UIC and One Hope United partner to build national model of Hope House program
Introduction
One Hope United is partnering with the University of Illinois Chicago’s Jane Addams College of Social Work to expand its successful Hope House program in Illinois and strengthen the evidence base for national replication. This collaboration will focus on a rigorous, data-driven evaluation of the Hope House model to support future growth and demonstrate its impact on youth in foster care.
Launched in Florida in 2020, the Hope House program has already provided opportunities for many youth ages 13 to 17 involved in the child welfare system. Designed as a therapeutic family home alternative to institutional group care, the program provides teens with stable, nurturing environments that foster well-being, educational success and independent living skills.
To deepen the program’s impact and build a nationally recognized evidence base, One Hope United is not only teaming up with the JACSW but its research collaborators at Florida State University and NORC at the University of Chicago. Over the past year and a half, UIC and its research team, led by Associate Professor Jennifer Geiger and Professors James Swartz and Sonya Leathers, will collect and analyze outcomes for Hope House youth compared with traditional placements. The goal is to evaluate whether youth in foster care who receive care in a Hope House experience more stability and greater success in careers and relationships. Read more here.