MDRC, the nation’s preeminent social policy research organization dedicated to learning what works to improve programs and policies that affect the poor, is evaluating the CCF initiative. MDRC recently issued the first of five briefs they will create over the next four years.
This brief describes the grantees’ neighborhoods and their strategies to fight poverty and highlights some of the early lessons from the initiative. The brief illustrates how community organizations are uniquely positioned to undertake economic opportunity initiatives by reaching underserved populations and mobilizing high-quality services for them. The brief also identifies what sets CCF apart from other place-based initiatives.