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Reach Up Annual Report 2020 6 Post-Secondary Education (PSE) The role of post-secondary education in economic mobility is clearly documented. A PSE graduate earns, on average, double the income of a participant leaving the Reach Up program for employment. For more recent PSE graduates the number is even more promising. The median income of students who graduated from PSE in 2017 was $30,639, compared to the $20,703 median income of students who graduated in 20138.

2019 Post-Secondary Education (PSE) highlights: • Our PSE program continues to grow each year. In September 2018, we had 91 participants; by September 2019, the number of participants increased to 989. • Over the last year, we have updated and streamlined our forms to make the application process easier for students. • Because the majority of PSE students begin their college career at CCV, we have worked hard to build a stronger working relationship with CCV. We hold quarterly meetings with CCV to share resources and brainstorm different ways we can increase participation in the PSE program. • Through our collaboration with CCV, we have brought numerous resources to our staff including a presentation on Dual Enrollment and Prior Learning Assessment. Each district has made local connections with CCV academic advisors, which allows them to work together at a local level as well.

Mental health Outreach for MotherS (MOMS) Partnership® In the spring of 2018, Reach Up was chosen through a competitive process to be one of the nation’s first TANF programs to replicate this evidence-based program developed by Yale University to address the mental health needs of mothers. The program has seen impressive results, with participants in the program experiencing a dramatic decrease in depressive symptoms, increase in workforce engagement, and increase in follow through on treatment. Implementation is estimated to begin in early 2020 in Burlington.

For more information on the impact of this program: https://medicine.yale.edu/psychiatry/moms/impact/

Reach Up has spent the last year planning for implementation with technical assistance from Yale University. Progress includes: • Development of a “Guide Team,” a group of local service providers and experts in the field on maternal mental health and non-profits serving low income mothers; • Completion of the Goals and Needs Assessment, a survey of 140 mothers in Reach Up. The survey was developed by Yale University social scientists and analyzed by data experts at Yale, and provides valuable information about families receiving Reach Up; • Ongoing work on a “long term Reach Up study,” which looks at the characteristics of families who have been receiving assistance long term.

Section 1: Participant Barriers

Participant barriers or obstacles may prevent or delay entrance into the workforce. Reach Up participants and their families often face significant obstacles on their path to employment. Data illustrating “barriers” and deferments from the work requirement help us to understand the most common issues families face while participating in the program. Reach Up case managers help families

8 2017 Reach Up Leavers, Leslie Black-Plumeau and Robert McIntyre, October 1, 2019 9 This is a point in time count of students matriculating for the fall semester; these numbers do not match the data provided later in this report.