Center for the Study of Social Policy

CSSP’s mission is to create new ideas and promote public policies that produce equal opportunities and better futures for all children and families, especially those most often left behind. CSSP’s staff, headquartered in Washington D.C., with offices in New York and Los Angeles, do this by translating research and new ideas into strategies for on-the-ground implementation, then use those real experiences to inspire the next generation of ideas, programs and policies.
Our work is guided by a theory of change about what it takes to achieve child, family and community well-being. The results we seek are for:
• Children to be healthy and enter school ready to learn and then succeed in school
• Youth to be prepared to succeed as adults
• Children to grow up in safe, supportive and economically successful families
• Communities to have the resources and opportunities families need to succeed
CSSP conducts a variety of activities related to equity in policy, communities and public systems. We influence and support elected officials, public administrators, families and neighborhood residents to take the actions they need to build protective factors that help strengthen families and help youth thrive. And, CSSP believes in the importance of engaging residents as leaders and co-creators of work that affects their lives.

Reason for Joining NREC

NREC is a vehicle for local communities and national organizations to accelerate the achievement of child, family and neighborhood well-being at scale. NREC will contribute new knowledge about what works to improve results by developing the “next wave” of innovation, tools and resources to achieve results.

CSSP is especially interested in working with NREC partners to demonstrate how investments in communities’ capacities to create cradle-to-college-to-career solutions can significantly improve equitable outcomes.

The NREC partnership will contribute much to CSSP’s role as a partner in the Promise Neighborhoods Institute at PolicyLink and to our provision of results-based TA to other federal and local initiatives, such as Choice Neighborhoods and the Department of Justice’s Building Neighborhood Capacity Program. CSSP’s website, PolicyforResults.org, promotes results-based state and local policies, and the NREC partnership can strengthen that work as well.

How currently using NREC tools

CSSP applies the Results-Based Accountability™ (RBA) framework in all of its work with systems, communities and families, helping state and local leaders use RBA tools effectively. We help communities develop tools to build and self-assess their capacity to produce better results. CSSP is particularly interested in assisting communities increase the skills of local leaders, promoting results-based leadership as an essential capacity for community change.

Anticipated contributions to NREC work

CSSP will contribute tools and lessons related to (1) effective solutions to achieve results, (2) building the community capacities to produce results (effective use of data for learning and accountability, resident leadership and engagement, community partnerships, and others) and (3) implementing results-based public policy. CSSP serves as the fiscal intermediary for NREC, and we will continue trying to raise funds for this effort.

Contact information

Frank Farrow
Director
Center for the Study of Social Policy
1575 Eye Street, NW, Suite 500
Washington, DC 20005
[email protected]
Phone – 202.371.1565
Fax – 202.371.1472

Anand Sharma
Senior Policy Analyst
[email protected]
Phone – 202.371.1565