Lessons Learned From HUD’s Family Self-Sufficiency Program Evaluation

Margaret M. Courtney
Regina C. Gray
U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development

The views expressed in this article are those of the authors and do not represent the official positions or policies of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) or the U.S. Government.

The goal of the Family Self-Sufficiency (FSS) program is to provide families who receive HUD assistance with the necessary tools to help them obtain better, more sustained employment opportunities, thus reducing reliance on long-term public assistance. However, the results of the first nationally randomized experiment of the FSS program revealed ongoing challenges, most notably, a substantially high drop-out rate, a low retention or participation rate, and the inability of FSS participants to achieve the long-term goals of increasing earnings, reducing reliance on government assistance, and improving material well-being. Therefore, the main objective of this symposium is to draw lessons from the body of research on the FSS program to offer innovative yet feasible solutions for improving program design, implementation, and delivery.