Since the onset of the COVID-19 crisis, public colleges and universities have prioritized the health and safety of students, faculty, staff and visitors while continuing to offer an exceptional, affordable learning environment. Public higher education has been agile and responsive. In March 2020, the state system institutions transitioned more…

COVID-19 and the response to the pandemic in Oklahoma and the nation mark this as an unprecedented time in American history. Oklahoma's state system of higher education has responded to the challenges created with flexibility and innovation, transitioning more than 173,000 students to virtual, online, and alternative course delivery formats for…

The Oklahoma State Regents remain completely committed to maintaining the accessibility and affordability of public higher education for all Oklahomans and increasing the number of college graduates to provide the educated workforce our state requires to be competitive in a dynamic, global economy. This annual report reflects the significant…

Higher education is the state's road to jobs and prosperity. No entity in state government can help Oklahoma reach its goals of educational excellence and workforce development faster or more comprehensively than public higher education. More college graduates means an increase in our state's per capita income and a stronger state economy. This…

Increasing education among low-income parents is a vital component of policies to improve families' economic status. Educational attainment matters: between 1979 and 2005, wages for those with college and advanced degrees rose by 22 and 28 percent, respectively, while wages for high school graduates remained stagnant and wages for high school…

The Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) block grant is one of the major sources of funding for services designed to help low-income parents succeed in the workplace. The TANF law limits the degree to which states can count TANF families engaged in education and training activities toward federal work participation rate requirements--an…

Achieving Change for Texans (ACT) was a demonstration program designed to help participants achieve independence from welfare through employment, training, temporary assistance, and support services. The ACT included the following four primary components: Time-Limited and Transitional Benefits (TL); Responsibilities, Employment, and Resources…

This research review suggests that welfare reform policy should recognize the differences between rural and urban poor families. The rural poor are more likely to be employed, married, and non-Hispanic white. Rural-urban labor market differences are also likely to influence the effects of the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity…

The 1996 welfare reforms narrowed rural-urban differences in employment for both less-educated and more-educated single mothers, and raised the employment rate of single mothers, overall and for all racial/ethnic groups except nonmetro Hispanics. These findings suggest that the aggregate effects of obstacles to employment are no greater in…

Millions of Americans work hard every day but struggle to support their families on low wages. Millions more have recently moved from welfare to work, but have been unable to escape poverty. Altogether, according to the U.S. Labor Department, more than six million Americans are counted among the working poor. Meanwhile, critical industries like…

This document contains selected proceedings from a conference that was convened in the Mississippi Delta region to provide interested stakeholders (citizens and local public officials) with information about recent federal and state welfare reform legislation. The document begins with an explanation of how the old Aid to Families with Dependent…

This Resources for Welfare Decisions highlights publications that offer guidance on developing youth systems under the Workforce Investment Act of 1998 (WIA). An introductory section discusses the changes WIA made to youth services; the opportunities and challenges these changes created for Youth Councils and youth service providers; states' role…

This publication is designed to help TANF [Temporary Assistance for Needy Families] agencies create specific program interventions to serve TANF recipients in place-based (in particular, housing-based) programs that help welfare recipients find and keep jobs. TANF programs increasingly serve welfare recipients with multiple barriers to steady…

The General Accounting Office (GAO) examined worksite-based activities currently in place to help recipients of Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) develop the skills required for successful transition to unsubsidized employment. Data were collected from the following sources: (1) data reported by states to the Department of Health and…

The passage of the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act (PRWORA) in 1996 has ushered in a new era of welfare reform. A work-first approach emphasizes self-sufficiency designed to move welfare recipients into the workforce as quickly as possible. The first of two issues related to the current context of welfare-to-work…