Cornell Project 2Gen is an initiative led by Rachel Dunifon and Laura Tach that seeks to create an interdisciplinary hub for research, policy, and practice to better support families throughout New York and beyond. Read about our first two years of work in this report.

1. 2017 2019
Cornell Project 2Gen
OUR FIRST TWO YEARS

2. 2
LETTER FROM
THE DIRECTORS
It is hard to believe that two years have gone by since the launch of Pro-
ject 2Gen. Even more amazing are the incredible partnerships that we
have been so fortunate to engage in during that time. In launching Project
2Gen, our goal was to foster a vibrant community of researchers, practi-
tioners, and policymakers working to empower children and caregivers
across New York State and beyond. By taking a holistic, family-based
approach, we can better inform and develop policies and programs that
enhance the lives of children, their families, and their communities.
The framework of translational research is essential to what we do. This
means building and enhancing reciprocal relationships between research-
ers, practitioners, and policymakers. Just as policy and practice can benefit
from research insights, so, too, is research enhanced by a strong collabo-
ration with those working on the ground in our local, state, and national
communities.
Over the past two years, Project 2Gen has grown, building collaborations
locally, statewide, and nationally. In our local community, we work with
Cornell Cooperative Extension of Tompkins County (cce-Tompkins),
the family court system, and the William George Agency, among others.
At the state level, our faculty and students travel to Albany to discuss
how Cornell research can address pressing policy issues. Nationally, we
work with the nationwide Cooperative Extension system to share approa-
ches and resources for combating the opioid epidemic.
We are incredibly grateful for support from the William T. Grant Founda-
tion and are honored to have been awarded the Foundation’s first Insti-
tutional Challenge Grant. This grant supports our research collaboration
with cce-Tompkins around the opioid crisis, and more broadly supports
new approaches to research and community engagement that serve as a
model for Cornell.
Going forward, we are excited to adapt our work in the local community
to be responsive to our current public health crisis, to extend our model
of community-based partnerships to others, and to continue to involve
both graduate and undergraduate students in our work. Thank you so
much for being part of our work!
Rachel Dunifon
Director
Laura Tach
Director
Laura Tach
Rachel Dunifon

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TABLE OF CONTENTS
Overview
Team
The Launch of Project 2Gen
Research
Practice
The Opioid & Family Life Project
Policy
Events
The Bronfenbrenner Conference
2Gen Scholars
Connect
4
5
6
8
10
12
14
16
17
18
19

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Overview
Cornell Project 2Gen is an initiative led by Rachel Dunifon and Laura Tach that seeks to create an interdisciplinary hub for
research, policy, and practice to better support families throughout New York and beyond. Our work adopts the 2Gen
framework, an approach that focuses on building family well-being by intentionally and simultaneously working with chil-
dren and the adults in their lives together. We consider how broader contexts, such as educational and employment systems,
the social environment, and policy and practice, can enhance family well-being.
GOALS
Research
Build a vibrant research
community of scholars
to better understand how
services and policies affect
the entire family system.
Practice
Connect researchers and
practitioners using the
2Gen framework.
Policy
Strengthen and develop
synergistic relationships
between Cornell faculty
and students and New York
policymakers.
Student Training
Involve Cornell students in
2Gen research, policy, and
practice.
Laura Tach, Rachel Dunifon, and Anna Steinkraus
discussing the Opioid and Family Life Project.
Provided by Ascend from the Aspen Institute

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Team
Laura Tach
Director
Laura is an associate pro-
fessor of policy analysis and
management. Her research
examines the effects of eco-
nomic inequality for famil-
ies and communities and
how public policy can dis-
rupt the transmission of in-
equality across generations.
Kimberly Kopko
Parenting & Extension Liaison
Kimberly is a developmen-
tal psychologist who stud-
ies parenting and family
processes. Her research
and outreach efforts focus
on parenting in various
contexts and the use of re-
search- and evidence-based
parenting programs to
strengthen families.
Rachel Dunifon
Director
Rachel is a social policy
expert who researches child
and family policy with a fo-
cus on factors influencing
the development of less ad-
vantaged children.
MaryBethMorrissey
Graduate Research Assistant
Mary Beth is a Sociology
PhD student with interests
in gender, emotion, inequal-
ity, family, and qualitative
methods.
Elizabeth Day
Assistant Director for Policy
Engagement
Elizabeth has training in
human development and
family studies and exper-
tise in the use of research
by policymakers.
Erin Mathios
Graduate Research Assistant
Erin is an mph student with
a background in human dev-
elopment and health policy.
Her research interests in-
clude the impact of family,
health, and education policy
on families and children,
with a particular focus on
the opioid epidemic.
Francesca Vescia
Research and Program
Assistant
Francesca has a background
in sociology and data sci-
ence. Her research interests
include inequality, family,
health, and their many
intersections.
Adam Hughes
Opioid & Extension Liaison
Adam is a state extension
specialist for Cornell Uni-
versity. Adam has applied
his background in public
health to various adminis-
trative and policy settings
with a particular focus on
health disparities and social
determinants of health.

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The Launch of
Project 2Gen
DISRUPTING THE CYCLE OF POVERTY:
Two-Generation Approaches from
Research, Practice, and Policy
In October 2017, we celebrated the launch of Cornell Project 2Gen with a panel discussion among noted scholars, practi-
tioners, and policymakers. “Disrupting the Cycle of Poverty: Two-Generation Approaches from Research, Practice, and
Policy” brought professors Lindsay Chase-Lansdale (Northwestern University) and Lisa Gennetian (New York University),
Ascend at the Aspen Institute Assistant Director Lori Severens, and Ithaca mayor Svante Myrick together to discuss the
importance of 2Gen approaches to supporting families. You can read more about the event in the Cornell Chronicle.
Karl Pillemer, Lori Severens, Lindsay Chase-Lansdale, Rachel
Dunifon, Laura Tach, Lisa Gennetian, Jennifer Tiffany, and
Elizabeth Day at Project 2Gen’s launch

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Lori Severens
Lori Severens, Assistant Director for Leadership and Design
with Ascend at the Aspen Institute, described how a 2Gen
approach promotes equity by working with parents to clar-
ify and meet their family’s needs, together. Severens praised
the framework for “div[ing] down below the stereotypes
that we all hold, in some form or another, about what it
means to be family and what it means to disrupt the cycle
of poverty.”
Svante Myrick
Ithaca mayor Svante Myrick drew from his childhood exper-
iences of poverty and homelessness to assert that a 2Gen
approach to promoting mobility is “spot on.” Myrick descri-
bed the City’s efforts to disrupt poverty through housing,
transportation, and skills development. He thanked prac-
titioners and researchers for supporting families and for
proving that investing in children and parents “is not only
the big-hearted thing to do, but the hard-headed thing to do.”
Lindsay Chase-Lansdale
Northwestern developmental psychologist Lindsay Chase-
Lansdale shared preliminary findings on the benefits of a
2Gen human capital-building approach for families involv-
ed in the Head Start program. One-year parent outcomes
were promising, but Chase-Lansdale stressed the need for
further research evaluating long-term outcomes for parents
and children. She expressed optimism that 2Gen research,
practice, and policy will help clarify what works for families
and how model programs can be scaled up.
Lisa Gennetian
Economist Lisa Gennetian of New York University’s Insti-
tute for Human Development and Social Change offered
a behavioral perspective on enriching 2Gen program ap-
proaches. Behavioral economics, Gennetian argued, helps
us understand how poverty constrains parents’ attention.
It also gives us levers to help free up parents’ attention, em-
powering them to take greater advantage of 2Gen services
and to become more effective change makers in their
family’s lives.

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Research
Project 2Gen conducts qualitative and quantitative research and supports faculty interested in using a 2Gen approach in
their own work. We also facilitate faculty connections with relevant community partners and provide outlets for sharing
research with policymakers and practitioners at local, state, and national levels.
PROJECTS
In Fall 2017, Cornell Project 2Gen funded six faculty research projects relevant to advancing 2Gen work supporting families
in New York. We worked with the grantees over the course of the year to facilitate connections with relevant communi-
ty partners and provide outlets for sharing their research with policymakers and practitioners. In addition to producing
research briefs, faculty presented at a number of conferences including a research briefing to New York legislators and
staff at the State Capitol, the Child Care and Early Education Policy Research Consortium in Washington dc, and a School
Anxiety and Avoidance Summit in Tompkins County.
The Opioid Epidemic and Child Maltreatment:
Two Generations at Risk
Maria Fitzpatrick, Elizabeth Day, and Laura Tach (Policy Analysis and Management;
Bronfenbrenner Center for Translational Research)
Investigates whether the opioid epidemic has caused an increase in child maltreatment in
rural communities nationally and in upstate ny. Also investigates whether rates of drug-
related maltreatment decline following the introduction of initiatives that reduce the avail-
ability of opioids or provide drug treatment services.
Laura Tach presenting at the Youth Development Research Update

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Creating Family Learning Partnerships
to Promote Early Learning
Marianella Casasola (Human Development)
Investigates how parents understand their role in their children’s cognitive development.
Creates, implements, and evaluates parent-training workshops via existing community part-
nerships to enhance the role of parents in their children’s cognitive development.
Left Behind:
Deportations, Child Welfare, and Foster Care Placements
Matt Hall and Frank Edwards (Policy Analysis and Management; Bronfenbrenner Center for
Translational Research)
Assesses the link between the deportation of immigrant parents and their children’s expo-
sure to the child welfare system using administrative data combined with the adoption of
local policies that enabled deportation.
Child Support Debt and Father-Child Relationships
Maureen Waller (Policy Analysis and Management)
Examines how child support arrears policies affect fathers’ debt burdens and involvement
with their children. Combines quantitative analysis of state child support enforcement sys-
tems and national survey data with qualitative interviews with ny fathers to explain how
child support policies shapes fathers’ involvement.
School Engagement & Avoidance among Criminal
Justice-Involved Families with School-Aged Children
Anna Haskins (Sociology)
Explores why parental engagement in schools declines following the incarceration of a par-
ent using qualitative interviews with criminal-justice involved families, teachers, and school
administrators in upstate ny counties. Seeks to understand how parents experience their
children’s schools as surveilling institutions and how teachers/administrators interact with
criminal-justice involved families.
Capacity for Two-Generation Care in Rural Communities:
Implications of Educational Policy and Community
Characteristics on Head Start Program Trends
John Sipple, Lisa McCabe, and Hope Casto (Development Sociology; Bronfenbrenner Center
for Translational Research)
Examines the effects of ny state-funded pre-K rollout on Head Start enrollment and how this
rollout has been experienced across different communities, particularly in rural areas.

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PROJECTS
Cornell Cooperative Extension
The Cornell Cooperative Extension (cce) system brings
together campus and communities to promote well-being
for New York residents. With offices in every county and
each of New York City’s boroughs, Extension helps trans-
late Cornell research into community programming and
ensures that community priorities inform the University’s
research agenda.
Practice
Project 2Gen partners Juliana Garcia (L) and Anna Steinkraus (R) of
cce-Tompkins County at a meeting with community partners.
Cornell Project 2Gen works to strengthen and develop relationships between Cornell faculty and students, community
organizations, and Cornell Cooperative Extension educators. We work with existing programs interested in incorporating
a 2Gen approach, or enhancing their 2Gen work, by sharing evidence-based research and connecting them with faculty
whose expertise supports this work.
In 2017 and 2018, the Project 2Gen team presented at the
cce Parent Educator, Youth Development Educator, and
Financial Literacy Educators in-services. Presentations in-
cluded hosting a Community Café to explore the challeng-
es counties are facing amidst the opioid epidemic and the
resources needed to support community members. The
responses from cce offices have helped to continually
inform our team’s research focus and outreach efforts.

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CCE Tompkins County
Through our partnership with Cornell Cooperative Ex-
tension Tompkins County (cce-Tompkins), we evaluated
data from seven sessions of the Strengthening Families
Program (sfp), an evidence-based, whole-family parent
education program that focuses on parenting skills,
children’s life skills, and family life skills. After entering,
cleaning, and analyzing the data, our team produced a re-
port summarizing the findings that families participating
in sfp experienced positive changes in parent communica-
tion, parental efficacy, family organization, family conflict,
discipline, parental warmth, and the amount of quality
time spent with children. The report was circulated to key
stakeholders at the cce-Tompkins office and the Tomp-
kins County Department of Social Services.
CCE Orange County
Our team has partnered with the Orange County cce office
to support their work raising awareness of Adverse Child-
hood Experiences (ace), preventing exposure to toxic
stress, and increasing resilience among children and famil-
ies. In Fall 2019, Cornell undergraduates had the oppor-
tunity to research best practices and cutting-edge work
on ace prevention happening around the country share
their findings with members of the Orange County Resil-
ience Project.
Tompkins County Department
of Social Services
Through an ongoing partnership with the Tompkins Coun-
ty Department of Social Services (dss), Project 2Gen has
provided technical support for data entry, cleaning, and
analysis since 2018. The 2Gen team has worked closely
with the dss Associate Commissioner to analyze data to
understand which programs are associated with beneficial
outcomes for families involved in the child welfare system.
William George Agency
In Summer 2018, Project 2Gen Scholar Pearlanna Zapotocky
had the opportunity to work with the William George Agen-
cy (wga), an organization providing therapeutic, clinical,
and medical care to at-risk youth in a residential treatment
setting. Pearlanna conducted 22 interviews with family ser-
vice coordinators and cottage directors at wga to identify
approaches for effectively engaging families. She devel-
oped a parent engagement handbook for the wga Director
of Operations and has submitted a peer-reviewed manu-
script to disseminate her findings.
My Brother’s Keeper Ithaca
As part of the Project 2Gen Summer Scholars program,
Amy Kim had the opportunity to work with My Brother’s
Keeper Ithaca, an organization dedicated to building oppor-
tunities for children of color in Tompkins County. Through
an extensive literature review and an interview with Dr.
Luvelle Brown, Superintendent of the Ithaca City School
District, Amy helped to research the impact of local pol-
icies, including the Free-Range Parenting policy and the
Vaccination Exemption policy, on children of color.
Tompkins County Family
Treatment Court
The 2Gen team has worked closely with Family Treatment
Court (ftc) Judge John Rowley and ftc Coordinator
Mindy Thomas to strengthen programs and supports for
families struggling with substance use disorders. ftcs are
a rapidly-growing, innovative approach to supporting fam-
ilies disrupted by substance use – simultaneously aiming
to reduce parents’ substance use and promote child well-
being. The Tompkins County ftc is a nationally-recognized
peer learning court and involves collaborations among the
courts, the Department of Social Services, local treatment
programs, mental health services, and Cooperative Exten-
sion educators. As part of this ongoing collaboration, the
2Gen team has conducted in-depth interviews to learn about
parents’ experiences with the court.

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The Opioid & Family Life Project
Among Project 2Gen’s diverse efforts, one area of focus is a commitment to understanding and improving the experiences
of families affected by opioid use. This project launched in 2018 through the support of the William T. Grant Foundation’s
inaugural Institutional Challenge Grant, which promotes increased capacity for research in community organizations and
increased consideration of practice in the research process.
CCE COLLABORATORS
Anna Steinkraus Rose Ippolito
Juliana Garcia
Adam Hughes
Projects, continued
In 2018 and early 2019, Project 2Gen and cce-Tompkins
co-hosted a series of Community Café forums on the opi-
oid epidemic. The goal of the Community Café model is to
provide a safe space for stakeholders to share ideas, chal-
lenges, and innovations in their work. In Tompkins County,
cafés brought together key stakeholders to discuss local
impacts of and responses to the epidemic, unmet needs of
families affected by opioid use, and opportunities for re-
search-practice collaborations to enhance family well-being.
Beyond Tompkins County, the Opioid and Family Life
Team supported trainings for Cooperative Extension
Executive Directors and Educators. These trainings, lead
by Adam Hughes in Albany and Syracuse, provided basic
information on the opioid epidemic, as well as promising
strategies for supporting families. The Opioid and Family
Life Team also helped to form the Opioid Program Work
Team, which brings together Extension Educators across
the state on monthly conference calls to share research on
the opioid epidemic and provide resources for Educators
to share with local stakeholders.
Research projects are also a key piece of the Opioid and
Family Life Project. For example, Project 2Gen is con-
ducting a scoping review of the empirical literature on
the consequences of opioid use for child outcomes. The
team is also creating a complementary review identifying
evidence-based parenting programs that support families
facing substance use. The database will be a resource for
Extension Educators working across the United States to
support families facing opioid use and other challenges.
Additionally, the Opioid and Family Life Team conducts
applied research in partnership with the Tompkins County
Family Treatment Court (ftc). Family Treatment Courts
are a rapidly-growing, innovative approach to supporting
families disrupted by substance use – simultaneously aim-
ing to reduce parents’ substance use and promote child
well-being. The Tompkins County ftc is a nationally-rec-
ognized peer learning court and involves collaborations
among the courts, the Department of Social Services, local
treatment programs, mental health services, and Coopera-
tive Extension Educators. Research efforts include qualita-
tive interviews with ftc parents and quantitative analysis
of Department of Social Services data on long-term child
welfare outcomes.
As part of the ftc process, families with children age 6-11
take part in the Strengthening Families Program (sfp),
administered by cce-Tompkins. In addition to studying

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ftc broadly, our research practice partnership also focus-
es on studying the benefits of sfp for families involved in
ftc, as well as developing additional programming to ad-
dress the unique needs of court-involved families.
Through a 2019 summer internship with Cornell Cooper-
ative Extension, Rose Ippolito surveyed cce county of-
fices across the state to learn about their unique needs,
strengths, and challenges related to the opioid epidemic.
Using the survey responses, Rose connected cce staff with
faculty members and developed research briefs based on
Educators’ needs and interests. Through these efforts, Rose
is helping to establish a more formal network between
campus and county offices so that resources and best
practices can be shared.
The Opioid Epidemic:
Preventing a Fatal Opioid Overdose
Step One
Recognize
A person who is overdosing may be u
A person who is overdosing may be unconscious, breathing slowly or not at all, nails or
lips turning blue1
Step Two
Call 911
New York’s Good Samaritan Law protects both the person who calls 911 and the person
who overdoses from prosecution in many cases.1
Click here for more info.
Step Three
Rescue Breathing
If you know how, perform mouth-to-mouth rescue breathing. Once the person starts
breathing, lay them on their side.1
Step Four
Administer Narcan
If Narcan is available, administer it. It is legal in New York for any non-medical person to
administer it to prevent a fatal overdose.1
All About Narcan
- Narcan, also known as Naloxone, is a prescription medicine that reverses an
overdose by blocking opioids in the brain for 30-90 minutes. Administering
Naloxone can be life-saving.2
- Research has found that non-medical individuals can efectively administer
Narcan.3
There are two forms of Narcan, a nasal spray and an injectable form.3
- There is no potential for abuse of Naloxone, and if it is administered to some-
one who is not actually having an opioid overdose, it has no efect on them.4
- At over 2,000 pharmacies across NY, you do not need a prescription to obtain
Naloxone. Ask your pharmacist for more information about access and trainings.
sources
1. “What to Do If You Find a Needle.” SOLID Outreach.
2. “What to Do with Used Sharps in New York.” Safe Needle Disposal.
3. “Safely Using Sharps (Needles and Syringes) at Home, at Work and on Travel.” U.S. Food and Drug Administration.
4. “Injection Drug Use and HIV Risk.” Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
For more information contact the
Opioid Program Work Team at
www.opioids.cce.cornell.edu
The Opioid Epidemic:
Safe Disposal of Syringes
Step One
Pick up with tongs
Wear gloves and use a pair of tongs or tweezers to pick up the sharp. Point the tip away
from you. If you do not feel comfortable picking it up, call your local police department.1
Step Two
Secure in container
Place the needle in a sturdy plastic container like a bleach container or plastic peanut
butter jar, put the lid on, and seal it with duct tape. If you are disposing of multiple
sharps, you can fill the container until it is 3/4 full.2
Step Three
Place in trash
Label it “Do Not Recycle” and place it in the trash. Sharps in a sealed container can also
be brought to most hospitals or nursing homes in NY for disposal.2
Step Four
Wash your hands
Wash your hands thoroughly with soap and water.1
If you are stuck with another person’s used sharp, immediately wash the exposed area
with water and soap, or use a skin disinfectant/antiseptic such as hand sanitizer or rub-
bing alcohol. Then seek medical attention from your local hospital or physician.3
A health risk associated with injection drug use is the transmission of disease including
HIV and all types of Hepatitis, especially Hepatitis C. However, with proper cleaning of
drug equipment and appropriate healthcare, these health issues can be avoided, reducing
the harm of opioid use. Click here to access resources for preventing these diseases.4
1. “What to Do If You Find a Needle.” SOLID Outreach.
2. “What to Do with Used Sharps in New York.” Safe Needle Disposal.
3. “Safely Using Sharps (Needles and Syringes) at Home, at Work and on Travel.” U.S. Food and Drug Administration.
4. “Injection Drug Use and HIV Risk.” Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
For more information contact the
Opioid Program Work Team at
www.opioids.cce.cornell.edu
Created by Igé Maulana
from the Noun Project
Created by mark
from the Noun Project
The Opioid Epidemic:
An Overview
In recent years, the widespread and tragic misuse of opioids
has become a public health epidemic. In New York state, the
number of opioid overdose deaths in the state doubled from
2010 to 2015 and 1 in 12 New Yorkers report being afected by
opioid use, either directly or indirectly through their imme-
diate family.² In addition, opioid use may be related to other
public health issues such as child maltreatment.²
What are opioids?
Opioids can be legal or illegal and are dangerous because
they cause life-threatening respiratory depression.3
Common
opioids are oxycodone, hydrocodone, morphine, heroin.
Manmade, or synthetic, opioids include a drug called fentanyl,
which can be 100 times more potent than morphine.3
Fentanyl contributed to nearly 50%
of opioid-related deaths in 2016.
Who misuses opioids?
Anyone can become addicted to opioids, but there are some
factors that increase an individual’s risk of opioid misuse.
Many of these factors refect an individual’s social or physical
environment, and thus are often out of their control.4
Increased Risk Among Adults Who
- Are treated in the Emergency Department.5
- Work physically demanding jobs, like farming or construction.
- Have been incarcerated.
- Experience social isolation.
- Had adverse childhood experiences.6
Increased Risk Among Youth Who
- Are treated in the Emergency Department.
- Use other substances, especially other medications.
- Have peers who engage in substance use.
- Are involved in criminal activity.
- Experience a major depressive episode or are hospitalized
for emotional treatment.
Why do people
misuse opioids?
- Within fve days of a person being prescribed opioids, the
body and brain can become dependent on this type of drug.
- The addiction drives the person to seek out more opioids.
They may get more prescription opioids from family, friends,
or a doctor; or they may switch to using heroin, because it is
cheaper and easier to access.3
Addiction is a biological health condition
that should be addressed with the care
and empathy we aford other diseases.
What can we do?
Educate
Educate people about the consequences of opioid misuse to
help prevent initiation or aid in recovery.
Speak
Speak compassionately and spread awareness about the social
and biological factors that lead to addiction in order to reduce
community stigma of people who use substances.
Act
Act early, because adolescents tend to have a lower perceived
risk of substance use, highlighting the need for early education
about addiction risks.7
Photo by RJ Anderson
sources
1. “What to Do If You Find a Needle.” SOLID Outreach.
2. “What to Do with Used Sharps in New York.” Safe Needle Disposal.
3. “Injection Drug Use and HIV Risk.” Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
4. Monnat, Shannon M., and Khary K. Rigg. “The Opioid Crisis in Rural and Small Town
America.” (2018).
5. “Safely Using Sharps (Needles and Syringes) at Home, at Work and on Travel.” U.S.
Food and Drug Administration.
6. “Child Trauma and Opioid Use: Policy Implications.” The National Child Traumatic
Stress Network
7. Rigg, Khary K., Shannon M. Monnat, and Melody N. Chavez. “Opioid-related mortality
in rural America: geographic heterogeneity and intervention strategies.” International
Journal of Drug Policy 57 (2018): 119-129.
For more information contact the
Opioid Program Work Team at
www.opioids.cce.cornell.edu
Briefs developed by Program Work Team student intern
Rose Ippolito for Extension Educators across the state

14. 14
Policy
Cornell Project 2Gen works to develop and strengthen relationships among Cornell faculty, students, and New York policy-
makers. We provide outlets for sharing research with policymakers and are developing new strategic partnerships between
researchers and policymakers to help inform the decision-making process.
FAMILY IMPACT SEMINARS
The Family Impact Seminar model, developed by Karen
Bogenschneider at the University of Wisconsin-Madison,
is a model for bridging research and policy at the state lev-
el. The goal of the seminars is to provide policymakers the
chance to discuss policy-relevant research in a non-parti-
san setting with leading experts in the field. Each spring,
Project 2Gen leads a graduate-level course in which Cornell
students learn about the Family Impact Seminar model and
support faculty as they prepare to speak with state legis-
lators. The topical focus of each seminar changes yearly
based on legislative needs and research requests. Each day-
long event consists of a large-group panel presentation
by Cornell faculty in the morning followed by one-on-one
meetings with legislators and their staff in the afternoon.
Faculty (center) Jamila Michener, Christopher Wildeman, and Laura
Tach along with students (L to R) Ashelyn Pindell, Halle Mahoney,
Cindy Rodriguez, Claudia Ro, Jon Link, Will Gusick, Anna Lifsec,
Cameron Jessop, and Rose Ippolito at the Statehouse in Albany.

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POLICY BRIEF SERIES
August 2018
A Two-Generation Approach to the Opioid Epidemic:
State Policy Perspectives
By Sharon Glick, Julia Greenberg and Elizabeth Day, Cornell University
Much of the work tackling the opioid
epidemic has focused on individuals with
substance use disorders. While important,
these policies and programs don’t take
into account entire family units affected by
the opioid crisis. Two-generation initiatives
take a whole-family approach, supporting
individuals with opioid use disorders along
with their family members.
This brief highlights a variety of ways
states are tackling the opioid epidemic
using a whole-family approach.
Working Groups and Collaboratives
Governors and legislatures across the U.S. have
formed opioid and heroin working groups to assess
and address the opioid crisis in their states. For
example, in New York, state legislators formed a
Heroin and Opioid Task Force in 2014, as did
Governor Cuomo in 2016, to bring together experts
from across the state to give feedback and insights
on ways to address the opioid epidemic.
In Massachusetts, the governor has an Opioid
Addiction Working Group, a panel of experts chaired
by the Secretary of the Executive Office of Health
and Human Services. The working group focuses on
some 2Gen initiatives, including a training program
for Department of Children and Families’ staff on
neonatal abstinence syndrome and opioid use
prevention education for both parents and students.
Similar types of government-led working groups now
exist in most states.
The Children and Recovering Mothers (CHARM)
collaborative in Burlington, Vermont is a group of
eleven organizations, including the Vermont
Department of Corrections and Department for
Children and Families that provide women with
opioid use disorders comprehensive care from child
welfare, medical and substance abuse treatment
professionals across Vermont.
Family Drug Treatment Courts
Family drug treatment courts (FTCs) are special
programs implemented in some jurisdictions to help
parents and their children reunite after a parent has
had a neglect case filed against them with alcohol or
other substance abuse allegations. The mission of
FTC is to “…provide for the health, safety, and
permanency of children of substance abusing parents
in neglect proceedings”. The court uses a strengths-
based approach to reach the goals of their mission,
including providing intensive judicial oversight and
RESEARCH BRIEF SERIES
Criminal Justice and New York Families: Policy Perspectives
Tuesday, April 30, 2019
Legislative Office Building, Albany NY
Paternal Incarceration and Child Wellbeing
By Christopher Wildeman, Cornell University
Findings
Incarceration of a family member has consequences for the entire family.
• Decreased family income by 20% to 40%
• Increased difficulty completing household activities like childcare, cooking,
and cleaning
• Consequences for child well-being
o Poor mental health
o Increased contact with school discipline, foster care, Child Protective
Services, and the criminal justice system
Promising Policy Interventions
Background
• Familial incarceration is
incredibly common.
o 45% of all adult
Americans have ever
had an immediate family
member incarcerated1
o 8% of American children
will ever have a father
go to prison2
• There are differences in
incarceration rates by race.
o 63% of African
Americans have ever
had an immediate family
member incarcerated
compared to 42% of
Non-Hispanic whites1
o 20-25% of African
American children will
have a father in prison
by the time they are 141
1Enns, P. et al. (2019). What Percentage of Americans
Have Ever Had a Family Member Incarcerated?:
Evidence from the Family History of Incarceration
Survey (FamHIS).
2Wildeman, C., & Andersen, L. (2015). Cumulative
risks of paternal and maternal incarceration in
Denmark and the United States.
Percentage of Adults with an
Incarcerated Family Member
Source: Family History of Incarceration Survey
Diversion
Programs
(drug courts,
mental health
treatment)
Programs
in Prisons
(prison
education
programs)
Family
Supports
(stipends
for parents
or children)
Mentoring
Programs
(school
mentorship
for children)
This brief was compiled by students Rose Ippolito, Ashelyn Pindell and Claudia Heeyeon Ro of Cornell University.
For more information about Cornell Project 2Gen visit www.2gen.bctr.cornell.edu or contact us at project2gen@cornell.edu
0
20
40
60
80
All U.S.
Adults
Non-Hispanic
White
African
American
Percentage of Children with
an Incarcerated Father
0
20
40
60
80
All U.S. Children African American
Percentage
Briefs developed by students to disseminate
faculty research to legislators
April 2018—Supporting Vulnerable
New York Families
For our inaugural seminar, Cornell faculty and students
traveled to Albany to speak with legislators and their staff
about ways to support New York Families. Presentations
included: The Opioid Epidemic: Two Generations at Risk by
Laura Tach (Director of Project 2Gen and Associate Prof-
essor of Policy Analysis and Management), Childcare
Deserts in New York: Factors Related to Community Capacity
to Care for Children by Lisa McCabe (Research Associate
at Bronfenbrenner Center for Translational Research) and
Hope Casto (Associate Professor at Skidmore College),
and Making Medicaid Better for Vulnerable Families in New
York by Jamila Michener (Assistant Professor in the Gov-
ernment Department).
April 2019—Criminal Justice and New
York Families: Policy Perspectives
In the second year of our event, faculty and students presen-
ted information to legislators and their staff on the 2Gen
approach to criminal justice policy. Presentations included:
Paternal Incarceration and Child Well-being by Christopher
Wildeman (Director of the Bronfenbrenner Center for
Translational Research and Professor of Policy Analysis
and Management), and The Multigenerational Possibilities of
Prison Education by Jamila Michener (Assistant Professor
in the Government Department).
• “Community aware” policies that take into account a range of
contextual factors that may impact child care
o Rurality, community size, and the presence of other ECE programs
matter for child care capacity
• Policies that support communities’ capacity to serve infants/toddlers
and their families such as increased funding for child care programs
serving infants and toddlers
• Administrative data collection in collaboration with researchers
o Low-cost changes to increase usefulness of data, such as regular
archives of data, Head Start program level data accessibility, and
identifiers to link files
• Funding for research to evaluate effectiveness of policy options
RESEARCH BRIEF SERIES
Supporting Vulnerable New York Families
Tuesday, April 24, 2018
Legislative Office Building, Albany NY
Intersecting Worlds: Connections between Early
Childhood Education and K-12 Education
By: Lisa M. McCabe, John W. Sipple and Hope G. Casto, Cornell University and Skidmore College
Background
1. Childcare policy is
premised on the twin
goals of child development
and work force entry.
2. Sixty one percent of
children under the age of
five are in regular
childcare arrangement of
some kind.
3. Recent research has
drawn attention to the
presence of “child care
deserts” where parents
have few or no options for
childcare.
New York State Policy
New York State’s universal pre-k (UPK) policy provides
access to early childhood education to four-year-olds
across the state. The policy also allows school districts to
partner with community-based organizations to provide
UPK programming to the children in the community.
For more information about Cornell Project 2Gen visit: http://www.2gen.bctr.cornell.edu/ or contact us at: project2gen@cornell.edu
This research was made possible by the generous contributions of Cornell Project 2Gen and the Rural Education Association
0
0.1
0.2
0.3
0.4
2007 2012 2014 2016
Capacity in Rural Districts
Infant care, UPK implemented
Infant care, no UPK implemented
Toddler care, UPK implemented
Toddler care, no UPK implemented
Data sources: OCFS (~18,000 providers), NYSED (UPK, district
demographic data, fiscal data), Head Start (enrollment)
Findings
1. New York State has childcare
deserts across the state (light
green districts are childcare
deserts)
2. Over time, there is an
unintended consequence of
UPK – communities experience
reduced capacity to care for
infants and toddlers in rural
communities
Universal
Pre-K
Child
care
Head Start/
Early Head
Start
Child
Care
Over time, there is a reduced capacity to
care for infants and toddlers in rural
communities with UPK.
Number of available slots ÷
Number of children in community

16. 16
Project 2Gen hosts and participates in events that bring researchers, practitioners, policymakers, and community members
together to exchange knowledge and share experiences. These conversations help inform wide-ranging efforts to promote
child and family well-being.
NYS Agency Learning Exchange
In Spring 2019, the Project 2Gen team was invited to
participate in a learning exchange spearheaded by the
nys Offices of Children and Family Services (ocfs) and
Temporary and Disability Assistance (odta). This was the
first event of its kind, with the goal of actively bringing
together agency staff and officials from both offices to col-
laborate on efforts to support housing options for home-
less youth and young adults. As part of the program, ocfs
and odta leadership requested we lead efforts to educate
staff on the 2Gen approach and 2Gen perspectives related
to housing and homelessness.
CCE Educator In-Services
Project 2Gen has presented at a variety of cce educator in-
services, including parent education, youth development,
and financial security. These in-services bring educators
from across the state to campus to connect with researchers.
Project 2Gen is a regular participant at The Parenting Pro-
ject’s annual Parent Educator in-services. In 2018 and 2019,
we presented updates about our work on behalf of families
impacted by the opioid crisis and led a Community Café
with educators to help identify their community’s most
pressing needs.
In 2018, Project 2Gen was invited to present at the Eighth
Annual Youth Development Research Update. At this event,
we provided 4-h Educators with information on cross-gen-
erational approaches to youth development.
Community Cafés
Cornell Project 2Gen and cce-Tompkins have partnered
together, through the support of the William T. Grant
Foundation, to examine the association between the opi-
oid epidemic and child maltreatment rates in low-income,
rural communities. A series of Community Cafés brought
diverse constituents together to share insights about sup-
porting families impacted by substance use.
Events
Participants of the Strengthening Families
Program playing a card game

17. 17
Project 2Gen co-directors Rachel Dunifon and Laura Tach
organized the sixth biennial Urie Bronfenbrenner Con-
ference, “An Equal Start: Policy and Practice to Promote
Equality of Opportunity for Children.” The conference
brought together scholars from more than a dozen institu-
tions and programs to cultivate interdisciplinary perspec-
tives and consider micro-, meso- and macro-level interven-
tions for giving children an equal start in life. Papers from
the conference are published in Confronting Inequality:
How Policies and Practices Shape Children’s Opportunities,
edited by Dunifon, Tach, and Douglas Miller, Associate
Chair and Professor in Policy Analysis and Management
at Cornell. You can read more about the event in the Cor-
nell Chronicle.
above: Darrick Hamilton of The New School for Social
Research presenting at the Bronfenbrenner Conference.
below: Scholars (front row, left to right) Jens Ludwig, Stephanie DeLuca, Janet Curie, Laura Tach, Darrick Hamilton, Ariel
Kalil, Cybele Raver, Rachel Dunifon, Anna Rhodes, Allison Young, Chloe East; (back row, left to right) Kirabo Jackson, Timothy
Nelson, Tyler Watts, Gary Evans, Douglas Miller, Sean Reardon, and Marianne Page gathered for the Bronfenbrenner Conference.
Sixth Biennial Urie
Bronfenbrenner Conference
Events, continued

18. 18
2Gen Scholars
Project 2Gen involves Cornell students in translational research and practice through the 2Gen Scholars Program. The
program gives undergraduate and graduate students the opportunity to gain on-the-ground experience with family-based
research and programming.
PROJECTS
Engaging CCE in the 2Gen Approach
In Summer 2017, 2Gen Scholar Sharon Glick created and
launched a statewide survey of cce offices and their 2Gen
efforts. Many counties across the state were actively en-
gaging caregivers and children in 2Gen programming, but
were not closely connected with researchers and other
practitioners doing this work. Through this survey, Sharon
was able to identify key needs for better supporting 2Gen
efforts across a range of counties and a variety of cce
programming. This survey was Project 2Gen’s first project
to formally engage practitioners for their expertise in
working with families and educate practitioners in the
2Gen framework.
Promoting Resilience
During the Fall 2019 semester, 2Gen Scholars partnered
with cce Orange County to help address childhood trau-
ma. Students read and synthesized the latest research on
Adverse Childhood Experiences (ace) and spoke with
community stakeholders. Based on their findings, they
provided Orange County with recommendations for better
evaluating existing efforts to increase ace awareness and
cultivate community resilience. Scholars also suggested
ways the County can equip health care providers to offer
more support to children experiencing trauma.
Supporting Youth In Tompkins County
In Summer 2018, 2Gen Scholars Pearlanna Zapotocky and
Amy Kim were paired with community partners in Tomp-
kins County, including the William George Agency and My
Brother’s Keeper Ithaca. Scholars worked with these part-
ners to identify community and program needs, synthesize
relevant literature to inform programming, and review
current and proposed 2Gen policies with implications for
youth and families being served by the organizations.
Documenting Family Treatment Courts
During the 2019 Spring semester, Muyang Li had the oppor-
tunity to research family treatment court programs in New
York State. The goal of the project was to identify the num-
ber of counties with operational family treatment courts
and obtain a better understanding of the number of fami-
lies served by these programs. Out of New York State’s 61
counties, Muyang identified 18 counties with an active fami-
ly treatment court and 13 counties with a discontinued
family treatment court.
Students presenting their research at cce Orange County

19. 19
Connect
project2Gen@cornell.edu
www.2Gen.bctr.cornell.edu
Page
4
6
7
8
10
16
17
18
Image
Opioid meeting
Launch group pic
All speaker photos
Laura presenting
sfp Dryden
Orange County
sfp Dryden
Bronfenbrenner
Conference
Credit
Dede Hatch, Dede Hatch Photography
Chris Kitchen, University Photography
Chris Kitchen, University Photography
Simon Wheeler, University Photography
R.J. Anderson, Cornell Cooperative Extension
Elizabeth Day, Project 2Gen
R.J. Anderson, Cornell Cooperative Extension
Heather Ainsworth, University Photography
Photo Credits

20. A PROJECT OF
WE PARTNER WITH
2017 2019