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Chicago Family Case Management Demonstration Project

Read the Urban Institute's completed evaluation of Heartland Alliance's Chicago Family Case Management Project.

Residents of the Madden/Wells and Dearborn public housing developments are some of the most vulnerable families in Chicago. Many cope with physical and mental health challenges, substance abuse, and limited work skills and financial literacy. Faced with relocation during the Chicago Housing Authority's Plan for Transformation, many of these families were among the so-called "hardest to house."

Over the past three years, the Chicago Family Case Management Demonstration has had unprecedented success in helping residents overcome some of these barriers to stability and security. The project provided comprehensive, accessible services and resulted in increased employment, improved health, and dramatically lower levels of anxiety. Residents who engaged relocation services reported significantly improved housing and neighborhood quality.

Coordinated Partnership

The Demonstration was a unique collaboration between Heartland Alliance, the Chicago Housing Authority (CHA), Housing Choice Partners, and the Urban Institute. Heartland Alliance offered strengths-based, family-focused case management and referrals and coordinated with CHA relocation service providers and case managers in new mixed-income developments. The Urban Institute engaged in continuous evaluation and released its final report in December.

Comprehensive, Accessible Services

A full compliment of integrated, in-house services was designed to guarantee continuity and access and, most importantly, to ensure each family and its members would be treated with dignity and respect. The Demonstration offered access to work, treatment, financial education, and moving assistance. Heartland packaged these services so each family - with its unique history, challenges, ages, and structure - would receive the support it needed to succeed.

Case managers took on small case loads of 25 residents. Cutting case loads from 55 allowed them to conduct follow up visits every week instead of once a month. Case managers provided support to the entire family and stayed with families even if they moved. They understood that barriers for one family member are barriers for the entire family and made sure that all members of a household received assistance in their areas of need. This comprehensive approach allowed them to build consistent, meaningful relationships with families.

Remarkable Results: The Experience

Remarkable Results: The Numbers

The Urban Institute's final evaluation of the Demonstration promises remarkable results. Here are a few prominent outcomes:

Increased engagement: Engagement with case management services expanded quickly, rising from 50 percent in 2007 to 90 percent in 2008 and remaining at that level until the Demonstration ended in 2010. This continued engagement was especially impressive because by 2010 residents had all relocated to a wide variety of traditional public housing, mixed-income developments, and private market housing. Heartland case managers successfully maintained relationships with families through these transitions.

Stabilized and improved health: Unlike the majority of public housing residents, Demonstration participants' health did not worsen over time, and more participants reported improvement than decline. While levels of chronic illness and mortality remain high, anxiety levels were significantly reduced.

Increased employment: Employment levels among participants rose from 49 to 59 percent between 2007 and 2009, despite an incredibly challenging economic climate. This was in contrast to a CHA Panel Study that found no change in employment levels for the general public housing population between 2001 and 2009. The Urban Institute found that Heartland's intensive Transitional Jobs program was important to this outcome.

Increased housing and neighborhood quality: By 2009, most Demonstration participants had relocated at least once. The majority remained in public housing and a surprisingly small proportion (only 26 families) made so-called "opportunity moves" to low-poverty areas, but most reported moving into higher quality housing and better neighborhoods and feeling safer in their new neighborhoods.

Policy and practice implications:

The following are among the Urban Institute's findings for policy and practice implications of the Demonstration:

Housing authorities must be willing to take risks and experiment with service provision.

Targeting high-risk families may have long-term payoffs.

Comprehensive mental health and substance abuse services are a critical need.

The Transitional Jobs model is extremely promising.

Relocation counseling needs to be intensive.

The CHA should experiment with intensive service models that focus explicitly on children and youth.

To learn more about the project and our advocacy efforts, contact Heartland Alliance's Policy and Advocacy team.