The program provided a life-skills course and internet-based instruction designed to improve math and reading skills to the ninth-grade level. After completing the initial education, participants could enroll in occupational training in certificate courses, including courses in the administrative support, health care, and manufacturing fields. Participants began with a life-skills course that lasted 17 hours, progressed to occupational training courses that lasted between 2.5 and 16 weeks, and finished with 24 hours of career-readiness training.

SSP-Plus offered an earnings subsidy to participants who moved into full-time work (at least 30 hours a week) within one year of joining an SSP program. The earnings supplement was equal to half of the difference between participants’ earnings and a benchmark level (set by location and year).

PROGRESS assigned participants to a team of one case manager and one career development specialist. Case managers checked in with participants monthly and helped them obtain access to health care through Medicaid and assistance with child care and transportation. They also helped participants with housing, substance abuse, or other personal issues by providing counseling and connecting them to community resources.

EJC provided five weeks of classroom and job search workshops that aligned with participants’ occupational interests. During the first week, participants explored careers, identified their field of interest, developed career plans, and created resumes and master job applications. During the second week, participants refined their career development plans, practiced mock interviews, discussed previous job searches with EJC staff, and focused on specific job searches that aligned with their occupational interests.

NYCJC participants progressed through three phases of services: Phase 1 (about 3 weeks) provided job-readiness and life skills training, Phase 2 (minimum of 3 months) expected participants to partake in community service, and Phase 3 (minimum of 6 weeks) provided paid internships in public or private organizations or placement in a job or educational program. Participants could continue to receive work-readiness services during Phases 2 and 3, and, in all phases, participants could receive job coaching, counseling, and education services.

SFTW started with a three- to five-day job-readiness workshop, during which participants took assessments and engaged in job-readiness activities. Participants were then assigned a case manager, who helped participants become more job ready; develop soft skills; and address barriers to work, such as a lack of clothing, transportation, or housing. Case managers also served as job coaches and helped match participants to transitional jobs based on their skills and interests, mostly with private-sector employers.