About MDRC
Since joining MDRC in December 2010, Olejniczak has led and supported the design, planning, and execution of implementation field research and technical assistance efforts supporting program operations and evaluations. He has worked on a range of employment, education and training, housing, and asset-building projects. He is currently leading technical assistance, operations, and implementation field research tasks for the Job Corps Evidence Building Portfolio Evaluation project, the HUD Rent Reform demonstration, the Stepped and Tiered Rent Demonstration, and the MLT Turn Pro Study. He is also providing technical assistance as part of the SNAP to Skills SNAP E&T Technical Assistance and Best Practices project. He previously led the implementation field research for the Cascades Job Corps College and Career Academy Pilot Evaluation, provided technical assistance and conducted field research for the SNAP Employment and Training Evaluation, and provided technical assistance as an operations liaison for the MyGoals for Employment Success project. He also made significant technical assistance and field research contributions to the WorkAdvance program evaluation, the WIA Adult and Dislocated Worker Programs Gold Standard Evaluation, and the SaveUSA evaluation. Olejniczak holds a bachelor’s degree in philosophy from the University of Montana.
-
MDRC Publications
-
Other Publications
Olejniczak, K., J. Grossman, A. Ibok, J.A. Klerman, and C. Saunders. 2021. Evaluation of the Cascades Job Corps College and Career Academy (CCCA) Pilot: Detailed Report of the Implementation Analysis. Report prepared by Abt Associates and MDRC. Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Labor, Chief Evaluation Office.
Herr, J., J. Flores Pleasants, C. Saunders, K. Olejniczak, T. de Sousa, J.A. Klerman, and J. Grossman. 2021. Evaluation of the Cascades Job Corps College and Career Academy (CCCA) Pilot: Technical Appendix. Report prepared by Abt Associates and MDRC. Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Labor, Chief Evaluation Office.
Klerman, J.A., J. Grossman, C. Saunders, K. Olejniczak, J. Herr, A. Ibok, and T. de Sousa. 2021. Evaluation of the Cascades Job Corps College and Career Academy (CCCA) Pilot: Final Report. Report prepared by Abt Associates and MDRC. Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Labor, Chief Evaluation Office.
Grossman, J., K. Olejniczak, and J. A. Klerman. 2021. Working Together: A First Look at Lessons from the Cascades College and Career Academy and Other Job Corps Partnerships with Community and Technical Colleges. Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Labor, Chief Evaluation Office.
Hamilton et al. 2021. Expanding Opportunities and Reducing Barriers to Work: Illinois Interim Report. Evaluation of Pilot Projects to Promote Work and Increase State Accountability in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program. Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Agriculture.
Hamilton et al. 2021. Expanding Opportunities and Reducing Barriers to Work: Kansas Interim Report. Evaluation of Pilot Projects to Promote Work and Increase State Accountability in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program. Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Agriculture.
-
Projects
A college education can be a critical step towards attaining economic mobility, in part because it can translate to higher earnings. But there are differences in the benefits that accrue to Black, Latinx and White graduates. Various factors drive racial wage and income gaps, including occupational segregation, biases in who gets called back for job interviews,...
The U.S. Department of Labor’s Job Corps program provides education and training to disadvantaged young people. It offers high school education services combined with career and technical training in a residential setting. The Cascades College and Career Academy ( CCCA ) pilot is an ambitious and evidence-based attempt to improve upon the Job Corps model for its...
James A. Riccio, Donna Wharton-Fields, Nina Castells, Stephanie Rubino, Keith Olejniczak, Joshua Vermette, Hannah Dalporto, Annie UtterbackMyGoals for Employment Success is a new workforce program intended to help recipients of federal housing subsidies who are not employed find work, build careers, and advance toward greater self-sufficiency. The program incorporates an innovative employment coaching model that is informed by current literature in behavioral psychology on executive functioning skills and...
Barbara S. Goldman, Frieda Molina, Donna Wharton-Fields, Richard Hendra, David Navarro, Susan Scrivener, Betsy L. Tessler, Jonathan Bigelow, Keith Olejniczak, Kelsey Schaberg, Annie Utterback, Alexandra Pennington, Brandon HawkinsThe Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program ( SNAP ) — formerly the food stamp program —is a critical work support for low-income people and families. Although SNAP has included various employment and training requirements for adult recipients to maintain their eligibility since the 1970s, the SNAP Employment and Training ( SNAP E&T ) program was established as...
Many U.S. households do not have enough savings to help manage temporary losses of income or increased expenditures from unexpected events. Increased savings might particularly help low- and moderate-income families avoid resorting to high-cost (sometimes “payday”) loans or failing to meet monthly rent bills and minimum credit card payments. To support the buildup of...
James A. Riccio, Nandita Verma, Gilda Azurdia, Edith Yang, Jonathan Bigelow, Keith Olejniczak, Joshua Vermette, Audrey Yu, Melissa WestThe Housing Choice Voucher Program is one of the federal government’s major programs for helping very low-income families with children, elderly people, and disabled people afford decent and safe housing in the private rental market. Housing vouchers are administered locally by public housing agencies with funding from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban...
Frieda Molina, Barbara S. Goldman, Richard Hendra, Betsy L. Tessler, Keith Olejniczak, Kelsey Schaberg, Hannah Dalporto, Alexandra PenningtonPast evaluations have provided solid evidence regarding what works to help low-income individuals become employed. However, these studies have also found that many people who found jobs were not better off financially, in part because these jobs were unstable, low paying, and provided few advancement opportunities. More recent randomized controlled evaluations of both...
The Workforce Investment Act of 1998 ( WIA ) is the federal government’s largest source of federally funded employment services and training. WIA is the latest in a series of federal employment and training programs, the first having arisen in response to the Great Depression. WIA aims to bring together formerly fragmented public and private reemployment services, make...