View Research by Author - Demetra Smith Nightingale

Citation URL: http://www.urban.org/DemetraSmithNightingale

The High Growth Job Training Initiative (HGJTI) is a national grants program administered by the U.S. Department of Labor Employment and Training Administration. Between 2001 and 2006, more than 150 grants were awarded to establish demand-driven job training and related projects designed to meet employer-defined workforce challenges. This report is the second in a series from the evaluation of the HGJTI being conducted by the Urban Institute, Johns Hopkins University, and Capital Research Corporation. This report documents the national initiative and describes the structure and implementation of projects developed by selected grantees. The information presented is based on reviews of grantee applications and quarterly reports, and on site visits to six grantees.

Recent policies encourage the development of programs designed to improve the economic status of low-income nonresident fathers and the financial and emotional support provided to their children. This brief provides ten key lessons from several important early responsible fatherhood initiatives that were developed and implemented during the 1990s and early 2000s. Formal evaluations of these earlier fatherhood efforts have been completed making this an opportune time to step back and assess what has been learned and how to build on the early programs' successes and challenges.

The Partnership for Fragile Families Demonstration projects, operating in 13 sites across the country, provided a range of services aimed at increasing the capacity of young, economically disadvantaged fathers in becoming financial and emotional resources to their children and sought to reduce poverty and welfare dependence. As part of a multi-component evaluation, this report examines how participants fared in two key areas: (1) employment rates and earnings levels and (2) the establishment of child support orders and the payment of child support.

The President's High Growth Job Training Initiative (HGTJI) is a major national effort to encourage the development of market-driven strategies to address critical workforce challenges as defined by business and industry. As part of the Urban Institute's evaluation of this program, this first report documents the lessons, experiences and sustainability of 20 of the earliest HGJTI grantees as told by the project administrators. The purpose of the report is to summarize the major implementation lessons emerging from the early grantees and document the extent to which projects continue after the end of the grant.

This report describes the design and implementation of the Partners for Fragile Families (PFF) demonstration projects. Operating in 13 sites across the country, PFF provided a range of services aimed at increasing the capacity of young, economically disadvantaged fathers in becoming financial and emotional resources to their children and sought to reduce poverty and welfare dependence. The report examines the programs structure and institutional partnerships; participant characteristics; recruitment and enrollment efforts; the nature of employment, peer support, parenting, and child support-related services provided through the initiatives; and implementation challenges and lessons.

What directions should workforce policy in the U.S. take over the next few decades in light of major labor market developments that will likely occur—such as the retirements of baby boomers and continuing globalization? This new volume edited by Harry J. Holzer and Demetra Smith Nightingale presents fresh thoughts on the topic. This book offers policy discussions that are firmly grounded in strong research and that address the critical workforce issues of the coming years. Read more about this book

The Jobs for Veterans Act of 2002 (Public Law 107-288) has the overall objective of "revising and improving employment, training, and placement services furnished to veterans." One provision of the Act requires workforce development programs funded in whole or in part by the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) to provide priority of service to veterans and, under certain circumstances, spouses of veterans. DOL's Employment and Training Administration contracted with The Urban Institute to synthesize information about service delivery for veterans among some programs that are already providing veterans with priority of service. Through hands-on exploration of electronic tools, discussions with experts, and site visits, various strategies were identified that can be applied to a broad range of programs.

This study was conducted by The Urban Institute over a six-month period from mid-May to mid-November 2003 and was commissioned by the Virginia Workforce Council (VWC). This study provides the VWC with information to help them make important incumbent worker policy decisions over the next several years. This study analyzes the current and changing characteristics of Virginia's workforce, examines trends in workforce demand in future years, reviews policies, approaches, and strategies for integrating emerging and diverse groups into the workforce, and recommends public and private sector policies and strategies that might be appropriate for Virginia in the coming decades.

This is one of several reports based on the national evaluation of the Welfare-to-Work grants program. Congress established the Welfare-to-Work (WtW) grants program as part of the Balanced Budget Act (BBA) of 1997. The three billion dollar initiative was intended to support programs, especially in high-poverty communities, to assist the least employable, most disadvantaged welfare recipients make the transition from welfare to work. These funds were also available to help low-income noncustodial parents increase their earnings and better support their children. The purpose of this report is to document how grantees have adapted as they approach or reach the ends of their WtW grant periods and how other conditions in 2002 and 2003--particularly the slow economy and any state policies related to TANF or the Workforce Investment Act (WIA)--have affected their programs. The report discusses the legacy and lessons of WtW from the perspective of grantee agency administrators in the study sites.

This is one of several reports from the congressionally mandated national evaluation of the WtW grants program. The report presents findings from the process and implementation analysis component of the evaluation, and describes the service delivery operations of programs funded with WtW grants in eleven study sites. These findings are based on information collected through two rounds of site visits in 1999 and 2001, and management information system data maintained by the programs on participants and services. Topics covered include institutional arrangements, targeting and enrollment, service delivery models, and job placement.

Return to list of authors