U.S. flagAn official website of the United States government
        Here’s how you know
    Goverment symbol**Official websites use .gov**
            A **.gov** website belongs to an official government organization in the United States.
        Lock symbol**Secure .gov websites use HTTPS**
            A lock (
              A locked padlock
                 ) or **https://** means you’ve safely connected to the .gov website. Share sensitive
              information only on official, secure websites.
 Skip to main content JoinDonate
    About
    About
          About
        
About menu block one
  

        
        What We Do
                Our Impact
                Agency FAQs
About menu block two
  

        
        Our Team
                Careers
About menu block three
  

        
        Agency Overview
                            Budget and Performance Plans
                Disability and Accessibility
                Federal Register Notices
                Open Government
                Plain Writing
                Privacy Policy
                Strategic Plan

  

  
Serve
    Serve
          Serve
        
Serve menu block one
  

        
        AmeriCorps
                            AmeriCorps NCCC
                AmeriCorps State and National
                AmeriCorps VISTA
                AmeriCorps Seniors
                            AmeriCorps Seniors Foster Grandparent Program
                AmeriCorps Seniors RSVP
                AmeriCorps Seniors Senior Companion Program
Serve menu block two
  

        
        Volunteer
                            9/11 Day
                MLK Day
Serve menu block three
  

        
        Find Your Fit
                Serve FAQs

  

  
Partner
    Partner
          Partner
        
Partner menu block one
  

        
        How it Works
                            AmeriCorps NCCC
                AmeriCorps Seniors Foster Grandparent
                AmeriCorps Seniors RSVP
                AmeriCorps Seniors Senior Companion
                AmeriCorps State and National
                AmeriCorps VISTA
                Research and Evaluation
                Volunteer Generation Fund
Partner menu block two
  

        
        Partnerships
                Communities and Initiatives
                Funding Opportunities
Partner menu block three
  

        
        Partner FAQs

  

  
Members & Volunteers
    Members & Volunteers
          Members & Volunteers
        
Members & Volunteers menu block one
  

        
        Your Benefits
                Segal AmeriCorps Education Award
                Education Award FAQs
Members & Volunteers menu block two
  

        
        Alumni
                Members in VISTA
Members & Volunteers menu block three
  

        
        Member and Volunteer FAQs
                Safety and Security

  

  
Grantees & Sponsors
    Grantees & Sponsors
          Grantees & Sponsors
        
Grantee & Sponsors menu block one
  

        
        State Service Commissions
                State and National Direct Grantees
                State Subgrantees
                VISTA Sponsors
                Research and Evaluation Grantees
                Volunteer Generation Fund and Days of Service Grantees
Grantee & Sponsors menu block two
  

        
        RSVP Grantees
                Foster Grandparent Program Grantees
                Senior Companion Program Grantees
                Senior Demonstration Program Grantees
                NCCC Project Sponsors
Grantee & Sponsors menu block three
  

        
        Manage Your Grant
                Grantee and Sponsor FAQs

  

  
Newsroom
    Newsroom
          Newsroom
        
Newsroom menu block one
  

        
        News
                Blog
Newsroom menu block two
  

        
        Stories
                Events
Newsroom menu block three
  

        
        In the News
                Communication Resources



  
Contact
    Contact
    JoinDonate
search Breadcrumb

              Economic Self-Sufficiency and Life Stability One Year after Starting a Social Enterprise Job
      Back
                REDF has been funding non-profit organizations running social enterprises since 1997. As part of its five-year strategy to transform how people with many employment barriers transition into the workforce, REDF partnered with the Social Innovation Fund to support and evaluate this strategy. Social enterprises are mission-driven businesses focused on hiring and assisting people who face barriers to work.Life and work-related outcomes were tracked for 282 workers at seven social enterprises over the course of the study, which found:Social enterprise workers moved toward economic self-sufficiency and life stability**employment up from 18 to 51%****in stable housing up from 15 to 53%****dependence on government support down from 71 to 24%**Social enterprises **produced $2.23 in social benefits for every $1 they spent** (by reducing dependence on government support and increasing tax revenue)Results from the Impact Evaluation generally support the tracked outcomes listed above, although the statistical significance of these observations is mixed. This is perhaps due to unobserved characteristics of the sample that could not be controlled for or small sample sizes, a common difficulty when working with people experiencing instabilities such as histories of homelessness, unstable housing, and incarceration.

      Full report
      

      Full Report
            FR_REDF_SocialEnterprise.pdf
                  RB_REDF_SocialEnterprise.pdf
        Further information
    



      Program/Intervention
                        Social Enterprise
  

      Implementing Organization
                        REDF
  

      Intermediary(s)
                        REDF
  

      AmeriCorps Program(s)
            Social Innovation Fund
  

      Age(s) Studied
            18-25 (Young adult)
                  26-55 (Adult)
  

      Focus Population(s)/Community(s)
            Low Income
  

      Outcome Category
            Employment
  

      Study Type(s)
            Cost-Benefit or Cost Effectiveness Study
                  Impact
                  Implementation
                  Outcomes
  

      Study Design(s)
            Non-Experimental
                  Quasi-Experimental (QED)
  

      Level of Evidence
            Moderate
  

      Researcher/Evaluator
                        Mathematica Policy Research
  

      Published Year
                        2014
  

      Report Citation
                        Rotz, D.; Maxwell, N.; Dunn, A. (2014). Economic Self-Sufficiency and Life Stability One Year After Starting a Social Enterprise Job. Oakland, CA: Mathematica Policy Research. Back to main content Sign up to hear about our latest news, events, and opportunities.
  Sign up for our newsletter
    Footer about
  

        
        About
                            What We Do
                Our Impact
                Our Team
                Careers
                Agency OverviewFooter serve
  

        
        Serve
                            AmeriCorps
                AmeriCorps Seniors
                Volunteer
                Find Your FitFooter partner
  

        
        Partner
                            How it Works
                Funding OpportunitiesFooter Members & Volunteers
  

        
        Members & Volunteers
                            Your Benefits
                Segal AmeriCorps Education Award
                Alumni
                Safety and SecurityFooter grantees & sponsors
  

        
        Grantees & Sponsors
                            eGrants
                History Checks
                LitmosFooter newsroom
  

        
        Newsroom
                            News
                Blog
                Stories
                Events
                In the News
                Communication Resources
      Bringing Americans together to serve communities

Follow us
  
  1-800-942-2677
            
    help@americorps.gov
    USA.gov / Office of Inspector General / FOIA and Privacy Act / Federal Register notices / No FEAR Act/ Employee Whistleblower Rights / Contractor and Grantee Whistleblower Rights / Office of Special Counsel / STOCK Act / Fraud Alert

Accessibility / Privacy policy / Site map / Donate / Join

**AmeriCorps.gov**
An official website of AmeriCorps. Produced and published at taxpayer expense. 
 You are leaving AmeriCorps.gov
 The website you’re going to is not part of the AmeriCorps domain and may not be under AmeriCorps’ control. Its privacy and security practices and policies may differ from AmeriCorps’. AmeriCorps is not responsible for the link, nor does it endorse the content of the third-party website. Click on the continue button to proceed to the external website; otherwise click cancel to stay on AmeriCorps.gov.
 Cancel Continue