1. SWFI Evaluation Overview And Update
Molly Irwin & Christina Yancey
Chief Evaluation Office
U.S. Department of Labor
Strengthening Working Families Initiative Grantee Convening – October 31, 2017

2. Why the Focus on Evidence
Increased emphasis on evidence-based policymaking at all levels of government and in the private sector, for example:
The President’s FY18 budget, “An effective and efficient Federal government requires evidence—evidence about where needs are greatest, what works and what does not work, where and how programs could be improved...”
The Commission on Evidence-Based Policymaking
Evidence reviews and tiered-evidence funding initiatives
Private philanthropic organizations calling for evaluation and the use of evidence
Increased emphasis on learning and program improvement on the ground

3. Why the Focus on Evidence
Plan
Use Evaluation
to Improve
Implement
Evaluate

4. What we know now
Grantees based some programs on promising practices, such as direct employer relationships, work-based training, and career pathways, as well as on innovative practices, such as rapid, rigorous training strategies.
SWFI is building new evidence on the programs, but also on the supportive and/or referral services and the systems linkages between workforce development and childcare.

5. How the SWFI evaluation will build evidence
It will answer these questions:
How did the programs both remove childcare barriers and address the individual job training needs of participants?
What is the impact of the training programs on employment, earnings, and other outcomes?
How were systems and partnerships built and maintained?
By implementing the following design:
Implementation study involving all SWFI programs
Impact evaluation
Random assignment with 2 grantees
Quasi-experiment with all SWFI programs

6. Where you fit in
As partners in building evidence about workforce programs and helping parents overcome barriers to access, so we can continue to improve the programs and outcomes for the people we serve.

7. Overview of Evaluation Activities
Type of Information
Target Date
All Grantees
DOL WIPS data, QPRs
Quarterly
Grantee web survey
Sept 2018
Partner Information Form
July 2018
Partner web survey
Telephone interviews (Grantees and Partners at non-RCT sites)
Feb 2019
Only RCT-Grantees
Random assignment
Beginning Jan-June 2018
Grantee site visits
April 2018, Oct 2019
Participant surveys (6 & 18 months follow-up)
July 2018 thru June 2020

8. Grantee Responsibilities
Ongoing: Regularly update WIOA WIPS
In 2018: Complete a grantee survey on the web
Program context, partnerships, training strategies, supportive services, implementation successes and challenges, etc.
In 2019: Participate in a telephone discussion to follow-up on survey responses
In 2019: Provide contact information for key partners so the evaluation team can contact them for a survey

9. Evaluation Team Responsibilities
Keep you informed and provide updates on the research progress.
Provide technical support to ensure research is minimally burdensome.
Share research findings in a wide array of formats (brief, key takeaways + technical reports) as soon as we can.
Be available.

10. Contacts Molly Irwin, Ph.D., DOL Chief Evaluation Officer
Christina Yancey, Ph.D., DOL Evaluation Lead
Joseph Gasper, Ph.D., Westat, Project Director,