A Two-generation (2Gen) approach means focusing on children and the adults in their lives together, and bringing an equity lens to our workforce strategies.
“2Gen” or “Whole Family" approaches focus on family success – as defined by the family – by simultaneously serving children and caregivers along a continuum of supports. We believe families are the experts on themselves, and we know the wellbeing of each member of the family is interdependent with other members’ health and success. The 2Gen lens is used to form entire programs that serve families directly, as well as to inform changes to existing programs and policies to better support our communities.
Workforce Challenges and Why We Are Champions of the 2Gen Model
There are national problems...
- 1 in 3 U.S. families are in/near poverty (AAMC)
- 1 in 4 families reported struggling to afford food or housing in 2022 (Pew Research Center)
- The wealth gap between America’s richest and poorer families more than doubled from 1989 to 2016 (Pew Research Center)
2Gen approaches build local strategies...
- Children's success is impacted by their families' basic needs being met
- Family success requires access to meaningful jobs and careers
- 2Gen approaches focus on connecting residents to careers that lead to family-sustaining wages
We have embedded 2Gen into everything!
We at Springfield WORKS embed the 2Gen/Whole Family Approach into all of our work, and help our partners implement the 2Gen model into their agencies. This model has helped catalyze a lot of our other work, knowing we needed to support families and children at the same time.
Ready, Willing, and Able
We built our Trauma-informed Ready, Willing, and Able assessment tool with the Whole Family Approach in mind. The tool reframes workforce assessments to address the Social Determinants of Work. Worker and their family are supported, recognizing that a worker's chances of success is greater when children and family are cared for.
Paraeducator Career Path
Collaborative 2Gen/Whole Family Approach to Careers paraeducator pathway training focuses on the whole family by providing wraparound supports for participants and their families. Children in Head Start are supported while their parents are in training. In addition, the training builds a pathway to a family-sustaining wage in a workplace with a parent-friendly schedule.
Read More About the 2Gen Approach
Rennie Center
Springfield WORKS' 2Gen work is featured in the 2021 edition of the Condition of Education in the Commonwealth by The Rennie Center for Education Research & Policy.
Ascend - Aspen Institute
Ascend at the Aspen Institute originally inspired our adoption of the 2Gen/Whole Families Approach to careers, and Springfield WORKS with Baystate Health’s Family Prosperity Innovation project is a grantee.
Annie E. Casey Foundation
The Annie E. Casey Foundation is a champion for 2Gen/Whole Family Approaches, providing financial, technical support, and innovative programming, that advance sound policy solutions.
Thank You to Our 2Gen Partners
