Pathway Home Reentry Evaluation

• Pathway Home Evaluation Brief: 2021 Grants at a Glance (Evaluation Brief, November 2023)
  • Report Summary
• Pathway Home Evaluation Brief: Establishing Grant Programs Inside Correctional Facilities (Evaluation Brief, November 2023)
  • Report Summary
• Pathway Home Evaluation Brief: Establishing Reentry Services to Support People After Release (Evaluation Brief, November 2023)
  • Report Summary
• Workforce Supports for the Reentry Population During the COVID-19 Pandemic (Issue Brief, October 2022)
  • Report Summary
• Pathway Home Grant Program: Implementation Evaluation Design and Overview of Impact Evaluation (Evaluation Design Report, September 2022)
  • Report Summary

• What are the most rigorous evaluation options feasible for assessing the impact of the Pathway Home Reentry grant program on participant outcomes?
• How were programs implemented? What factors influenced implementation? What challenges did programs face in implementation and how were those challenges overcome? How did implementation vary by institution type (correctional facilities or jails)?
• What is the impact of the Pathway Home Reentry Grant Program on participant employment, earnings, and recidivism?
• To what extent do impacts vary across selected subpopulations of transitioning offenders (e.g., institution type, type of offense, age, veteran status)?

• Develop the knowledge base
• Conduct an impact feasibility assessment and develop evaluation design options
• Conduct an impact and implementation evaluation (optional tasks)

Pathway Home Evaluation Brief: 2021 Grants at a Glance

• All grantees partnered with correctional facilities to provide pre-release, post-release, and transition services. Participating prisons were predominantly minimum and medium security facilities, with a little over one-third having maximum security designations. Participating jails, on the other hand, had similar security rates across the board.
• Overall, grantees followed most of the requirements set out in the funding opportunity announcement. Nearly all grantees offered pre-release education and employment services, and all reported offering supportive services. However, grantees reported more variety in their post-release education, employment, and supportive service offerings than pre-release.
• When asked which partners they considered most critical for program success, grantees identified employers, education and training providers, workforce development boards or American Job Centers, housing service providers or agencies, and correctional agencies (not including partner facilities) as critical partners.

Pathway Home Evaluation Brief: Establishing Grant Programs Inside Correctional Facilities

• The grantees described engaging in several activities with their partners during the planning phase such as visiting correctional facilities, meeting with facility staff, developing partnerships with facility and training provider partners, and creating informational materials to share with their facility partners. They recommended meeting with facility partners and other key partners early and frequently.
• To integrate Pathway Home programs within correctional facilities, the grantees reported having to coordinate with their facility partners to understand their facility policies and to tailor their programs to each correctional facility’s preferred approach and practices.
• Grantees faced challenges—including COVID-19 pandemic lockdowns and correctional facility staff shortages—when implementing Pathway Home services within facilities. They worked to overcome challenges by improving their communication with facility partners and adapting their service delivery plans, such as by moving to virtual services.

Pathway Home Evaluation Brief: Establishing Reentry Services to Support People After Release

• Grantees focused their services on addressing participant needs and barriers to employment and partnered with employers and community-based organizations to offer a greater variety of specialized services.
• To build partnerships with employers, grantees attended job fairs, reimbursed employers for training opportunities, attended chamber of commerce and workforce development board meetings, employed dedicated employer outreach staff, and established industry advisory boards.
• To build relationships with community-based organizations, grantees suggested connecting early, networking often, and maintaining ongoing communication.

Workforce Supports for the Reentry Population During the COVID-19 Pandemic

• Grantees that reported more established partnerships and stronger communication channels with correctional facilities appeared to be better positioned to implement their Pathway Home program during the COVID-19 pandemic, including conducting recruitment, obtaining referrals, and gaining access to the facilities.
• Grantees reported that early release policies at correctional facilities in response to COVID-19 hampered enrollment into the program and participation. Individuals were released early to reduce overcrowding, making them ineligible for the program or reducing their time in pre-release services. Grantees found it helpful to have a partner who would commit to providing timely information on release dates, such as someone in the correctional facility or the local prosecutor’s office.
• To address COVID-19-related restrictions, Pathway Home grantees and their correctional partners reported an expansion of technology in facilities such as providing participants with tablets and using DocuSign for paperwork, to improve the virtual outreach, intake, and enrollment processes.

Evaluation Brief

Hicks, B., Lynn-Green, R., Yañez, A. (2023). Mathematica and Social Policy Research Associates. Pathway Home Evaluation Brief: 2021 Grants at a Glance. Chief Evaluation Office, U.S. Department of Labor.

Evaluation Brief

Gutierrez, I., Allmang, S., Jayagoda, M., Yañez, A. (2023). Mathematica and Social Policy Research Associates. Pathway Home Evaluation Brief: Establishing Grant Programs Inside Correctional Facilities. Chief Evaluation Office, U.S. Department of Labor.

Evaluation Brief

Yañez, A., Christensen, B., Omwenga, S. (2023). Mathematica and Social Policy Research Associates. Pathway Home Evaluation Brief: Establishing Reentry Services to Support People After Release. Chief Evaluation Office, U.S. Department of Labor.

Issue Brief

Sandoval, M., Rakibullah, S., Yanez, A. (2022). Mathematica and Social Policy Research Associates. Issue Brief: Workforce Supports for the Reentry Population During the COVID-19 Pandemic. Chief Evaluation Office, U.S. Department of Labor.

Evaluation Design Report

Sattar, S., Yanez, A., Geckeler, C., Jarrett, N., Nelson, E., Rakibullah, S., Stein, J., Sandoval, M. (2022). Mathematica, Social Policy Research Associates, and Council of State Governments Justice Center. Evaluation of the Pathway Home Grant Program: Implementation Evaluation Design and Overview of Impact Evaluation. Chief Evaluation Office, U.S. Department of Labor.