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Learning Evaluation
The Welfare to Work learning cluster was comprised of 10 projects: nine projects that were part of a multi-year demonstration funded by the Charles Stewart Mott Foundation, plus the Detroit Entrepreneurship Institute, a longtime Mott grantee with a history of serving welfare recipients. The evaluation consisted of three components:
Component 1: Longitudinal Tracking of Program Participants and outcomes
This core component involved longitudinal tracking that focused on the work experiences of participants (in both businesses and traditional employment), and on critical outcomes in terms of changes in income, assets, welfare receipt, and business growth. Baseline information was collected from participants upon entry into the microenterprise program and immediately upon graduation or termination, and follow-up interviews were conducted subsequently at approximately 12 and 24 month intervals.
Component 2: Policy Case Studies
Two sets of policy case studies documented the welfare policy environment at both the beginning and end points of the demonstration in the nine states in which the grantees were located. The case studies also related these policy environments to the experiences of program participants. The policy case studies were conducted by the Center for Law and Social Policy (CLASP).
The case studies focused on two sets of information. First, they documented the key components of the state’s overall TANF plan and approach based on research conducted as part of CLASP’s State Policy Documentation Project. The information focused on how the state restructured key welfare, health and family support programs. This documentation was augmented by specific information on policies relating to microenterprise development.
Component 3: Meetings of Grantees and Evaluation Staff
Annual meetings of programs, FIELD staff, and donors served several purposes. First, they provided an opportunity for peer exchange among the grantees – to discuss the key challenges they faced in implementing their demonstration programs, and to identify lessons learned regarding program strategy and practice. Second, they provided an opportunity for practitioners to reflect upon and discuss learning and experiences from the evaluation.
Evaluation Objectives
- To facilitate exchange among and provide information to the welfare-to-work cluster grantees to help them strengthen their program designs and implementation.
- To document and evaluate the experiences and outcomes of the demonstration projects. The assessment developed both quantitative and qualitative information on the implementation of the demonstration projects and the experiences of the project participants, in order to provide information to program practitioners and policy makers regarding the value of microenterprise development as an option for TANF recipients.
- To produce and disseminate publications and other information summarizing the evaluation findings to microenterprise practitioners, funders and policy makers.
Evaluation Components
- Longitudinal tracking of demonstration participants
- Case studies of state policy environments
- Annual meetings of grantees and evaluation staff
Information Dissemination
- FIELD forums documenting lessons regarding program strategy.
- Publications by CLASP describing the TANF policy environment in the states where grantees are located.
- A baseline, interim and final report detailing findings of the longitudinal survey.
