Helping Low-Income Mothers Overcome Multiple Barriers to Self-Sufficiency: Strategies and Implications for Human Services Professionals

Abstract

Women involved in public assistance and child welfare systems often must overcome multiple barriers to self-sufficiency and family stability or face sanctions or loss of benefits. Kentucky's Targeted Assessment Program (TAP) is an innovative model for assisting these women by placing human services professionals in public assistance and child welfare offices to provide support services and promote integrated service delivery This article discusses TAP program data for years 2005 through 2008, as well as initial 6-month follow-up data. These data suggest that TAP is effective in reducing the burden of barriers faced by participants. TAP strategies are discussed for their utility in informing practice models of human services agencies to proactively promote participant success in overcoming barriers.