Higher education is essential to accessing high-demand jobs with family-supporting wages and improving family financial wellbeing. This was true before the COVID-19 pandemic and is especially true now as the nation continues the process of recovering from one of the worst public health, economic, and social crises in modern U.S. history. To…

Presents the results of a national study examining effectiveness of employment- and education-focused welfare-to-work programs. Considers the implications for community colleges, particularly training for quick employment versus stable jobs that pay a living wage. Concludes that, compared with other institutions, community colleges have the most…

Reports that since the passage of the Welfare Reform Act in 1996, community colleges have invested time and money to create programs that ensure the successful transition of welfare recipients to self-sufficient workers. Cites recent resources on the efforts of educators to improve the status of welfare recipients, particularly in the two-year…

This report examines the effect that welfare reform in a strongly "work first" setting has had on community college programs for welfare recipients. The report looks at two community colleges in New York: Hostos Community College in the South Bronx and La Guardia Community College in Queens. Research data is drawn from interviews with 27…

Considers the effects of internal and external constituencies on the role of welfare reform in community colleges. Describes how Modesto Junior College (California) built partnerships with county and state employment, social services, welfare, and other agencies to develop effective job-training programs. (NB)

Discusses community colleges and welfare-to-work programs from a rural perspective, specifically in Illinois. Examines the barriers to rural welfare recipients in terms of job placement, benefits of collaborative efforts, and importance of education and training. (Contains 11 references.) (AUTH/NB)

Focuses on the development and implementation of a customer service call center training program, implemented by Metropolitan Community Colleges (Missouri) to assist welfare recipients overcome the obstacles facing them in the workplace. Discusses components of the program, and its effects on both the consumer and the corporate community. (AUTH/NB)

This paper reports on the state of welfare after the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act (PRWORA) passed by Congress in 1996. The National Evaluation of Welfare-to-Work Strategies (NEWWS) is a federally initiated study that explores the questions of what works best and for whom. NEWWS evaluated seven areas across the…

Argues that academic skills, in addition to job skills, are crucial for taking people off the welfare rolls. Discusses postsecondary training programs and services for welfare recipients at the Community College of Aurora in Colorado. (NB)

Articles in this journal discuss the role of community colleges in educating welfare recipients since President Clinton signed the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act (PRWORA) in 1996. Under the new legislation, a new block grant, Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF), was launched in July 1997, eliminating…

The University of New Mexico (UNM) Valencia campus is a two-year college in rural Valencia County. UNM-Valencia provides vocational and general education, basic skills assistance, a community education program and a small business development program. In fall 1998, the campus had 750 full-time-equivalent (FTE) students and 807 part-time students;…

Presents the story of how a New York county and community college collaborated to create a methodology for welfare reform. Describes the program as stressing the need for mental health and substance abuse program integration, as well as a methodology that includes the entire family unit. (NB)

This paper analyzes the role the community college plays as a bridge to opportunity for the working poor and economically disadvantaged. Because educating the disadvantaged is expensive and often under-funded--particularly in the area of basic or remedial education--many community colleges opt to focus on educating more advantaged students in…

This document describes the California Work Opportunity and Responsibility to Kids (CalWORKs) program, which California instituted in response to the 1996 federal welfare-to-work legislation. The CalWORKs program also has the mandate to develop employment opportunities for welfare students. Community colleges are required to spend their CalWORKs…

This paper describes the Essential Skills Program at the Community College of Denver (CCD), which functions as an education broker and a labor market intermediary that coordinates the services offered by CCD with the needs of a number of Department of Social Service clients. The Essential Skills Program (ESP) supplements the services offered by…