Instrument 11: Guide for Implementation Study for Service Provider Management

^{Instrument 11}: Discussion Guide for Implementation Study Interviews: Service Provider Management (Interview, Third Visit)

This information is being collected to inform the evaluation of the Family Unification Program (FUP) being conducted by a research team at the Urban Institute, Chapin Hall at the University of Chicago and Child Trends. This information will be used to inform the US Department of Health and Human Services Administration for Children and Families (HHS ACF) and the US Department of Housing and Urban Development to improve the administration of the FUP program. All the information you provide will be kept private to the extent permitted by law.

If you have questions or concerns about the study, please contact:

Michael Pergamit Mark Courtney

Urban Institute Chapin Hall at the University of Chicago

202-261-5276 773.702.1219

[email protected] [email protected]

If you agree to participate in this study and feel that your rights have been violated or that you have

not been treated fairly, contact:

The Institutional Review Board Coordinator

Everett Madden

Urban Institute

2100 M Street NW

Washington DC 20037

Phone: 202-261-5632

The Paperwork Reduction Act Statement: This collection of information is voluntary and will be used to evaluate the effectiveness of the Family Unification Program. Public reporting burden for this collection of information is estimated to average 60 minutes per response, including the time for reviewing instructions, gathering and maintaining the data needed, and reviewing the collection of information. An agency may not conduct or sponsor, and a person is not required to respond to, a collection of information unless it displays a currently valid OMB control number. The OMB number and expiration date for this collection are OMB #: 0970-0514, Exp: 09/30/2021. Send comments regarding this burden estimate or any other aspect of this collection of information, including suggestions for reducing this burden to Michael Pergamit at [email protected].

Discussion Guide for Implementation Study Interviews: Service Provider Management (Interview, Third Visit)

Third Site Visit (18-21 months after implementation)

Background

Note: If organization was also a referring organization, skip questions already asked in previous visit, denoted with *.

Let’s start off by talking about you and your organization, and your role in the FUP program.

• What is your position in the organization?

• What services does your organization provide?*

• In what capacity do you and your organization work with the FUP program?*

• With which agency, do you have a contract or memorandum of understanding? The public housing authority, the child welfare agency, or something else?

• Did that organization give a certain number of vouchers to your organization? If so, how many?*

• How many staff (FTEs and individuals) work with FUP families?

Services provided to FUP families

Thinking about how things worked before COVID-19:

• What services if any does your organization provide to help FUP families through the housing application process?

• Probe: Does your organization provide help with housing application, getting documents, transportation to housing authority, paying off money owed to the housing authority, or interacting with the housing authority?

• What services if any does your organization provide to help FUP families find housing?

• Does your organization provide:

  • A current list of other organizations that can help families find units?

  • Neighborhood tours?

  • Unit viewings?

  • Landlord introductions?

  • Other services to help find housing?

    • Probe: filling out the application for the property

• (If yes to any of the above) Did help finding housing focus on low-poverty neighborhoods?

• Does your organization provide any financial assistance to FUP families to help them get housing?

• Probe: Does your organization provide help paying off money owed to landlord or utilities, paying first month’s rent, security deposit, first month’s utilities, paying for furniture?

• What services if any does your organization provide to help FUP families sign a lease or move in?

• Probe: Does your organization provide help reading a lease, moving into the house, or counseling on compliance with rental or HCV requirements?

• What services does your organization provide to FUP families to keep them in housing?

• Does your organization provide:

• budget counseling?

• credit counseling?

• periodic check-ins?

• subsequent move counseling if the family decides to move a second time?

• landlord-tenant mediation?

• What case management, if any, does your organization provide to FUP families?

• Does your organization:

  • conduct needs assessments to identify family’s needs?

    • If so, does it cover both housing related and non-housing related needs? What needs does it cover?

  • provide referrals to services to address the family’s needs?

• If so, do families typically follow up with the services they are referred to?

• Do you have regular contact based on need with the family to follow up on these referrals or provide new referrals as necessary? How do you follow up to ensure that families receive the services?

• Does your organization provide any other services directly to FUP families?

• Probe: Does your organization provide adult education/employment, domestic violence services, substance abuse treatment, counseling, parenting education, self-sufficiency programing, help accessing benefits, child care, legal aid, health services, or budgeting and money management services?

• What help do you provide to FUP families to improve parenting and reduce child maltreatment?

• Do the services provided to FUP families differ from those provided to other clients? How do they differ? (probe for differences in which services are provided, how extensive the services are, other differences such as being given priority on referrals)How extensive are these services for FUP families?

• How long does your organization provide services to FUP families? (probe: 6 months? 12 months?)

• How often does someone from your organization meet with FUP families?

• Does this vary over time?

• Is this more often than for a clients you usually work with?

• Have any of the services or assistance available to families changed since COVID-19? If so, how?

• Are additional services now available? Are some services no longer available?

• Has it changed how often or how you meet with families?

• Are these changes permanent or are they temporary?

Service Goals

• What are your agency’s goals for the FUP families?

• How were these goals determined?

• Have FUP families been able to meet these goals?

• [If no] probe for reasons why and challenges with working with this population

• Have these goals changed over time?

• If so, how did they change? Why have they changed?

• Have they changed as a result of COVID-19? If so, how?

Working with FUP Families

• Do FUP families differ from other families you serve? How so?

• What major challenges have you faced serving FUP families?

• Probe about disabilities, lack of education or job skills, voucher retention issues, etc.

• How have you overcome those challenges?

• What types of challenges do FUP families face?

• What challenges have they faced related to staying in housing?

• Has your organization been able to respond to these challenges? How have you responded?

• What additional services do you feel would benefit the FUP families?

Coordination with PHA Staff

• How closely did you/do you work with staff at the public housing authority about the FUP families?

• What did you work with them on?

• Probe for shared data, coordination on case management

• Have you had challenges working with the PHA due to:

• Poor communication?

• Difficulty getting in touch with the right person?

• Difficulty getting problems resolved?

• Lack of data sharing?

• Unwillingness to be flexible in their application requirements?

• They don’t provide the services you thought they would?

• How have you overcome those challenges?

• Have any factors been particularly helpful in implementing the program?

Coordination with PCWA Staff

• How closely did you/do you work with child welfare agency staff about the FUP families?

• What did you work with them on?

• Probe for shared data, coordination on case management

• Have you had challenges working with the child welfare agency due to:

• Poor communication?

• Difficulty getting in touch with the right person?

• Difficulty getting problems resolved?

• Lack of data sharing?

• They don’t provide the services you thought they would?

• How have you overcome those challenges?

• Have any factors been particularly helpful in implementing the program?

Coordination with CoC Staff

• How closely did/do you work with Continuum of Care staff regarding FUP families?

• What did/do you work with them on?

• Probe for shared data, coordination on case management

• Have you had challenges working with the Continuum of Care due to:

• Poor communication?

• Difficulty getting in touch with the right person?

• Difficulty getting problems resolved?

• Lack of data sharing?

• They don’t provide the services you thought they would?

• How have you overcome those challenges?

• Have any factors been particularly helpful in implementing the program?

Big Picture and Reflecting

• How does housing make a difference for these families?

• If you had the opportunity, what would you do change or improve the FUP program?

• Probe for additional services, eligibility/screening criteria, length of services

• Do you feel that the program does what it was intended to do?

Closing

Thank you for taking the time to talk with me today.

Is there anything that I did not ask about that you think I should know about the FUP program or your experience with FUP families?

Do you have any final questions for me about the study, or about the research team?