Mobility Mentoring
Category
Family Support
Child's Age
3-4 years
Participant
Parents/Guardian
Languages
English, Other
Brief Description
Mobility Mentoring is a participant-directed coaching model and tools provided by EMPath. Mentors are partnered with participating parents/caregivers to support them in attaining the resources, skills, and long-term behaviors necessary to reach and preserve economic independence.
Expected Impact
Using EMPath’s Mentoring Mobility framework, participants can expect to find the support necessary for achieving stable housing, financial management, education/training, and increasing their income.
Public savings- Mobility Mentoring pays for itself within 5 years of implementation and saves the public almost $8,000 per family each year.
- Maintain or improve Bridge score
- Increase in income: Participants will graduate from the program with a 9% increase in average annual income.
- Improved housing stability
- Increase in credit score.
- Increase in number of participants enrolled in educational or training programs
- Increase in number of participants holding college degrees upon completing the Mobility Mentoring program.
- Improved Credit Score: Credit score increase of 140 points.
In year 1, participants’ Bridge scores increased by an average of 5.3 points. By year 5, their Bridge scores had increased by 18.8 points since enrollment.
Core Components for Model Fidelity
- Coaching for Economic Mobility: EMPath approaches coaching as a participant-directed one-on-one partnership. Coaches work with participants to strengthen their decision-making, persistence, and resilience over time. Coaching staff (known as Mobility Mentors at EMPath) act as “human scaffolding” for building the skills and mindsets necessary for the complex task of moving out of poverty.
- The Bridge to Self-Sufficiency®: The Bridge to Self-Sufficiency is a visual tool used to help a program participant chart a path to economic self-sufficiency. The Bridge features 5 subscales: family stability, well-being, financial management, education & training, and employment & career management. It acts as both a framework for the participant and an assessment tool for the mentor. The Bridge was developed by EMPath based on the brain science of how toxic stress impacts decision-making and sense of self.
- Goal Setting: The Bridge to Self-Sufficiency acts as a blueprint for participants to set goals. Participants determine their own goals, and mentors support participants in prioritizing what they’d like to work on, strategizing around potential barriers and challenges, and thinking through options for additional resources and support. Mentors offer encouragement, facilitate reflection, and help refocus if necessary. As participants achieve goals, they move up the Bridge closer to economic self-sufficiency.
- Recognition: Recognition acknowledges and celebrates a participant when they are working toward and when they accomplish a goal. Types of recognition may include celebrations of success, certificates, supportive messages, or earned incentives.
Languages Materials are Available in
English, Other*
*Contact purveyor about additional available languages.
Delivery Mode
Mobility Mentoring is a one-on-one, individualized coaching program in which meetings are most often held at the program location or virtually, however meetings can also occur in the community or at the participant’s home.
Some Mobility Mentoring programs also include a community group meeting to strengthen social networks. Currently, there are no requirements for fidelity to model on how community group meetings are structured.
Dosage
Mentors provide at least 12 hours of routinely scheduled one-on-one contact over at least 6 months but preferably over one year (e.g., 1 hour per month for 12 months, 2 hours per month for 6 months, etc.). Ideally, engagement with participants in a structured program last at least a year and minimum requirements are supplemented with additional one-on-one contact, group meetings, peer support groups, digital/electronic coaching/correspondence, etc. Mentors also meet with supervisors at least twice a month to review their caseloads and problem-solving approaches with participants.
Mobility Mentoring teams are the groups implementing Mobility Mentoring and may include supervisors, program managers, and Mobility Mentors. The Mobility Mentoring teams meet at least monthly to share participants’ progress and outcomes, brainstorm ideas for how to keep participants moving forward, and discuss program development.
Infrastructure for Implementation
Space: Partner organizations implementing Mobility Mentoring must provide private meeting spaces for Mentors and participants.
Other: Mobility Mentoring has established criteria for certifying an organization in its use of the program. Contact the purveyor directly for more information.
Staffing Requirements
Mobility Mentors have at least a bachelor's degree or equivalent related work experience (e.g., 4 years of experience, associate degree plus 2 years of experience, etc.) in fields such as human service, social work, nonprofit, and experience with systems serving low-income communities.
NCPC strongly recommends staff receive training in the Standards of Quality for Family Support and Strengthening. Contact Positive Childhood Alliance North Carolina (PCANC) or National Family Support Network (NFSN) for more information, training, and certification.
Training for Model Fidelity
Training is only available to organizations that are members of EMPath’s Economic Mobility Exchange learning network.
Mentors must complete EMPath’s online Mobility Mentoring Foundations training and receive training in Motivational Interviewing techniques. Mentors receive coaching and supervised practice from their supervisors. Supervisors complete EMPath’s online Mobility Mentoring Informed Supervision course. EMPath requires completion of 40 hours per year of professional development related to Mobility Mentoring for both mentors and their supervisors.
Ongoing training, capacity building, and professional development opportunities (e.g., monthly webinars through EMPath’s Exchange learning network) are provided to staff. EMPath offers all Exchange members an online Mobility Mentoring Foundations course as part of membership, and additional trainings (e.g., Mobility Mentoring informed Supervision, Program Design and Implementation, 1:1 Coaching Sessions, etc.) and consultations at cost.
The Mobility Mentoring Foundations course and the Mobility Mentoring Informed Supervision courses are virtual and available through Engage@EMPath. Additional training and consultations are live and conducted either via Zoom or in-person.
Contact Information
https://www.empathways.org/approach/mobility-mentoring
Jennifer Lowe: VP of Shared Learning and Member Networks; jlowe@empathways.org
Cost Estimates
Training costs depend on provider type, number of participants, and desired benefits. EMPath’s Level 2 membership provides full access to EMPath’s Mobility Mentoring Foundations online training, webinars, and online portal with additional resources. Level 2 members also have access, for additional costs, to additional training, consultations, and the Program Design and Implementation Guide (for an additional $1,500 fee). Level 2 annual membership fees range in price from $1,500 to $15,000 annually based on type of organization and number of people served with the Mobility Mentoring informed approach.
For more information, click here.
Purpose Service Code (PSC)
5505 – Parent Education
Program Identifier (PID)
Mobility Mentoring
Minimal Outputs for NCPC Reporting
FY 24-25:
- Number of parents/guardians participating†
†Select Family Support Programs data collection will include basic demographic data for parent/guardian participants including Race, Ethnicity. Data on interpretation and transportation will be collected when appropriate.
Minimal Outcomes for NCPC Reporting
FY 24-25:
- Increase in positive parenting practices
Minimal Measures for NCPC Reporting
FY 24-25:
- Bridge scores; Report average pre and post score for the Family subscale for the Family Stability pillar (0-10)
NCPC Evidence Categorization
Evidence Informed- 2 reports. Much of the research is conducted by EMPath’s team of researchers or by affiliate agencies implementing the program. Some of their findings are conflicting and their sampling relies on schools/families opting in. There are no control groups, but one study compares students whose parents are enrolled in Mobility Mentoring with their peers whose parents were not participating in Mobility Mentoring.
Research Summary
Two of the most recent and relevant publications on Mobility Mentoring includes a quasi-experimental study1 and 1-year reports in a 3-year implementation pilot.2,3,4 Populations sampled in the research include diverse family formations, families who identified as low-income and/or experiencing poverty, families who experienced homelessness in the past year, caregivers with children ages 3-4 years, racially/ethnically diverse families (primarily Hispanic and White), and English- and Spanish-speakers.
Results of these studies indicate the children of Mobility Mentoring recipients demonstrate greater improvements in domains such as literacy and mathematics, but these findings are not applicable to all schools and may be limited to a classroom-by-classroom basis.
- ^ See Homer et al. (2022). This quasi-experimental study sampling Washington State’s ECEAP program suggests that the 3–4-year-old children of parents who participate in Mobility Mentoring demonstrate greater improvements in domains such as literacy and mathematics than their classmates whose parents are not enrolled in Mobility Mentoring. However, this association is not found when comparing schools that offered Mobility Mentoring and those that did not. There may be an impact among preschoolers at one school, but the effect of Mobility Mentoring on participants’ children is much less significant when comparing all schools and sites.
- ^ See Ganz & Lor (n.d.). Washington State’s ECEAP Family Support Pilot details findings from their first year of implementing Mobility Mentoring. ECEAP developed a family assessment to measure family goal setting and progress and ensure consistency in statewide measurement and reporting (2015-2016 ECEAP Family Strengths and Need Assessment). They piloted Mobility Mentoring and a similar goal-setting model. Over 1,500 families completed the ECEAP assessment at three (unspecified) intervals between September 2015 and June 2016. The first assessment served as a baseline and the two others monitored progress toward family goals and changes in family needs. ECEAP tracked family statuses via an Excel spreadsheet. EMPath provided training, the Mobility Mentoring coaching model, Guidelines for family conversations, and the Bridge to Child and Family Self-Reliance, a modified version of the Bridge to Self-Sufficiency. The alternative program pilot provided similar training, tools, and assistance. Participants in the Mobility Mentoring pilot study demonstrated greater statistically significant pre/post differences in all areas of family functioning, compared to their peers in the alternative group. As a result, ECEAP chose to proceed with Mobility Mentoring as the sole pilot program in year two.
- ^ See Early Childhood Education and Assistance Programs (ECEAP) Family Support Pilot Year Two Update: June 2016 through June 2017 (n.d.). This is the second installment in their three-year pilot implementation of Mobility Mentoring. The ECEAP Family Strengths and Needs Assessment was refined for the second year of piloting Mobility Mentoring. Families used their Bridge scores to set SMART (Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Relevant, Time-bound) goals. The research team collected data from ECEAP’s Early Learning Management System (ELMS), ECEAP Assessment, children’s TS GOLD scores, family assessments, and surveyed staff input. Statistically significant pre/post differences were observed in all domains of the ECEAP Assessment, with the greatest differences in school involvement, community resource knowledge, and healthy lifestyle. All ECEAP children, including those whose parents were not participating in Mobility Mentoring, were assessed using the TS GOLD three times during the school year. Results indicated that children whose parents participated in Mobility Mentoring made gains across all TS GOLD domains, but these findings were only statistically significant when comparing sites that offered Mobility Mentoring with those that didn’t, not on the individual child level.
- ^ See Mobility Mentoring Outcomes Report 2017-2018 (n.d.). This report from Washington State reviews findings from their final year of implementing the Mobility Mentoring approach pilot. Year 3 findings indicate that race and ethnicity were not predictors of positive family outcomes in the Mobility Mentoring assessment and that Mobility Mentoring participants were more likely to set financial goals and continue working toward them than non-participants. The promising findings led Washington State to pursue statewide implementation of Mobility Mentoring.
Researched Population
- Diverse family formations
- Families who identified as low-income and/or experiencing poverty
- Families who experienced homelessness in the past year
- Caregivers with children ages 3-4 years
- Racially/ethnically diverse families (primarily Hispanic and White)
- English- and Spanish-speakers
Beavers, H. (2021, August 12). Member Highlight: Freedom Communities. Retrieved from EMPath: https://www.empathways.org/updates/article/member-highlight-freedom-communities
Economic Mobility Exchange™ Annual Member Report FY21. (2021). Retrieved from EMPath: http://s3.amazonaws.com/empath-website/pdf/FINAL_EmpathExchangeReport_2021_SHORTENED.pdf
Ganz, K. & Lor, N. (n.d.). Year One Report: ECEAP Family Support Pilot June 2015 – June 2016. Reports | Washington State Department of Children, Youth & Families. Retrieved from https://www.dcyf.wa.gov/sites/default/files/pdf/eceap/ECEAP_Family_Support_Pilot_Report_Final.pdf
Homer, C. J., Winning, A., & Cummings, K. (2022, January). A Coaching Model to Promote Economic Mobility and Child Developmental Outcomes. American Association of Pediatrics, 149(1). https://doi.org/10.1542/peds.2020-018473
Mobility Mentoring® 2021 IMPACT REPORT. (2021). Retrieved from EMPath: http://s3.amazonaws.com/empath-website/pdf/FINAL_FY21_EMPath_Impact_Report.pdf
Babcock, E. D. (2012). Mobility Mentoring®. Retrieved from EMPath: http://s3.amazonaws.com/empath-website/pdf/EMPath_Mobility_Mentoring_Brief_Web.pdf
Washington State Department of Children, Youth & Families. (n.d.). Mobility Mentoring® Outcomes Report 2017-2018. Reports | Washington State Department of Children, Youth & Families. Retrieved from https://www.dcyf.wa.gov/sites/default/files/pdf/Mobility_Mentoring_Outcomes_2017-2018.pdf
Washington State Department of Early Learning. (n.d.). Early Childhood Education and Assistance Programs (ECEAP) Family Support Pilot Year Two Update: June 2016 through June 2017. Reports | Washington State Department of Children, Youth & Families. Retrieved from https://www.dcyf.wa.gov/sites/default/files/pdf/eceap/MM_year_two_outcomes_report_Final_0.pdf
What Works Series: Goals Matter! (2021). Retrieved from https://mobilitymentoring.nl/wp-content/uploads/2021/10/EMPath-What-Works-Series-Goals-Matter.pdf
Local Partnerships Currently Implementing
Local Partnerships in purple have adopted Mobility Mentoring. Local Partnership contact information can be found here.