In 2012, the Claneil Foundation awarded a Proactive Grant to the Center for Hunger-Free Communities at Drexel University. The grant supported the Building Wealth and Health Network, a randomized controlled trial led by the Center’s Founder and Director, Dr. Mariana Chilton. The research conducted focused on the federal Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) program to test the effectiveness of financial empowerment combined with trauma-informed support versus standard TANF programming. Click here to read the results of this research, which were recently published in the Journal of Child and Family Studies.
The study showed that a trauma-informed approach to intervention led to more positive outcomes including reduced symptoms of depression and increased financial earnings. Results of this study could be used by policymakers to consider adapting trauma-informed programming to the TANF program.