"The Role of Risk: Mentoring Experiences and Outcomes for Youth with Varying Risk Profiles" presents findings from the first large-scale study to examine how the levels and types of risk youth face may influence their relationships with program-assigned mentors and the benefits they derive from these relationships. The study looked…

Child Trends produced this Guide to assist funders, administrators, and practitioners in identifying and navigating online resources to find evidence-based programs that may be appropriate for their target populations and communities. The Guide offers an overview of 21 of these resources--11 searchable online databases, 2 online interactive…

Young people who are leaving the foster care and juvenile justice systems often experience a difficult transition to adulthood that is characterized by a number of troubling outcomes, including poverty, low levels of education and employment, and housing instability. While some services are available for these populations, there is little evidence…

Families are crucial in the development of a college-going culture in the home. This qualitative study illustrates that Mexican American families are no exception. Using a multiple case study design, this study explored the funds of knowledge present in Mexican American families. Findings from this study reveal how daily educational practices,…

Few social programs have attempted to provide high-risk adults--and, particularly, former prisoners--with mentors. And thus there are few resources that offer practical advice and recommendations for mentoring this population, given its distinct needs, assets and challenges. While much remains to be tested and learned, this manual draws on the…

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is currently conducting research and analyses to guide practitioners in making evidence-based program decisions. A meta-analysis of the current research literature on training programs for parents with children ages 0 to 7 years old was recently conducted by CDC behavioral scientists. This…

The replication of proven social programs is a cost-effective and efficient way to achieve large-scale, positive social change. Yet there has been little guidance available about how to approach program replication and limited development of systems--at local, state or federal levels--to support replication efforts. "Laying a Solid Foundation:…

Animated pedagogical agents (APAs) have the potential to provide one-on-one, just-in-time instruction, guidance or mentoring in classrooms where such individualized human interactions may be infeasible. Much current APA research focuses on a wide range of design variables tested with small samples or in laboratory settings, while overlooking…

As evidence-based practice is increasingly accepted in social work, the challenges associated with its actual implementation become more apparent and pressing. This article identifies implementation as a critical issue for research; implementation itself must be better understood if evidence-based practices are to be used and resultant…

We investigated children and families who were participating in a mentoring program targeting children with incarcerated parents. Using multiple methods and informants, we explored the development of the mentoring relationship, challenges and benefits of mentoring children with incarcerated parents, and match termination in 57 mentor-child dyads.…

The use of interventions to create behavior change among students with disabilities has an extended and complex history (Horner et al., 2005). Practitioners involved in the field of special education often debate best practices from an immense array of available interventions (Heflin & Simpson, 1998). Service providers express concern about…

Contemporary management thinking embraces the organizational training theory that sustainable success rests, to a great extent, upon a systematic evaluation of training interventions. However, the evidence indicates that few organizations take adequate steps to assess and analyse the quality and outcomes of their training. The authors seek to…

Program providers work extremely hard to offer services that they believe will enhance the lives and future prospects of children and youth. But how can they be sure that their program is having the intended impacts? How can funders and policy makers be sure that their investments in programs are paying off in substantially better outcomes for…

More than 10,000 schools in the United States have adopted the multi-tiered model of behavioral and academic supports known as school-wide positive behavior interventions and supports (PBIS). Schools and districts adopting, implementing, and sustaining PBIS are charged with collecting and disseminating data generated by and related to students,…

This report focuses on the findings from a literature review of what is known about the effectiveness of intergenerational practice, conducted by the National Foundation for Educational Research (NFER) for the Local Government Association (LGA). The overall purpose of this study was to carry out a literature review of what is known about the…