Health, Human Services,
Education, and Social Programs
Education, and Social Programs
White Papers and Reports
- Advancing the Early Care and Education Workforce:
A State-Based Cross-Sector Approach
An estimated 2.5 million professionals are responsible for the care and education of more than 50 percent of U.S. children ages 0–5. The potential growth and development of children in this critical stage are greatly influenced by the quality of care and education they receive from these early childhood professionals. Unfortunately, the current workforce training and support systems are not consistent across government programs. This white paper presents strategies for establishing an effective and efficient cross-sector workforce development system designed to attract and retain qualified early childhood professionals.
- Aligning Environmental, Tax, and Workforce Development Policies to Create a New Green-Collar Workforce
President Obama has outlined an aggressive national agenda to reduce carbon emissions, increase the production of renewable sources of energy, improve energy efficiency, and expand "green-collar" employment opportunities in poor, disadvantaged, and disconnected communities. Achieving this bold vision is an immensely complex undertaking requiring the coordination of a wide-range of policies across federal agencies. The purpose of this paper is to provide an initial analysis of the key questions facing policy makers in Congress and the Administration as those charged with implementation seek to align diverse agencies and policies with the "green-collar" workforce vision.
- Building Effective Summer Youth Employment Programs
The recently enacted American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) of 2009 includes $1.2 billion for youth employment activities but does not provide associated policy guidance for implementation. ICF International presents a basic foundation for summer youth employment program development. It is designed to help states and localities identify key program design issues and to provide Congress and the Administration with policy strategies for implementing successful summer youth programs in the current economy.
- Creating Economic Opportunity for Working Families
For many U.S. families, securing employment does not alleviate poverty because they lack real assets that grow wealth and provide security. Asset-based policies—allowing or even helping low-income families build wealth—are an increasingly popular strategy to facilitate financial stability. This paper examines various ways the federal government can help increase assets.
- Early Childhood Obesity Prevention:
Integration Across Initiatives to Yield Greater Effectiveness
The number of overweight and obese American children has escalated since the 1970s, with rates more than doubling for preschoolers (ages 2 to 5). The problems can lead to depression and social isolation, type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular disease, high blood pressure, and other problems in adulthood. To curb the problem, the U.S. Federal Government must build on past success by integrating policy development, health promotion innovations, and best practices across key settings where pregnant women and young children spend time and where change agents can make a difference.
- Faith-Based and Neighborhood Partnerships:
Learning from the Past, Building on the Promise
From the passage of welfare reform in the mid-1990s to the creation of the first federal Faith-Based and Community Initiative by the Bush Administration to President Obama's announcement of an Office for Faith-Based and Neighborhood Partnerships, ICF takes a historic look at how the U.S. Federal Government has been fashioning a new relationship between the programs it funds to benefit needy Americans and the grassroots organizations that are often on the front lines of service delivery. Furthermore, the company looks at what's currently working and offers next steps based on its work with faith-based and neighborhood partnerships throughout the country in an effort to help these programs improve their programming, build their capacity, and enhance their ability to promote self-sufficiency for individuals, families, and communities.
- Healthy Relationship Skills: Innovative Approaches to Strengthening Families and Communities
Achieving balance between work and family—especially within a shrinking economy—is challenging for all families. The Obama-Biden plan for families includes several agenda items for supporting low-income and working families, and presents an overall strategy to strengthen families at home, to ensure that all American families can work and care for their children. This white paper notes lessons learned from the Office of Family Assistance Healthy Marriage and Responsible Fatherhood demonstration grantees. ICF recommends disseminating information on this ground-breaking work to promote innovative approaches to strengthening relationships, families, and communities.
- Improving Data to Combat Human Trafficking
Although the United States passed the Trafficking Victims Protection Act (TVPA) nearly 10 years ago, policy makers and direct service providers continue to struggle with questions regarding the scope of human trafficking and effective ways to combat this problem. This white paper details the need for a clear data tracking system to inform estimation and evaluation of human trafficking, and ICF’s recommendations for improvement.
- Improving Effectiveness of International Aid to Combat Human Trafficking
The United States has dispersed more than $604 million to combat human trafficking around the world since fiscal year (FY) 2001 (Department of State 2009). While these efforts have undoubtedly influenced and shaped the global anti-trafficking movement over the last decade, a July 2006 Government Accountability Office (GAO) report to Congress found that the “U.S. government has not developed a coordinated strategy to combat human trafficking abroad” and has “not focused on developing and implementing a systematic way for agencies to…identify targets of greatest need and leverage overseas activities to achieve greater results” (GAO 2006). These findings emphasize the need for the U.S. to develop a coordinated strategy that links evidence-based practice with clear funding priorities to continue leading the global fight against modern-day slavery. This paper seeks to outline several recommendations for the U.S. government to continue to lead the fight against human trafficking by setting clear priorities for shaping effective interventions on the ground.
- Measures of School Effectiveness
As Congress and the new administration prepare to consider reauthorization of the No Child Left Behind Act, many in the education community hope that measurement issues are at the forefront of discussion. ICF offers specific recommendations for the reauthorization.
- Pathways to Progress:
Increasing Opportunities for Upward Mobility for Young Americans
Many young people in the United States today—the workforce of tomorrow—are unprepared to contribute to or succeed in today's economy. As a society, we are inadequately preparing young people to successfully transition to higher education or work. This crisis threatens our nation's ability to compete in a rapidly changing and competitive global economy. This brief highlights some proven strategies to increase opportunities for young Americans and transition youth toward work, education, and training. It also recommends a youth program, Promoting Self-Sufficiency for Youth through Employment and Training Initiative.
- Promoting Mental Combat Readiness Among America's Armed Forces: Awareness, Education, and Stigma Reduction
As much as 20 percent of troops who have served in Iraq and Afghanistan have traumatic brain injury, post-traumatic stress disorder, or other mental health problems. Yet the stigma attached to those problems keeps many service men and women from seeking help. This white paper describes ICF’s comprehensive social marketing campaign aimed at moving soldiers to get the treatment they need to ensure their mental combat readiness along with their physical readiness.
- The Power of Presence: Responsible Fatherhood and Children's Development
Research demonstrates that fathers’ behaviors have direct and significant effects on the emotional, physical, academic, financial, and health outcomes of their children. For children raised with an involved father, those outcomes are more likely to be positive than outcomes for children who grow up without the presence and support of their fathers. Alarmingly, half of all children in the United States can expect to spend at least part of their childhood living apart from their fathers, putting them at risk for a variety of life challenges. Policymakers, practitioners, and communities nationwide have an opportunity to pursue legislative, program, and funding initiatives to strengthen existing efforts to foster responsible fatherhood and launch additional creative approaches to nurturing healthy families.
- The Secret to a Robust Telework Program: Just STIR
Government agencies have been promoting telework and alternative work schedules for more than a decade, but data show that only 7.6 percent of Federal employees actually telework. This paper examines the key challenges to telework in the Federal Government, and presents ICF’s best practice-based STIR (Strategize, Transform, Implement, Recalibrate) methodology for agencies to use to design and execute successful programs customized to their unique mission and programmatic needs.
- Trafficking of U.S. Citizens and Legal Permanent Residents—The Forgotten Victims and Survivors
Domestic trafficking of U.S. citizens and legal permanent residents is a serious crime which exploits this country's most vulnerable populations. To date, insufficient effort has been made to fully understand and combat this modern slavery. This paper describes the tremendous challenges faced by victims/survivors of domestic trafficking and the communities who serve them, and recommends specific steps that must be taken to ensure proper understanding of the issue and implementation of best practices for serving this population.
- Transforming Dropout Prevention Policy and Practice
School dropout is a widespread and serious problem in the United States, with enormous consequences for students who choose its path. While recent federal efforts related to dropout prevention measure the extent of the problem, this white paper explores ICF's recommendations to solve it. And while there is no "magic bullet" with regard to dropout prevention, effective changes to policy and practice based on in-depth research and a multi-faceted approach can positively change the lives of American youth.
- Where is the Research on Human Trafficking and the Evaluation of Anti-Trafficking Efforts?
According to the U.S. Federal Government, human trafficking is tied with illegal arms dealing as the second largest, and fastest growing, criminal industry in the world. Despite this, little is known about the issue and the effectiveness of programs aimed at combating trafficking and rehabilitating victims and survivors. With the lives of men, women, and children at risk for sexual and labor exploitation, research and evaluation are key to ensuring that prevention and intervention efforts are effective in eliminating this form of modern-day slavery.
- Why Are New Teachers Leaving? The Case for Beginning-Teacher Induction and Mentoring
The first year of teaching is a “make or break” time. Approximately 30 percent of all beginning teachers either move to a different school or leave teaching at the end of their first year. This paper proposes four action steps for beginning-teacher induction and mentoring programs with the potential to not only keep teachers in the classroom, but increase student achievement and reduce school costs.