Wei Yen, Jim Mayfield - March 2005

The 2002 Washington State Legislature directed the Institute to conduct a longitudinal study on the outcomes of state-funded mental health clients. A preliminary report provided baseline information on clients' age, gender, race, education enrollment status, employment, living situation, and selected mental health conditions. This report provides additional data on baseline characteristics of Washington’s public mental health clients, including criminal justice involvement, mental health functioning assessment scores, and caseloads of regional support networks. In addition, data are provided on clients’ use of mental health services and their employment status and earnings in 2002. An outcomes report showing changes between 2002 and 2004 will be completed by the end of 2005.

Steve Aos - January 2005

In recent years, the Washington State Legislature has directed the Institute to identify evidence-based programs that can lower crime and give Washington taxpayers a good return on their money. The purpose of this short report is to update previously published findings pertaining to correctional industries programs for adult prisoners.

Steve Aos, Polly Phipps, Robert Barnoski - January 2005

The Washington State legislature directed the Institute to evaluate whether the Drug Offender Sentencing Alternative (DOSA) influences recidivism rates and whether the benefits of DOSA outweigh the costs. We analyzed the effects of the legislation by comparing a group of offenders who received DOSA sentences with a similar group of offenders sentenced prior to the 1999 implementation date of DOSA. As described in the report, our overall finding is that DOSA is an effective criminal justice policy for drug offenders but neutral for drug-involved property offenders.

Annie Pennucci, Susan Kavanaugh - January 2005

The 2004 Washington State Legislature directed the Institute to review the state Transitional Bilingual Instructional Program (TBIP). The Institute interviewed TBIP staff at the state and school district levels; analyzed student enrollment and assessment data; and reviewed laws, policies, and research on instruction for English language learners (ELL students) in the public K–12 school system.

Steve Aos - December 2004

In 2000, the Washington State Legislature initiated a pilot rehabilitation program for juvenile offenders sentenced to a state juvenile justice institution. The program focuses on offenders with “co-occurring” substance abuse and mental health disorders. Offenders with both of these conditions are known to pose a high risk for committing new crimes upon re-entry to the community. The program—called the Family Integrated Transitions (FIT) program—was designed and implemented by Eric Trupin, Ph.D., and David Stewart, Ph.D., from the University of Washington. The program uses a combination of evidence-based approaches tailored to the particular needs of these high-risk youth. In this report, we present findings on the effectiveness of FIT in reducing recidivism, as well as an analysis of the program’s benefits and costs.

Marna Miller - December 2004

Washington’s alternative routes to teacher certification were created by the 2001 Legislature. These routes provide an avenue—other than enrolling in a teacher training program at a college or university—for professionals in other fields and classified school staff to become teachers. The Legislature directed the Institute to evaluate the programs created by the law. This final report describes the initial programs as established in 2002–03, outlines major changes that have occurred in the intervening two years, and looks at how well the programs met the legislative objectives.

In-depth descriptions of the individual programs and responses to surveys are published separately in the appendix.

Jim Mayfield, Wei Yen - December 2004

WorkFirst, Washington State’s implementation of Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF), began in April 1997. TANF is a major change in how the state assists low-income families. The program helps parents look for work and provides employment-specific training and basic education opportunities. A number of independent analyses have attempted to estimate employment, earnings, and other outcomes directly attributable to the overall program or to specific program activities, such as Job Search, Community Jobs, Customized Job Skills Training, and Post-Employment Services. This report summarizes the key findings of these analyses.

Annie Pennucci, Jessikah Foulk, Susan Kavanaugh - November 2004

The 2004 Washington State Legislature directed the Institute to make recommendations regarding the development of a state women’s history organization. Based on extensive consultations, the Institute recommends creation of a women’s history consortium with the Washington State Historical Society as the host organization. Initially, the consortium would focus on compiling and disseminating online information about materials involving Washington women’s history and identifying significant gaps in existing collections.

Robert Barnoski - August 2004

The 1994 Washington State Legislature created the juvenile offender basic training camp located in Connell, Franklin County. The Department of Social and Health Services’ Juvenile Rehabilitation Administration designed and implemented the Basic Training Camp (BTC) and contracted with the Washington State Institute for Public Policy to determine whether the basic training camp program reduces recidivism and is cost beneficial to taxpayers and crime victims. This evaluation compares youth who were eligible for the BTC but were admitted to JRA in 1997, two years prior to the start of the camp, with youth admitted to the BTC between 1998 and 2002.

Robert Barnoski, Roxanne Lieb - August 2004

This report describes the research design for a legislatively directed study of Washington State's sex offender policies and programs.