Brief
The Administration for Children and Families funded Mathematica Policy Research to conduct a rigorous evaluation of the Wise Guys program in and near Davenport, Iowa, in collaboration with the Iowa Department of Public Health. This programming was delivered by a community-based organization in Davenport-area middle schools and funded through the state’s Personal Responsibility Education Program (PREP) grant. The Wise Guys curriculum aims to promote male responsibility and discourage early entry into fatherhood. By offering programming in male-only groups, Wise Guys aims to create an…
Brief
Teenage childbearing is associated with negative outcomes for mothers, their children, and society as a whole. We used data from a nationally representative survey that follows young women over time to explore the relationship between three different measures of academic ability and the likelihood of subsequently experiencing a teen birth outside of marriage. Previous studies have found that girls who perform well in school are less likely to become teen mothers. We show that this is true for some girls, but not for others. We also show that not all measures of academic ability are related to…
Other, Brief
This inaugural publication of the Family Policy Institute of Oklahoma provides a brief assessment of the status of Oklahoma's children using five different indicators representing serious challenges to their well-being: child safety, child poverty, educational success, teen births, and youth substance abuse. Findings indicate: there were over 11,000 cases of child abuse and neglect confirmed in 2013 in Oklahoma; 1 in 4 Oklahoma children lived in poverty in 2011; Oklahoma's high school graduation rate is been 72-78%; Oklahoma ranks 2nd for teen births in the United States at 47.3%; and…
This final report discusses the Teen Parent Program, which provided a continuum of services to reduce child abuse and neglect and to strengthen the families of teenage parents. The project addressed a number of problems teen parents face: weak family structure and support; low levels of self-sufficiency and self-esteem; and lack of family planning, medical care, information on parenting, and parent-child interaction. The program consisted of 4 basic components. These components were: a family care specialist, teaching child development and home management, and providing transportation and in-…
In 1991, P/PV designed the Young Unwed Fathers Pilot Project to see if young, economically disadvantaged fathers would enter a program that provided job training, education, counseling and parenting services for up to 18 months, and if participation would lead to an increased capacity to support their children, both financially and developmentally. This report presents a detailed look at selected aspects of the lives of the young fathers before and during program participation, including their attitudes and relationships with the mothers of their children. It also evaluates employment and…
