Study Details | Pathways to Work

19351-CareerAdvance

Study quality: Low

Low

Reason for the rating: This study received a low study quality rating because it is a quasi-experimental design that does not demonstrate that the intervention and comparison groups were sufficiently similar before the intervention.

Intervention: CareerAdvance

Population and employment barriers:

Parents

Services provided:

Education, Financial incentives, Supportive services, Training (Occupational or sectoral training), Work readiness activities (Employment coaching)

Setting: Urban only

Study design

Design:

Quasi-experimental design

Study group formation:

All parents with children enrolled in the Community Action Project of Tulsa County (CAP Tulsa) Head Start programs were invited to apply for CareerAdvance. A total of 317 parents applied to participate, of which 221 were accepted, and 162 of those who were accepted enrolled in the program in the 2011 to 2014 cohorts. Eligibility was based on having a child enrolled in CAP Tulsa Head Start, as well as an interview, background check, drug test, current health, English language proficiency, and ability to enroll in courses at the local community college. The study team identified 176 parents for the comparison group that had children enrolled in CAP Tulsa Head Start and were similar to parents in the intervention group based on a large number of characteristics, including neighborhood, race, gender, age, education, relationship to the child enrolled in Head Start, single-parent status, foster-parent status, and household income.

Time period of study:

Individuals enrolled in CareerAdvance between 2011 and 2014. They were followed for about one year after they began the program.

Pathways only reports results from studies with a study quality rating of high or moderate.

Sample characteristics

Participants in the study were parents with children enrolled in the CAP Head Start program. Most of the sample consisted of mothers in their late 20s or early 30s. Almost all (98 percent) sample members were female, and about one-third (32 percent) were single parents. The average age was 29. About 40 percent of participants were Black, 28 percent were White, 9 percent were Hispanic, and 23 percent were of another racial or ethnic background. Seven percent of participants had less than a high school degree, while the majority of participants either had a high school degree or equivalent certificate (44 percent) or another certificate or associate's degree (44 percent). Average annual household income at baseline was $15,190.

Age

Mean age

29 years

Sex

Female	98%
Male	2%

Participant race and ethnicity

Black or African American	40%
White	28%
Unknown, not reported, or other	23%
Hispanic or Latino of any race	9%

The race and ethnicity categories may sum to more than 100 percent if the authors reported race and ethnicity separately; in these cases, we report the category White, rather than White, not Hispanic.

Family status

Parents	100%
Single parents	32%

Participant education

Had some postsecondary education	49%
Had a high school diploma or GED	93%
Did not have a high school diploma or GED	7%

Intervention implementation

Implementing organization:

CAP Tulsa provided all services.

Intervention services:

Participants in the intervention group were parents with children enrolled in the CAP Tulsa Head Start program, who applied, were accepted, and ultimately enrolled in the CareerAdvance training program. CareerAdvance is a two-generation program combining a sectoral career pathways training and certification program for parents with high quality early education benefits (provided through Head Start) for children. Intervention participants enrolled in one of three programs linked to a health care career track (nursing, health information technology, or medical assisting). Each track consisted of a sequence of education and training activities, along with opportunities to attain sectoral certifications. Participants also received funding for tuition, books, and supplies; additional child care assistance (if child care was needed outside CAP Tulsa Head Start hours); financial incentives for meeting program milestones; and coaching. They could also attend peer support groups.

Mandatory services:

None

Comparison services:

Individuals in the comparison condition had children enrolled in the CAP Head Start program but did not receive additional services from CareerAdvance.

Study publications

Chase-Lansdale, P. Lindsay, Terri J. Sabol, Teresa Eckrich Sommer, Elise Chor, Allison W. Cooperman, Jeanne Brooks-Gunn, Hirokazu Yoshikawa, Christopher King, and Amanda Morris (2019). Effects of a two-generation human capital program on low-income parents’ education, employment, and psychological wellbeing, Journal of Family Psychology 33(4): 433. Available at https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/30843706/

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The Pathways Clearinghouse refers to interventions by the names used in study reports or manuscripts. Some intervention names may use language that is not consistent with our style guide, preferences, or the terminology we use to describe populations.

Study of CareerAdvance