Empowering People for Success Program (EPS) | Parenting Education Program (PEP)

Empowering People for Success Program (EPS)

The Empowering People for Success Program* (EPS) is a statewide welfare-to-work initiative of the Connecticut Council of Family Service Agencies (CCFSA), a network of non-profit family-serving organizations that deliver services from over 90 locations throughout CT. The program helps families who receive or have received Temporary Family Assistance (TFA) and have significant barriers that make it particularly difficult to get and keep a job, achieve self-sufficiency through intensive, strength-based, solution-focused home-based case management; provision of short-term vouchers to meet basic human needs such as food and housing; and temporary rental assistance.

[*Formerly the Employment Success Program (ESP)]

Components

The EPS Program has three components. They are:

• Prevention Services - Individual Performance Contracts (IPC): For parents who have received a second sanction.
• Safety Net: Serves families whose parent(s) has received a third and final sanction, and is therefore, under current law, ineligible to ever again receive TFA. Also engages with parents immediatly after they apply for benefits and are identified as having significant barriers to gaining and maintaining work.
• Employment Success Program: Clients referred to this program receive intensive support to meet the goals of their personal employability plan assigned by Jobs First Employment Services (JFES) and to eliminate barriers that may result in the sanctioning process.

Program Features

EPS maintains a statewide service delivery system with both a centralized and regional management structure. The program employs its regional management staff, a clinical team of mental health professionals and its direct service staff through CCFSA member agencies with offices located throughout Connecticut. Services provided includs:

• Actively engagement with potential clients through home-based and community outreach
• In-home mental health and substance abuse assessments and interventions, and referrals and follow-up as needed
• Informing clients about program services and benefits
• Working with clients to produce comprehensive strength-based assessments of family issues and needs
• Partnering with clients to develop and carry out service/action plans
• Assisting clients to negotiate and communicate with other service providers and employers
• Supporting families throughout their journey to self-sufficiency

Research and Process Improvement

A Case Management Information System allows comprehensive data collection, analysis and reporting to assist in effective program design, service delivery and policy development. This information impacts all levels of the service system to inform program policy changes and suggest activities for quality improvement.

Funding

Established in 1997 as a response to welfare reform, EPS has been funded with State of CT maintenance of effort dollars through the Departments of Social Services and Labor.

Participating Agencies