Association for Public Policy Analysis & Management

Panel: New Evidence on the Effectiveness of Demand-Driven Training Programs for Low-Income Individuals

(Employment and Training Programs)

In recent years, the workforce development field has refocused on skills development as a key to upward mobility. Several related but slightly different models of skill-based advancement exist. A first approach emphasizes a sectoral approach to training, which heavily involves employers in programming so as to create a pipeline from training into industry sectors with quality jobs. A second approach emphasizes the development of career pathways involving sequential coordinated training and other employment services that can lead to advancement. These approaches are both demand-driven and focus on specific industries or sectors. They are also complementary: the sectoral approach can be considered one step in a career pathway. Little rigorous evidence exists, however, regarding whether such approaches to training are effective in advancing the economic situations of low-income individuals, and are more effective than promoting employment in “any job” or the acquisition of “any credential.” The proposed panel would provide such evidence, by presenting new “impact” results from three large randomized controlled trials (RCTs) studying these approaches. The first presentation would describe the two-year effectiveness findings for four sites in the WorkAdvance evaluation. WorkAdvance helps low-income individuals prepare for and enter quality jobs in selected sectors that have opportunities for career growth. The WorkAdvance impact results are intriguing, and they will provide the first rigorous evidence of whether the promising results from the Sector Employment Impacts Study replicate for different locations, providers, and economic conditions. The second presentation would provide 15-month effectiveness findings for three sites in the Pathways for Advancing Careers and Education (PACE) project. PACE is evaluating career pathways programs that combine academic, occupational, and life skills training; financial and supportive services; and well-defined links to employment opportunities. The three sites to be discussed all focus on providing training in health care fields. The third presentation would describe 30-month effectiveness findings from the Workforce Investment Act (WIA) Adult and Dislocated Work Programs Gold Standard Evaluation. This study provides nationally-representative estimates of the effects of various aspects of these programs, and one part of the study isolates the effect of the training provided under WIA. Representing different means of supporting policy-relevant research evidence, these three studies were funded, respectively, by the Social Innovation Fund (a federal public-private partnership), the Office of Planning, Research & Evaluation in the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ Administration for Children and Families (ACF), and the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration. In addition to presenting highly rigorous effectiveness findings, a key strength of the panel would be the involvement of practitioners, who would comment on the implications of the research evidence for policymaking, program operations, and public management. The chair, situated within New York City’s Mayor’s Office, works to implement anti-poverty initiatives in NYC and other partner cities; one discussant provides leadership for low-income community and economic development through the federal reserve system; and a second discussant leads a large private workforce development organization that operates One-Stops, sector-based initiatives, and other targeted programs for low-income individuals.