The Northwestern University Two-Generation Study of Parent and Child Human Capital Advancement

Overview

The Northwestern University Two-Generation Child and Family Outcomes Study (NU2Gen) of the Community Action Project of Tulsa County's (CAP Tulsa's) CareerAdvance® program examines the effects of CareerAdvance® on parent and child human capital outcomes (e.g., child academic achievement, parent educational advancement and certification, and psychological and family functioning), and (2) explore mechanisms that might give rise to program effects (e.g., home language environment; coping, balance, and stress; and parent and academic and career identity).

The Northwestern University Two-Generation Study (NU2Gen) of Parent and Child Human Capital Advancement is funded through Community Action Project of Tulsa County's (CAP Tulsa) Health Profession Opportunity Grant (HPOG II) from the Administration for Children and Families and through the HPOG II University Partnership grant. The federal awards support the implementation of CareerAdvance®, a workforce training and career employment program for parents living in Tulsa, Oklahoma and the surrounding communities, as well as our Northwestern-based research project. CareerAdvance® provides education and training, career coaching, and other supportive services for parents while their children attend CAP Tulsa-run Head Start programs, other Tulsa-area public preschool programs, and Tulsa-area K-12 public schools. The explicit goal of the program is to promote the economic self-sufficiency and well-being of low-income families across generations. The evaluation is composed of two parts: the Two-Generation Human Capital Outcomes Study and the Two-Generation Explanatory Mechanisms Study. Through parent surveys and parent and child administrative data we will examine the effects of CareerAdvance® on parent and child human capital outcomes (e.g., child academic achievement, parent educational advancement and certification, and psychological and family functioning). Using innovative measurement tools (e.g. Language Environment Analysis (LENA)) along with parent and child focus groups and interviews, we will also explore mechanisms that might give rise to program effects (e.g., home language environment; coping, balance, and stress; and academic and career identities). Participants will actively take part in the study for three years and we will collect child administrative data for study parents' children until they turn 18 years old or graduate high school, whichever occurs last. Current funding for NU2Gen is through September 2020.