This project conducted by Milwaukee Area Technical College provides an in-depth analysis of the new populations of mothers (with children ages three to twelve months of age) that Wisconsin is now requiring to secure and hold employment as a condition of their receipt of public assistance under Wisconsin welfare policies eliminating AFDC. In all, 1,551 mothers participated in the assessment program. The three to four hour orientation and assessment process included a group session which detailed the upcoming changes in “W-2” (Wisconsin’s new system), child support policies, rights and responsibilities, followed by reading and math tests and in-depth interviews by project staff. Employment plans for each caretaker included an assessment of the employability of the individual using a classification system developed by project staff in cooperation with the Private Industry Council. These assessments represent one of the most comprehensive studies available on the population of mothers with young children who are expected to enter the labor force under many new state welfare initiatives. The recommendations and demographic analysis are based on the information obtained during the assessment process and the observations of MATC project staff
