Fifty-two empirical studies of welfare recipients, are surveyed to compare empirical evidence with the assumptions of current welfare reform proposals. (Editor/MU)

Summarizes themes of welfare reform in America and policy shifts that have resulted in the introduction of state-focused workfare programs. (MW)

Provides important information to better prepare advocates participating in the welfare reform debate. Presents excerpts from reports by the General Accounting Office and the Advisory Committee of the Department of Health and Human Services. Suggests that virtually all of the reform proposals require much more stringent work participation by…

This program guide on welfare reform raises basic questions about different beliefs that influence public policy about welfare and what the welfare system ought to achieve. Four policy approaches are offered as a framework for discussion: (1) cut welfare for the able; (2) use welfare as a tool to require recipients to become more responsible; (3)…

Noting the while there may be much support for the principle that families on welfare should have access to 2 years of education and training and then be expected to work, this paper contends that it will be extremely difficult, perhaps impossible, to design a coherent and constructive program within the probable federal budget constraints. In…

This 60-item annotated bibliography focuses on case management as it relates to welfare, Medicaid, and/or the Family Support Act of 1988. While specific definitions, types of practice, and goals of case management vary greatly, the term here refers to a strategy of coordinating or integrating services for a client or group of clients in the social…

Implementation is the challenge facing any attempts to reform the U.S. welfare service system. Without consideration of an implementation strategy, a reform plan will be destined to fail. Because many planners of welfare reform may be unfamiliar with program initiation, planners need a guide to assist implementation. This report provides planners…

This report outlines findings and recommendations of a committee study of whether the State of Missouri is in need of welfare reform. The major finding is that Missouri's current welfare system is substantially deficient and requires correction of laws, policies, practices, and resource allocation. Three major themes are the following: (1) welfare…

The two papers in this document were prepared in response to requests by the Department of Agriculture and the White House staff for briefs on welfare and poverty issues. The first paper, "The Administration's Welfare Reform Proposal: Impact on Rural Areas" by Robert Hoppe, discusses major provisions of (1) the proposed Welfare Reform…

This report chronicles the history of the Federal role in welfare programs and training and employment programs since the New Deal. Part I presents a chronological summary of legislative action since 1935 and briefly discusses some major issues the Congress has tried to resolve, including: whether Aid to Families with Dependent Children (AFDC)…

The purpose of this report is to review the history of the commitment to ensure nutritional adequacy for all American families during the last several years, and to study the relationship between proposed welfare reform measures and that commitment to nutritional adequacy. A specific proposal, H.R.1, eliminates food stamps, the Nation's primary…

America today is haunted by the paradox of hunger and food insecurity amidst unprecedented prosperity. Despite a record economic expansion, millions of American households struggle to find sufficient resources to feed family members. Focusing on families with children, this report presents current evidence on hunger and food insecurity, identifies…

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…

The argument presented is that although work is one path toward improved well-being for poor families, a successful and humane social welfare policy must recognize and respond to its limitations. This article reviews specific propositions of prowork rhetoric and concludes that former welfare participants require a broad range of supports to move…