Completed

Projects that are completed

Office of Economic Security Technical Assistance

The Employment and Benefits Division (EBD) of the Office of Economic Security at the Colorado Department of Human Services administers Colorado Works (TANF) and Colorado Refugee Services Program, employment programs, and adult financial programs. The Colorado Lab will support EBD in designing and implementing statutorily-required evaluations and help division staff develop the internal capacity to leverage the available data to most effectively inform policy and practice.

By coloradolab, ago
early childhood eduation teacher

Strategy to Build Knowledge in Colorado’s New Department of Early Childhood

The Colorado legislature passed a monumental bill during the 2021 session that approved the launch of a brand new state Department of Early Childhood in the Executive Branch. This makes Colorado one of a handful of states that has an entire agency dedicated to early childhood policies and programs. The Colorado Lab laid out an approach to effectively support the early childhood system and allow the state to comprehensively understand which families are being served and how and where to address unmet needs.

By coloradolab, ago

Crossover Youth

Crossover youth are the young people with two types of court cases: (1) dependency and neglect and (2) juvenile justice. This project connected child welfare and court system records to help meet federal reporting requirements and inform state policies and practices aimed at serving crossover youth.

By coloradolab, ago
home childcare provider

Preschool Development Grant Case Study Evaluation

Healthy child development is nurtured by both parents/caregivers and child care providers, and collaboration across early childhood spaces is thus vital. To catalyze innovation partnerships in early childhood, the Colorado Lab is conducting a case study evaluation of a pilot partnership between home visiting agencies and local home child care providers.

By coloradolab, ago

Office of the Child’s Representative Case Consultant Evaluation

The Colorado Office of the Child’s Representative is the state agency charged with providing competent and effective best interest legal representation to children involved in the Colorado court system. The Colorado Lab designed an evaluation plan to build evidence for the use of Case Consultants (e.g., social workers) in best-interest legal representation of children with a Dependency and Neglect or Juvenile Delinquency case.

By coloradolab, ago
many hands pushing on a log

Expanding Multisystemic Therapy to Underserved Regions

Multisystemic Therapy (MST), a community-based intervention targeting youth ages 12-17 who are involved or at high risk of involvement in the juvenile justice system, has a proven record of success. It is delivered by trained teams of therapists over the course of 3-5 months with multiple home-visits per week. This project extended MST to regions of the state where the service was previously unavailable.

By coloradolab, ago

Potential Health Care Cost Savings of Dual-Enrollment in Medicaid and SNAP

Colorado ranks among the lowest in the nation in terms of the percentage of the population receiving benefits from the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) with about 60% of eligible residents participating. This study examines the impact of SNAP enrollment on healthcare costs–particularly emergency room visits and hospitalizations–among Colorado residents enrolled in Medicaid. If the study identifies substantial cost savings, it will provide a fiscal reason for increasing enrollment in SNAP among those who are eligible.

By coloradolab, ago

Inventory and Analysis of Brightfields in Colorado

Increases in population and development are contributing to a loss of agricultural land and open spaces–land that could be redeveloped for renewable energy and further contribute to Colorado’s economic base. As part of Governor Polis’s goal for 100% renewable energy by 2040, this project built a web-mapping application, enabling stakeholders to identify existing suitable sites for renewable energy redevelopment.

By coloradolab, ago