, The Lewin Group/Rockefeller Institute Understanding Recent Changes in Child Poverty Austin Nichols, The Urban Institute Strengthening Families Is Marriage Protective For All Children? Cumulative Risk Factors at Birth and Subsequent Child Well-Being Cynthia Osborne, University of Texas at Austin Oklahoma Marriage Initiative Process Evaluation M. Robin Dion, Mathematica Policy Research
12:30 p.m.	Conference Adjourns
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Conference Statement

The views expressed in written conference materials or publications and by speakers and moderators at HHS-sponsored conferences, do not necessarily reflect the official policies of the Department of Health and Human Services; nor does mention of trade names, commercial practices, or organizations imply endorsement by the U.S. Government.