http://www.abtassociates.com/ Recent Results, New Projects, and News from Abt Associates Copyright 2008, Abt Associates webmaster@abtassociates.com http://www.abtassociates.com/ http://www.abtassociates.com/images/abt_logo.gif http://www.abtassociates.com/Page.cfm?PageID=40734An evaluation completed by Abt Associates for the U.S. Department of Education's Institute of Educational Sciences found that while the federal Reading First Program increased instructional time on key components of reading instruction promoted by the program, the impact on student reading comprehension test scores was not statistically significant.http://www.abtassociates.com/Page.cfm?PageID=40731Health Systems 20/20, U.S. Agency for International Development's flagship project (2006-2011) for health systems strengthening has launched the Health Systems Database, an easy-to-use web-based tool for compiling and analyzing country data from multiple sources to assess the performance of a country's health system.http://www.abtassociates.com/Page.cfm?PageID=40658Abt Associates recently conducted a two-year evaluation of San Francisco's First Offender Prostitution Program (FOPP), designed to reduce the demand for commercial sex and human trafficking in San Francisco by educating "johns" arrested for soliciting prostitutes about the negative consequences of prostitution. http://www.abtassociates.com/Page.cfm?PageID=12605&CSB=1&OWID=2109768875To continue supporting improvements in the quality of education services for students in Central Asia, the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) has awarded the Quality Learning Project (QLP) for Central Asia to Creative Associates International, Inc. Through QLP, Creative Associates and partner Abt Associates will build on achievements and lessons learned from previous USAID-funded basic education projects in Central Asia.http://www.abtassociates.com/Page.cfm?PageID=12605&CSB=1&OWID=2109768873To help expedite the delivery of human services to disaster victims, Abt Associates is developing and testing a disaster case management program for the Office of Human Services Emergency Preparedness and Response, Administration for Children and Families (ACF). We will draw on lessons learned from previous and on-going case management programs for disaster victims, such as the Katrina Aid Today program and those offered by voluntary and faith-based organizations.http://www.abtassociates.com/Page.cfm?PageID=12605&CSB=1&OWID=2109768870The Alternative Housing Pilot Program (AHPP), a Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) program authorized by Congress in 2006, provides $400 million to four Gulf states to develop and test new forms of emergency shelter as alternatives to FEMA trailers. Abt Associates is undertaking a rigorous evaluation of the quality of life outcomes for program recipients in the four states that received AHPP grants (Alabama, Louisiana, Mississippi, and Texas). http://www.abtassociates.com/Page.cfm?PageID=40735 Abt SRBI will be collaborating with a leading social researcher in a groundbreaking study that could introduce far-reaching changes in the ways in which survey data is collected. The project will test the feasibility of creating a rigorous high response-rate online panel recruited through an in-person random national sample. http://www.abtassociates.com/Page.cfm?PageID=40730 A recent Abt SRBI survey conducted for the Associated Press and America On-Line received significant media attention for its findings indicating the degree to which the housing downturn has affected Americans. http://www.abtassociates.com/Page.cfm?PageID=40728 Abt Associates Clinical Trials today launches under a new name, Abt Bio-Pharma Solutions, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Abt Associates Inc. The company will continue to provide custom strategic, research and communication solutions for the pharmaceutical, biotechnology, medical device and diagnostics industries utilizing a team approach that blends decades of experience with wide ranging technical and therapeutic area expertise.