Current Projects Portfolio
The Clearinghouse for Military Family Readiness has provided professionals who deliver direct assistance to military families with information to help identify, select, develop, implement, and evaluate evidence-informed and evidence-based programs and practices to improve the well-being of service members, veterans, and their families. Below is a list of currently active Clearinghouse partnerships and projects.
Army
The collaboration between the U.S. Army and the Clearinghouse began in 2011, with a USDA cooperative agreement to conduct a single program evaluation. Since then, the Clearinghouse has completed various projects with the Army in the areas of family advocacy, community service, and healthy parenting.
Army Community Services (ACS): Cost Benefit/Cost Effectiveness Analysis of Relocation Readiness Program (RRP)
Department of Defense Education Activity (DoDEA)
Since our partnership began in 2014, the Clearinghouse has worked diligently to support DoDEA in fulfilling their commitment to ensuring all school-aged children of military families are provided a world-class education and to educate, engage, and empower each student to succeed in a dynamic world. Our work includes creation and delivery of professional development training for teachers and school psychologists that assists DoDEA professionals in supporting the unique needs of military families.
Schools Empowering At-Risk Students (SEAS)
Penn State Faculty (Dr. Cristin Hall) and Clearinghouse staff are working with DoDEA partners to develop six online learning modules for school psychologists, school counselors, and school nurses related to warning signs and risk assessment, prevention, intervention, postvention, ethical and legal issues, and self-care and care coordination for at-risk students. In addition, the Clearinghouse team is working to develop supplemental materials and lesson plans for school personnel to deliver to students.
Department of Defense Family Advocacy Program
Located within the Office of the Under Secretary (of Defense) for Personnel and Readiness, Military Community and Family Policy (MCF&P), Family Advocacy Program is the congressionally-designated program responsible for preventing and responding to child abuse and neglect and domestic abuse in military families. The program works with key military and civilian departments, including medical, law enforcement, legal, chaplains, child and youth, and social agencies to promote a coordinated community response.
Incident Determination Committee (IDC) Decision Tree Algorithm (DTA)
The Clearinghouse has been tasked to conduct a quality assurance (QA) check of the Incident Determination Committee (IDC) and its use of the Decision Tree Algorithm (DTA) across the various Services and installations to understand the impact of adding a medical representative’s vote to the IDC and to ensure consistent processes across all Services.. This effort is conducted by the Clearinghouse and New York University (NYU) in partnership with the Office of the Secretary of Defense (OSD) Military Community and Family Policy (MC & FP) office, through a cooperative agreement with the National Institute for Food and Agriculture (NIFA).
Incident Severity Scales
The Family Advocacy Program (FAP) Incident Severity Scale (ISS) is a research-based tool that meets the goal of providing an objective, consistent and standardized means to determine the severity of met criteria for child abuse/neglect and domestic abuse incidents by FAP clinicians across all the Services. This Clearinghouse hosts the ISS Support Website that is intended to support clinicians with implementation of the ISS tool by providing ISS FAQs and Videos that describe ISS tool elements in more detail. These resources are intended to refresh the clinician’s knowledge of the Scales and are always available in order for the clinician to access a specific area within the Scales for clarification. Our specialists at the Clearinghouse are here to support clinicians as they have questions about the implementation of the ISS Tool and we are available via email or the phone helpline at 1-877-382-9185 weekdays from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. EST/EDT.
Problematic Sexual Behavior Non-Clinical Referral Tool
Staffing Tool
The Family Advocacy Program’s (FAP) mission is to prevent child abuse/neglect and domestic abuse in military families and support individuals who are impacted by family violence (DoDI 6400.06, E.2.16). The Clearinghouse has been tasked to develop a novel staffing tool to assist Headquarter FAP Leadership with making informed decisions about proper staff levels across the various Services and installations. In partnership with the Office of the Secretary of Defense (OSD) Military Community and Family Policy (MC&FP), the Clearinghouse team has been collecting data to gain an understanding of all FAP personnel roles and responsibilities and appreciate the time and manpower required to execute the FAP mission.
Military Suicide Research Consortium
Military Suicide Research Consortium Zero Suicide Project
Office of Military Community and Family Policy
Located within the Office of the Under Secretary (of Defense) for Personnel and Readiness, Military Community and Family Policy (MCF&P) provides direction and oversight of quality of life programs for the military community to ensure these programs are designed and executed to support the needs of the Total Force. Our partnership with MCF&P began in 2010 and includes work in the areas of military and family readiness, child and youth services, recreation and education opportunities, and career and transition support.
Evaluation of State Implementation of Supportive Policies to Improve Educational Experiences and Achievement for K-12 Military Children (SPEAK Military Children)
In partnership with the Defense State Liaison Office (DSLO), the SPEAK Military Children project will investigate the implementation of programs, policies, and supports for military-connected students in kindergarten through 12th grade in all 50 states and Washington D.C.
Live Support: Collaborating with Professionals to Problem-Solve
Military Spouse Licensure Portability
The Military Spouse License Portability project was designed to inform Department of Defense (DoD) policy makers of the amount of time it takes military spouses to obtain an occupational license when they have an inter-state relocation due to a Permanent Change of Station (PCS).
In partnership with the DoD, Defense State Liaison Office (DSLO), the Clearinghouse examined six occupational licensure boards across 50 states and Washington D.C.. Findings include license-application processing times, supporting documentation requirements, application process details, information accessibility, and application costs.
Military Spouse Transition Program (MySTeP)
Resource Center for Improving Family Health Behaviors
5210 Healthy Military Children
Inclusivity
THRIVE: Lifespan Parenting Program
Take Root Home Visitaiton (TRHV) Evaluation - Navy
Take Root Home Visitation (TRHV) Evaluation - Marine Corps
The Continuum of Evidence
Veterans Initiatives
Veterans and their families are a key military subgroup that the Clearinghouse aims to support. Recent studies indicate that most veterans are living healthy and productive lives; however, a 2017 Clearinghouse review identified a number of challenges that veterans and their families face. To promote a smooth transition to civilian life for service members, veterans, and their families, the Clearinghouse is actively conducting applied research engaging in evaluations of veterans programs, and developing transition support products.
VETERANetwork
A research team at the Clearinghouse for Military Family Readiness at Penn State is developing a collaborative network that will focus future research on post-9/11 veterans. Known as the VETeran Evaluation and Research Applications Network (VETERANetwork), the network will strive to ensure public and private donations are invested in effective programs and services that support veterans’ and their families’ well-being. The VETERANetwork will act as the applied research and evaluation unit for philanthropies, foundations, and other veteran-serving non-profit organizations. It will address questions and issues related to veterans’ transitions to civilian lives. The network will be hosted by the Clearinghouse with engagement of various partners (e.g., Institute for Veterans and Military Families at Syracuse University, the University of Southern California’s Center for Innovation and Research on Veterans and Military Families, and the Carnegie Mellon CREATE Lab).
The VETERANetwork grew out of a joint research effort originally known as The Veterans Metrics Initiative: Linking Program Components to Post-Military Well-Being Study (TVMI Study). This collaborative study launched in April 2015 to examine veterans’ transition and reintegration experiences and to assess the impacts of transition programs that aid veterans as they transition from military to civilian life. Led by the Henry M. Jackson Foundation for the Advancement of Military Medicine, Inc., this project mobilized the scientific expertise of the Clearinghouse, other funders, and several VA researchers to collect multiple waves of data from veterans who discharged in 2016.
In 2020, the Clearinghouse expanded upon the TVMI Study with continued, independent data collection (”wave 7”) and this new research effort is known as the Veterans Engaging in Transition Studies (VETS). This longitudinal study continues to examine veterans’ experiences as they transition from military to civilian life and to explore the components across veteran transition programs that are linked to the following well-being domains: vocation, finances, mental and physical health, and social relationships. In addition, new lines of survey questions focus on the impacts of COVID-19 and the scope and scale of veterans’ higher education debt obligations (funded by the Pew Student Loan Research Project).