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About the Study
In 2017, the Chief Evaluation Office (CEO), in collaboration with the Employment and Training Administration (ETA), funded contractor Mathematica, with Social Policy Research Associates, to conduct the Reentry Project Grants Evaluation. This implementation and impact evaluation aims to identify and evaluate promising practices used in reentry employment programs, which are comprehensive strategies to address the range of challenges formerly incarcerated adults and young adults who have been involved in the juvenile or adult justice system face in making a successful transition back to the community.
The implementation study has three main goals: (1) describe the structure of RP grant-funded services over two grant cycles (2018 and 2019), including how funding was used during these cycles, the ways in which grantees operated their programs, and the services grantees delivered; (2) highlight unique and potentially promising strategies to support justice-involved individuals, including strategies that grantees used during the COVID pandemic; and (3) inform the interpretation of impact study results by identifying structural differences across programs as well as variations in implementation. Grant documents, a grantee survey, virtual site visits, and administrative data from the Workforce Integrated Performance System (WIPS) informed the present implementation findings. An impact study is ongoing, and findings are expected in 2024.
This Department of Labor-funded study was a result of Section 169 of the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA) as well as the annual process to determine the Department’s research priorities for the upcoming year. It contributes to the labor evidence-base to inform employment and training programs and policies and addresses Department strategic goals and priorities.
- How were programs implemented? What are the types and combinations of services and approaches provided? What employment focused services were offered?
- What impact does the Reentry Employment Opportunity (REO) program, or strategies implemented under this program, have on the outcomes of participants?
- To what extent do outcomes and impacts vary across selected subpopulations?
- Are there key program elements that are common to successful models of comprehensive reentry programs (e.g., structure, organization, service delivery, partnerships, etc.)?
- Employment Programs to Support Reentry: Findings from the Reentry Project Grant Evaluation (Impact Report, December 2024)
- Summary of Findings from the Reentry Project Grants Evaluation (Impact Brief, December 2024)
- Implementing Employment Programs to Support Reentry: Lessons from the Reentry Project Grants (Implementation Report, March 2023)
- DOL Evaluation Design Pre-Specification Plan: Reentry Programs (Design Pre-Specification Plan, March 2023)
- Advancing Employment Opportunities for Justice-Involved Individuals through Work-Based Learning: Experiences from Reentry Project Grantees (Issue Brief, March 2023)
- Adult and Young Adult Reentry Project Grants: Differences in Service Offerings and Implementation Challenges (Issue Brief, March 2023)
- Participants’ Perspectives During Reentry Project Programs (Issue Brief, March 2023)
- Portrait of the Reentry Project Grantees (Issue Brief, March 2023)
- Connecting Reentry Project (RP) Participants to In-Demand Local Industries: Insights from RP Grant Programs (Issue Brief, March 2023)
- Common Indicators of Recidivism Used in Program and Policy Evaluations (Issue Brief, March 2023)
- Using Risk/Needs Assessments in Reentry Services (Issue Brief, March 2023)
- Data Privacy Seminars (One-Pager, March 2023)
- Supporting Reentry Employment and Success: A Summary of the Evidence for Adults and Young Adults (Final Report, September 2019)
Project Duration: 60 Months
Contract End Date: September 2024
Contractor: Mathematica Policy Research, with Social Policy Research Associates
For More Information: ChiefEvaluationOffice@dol.gov
The Department of Labor’s (DOL) Chief Evaluation Office (CEO) sponsors independent evaluations and research, primarily conducted by external, third-party contractors in accordance with the Department of Labor Evaluation Policy and CEO’s research development process.