The National Institute for Work and Learning (NIWL) at FHI 360 conducts high-quality research and evaluation to inform policies, practices and program models in education, employment, social services, and community systems. Our expertise is cross-sectoral and interdisciplinary. Our approach combines methodological rigor with deep content knowledge and a commitment to collaboration.
Audience: Community-based Organization (NGOs)
The individuals and communities we serve include those from historically underserved communities, who may be impacted by poverty, displaced from education or the workforce, involved with the justice system, or experience systemic and institutional inequities. By collaborating with these communities to devise responses to their needs and priorities we advance diversity, equity, and inclusion in work and learning. This Annual Review summarizes our work in 2022.
The Becoming Champions for Change: Navigator Learning Series is a sequence of self-paced e-training designed specifically for Navigators, who include parents, teachers, counselors, or any other adult helping young people navigate their path. Navigators who complete this course will receive a grounding in diversity, equity, and inclusion (DE&I) definitions. Then, they will engage in high-level activities connecting DE&I with communication, culture, and empathy. Through eModules and facilitated sessions, Navigators will engage in activities that introduce and explore culture, encourage respectful conversation, and inspire meaningful reflection and learning. Navigators who complete this learning series will also receive a grounding in facilitation best practices, classroom management, and conflict resolution.
FHI360’s Youth Development Practitioner Apprenticeship program offers employers the opportunity to recruit and train employees while giving back to the community and filling their talent pipeline. YDPA targets both existing professionals and opens options for new professionals with lived experience in the communities they serve. Occupations include youth service intake counselors, outreach workers, or justice reentry case workers among others.
FHI 360 has launched the Post-Release Employment Program (PREP) to fast-track participants from behind bars to employment within six weeks. Participants complete two-thirds or more of the employment training pre-release with expedited connection to employers upon graduation. PREP is designed to respond to the critical needs and challenges of individuals returning from jails or prison into their communities.
This annual review summarizes the work and accomplishments of the National Institute for Work and Learning across the areas of college and career readiness, workforce development, and research and evaluation. It references major projects, publications and events, and uses data to demonstrate outputs and, where possible, outcomes. The review also mentions new work won and our agenda for 2022.
Going the extra mile: A case study of rural reentry in Arkansas provides an exploration of a rural community in southeast Arkansas that takes a unique, individualized approach to reentering young adults ages 18-24. The received wisdom on rural reentry is that it is generally more difficult than reentry in an urban setting. Phoenix Youth and Family Services, which serves a rural part of Arkansas, has excelled on key outcomes as part of FHI 360’s Compass Rose Collaborative (CRC)1, a project funded by the U.S. Department of Labor to improve the education and employment outcomes of young adults,
ages 18 through 24, after involvement in the U.S. criminal justice system.
Phoenix Youth and Family Services provides wraparound support services to its participants to help juveniles, young adults, and families secure a safe, healthy, and strong life
Restorative, or humanizing language, removes stereotypes and labels and shows solidarity and support to people and communities impacted by a variety of circumstances. Through this guide, we encourage our clients and partners to support and lead change.
This highlights the work and success of NIWL programming in 2020.
El eModule es un módulo de orientación y capacitación diseñado para los empleados de la compañía operativa local de Johnson & Johnson que son nuevos en el programa Bridge to Employment y que trabajarán con jóvenes. Los conceptos clave introducidos incluyen el desarrollo del cerebro de los adolescentes, el desarrollo positivo de los jóvenes, la comunicación eficaz y las prácticas de construcción de relaciones. Este módulo electrónico introductorio es seguido por una capacitación en persona con especialistas de FHI 360 que explorarán cada tema en mayor detalle