Research Areas

Evaluation

 

Coffey Consulting evaluates multi-site programs for federal agencies and provides evaluation support to the State of Maryland.  Types of evaluations conducted include:

Topical areas covered: Prisoner Re-Entry; Limited English Proficiency and Hispanic Initiative; Worker Profiling and Reemployment of Unemployment Insurance (UI) Claimants; Welfare Reform (impact on UI); State Unemployment Tax Act; State National Evaluations under Workforce Investment Act of 1998; Personal Reemployment Accounts and Career Advancement Accounts; Low-Wage Worker Advancement and Backfill Employment and Skill Shortage.

Evaluation of the Prisoner Re-Entry Initiative (US DOL/ETA):  Conducted the evaluation of the demonstration program that funds employment-centered projects incorporating job training, housing, referral, mentoring and other comprehensive transition services to determine the success of 30 participating grantees in meeting the goals of their PRI grants.  The evaluation featured a descriptive implementation study that was qualitative in nature and included a detailed analysis of the cost per participant.  Coffey collected qualitative and quantitative data by two rounds of in-depth site visits to local programs, MIS data on individual clients, and cost data from participating organizations and agencies.  A methodology, evaluation design, and site visit guide/protocol were developed.  Site visit reports, Interim Report and Final Report were produced.   To access the Final Report, click here. 

Twin Cities RISE! Process Evaluation and Outcomes Analysis (USDOL/ETA):  Process evaluation and outcome analysis study of the Twin Cities RISE! (TCR!) and Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development (DEED) Performance-Based Training and Education Demonstration Project.  The project, which includes three separate grants from the U.S. Department of Labor, implements a training and education approach designed to assist ex-offenders, low-income individuals, and those at-risk of court or gang involvement with community re-entry, and obtaining and retaining jobs that have a future and pay good wages.  The demonstration project focuses on the services offered through the Awali Inside/Out program and Awali Place program (Awali is a Swahili word for “beginning”), and to a lesser extent, the Core program.  Awali Inside/Out serves males who are incarcerated, while the Awali Place program serves those who are low income, the majority of whom have criminal backgrounds and are transitioning from prison.  The majority of Awali Place participants do not have a high school diploma or GED.  The Core program serves low-income individuals who have earned either a high school diploma or GED. Activities and deliverables include: development of the evaluation methodology, collection of administrative and participant data, on-site/off-site process analysis, quantitative data analysis, outcomes measurement and delivery of the design, interim and final reports. 

Evaluation of the Limited English Proficiency (LEP) and Hispanic Initiative (USDOL/ETA):  Evaluation assessed the effectiveness of learning strategies used by the five grantees to simultaneously teach English and occupational skills and to assess individual outcomes of LEP and Hispanic participants.  It also described and assessed the level of collaboration between partners; described key processes involved in the planning and delivery of program services; examined the effects of new learning strategies on occupational skills gains, job attainment, wage increases, job retention, and advancement opportunities; and described the success of the programs’ strategies to link participants who completed the program with employers.  Coffey produced an evaluation design, completed protocols and conducted site visits; completed site visit reports; and produced an Interim Report and a Final Report.

Evaluation of State Implementation of Section 303(k), Social Security Act (USDOL/ETA):  Section 303(k) of the Social Security Act or the SUTA Dumping Prevention Act of 2004 (Act) required the Secretary of Labor to conduct a study of the implementation of the Act by the 50 States, the District of Columbia, Virgin Islands, and Puerto Rico (53 States) to assess state actions and to make a report to Congress on the findings along with any applicable recommendations for Congressional action.  SUTA dumping occurs when employers and their financial advisors manipulate state unemployment tax experience rating systems to pay lower unemployment compensation taxes below the amounts the employers’ unemployment experience would otherwise allow.

The objective of the analysis was to determine, based on the evidence gathered, whether the implementation of new laws by the states:  1) Helped maintain the integrity of the UI experience rating system and the state UI trust funds; 2) Deterred UI tax rate manipulation efforts; and 3) Supported the long-standing goal that employers pay their fair share of the cost of financing the UI system.  Coffey developed a study design for this qualitative and quantitative evaluation that required obtaining OMB clearance to collect data from all the states.  As part of this study, data collection protocols were developed and tested with a limited number of states, including one that served as a pilot.  The cleared protocol was sent to the states, all of which responded, and varying levels of data and other information were received.  The Coffey Team analyzed and synthesized the data in order to produce a fast-turnaround Final Report to meet a statutory deadline for DOL to report the findings to Congress.  The report was cleared by the U.S. Department of Labor for release to the public.  To access the report, click here.

Personal Reemployment Accounts (PRA) Demonstration Project (USDOL/ETA):  The project was an implementation and outcomes evaluation designed to gather data and position DOL/ETA to conduct a subsequent impact evaluation of future PRA programs. ETA awarded grants to seven states for the purpose of implementing PRAs.  Goals of this demonstration were to 1) give unemployed workers selected for PRAs more choice over a greater variety of service selections based on their individual needs, 2) allow PRA recipients greater control over managing the resources that are invested in achieving their employment goals, 3) provide direct access to intensive, training and support services both inside and outside the One-Stop Career Center so that unemployed workers can return to work more quickly and 4) through an implementation study and the provision of technical assistance, learn lessons about which service design strategies worked best for meeting the initiative’s goals.  Research questions for this multi-site evaluation were developed and served as the basis for the evaluation design and supporting data collection protocols were also developed.  Data collection included site visits and follow-up interviews by telephone and in person.  The implementation of the demonstration was documented in detail and served as the basis for replication for new states and renewals of existing states. Coffey produced various mini reports as well as an Interim and Final Report. This report can be accessed here.

Evaluation of State Worker Profiling Models (USDOL/ETA):   The Worker Profiling and Reemployment Services (WPRS) system, mandated by Public Law 103-152 of the Unemployment Compensation Amendments of 1993, was designed to identify and rank or score unemployment insurance (UI) claimants by their potential for exhausting their benefits for referral to appropriate reemployment services.  The goals of this evaluation were to:  1) describe ways that state workforce agencies (SWAs) have implemented the WPRS, 2) describe the methodology used to evaluate SWA worker profiling model accuracy, 3) determine the effectiveness of SWA models in profiling UI claimants most likely to exhaust their benefits, and 4) prepare a summary of “best practices” models for SWAs to use in improving their WPRS systems.  Coffey provided input to the development of a data collection request for submission to OMB, developed a methodology that evaluated the model for accuracy, developed a survey of states on the operational and structural aspects of their models, collected survey data of 53 SWAs (50 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, and the Virgin Islands), measured/analyzed the accuracy of state worker profiling models, and produced a Final Report detailing the results, survey information, and summary of best practices.  This report can be accessed here.

The Impact of Welfare Reform on Unemployment Insurance (USDOL/ETA):  The Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act (PRWORA) reformed the nation’s welfare laws by creating a new system of block grants to the states for Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF).  States were given greater flexibility and discretion to run their welfare programs.  The primary goals of Federal welfare policy became the movement of people from welfare to work.  In 1997, the Balanced Budget Act was signed which helped to achieve that goal by authorizing the U.S. Department of Labor to provide Welfare-to-Work grants to states and local communities to create additional job opportunities for the hardest-to-employ recipients of TANF.  The Workforce Investment Act of 1998 (WIA) provides the Federal government, states, and local communities with an opportunity to develop a system that gives workers the information, advice, job search assistance, and training they need to get and keep good jobs.  WIA requires that programs authorized under state UI laws, in accordance with applicable Federal law, be mandatory partners.  State UI programs must make available applicable services to participants through a One-Stop delivery system.

The study assessed  the experiences of former welfare recipients who applied for temporary income support and related assistance from selected State UI programs sought to determine the probable impact of welfare reform on measure of workload, benefits, reemployment services, and trust-fund balances of these programs; and proceeded to develop policy and program options that may better assist this population.  The study included an assessment of the probable impact of an economic recession in terms of these issues and measures as they related to former TANF recipients.

Low-Wage Worker Advancement and Backfill Employment and Skill Shortage (USDOL/ETA):    Evaluated sites that developed and implemented new job search assistance services and workshops designed to increase the competitiveness of low-wage workers in a job or in the job market that could be rolled-out to local One-Stop Centers to meet the job search and skill-building needs of low-wage workers, including former welfare recipients and individuals with learning disabilities.  This project allowed One-Stop Centers to increase their capacity to provide effective employment and retention services to low-wage workers and to enhance their capacity to work with employers to strengthen their workforce.  The project sites were located in Oregon (two) and California (two).  In each state, one site pursued a sectoral model while the other used a traditional case management model.  The evaluation included documenting the processes used by the grantees to develop their individual programs with particular emphasis on the barriers faced by each; documenting models or components of effective low-wage worker retention and advancement programs that can be used across the nation; and publishing a “how-to” guide based on the experience of these grantees and based on findings from other similar low-wage worker retention program studies. To access the Final Report, click here.