An interdisciplinary evaluation of the benefits of participating in a federally funded community service employment program for low-income older adults: A pilot study

FY22 SI-GECS Type 2

Abstract

The Senior Community Service Employment Program (SCSEP) is the sole federal workforce-training program for adults aged 55 and older. Part of the Older Americans Act, SCSEP provides on-the-job training to people with incomes at or below 125% of the federal poverty level. Despite its long history, few program evaluations have been completed. This study builds on a qualitative study by Dr. Cal Halvorsen during the summer of 2020 that revealed how program participation led to increased knowledge and use of food and housing security programs, decreased social isolation and financial stress, and increased confidence, among other findings. This proposed feasibility, acceptability, and pilot study builds upon these findings and creates a new, interdisciplinary team that has never before collaborated. We will utilize our multidisciplinary expertise from the fields of psychology, nursing, social work, and sociology to assess SCSEP’s influence on participant health across multiple domains, including physical (e.g., daily exercise), psychological (e.g., mood), social (e.g., social engagement), financial (e.g., medical costs), and interpersonal (e.g., caregiving needs) health and well-being. To the best of our knowledge, this will be the first evaluation of the health and well-being outcomes from SCSEP participation.

Presentations

  • Halvorsen, C., Lai, P.H.L.*, Teixeira, S., Evans, K., & Pineros-Leano, M. (2023, January). Conducting community-based research across languages and culture. Chair of roundtable at the Society for Social Work & Research Annual Conference.
  • Lai, P.H.L.*, Halvorsen, C. (2022, November). The Senior Community Service Employment Program: New data on older Asian workers. Presentation at the Gerontological Society of America Annual Scientific Meeting in Indianapolis, IN.
  • Halvorsen, C. (2023, June). Strategic planning workshop: Building on the strengths of the Senior Community Service Employment Program. Three-hour training to National Urban League SCSEP affiliates.
  • Halvorsen, C. (2023, May). Building on the strengths of the Senior Community Service Employment Program: Policy recommendations. Presentation to U.S. Senator Kirsten Gillibrand’s subcommittee to strengthen the Older Americans Act. 
  • Halvorsen, C., Best, L., & Rutledge, M. (2023, April). Multidisciplinary uses of the Health and Retirement Study: Examples from economics, social work, and sociology. Presentation for the Aging Scholars Interest Group at Boston College.
  • Halvorsen, C. (2023, March). A multidisciplinary assessment of the health, well-being, and experiences of Senior Community Service Employment Program participants: A Boston College pilot study. Presentation to the U.S. Department of Labor and its SCSEP state and national grantees.
  • Halvorsen, C., Lai, P.H.L.*, Howard, E., Lyons, K., Moorman, S., & Matz, C.. (2023, November). Experiences and Well-Being of Low-Income Workers in the Senior Community Service Employment Program. Chair of symposium, Precarity and Work in Later Life: Experiences of Older Workers in Uncertain Times, at the Gerontological Society of America Annual Scientific Meeting.
  • Halvorsen, C. (2023, November). Finding the "So What?" Developing a Meaningful Career that Makes an Impact. Invited speaker in the Emerging Scholar Professional Organization Presidential Symposium, Highlighting Emerging Professionals who Build Bridges, Catalyze Research, and Empower All Ages, at the Gerontological Society of America Annual Scientific Meeting.

Publications 

Students Trained 

  • 2 Undergraduate Students
    • Ana Breyer, School of Social Work
    • Lara Traphagen, School of Social Work
  • 7 Graduate Students
    • Barbara Mendez Campos, School of Social Work
    • Miranda Yixin Chen, School of Social Work
    • Ana Sofía García Collazo, School of Social Work
    • Sergio Salicio Lupianez, School of Social Work
    • Sr. An Hoa Ngueyn, School of Social Work
    • Sr. Le Ha Tran Nguyen, School of Social Work

Additional Accomplishments 

  • Advanced training: Describing my Schiller-supported SCSEP study in my application materials led me, in part, to being accepted into the following competitive training programs:
    • April 23 – Feb 24: Michigan Integrative Well-Being and Inequality (MIWI) Training Program at the University of Michigan Center for Social Epidemiology and Population Health, funded by the National Institutes of Health Office of Behavioral and Social Science Research and the National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health (R25-AT010664).
    • June 23: Genomics for Social Sciences – Epigenetics Training Program at the University of Michigan Institute for Social Research, funded by the National Institute on Aging (R25-AG053227).
  • Service: My work on the Schiller-supported SCSEP study also led me, in part, to being invited to join the following projects as an expert reviewer or taskforce member:
    • Jan 22 – Feb 24: Panel Member, Technical Working Group, Older Workers Implementation and Descriptive Study, conducted by the Urban Institute for the U.S. Department of Labor
    • Feb 23 – Sept 23: Panel Member, Technical Working Group, AmeriCorps Senior COVID Effects Evaluation, conducted by JBS International for AmeriCorps Seniors (federal agency)
    • Feb 21 – Jan 23: Member, 50+ Workers Taskforce, Massachusetts Executive Office of Elder Affairs
    • Jan 22 – present: Appointed member, Public Policy Advisory Panel, Gerontological Society of America

Principal Investigator

Cal Halvorsen, BCSSW

Collaborators

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