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I. Welcome and Introductions (Sue Lin Chong)

II. Review of Policy Report and Data (Patrice

Cromwell and Laura Speer)

III. Research on Two-Generation Approaches (Ron

Haskins)

IV. Two-Generation Policies in Connecticut

(Commissioner Roderick Bremby)

V. Voices for Utah Children’s Approach to Addressing

Poverty (Karen Crompton)

VI. Q&A

Agenda

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Our Panel

Patrice Cromwell

Director, Strategic

Initiatives

The Annie E. Casey

Foundation

Laura Speer

Associate Director, Policy

Reform and Advocacy

The Annie E. Casey

Foundation

Ron Haskins

Senior Fellow, Economic

Studies

The Brookings Institution

Roderick Bremby

Commissioner

Connecticut

Department of Social

Services

Karen Crompton

President and CEO

Voices for Utah

Children

• Problem: Nearly half of young children – 17

million – are growing up in low-income families.

• We need to ensure these kids have a shot at the

American dream.

• Today, too many programs address the needs of

parents and children separately and in isolation.

• What we need is a new approach that

recognizes kids succeed when families succeed

— a two-generation approach.

A Two-Generation Approach to Creating Opportunity for

Families: An Overview

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• 10 million low-income families with

children age 8 and under

• Limited skills, low wages, inflexible

work schedules:

– Only half with full-time work

– Nearly 80 percent lack

postsecondary degree

– Nearly five times more likely to

have difficulty speaking English

Families Are Struggling to Make Ends Meet

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Low-Income Families Face Greater Barriers to Success

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are single-parent families

of low-income parents

reported child care

significantly affected their

ability to get and keep a job

of children in low-income

families have parents with

concerns about their

development

45%

17%

31%

Our Approach: Strengthening the Whole Family

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Financial Stability

• Education and job training

• Access to income and work support benefits

• Financial coaching

• Access to affordable financial products

Parent Involvement

• Treating parents as assets and experts on their kids

• Having culturally competent staff

• Addressing family stress

• Enhancing social networks

Quality Early Care and Elementary Education

• Access to high-quality early education programs

• Successful transition to elementary school

• Quality elementary school experiences

• Effective teaching

Our Goal: Better Outcomes for Families

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PARENT OUTCOMES

Less parental stress

Stronger parenting

skills

Parent confidence as

child’s first teacher

and best advocate

Recognition of

parents as leaders

and experts on caring

for their kids

CHILD OUTCOMES

More positive, high-

quality interactions

with parents

Improved social-

emotional

development

Readiness for school

Ability to meet school

and life milestonesFAMILY ECONOMIC OUTCOMES

Ability to meet basic needs

Greater income and financial stability

Ability to achieve major economic outcomes

Housing stability

The Challenge Today

• Adult programs treat children as barriers to employment

• Child programs often do not help parents who are struggling

with day-to-day stress of providing for their family

Many federal and state programs operate in isolation

Create policies that equip parents and children with the

income, tools and skills for success.

Make government policies and

programs more family friendly.

Build evidence on promising programs and

platforms focusing on parents and

children together.

Policy Recommendations

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Equip Families With the Income and Tools They Need

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• Enable families keep more of the

income they earn to raise their family

- Increase and make refundable

the child tax credit and expand

the earned income tax credit

for workers without dependents

• Strengthen policies that equip parents

with limited education and job skills

to earn a family-supporting income.

– Adult-serving programs should

build bridges to family and

child programs

– Policies should pay particular

attention to the role of fathers

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• Give parents more flexibility and paid time off (family and sick leave) and

options for parents to create more flexible work arrangements

• Connect families to health care and newly expanded mental health programs

now available to adults.

• Recognize parents’ strengths, help them interact with fellow parents and build

peer support systems, and offer leadership development opportunities.

Equip Families With the Income and Tools They Need

Make Government More Family Friendly

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• Use interagency commissions and

innovation funds to promote cross-sector

collaboration

• Connect child and adult data systems

• Adopt practices that offer “no wrong door”

and take the whole family into account

• Use new federal legislation and

reauthorization periods to begin to bridge

policies and programs

Build Evidence on Promising Programs and Platforms

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Schools and early-education, home-

visiting and job-training programs

are some of the platforms that offer

opportunities to create partnerships

that address in the needs of parents

and children together.

• Parent voice is critical. Partner

with families in creating

solutions and decision making.

• Poverty disproportionately

affects children of color.

Prioritize equity for all families.

• Government can’t do this alone.

Engage a full range of public

and private partners.

Core Principles and a Call To Action

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KIDS COUNTCreating Opportunity for Families: A Two-Generation Approach

Ron Haskins

Senior Fellow & Co-Director, Center on Children & Families

The Brookings Institution

November 12, 2014

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Two-Generation Programs in the Twenty-First CenturyP. Lindsay Chase-Lansdale & Jeanne Brooks-Gunn

• Combine education/job training for adults with preschool for

kids

• First wave in 1980s & 1990s; modest success

• Current resurgence:

» Build strong connections between components for kids and

adults

» Ensure adequate duration & intensity of programs for kids

and adults

» Incorporate advances in preschool and workforce

development

• Moderate evidence of impacts: “The time is ripe for innovation,

experimentation, and further study.”

Source: Future of Children, Spring, 2014.

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Sources of Chronic Stress

• Homelessness

• Abuse/neglect/domestic violence

• Chaotic environments

• Poverty

• Foster care

• Maternal depression

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The Theory of How Stress Works

StressBiological

development and function

Behavior

Example behaviors:

• Impulse control

• Focused attention

• Control of emotions

• Memory, learning, language

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A Stress Pathway for Getting Under the Skin

Stress Cortisol

Hypothalamus and amygdala (emotion and motivation)

Prefrontal cortex (self-regulation)

Hippocampus (memory)

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Priority Groups for Intervention

• Children in Head Start

• Children in foster care

• Parents who have abused or neglected their

children

• Foster parents

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Helping Parents and Children Who Experience Chronic Stress

• Home visiting; support for parents

• Economic assistance & work support; reduce

financial stress

• Quality child care; safe, warm, predictable

environment

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Creating Opportunity for Families: A Two-Generation Approach

Our Connecticut Experience

Roderick L. Bremby

Commissioner

State of Connecticut

Department of

Social Services

November 12, 2014

'The Eyes of the Future are looking back at us and they are

praying for us to see beyond our own time.‘

- Terry Tempest Williams

Simulating the Effect of the ‘Great Recession’ on Poverty

Emily Monea and Isabel Sawhill, of the Brookings Institution

9/16/2010

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Simulating the Effect of the ‘Great Recession’ on Poverty

Emily Monea and Isabel Sawhill, of the Brookings Institution

9/16/2010

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Adverse experiences common

among poor children include:

Living in poverty exposes children to

many adverse experiences

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• Income instability

• Substandard and unstable

housing

• Caretaker disruptions

• Excessive exposure to violence

• High levels of family stress

• High levels of depression and

other mental health disorders

• Exposure to environmental

toxins

• Sustained food insecurity

LaDonna Pavetti, Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, 9/24/2014

Why Poverty Matters

28LaDonna Pavetti, Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, 9/24/2014

Brain Architecture is not fixed:

Interventions can make a positive difference

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Connecticut Two Generation Framework

R1 – Create policies that equip parents and children with the income, tools and skills for success

Earned Income Tax Credit to 27.5% of

the federal EITC

1st State to Raise the Minimum Wage

to $10.10

1st State to Mandate Paid Sick Leave

1st State to expand Medicaid coverage

under the ACA. Successful launch of a

state based insurance exchange.

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Connecticut Two Generation Framework

R2 – Make government policies and programs more family friendly.

Establishment of Office of Early

Childhood

Legislation to develop a two-generation

learning plan that will address

intergenerational barriers to school

readiness and workforce readiness.

Adoption of “no wrong door” integrated

eligibility approach via ACA funding

opportunities.

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Connecticut Two Generation Framework

R3 – Use existing child, adult and neighborhood programs and platforms to build evidence for practical pathways out of poverty for entire families.

Pay for Performance – Medicaid

OB&GYN Initiative

Fatherhood Initiative

TANF – Temporary Assistance for

Families, RESET

The New Haven Mental Health

Outreach for MotherS (MOMS)

Partnership

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Creating Opportunity for Families: A Two-Generation Approach

Our Connecticut Experience

Roderick L. Bremby

Commissioner

State of Connecticut

Department of

Social Services

November 12, 2014

'The Eyes of the Future are looking back at us and they are

praying for us to see beyond our own time.‘

- Terry Tempest Williams

A Two-Generation Approach to

Addressing Poverty in Utah

www.utahchildren.org

2012 Legislation

S.B. 37 Intergenerational Poverty Mitigation Act

• Defined intergenerational poverty

• Required gathering of data to track intergenerational poverty

www.utahchildren.org

2013 Legislation

S.B. 53 Intergenerational Welfare Reform

• Created Commission and Advisory Committee

• Required sharing of data between state agencies; creation of 5

and 10 year plans

Next Generation Kids Pilot Program

www.utahchildren.org

• Utah’s Family Employment Program (FEP)

has historically focused on employment goals.

• The pilot will focus on the entire family by

assisting parents with employment and

intensive services that benefit everyone.

• Targets families with children 12 years and

younger who have received financial

assistance through FEP during the last 12

months.

Next Generation Kids Strategies

www.utahchildren.org

• Use an intensive team approach

• Build relationship through team-engagement

with customers

• Meet families where they live – schools,

community centers, residences

• Promote self-determination for families

• Intensive training for team members

• Build relationships with community partners

and government agencies

• Incentives for goals achieved

Next Generation Kids Pilot Program

• Launched September 1 in the

urban Ogden area:

• Largest concentration of

intergenerational welfare

dependent families in these zip

codes

• Strong community support

A second pilot scheduled for

2015 in Salt Lake County

THANK YOU

www.utahchildren.org

For more information, contact:

Voices for Utah Children

801-364-1182

karen@utahchildren.org

Visit our website at www.utahchildren.org

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Questions: media@aecf.org

Report and additional

resources: www.aecf.org

Q&A