In 2024, the Massachusetts Probate and Family Court reported nearly 29,500 adults under court-ordered guardianship. Of that number, roughly 40% are between the ages of 18 and 35. These figures, reflecting both younger and older adults under guardianship, underscore an urgent need to bring stakeholders together to examine more effective, person-centered alternatives that better support adults requiring assistance while preserving autonomy whenever possible. In Hampden and Barnstable counties, nearly 50 stakeholders in each community, representing the legal system, law enforcement, social services, state and local government and schools, attended mappings to listen and learn, identify priorities to collaborate on, and build action plans for continued engagement and enhancement of services and resources for all vulnerable adult populations who are or may be subject to guardianship. Top priorities emerging from the Hampden County workshop included expanding affordable housing and education for schools, seniors, and healthcare providers. In Barnstable County, 56% of participants reported feeling more confident about their knowledge of less restrictive alternatives and 70% shared being able to apply what they learned in both their work and advocacy. Top priorities identified during the Barnstable County workshop included educating and supporting emerging adults and their families to better understand available options and make informed decisions about effective support plans. Another priority was recruiting more guardians and natural support volunteers to assist individuals in need.

TheVictimConnect Resource Center is the only national helpline serving all crime victims by providing emotional support, information, and referrals. These services are offered through a website and a hotline available by phone, online chat, and text messaging. The hotline is operated by trained staff called victim assistance specialists who serve helpline visitors from a wide range of backgrounds in every state across the United States. The research team surveyed nearly 1,000 visitors after their VictimConnect experiences and reached almost a third of those visitors for a follow-up survey one month later. They found that VictimConnect increases awareness and supports pathways to victim services through specialists providing high‑quality, trauma‑informed support. They also found that visitors’ early gains in knowledge and emotional support had lasting effects. We also identified several recommendations for VictimConnect to expand its impact, including maintaining the newly expanded, 24/7 operating hours and baseline training for specialists and simplifying the website’s navigation while also expanding local resources offered within its resource database to facilitate the platform’s usefulness to those who opt not to speak with a specialist on their first visit. Finally, recognizing the breadth of reach the platform aims to achieve—covering crime victims of all types across the U.S.—it is necessary for outreach and dissemination regarding VictimConnect to be expansive and ongoing, particularly to reach the most isolated victim communities and providers.

Without sufficient training, job seekers can get stuck in a low pay, no pay cycle—that is, they frequently move between low-paid work and unemployment. This is especially true for workers with past criminal legal system involvement: these individuals face structural disadvantages in finding high-wage employment, such as difficulty establishing work history or education credentials and developing the skills needed in today’s job market. They must also confront the prevailing stigma against hiring individuals with a criminal record. Sector training models, which train people for high-quality jobs that align with the labor force needs of employers in targeted industry sectors, vary in approach and target population, but typically offer similar elements including a screening process to assess readiness, work-readiness training, occupational skills training, job placement assistance, post-placement assistance, and comprehensive support to address financial and personal needs. The follow-up analysis also found about 85% of Skills and Experience for the Careers of Tomorrow (SECTOR) clients, a training program for job seekers with previous legal system involvement in California, were not arrested in Los Angeles County, and about 83% avoided any reincarceration in county jail. For comparison, in 2015, about 62% of individuals released from Los Angeles County jails were not rearrested during the three years following release; new conviction rates within three years of release have hovered around 50% in recent years.

As high school students across Florida pursue more accelerated coursework through dual enrollment, Advanced Placement (AP), International Baccalaureate (IB) and others, more of them are arriving on college campuses with significant college credits accumulated. This review explores how accelerated students experience college differently from traditional first-year students, and what that experience suggests about how colleges can continue to evolve their approaches to support advanced credit students. The research included interviews with 89 accelerated students across four public universities in Florida and found that while many felt academically prepared for college-level coursework, they experienced challenges navigating advising systems, understanding how credits applied or transferred to degree programs, and adjusting to college life. Some students also described compressed timelines that limited opportunities to explore majors, participate in internships, or engage in campus activities traditionally associated with a four-year college experience.

Upskilling is a strategic process that equips workers with new skills, enabling career advancement, driving business performance, and strengthening communities. Despite rapid economic and technological shifts making upskilling a business imperative, many efforts struggle to gain traction and become embedded in business strategy. This publication integrates corporate best practices, academic research, and practical application to provide a practical framework for navigating challenges, capitalizing on opportunities, and implementing upskilling at scale. It covers key areas such as workforce ecosystem development, program design, measurement strategies, and leadership alignment. In addition, the publication includes information related to artificial intelligence and skill development and a chapter on apprenticeship.

Short of obtaining a bachelor’s degree, attaining a workforce credential with labor market value at a community college is the most likely path to a well-paying job for American students and workers. Such credentials can be associate degrees or certain certificates, including some that are not for academic credit. At the same time, not all students fare well in community colleges. Most community college students never complete any credential at all, and many of the credentials they obtain will lack significant labor market value. This brief summarizes the implications for practice and policy of research on how to generate more workforce credentials of value at community colleges; the work builds on extensive existing research in this area. Researchers suggest community colleges should adopt several best practices, including better aligning program offerings with job availability and job quality, engaging with employers more often and more deeply, and offering high-quality and varied work-based learning experiences. In addition, researchers suggest state and federal policymakers should consider policy implications, including incentivizing community colleges’ economic alignment and performance through outcomes-based funding (and evaluate its effects), providing technical assistance to support employer involvement, and funding robust academic and career advising, plus other student supports.

When communities are hit by a major disaster—such as a flood, hurricane, or wildfire—a key first step is removing large quantities of debris so that they can begin to recover. The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), a component within the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS), and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers can help them respond quickly by awarding contracts before disasters strike. This report examines selected governments’ perspectives on the use of advance contracts for debris removal, and the extent to which FEMA encouraged the use of advance contracts; the Army Corps developed processes for reporting advance contract debris removal efforts during the responses to two disasters, and FEMA mitigated risks in its debris removal program. Key findings include that six of 16 selected governments had awarded advance contracts for debris removal and identified benefits of having them, such as speed of debris removal. In addition, researchers found that the Army Corps’ processes for reporting debris removal data to those affected by the Los Angeles wildfires (January 2025) and Hurricane Helene in North Carolina (September 2024) differed. In Los Angeles, the Army Corps publicly shared an online interactive map with real-time debris removal data within about 6 weeks after the wildfires began. In contrast, it did not share county-specific infographics for those in North Carolina affected by the hurricane until months after the disaster. Researchers offer six recommendations, including that FEMA define roles and responsibilities in encouraging advance contract use, the Army Corps analyze differences in information sharing in its recent disaster responses, and FEMA develop a process to identify and address risks of fraud, waste, and abuse.

Since its creation 40 years ago, the low-income housing tax credit has financed between 3.3 and 3.7 million affordable rental units, making it the largest source of federal assistance for affordable rental housing development in the United States. However, the low-income housing tax credit production has not been evenly distributed across the U.S. This article calculates the number of newly financed low-income housing tax credit units per 10,000 people in each state and metropolitan area. Researchers found wide variation in population-adjusted low-income housing tax credit production across states and metropolitan areas. Specifically, between 1987 and 2022, Pennsylvania, Arizona, and Connecticut financed the fewest units per resident through the low-income housing tax credit, building or redeveloping 49-56 units per 10,000 people. In contrast, Mississippi and Washington each built or redeveloped 132 units per 10,000 people. Florida financed 89 units per 10,000 during this time period. Washington, DC, was able to build or redevelop 402 units per 10,000 people during this time in part because it receives the allocation for lower-population states. These patterns also emerge at the metropolitan level. Over the most recent five years of data (2018–2022), Missoula, Montana, added the greatest number of low-income housing tax credit units per capita, with 74 units per 10,000 people, while Janesville-Beloit, Wisconsin, saw the fewest (0.55 units per 10,000 people).

This paper asks whether regional wage differences can identify the effects of a national minimum wage. Researchers study two common exposure-based approaches: effective-minimum-wage designs, which compare the minimum wage to contemporaneous local wages, and fraction-affected/gap designs, which measure pre-reform exposure to the new minimum. Using theory, simulations, and evidence from Brazil, researchers show when these approaches can mislead and how their performance depends on specification choices. The results lead to practical recommendations for applied researchers, including when to avoid these designs, how to test their assumptions, which specifications are more reliable, and how similar concerns may apply to other settings.

Within 30 days after the end of each quarter, states report Medicaid expenditures and the associated federal share to the U.S. Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS). CMS is responsible for reviewing each state’s report to verify that the expenditures reported are consistent with Medicaid requirements and that federal matching funds are properly allocated. This report determines whether CMS followed its policies and procedures related to its oversight of Medicaid state expenditures, and whether the policies and procedures were sufficient to protect the financial integrity of the Medicaid program. Key findings include that CMS did not consistently follow its policies and procedures related to the oversight of Medicaid state expenditures reported on the Quarterly Medicaid Statement of Expenditures for the Medical Assistance Program form. Specifically, CMS’s quarterly review of work papers for five selected states were not always clear, accurate, or consistent enough to validate that its analysts thoroughly completed all procedures outlined in its review guide. CMS’s policies and procedures related to deferred expenditures did not adhere to the timely resolution timelines outlined in federal regulations, resulting in deferred payments remaining unresolved for years. Lastly, CMS’s policies and procedures related to tracking of disallowed expenditures need improvement to allow for more accessible and accurate reporting of disallowed payment information. This report offers four recommendations, including developing and implementing additional training for analysts and modifying and revising certain policies and procedures related to its oversight of states.

Parkinson disease is a progressive neurodegenerative disease characterized by tremors, muscle stiffness, slowness in movement, and balance problems. Symptoms tend to worsen over time and sometimes include difficulties in cognitive functioning and other non-motor symptoms. In 2024, it was the ninth leading cause of death for adults age 65 and older. This report presents Parkinson disease mortality for adults age 65 and older by sex, age group, race and Hispanic origin, and state of residence.. Key findings from the report include that in 2024, the age-adjusted Parkinson disease death rate for adults age 65 and older was 72.0 deaths per 100,000 standard population. Parkinson disease death rates increased from 2014 (57.2) through 2021 (76.3), but the rate in 2024 was lower than in 2021. In 2024, Parkinson disease death rates in adults age 65 and older were higher for men than for women in each age group (65–74, 75–84, and 85 and older). Death rates from Parkinson disease were highest among White non-Hispanic adults age 65 and older compared with other race and Hispanic-origin groups. Parkinson disease death rates varied by state of residence, ranging from 47.7 in New York to 102.1 in Utah. Florida had 66.4 deaths from Parkinson disease per 100,000 standard population.

This factsheet identifies pathways to the development of co-occurring disorders and shows treatments (either alone or in combination with medication management) that have been shown to be effective for those living with co-occurring disorders. Key findings include that there are three known pathways to the development of co-occurring disorders: genetic and environmental risk factors can contribute to both mental health disorders and a substance use disorder, addiction and substance use disorder can contribute to the development of a mental health disorder, and mental health disorders may contribute to addiction and substance use. Pathways to recover from or manage co-occurring disorders are unique, but there are research-based recommendations that have shown promise. This includes courts collaborating with clinical providers to appropriately screen and treat co-occurring disorders, as well as working alongside organizations that address homelessness, vocational skills, and physical health. In addition, there are several show treatments (either alone or in combination with medication management) that have been shown to be effective for those living with co-occurring disorders, such as cognitive behavioral therapy, dialectical behavioral therapy, and parent-child interaction therapy.