Empowering People for Success Program (EPS)

Family & Children's Agency participates in the Empowering People for Success Program (EPS) which is a statewide welfare-to-work initiative of the Connecticut Council of Family Service Agencies (CCFSA) funded by the Department of Social Services (DSS) and the Department of Labor (DOL). The program is designed to assist recipients and past recipients of Temporary Family Assistance (TFA) achieve self-reliance and healthy independence. Intensive, solution focused case management and care coordination is used to identify and reduce the effects of barriers to sustained employment. 

The EPS Program has three components:

  • Prevention Services - Individual Performance Contracts (IPC):  Individual Performance Contracts (IPC): This program assists families with two sanctions from DSS for non-compliance who are in jeopardy of losing the ability to receive an extension of cash benefits at the end of 21 months. IPC clients are provided a "second chance" to restore "good faith" status through successful completion of an IPC. IPC services are 30 – 60 days.
  • Safety Net This program provides intensive support to participants who have exhausted time limits of TFA, are not eligible for an extension because they have not demonstrated a good faith effort, and have income that is below the TFA payment standard. This program may assist with basic needs payments. Clients may participate for up to twelve months.
  • Employment Success Program: This program assists clients new to the DSS system, applying for benefits for the first time having no sanctions for non-compliance. Clients referred to this program receive intensive support to meet the goals of their personal employ-ability plan assigned by Job First Employment Services (JFES) and to eliminate barriers that my result in the sanctioning process. Clients receive an average of six months of service.

 

Our Mission


EPS is dedicated to empowering TANF families to become self-sufficient through eliminating the effects of barriers to employment, ensuring that clients have a full set of life skills, assisting clients to achieve the necessary level of education for their desired careers, assisting clients to obtain employment, decreasing the utilization of public funds, and minimizing risks to children through improving family safety. The program is committed to identifying family strengths to succeed in employment, education, and community building.

 

Eligibility Requirements


EPS is a referral program only. The Department of Social Services and The Department of Labor (Jobs First Employment Services Program) are the two referring agencies for EPS families statewide.

Homelessness Services