Labor Topics

• Measuring Program Performance
• Finding Out What Works
• Using Vouchers to Deliver Services
• Helping Service Members
• Self-Employment as an Alternative Strategy
• Moving Young People into Productive Careers
• Encouraging Employment for Ex-Offenders
• Addressing Unique Problems of Experienced Workers
• Assisting DOL and Grantees
• Clients

Summer Youth Employment Programs Under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (2009)

The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) of 2009 injected $1.2 billion into state workforce investment activities for youth-centered programs. Mathematica conducted an implementation analysis of youth activities funded under ARRA, particularly summer youth employment programs operated by state workforce investment areas during the summer of 2009.

Mathematica's evaluation, for the U.S. Department of Labor’s (DOL) Employment and Training Administration, sought to understand how state and local areas implemented summer youth employment programs and other services in 2009. Summer youth programs had not been implemented with this magnitude across the country since the mid-1990s under the Job Training Partnership Act. While some local workforce investment areas (LWIAs) continued offering summer youth programs since the passage of the Workforce Investment Act (WIA) in 1998, many used ARRA funding to develop new initiatives from the ground up. ARRA expanded youth eligibility beyond the 14- to 21-year-old range to a maximum of 24 years old. The legislation also emphasized a particular interest in the creation of summer employment opportunities for youth and encouraged local areas to develop work experiences and other activities that expose youth to “green” educational and career pathways. The policy guidance and direction provided by ETA to local areas regarding use of ARRA funds allowed substantial flexibility in the types and intensity of services offered to youth during summer months. To learn more about implementation, the study addressed the following questions:

• How did the LWIAs plan for and organize summer youth programs with funding from ARRA?
• How did local areas identify and recruit at-risk youth?
• What program services were offered to youth who participated in the summer months?
• What types of work experiences were offered to participating youth?
• What were the characteristics of program participants?
• What lessons can be drawn from the implementation of summer youth programs?

The evaluation focused primarily on analysis of qualitative data collected through in-depth site visits and follow-up telephone calls with 20 LWIAs. Site visits included interviews with administrators, frontline staff, and community partners as well as small group interviews with participating employers and focus groups with participating youth. DOL regional offices nominated LWIAs that had innovative or high quality programs to participate in the study. Those selected included a mix of urban and rural sites with regional diversity, and a subset with an emphasis on “green” jobs and high-growth industries. The evaluation also analyzed performance data reported by the states to ETA on participants’ characteristics, completion of work experiences, and increases in work readiness skills. During site visits, the study team explored the availability and content of individual-level data on summer youth participants to help inform the feasibility of future data analysis.

Publications

"Reinvesting in America's Youth: Lessons from the 2009 Recovery Act Summer Youth Employment Initiative" (February 2010)