Resources, Employment, Assets and Learning (REAL) Opportunity Study

We are excited to announce the Resources, Employment, Assets and Learning (REAL) Opportunity Study, a second generation of research funded by the National Institute on Disability Rehabilitation Research as part of the AAESS project. 

A comprehensive theory of change is necessary to address the problem of persistent poverty and benefit dependency among people with disabilities. This experimentally-designed study will apply a community economic development paradigm to learn whether customized financial literacy significantly improves financial self-sufficiency outcomes for individuals with disabilities served by Vocational Rehabilitation. Critical components of the model of change include linking employment development strategies with a variety of braided financial inputs designed to increase utilization of Social Security and Medicaid work incentives, tax credits, creditworthiness, asset development/preservation, and social participation.  Each state will incorporate the integration of public infrastructures including, but not limited to Vocational Rehabilitation systems, Community Work Incentive programs, asset building coalitions, Volunteer Income Tax Assistance sites, credit counseling, and community development entities as part of this project.  The study will be implemented in the states of New Hampshire and Wisconsin.

For more information, please contact Tobey Davies, SNHU-Center for Community Economic Development & Disability at 603-644-3159, or Terry Lannan, Wisconsin Pathways Project, at 608-264-9964.