Evidence Reports

Wested (September 2024) posted an RCT of ASSISTments, a low-cost online tool that assists 7th graders with math independent practice (e.g., homework) and gives teachers real-time reports on student performance. This high-quality RCT found a sizable gain (~31% of a grade-level) in math scores on the state test at 2 year follow-up.

The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), in January 2025, published an RCT of HUD’s $140 million/year Family Self-Sufficiency (FSS) program, which provides case management services and financial incentives to housing voucher recipients to promote work and self-sufficiency. This large, high quality RCT found no discernible impacts on employment or earnings over 6 years.

SSRN (October 2024) posted long-term RCT findings for Sourdun, a French “Boarding School of Excellence” for middle and high school students from disadvantaged communities. This high-quality RCT found a remarkable 14 percentage point decrease in the high school dropout rate and 16 percentage point increase in graduation from higher education, 9-12 years after study entry.

New England Journal of Medicine (June 2024) published an RCT of Communities that Heal, a data-driven program that engaged communities in four states to rapidly deploy evidence-based practices to reduce opioid overdose deaths. This large, high-quality RCT found no discernible impact on opioid overdose deaths over 1 year.

Third Sector posted (August 2024) RCT findings for a Massachusetts Pay for Success Project that provided Roca – a violence intervention and behavioral health program – to justice-involved young men to prevent reoffending. This high-quality RCT found no discernible effects on reincarceration or employment over 5 years. The study was able to rule out the sizable positive effects anticipated as the project’s start, but not more modest effects.

Mobility posted (October 2024) long-term RCT results for Project QUEST's occupational training of low-income adults for well-paying healthcare jobs. This high-quality RCT found a 15-20% gain in annual earnings at the 14 year follow-up - an extremely promising (albeit not quite definitive) result.

Journal of Research on Educational Effectiveness (Sept 2024) published an RCT of City Year's WSWC Tier 2 services (e.g., tutoring, mentoring) for at-risk middle school students. This high-quality RCT, evaluating the added benefit of Tier 2 services over City Year’s schoolwide assistance, found no discernible impacts on student outcomes over 1-1.5 years.