BPA partnered with MDRC to conduct an evaluation of the replication of the Center for Employment Training (CET) model. The renowned CET program, which originated in San Jose, California, has been shown to be among the few employment and training programs that produce significantly positive impacts for youth participants, as measured by their post-program employment and earnings. The CET Replication Study was designed to assess whether the results of the San Jose program can be replicated elsewhere.

The study used an experimental design to evaluate the replication sites' success in producing positive impacts. Youth who applied to the program were randomly assigned in each site to a treatment group (who received CET services) or a control group (who will not receive CET services). Members of the study samples were surveyed twice (18 and 54 months after random assignment) to measure outcomes. Differences in outcomes between the control and treatment groups were attributed to participation in the program.

BPA led the implementation and process components of the overall study. BPA staff visited each site three times to collect information about program operations. Research staff conducted interviews with key program staff, local employers, participants, and other respondents to document implementation and operational experiences of the grantees. BPA also contributed to the interpretation of the impact study findings, as the process study information collected is vital to understanding the results of the impact analysis and determining key considerations for replication.

Publications:

Working with Disadvantaged Youth: Thirty-Month Findings from the Evaluation of the (Oct, 2003) (PDF:635KB)
This report is the second in a series evaluating the CET model’s effects in the replication sites, and it presents the findings after 30 months. A future report will examine the replication programs’ effects after 54 months.

Evaluation of the Center for Employment Training Replication Sites: Interim Report (Jun, 2000)
This report is the first in a two-part series on the Evaluation of the Center for Employment Training (CET) Replication Sites. Initiated by the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) in July 1995, the evaluation is intended to document the implementation and impacts of efforts to replicate a successful training program for out-of-school youth in 12 sites across the U.S. http://www.mdrc.org/Reports_2003/cet_interim_2000/cet_interim_2000.pdf