One time, they worked with her employer so that she could go to school and work at the same time. Eight years later, she was finishing up her college degree while working full time at a local hospital as a case manager who explained to teenage moms why they should remain in school. While Project Match helps people on a voluntary basis, it created a second program - the Pathways System. Project Match spent years developing Pathways, a case management and tracking tool for state and local agencies that is now being used in six sites around the country. It is intended for mandatory government welfare departments rather than community-based agencies.
Pathways begins with a contract that contains crystal-clear expectations.
Welfare recipients agree to attend a monthly group meeting and fill out a monthly activity diary that is entered into a computerized tracking system. These three tools radically alter the way in which welfare workers interact with their clients. The detailed monthly entries include activities planned for the month, such as finding a job, continuing education programs, or volunteering at their child's school. Another set of entries captures what the person actually accomplished. Because entries are made monthly, the Pathways system ensures that caseworkers keep track of every person on the caseload so no one slips between the cracks.