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By: AIF Staff

Earlier this year, former Speaker of the House Paul Ryan announced that the American Idea Foundation (AIF) would issue grants to six organizations fighting poverty in an evidence-based way. Since beginning this initiative in 2022, AIF has provided millions of dollars to non-profits across America as they develop, test, and scale interventions with the potential of yielding real results. 

One of the organizations receiving funding this year is Catholic Charities Fort Worth. Speaker Ryan has long-believed that Catholic Charities Fort Worth has an effective case-management model for helping those in-need and his Foundation has been consistently impressed by their flagship program, the Padua Project, which is transforming lives in Texas and beyond. 

Ryan has called it “the gold standard” of poverty-fighting programs. As Catholic Charities Fort Worth CEO Heather Reynolds put it: 

“If somebody’s walking through your doors and says, ‘I am in pain. I am in poverty. I am struggling,’ they deserve to be given a program or a service that actually works and that we know works.”

And that is what Catholic Charities is doing via the Padua Project – providing a program that works. 

The University of Notre Dame’s Lab for Economic Opportunities (LEO) describes what sets this invention apart: 

“The backbone of Padua is wrap-around, “supercharged” case management that involves a two-person team of social workers and begins with building a relationship with clients. The Padua model ensures a high level of personal support for each client. 

Clients work with their teams to set goals related to asset areas that are key to clients’ long-term success including finances, education, social skills, legal status and physical and emotional well-being.”

Having served almost 6,000 individuals, the Padua Project’s impact is best reflected through the lives it transforms… 

Keith: After years of instability, Keith found that the Padua Project’s commitment did not waver: “Instead of cutting me off or criticizing me, they supported me… With Padua I’ve learned that if you’re not going to give up on me, why should I give up on myself?”

Lisa: Navigating a divorce and unemployment, Lisa credited her Padua Navigator as a “guardian angel” who helped her rebuild her confidence and eventually launch her own catering business.

Robert: A Vietnam War veteran who arrived at a mission in early 2025, Robert used the program’s holistic coaching to navigate veterans’ services and secure long-term stability.

These testimonials of transformation are impressive, but the Padua Project’s effectiveness is proven through rigorous randomized controlled trials (RCTs). As Speaker Ryan summarized in a 2021 virtual conversation with Notre Dame researchers: 

“Here is the result that they achieved: A 25% increase in full-time employment, a 64%, increase in housing stability, and a 53% increase in reported improvements in personal health…. 

And more importantly, because of the way that Catholic Charities partnered with LEO, we know that these are likely the results of this intervention. We know that we can take these results and replicate them, further seeing if we can scale for these interventions and that’s the whole point of all of this….”

Speaking with the George W. Bush Center, Ryan talked about how these promising results could be scaled and replicated: 

“Setting up a case management program the right way, with the proper incentives and controls, is something that now we’ve proven works. This can be built and rebuilt and replicated across the country… 

It’s pure Catholic Charities Fort Worth. They have got the secret sauce, they figured out that it can be replicated, and we figured out how to replicate it. Now, we are trying to amplify this effort and type of program so that these great examples and success stories can be seen again and again.”

Because of the promise shown in Fort Worth, Texas, the American Idea Foundation helped fund efforts to replicate the Padua model in Northern Indiana through a partnership with Goodwill Industries of Michiana.

In announcing the Indiana effort in April 2026, Goodwill Industries of Michiana CEO Debie Cole said: 

“We are excited to launch the nation’s first Padua mission site right here in our region. This partnership empowers families with personalized support so they can build lasting stability, independence and truly achieve their most abundant lives.”

The American Idea Foundation is proud to support Catholic Charities Fort Worth as they build on their successes and expand their case-management model to the Midwest. By combining innovative solutions with a fidelity to evidence and data, Catholic Charities is creating a blueprint to help others out of poverty and the American Idea Foundation cannot wait to see what they accomplish next. 

To learn more about the American Idea Foundation’s 2026 grant recipients, click here.

By: AIF Staff

NEW YORK, NY — Ahead of the 2026 midterms, former Speaker of the House and American Idea Foundation President Paul Ryan was a featured guest on Bloomberg’s Wall Street Week , hosted by David Westin. In a wide-ranging interview, they examined the key policy issues on voters’ minds in the run-up to the election and Ryan outlined the dangers of America’s growing$40 trillion national debt, detailed the necessity of entitlement reform, contextualized the backlash against artificial intelligence infrastructure, and offered a defense of free-market capitalism in response to rising populism and polarization.

Excerpts and video of Ryan’s interview on Bloomberg’s Wall Street Week follow.

 
Video: The $40 trillion fiscal challenge and backsliding on debt reduction

“Before I was Ways and Means Chair, I was the Chairman of the Budget Committee for House Republicans. I really cut my teeth in Congress writing the federal budget and back in those days, in the 2010s, we believed at the time that we could draft budget plans that actually paid off the debt. These were not just plans to balance the budget, but that paid off the debt. It takes years to do it, but we passed 4 budgets in those days in the House that showed how to pay off the debt. We addressed Medicare and Medicaid and all the drivers of our debt.

We had politics at a point where Republicans could offer specific plans for debt reduction and politically survive. But we did not win the 2012 presidential election and what ended up happening is our party leaders, and Trump was at the top of the pile, concluded that [debt reduction] was not good electoral politics. And so, it was jettisoned.

There was a time and day where Republicans were offering very specific coherent debt reduction plans which would have avoided a debt crisis…

It’s not too late, but I think we’re losing wiggle room and it’s really kind of a question for the bond markets. If we could pass a plan that solves the entitlement problem… and if we could pass a plan today that shows debt reduction over time, I would like to argue that the bond markets will give us credit for that.”

Video: Tax reform can yield higher revenues, but spending restraint is essential

“I think we are already on a trajectory to get better revenues but let me just say this: I think you could probably get more revenues from the current tax code if you reform the tax system that we have today. We are at a little over 17% of GDP for our tax code. Historically, it has been closer to 18%. I think through tax reform, you could probably get the revenue line up to about 20% of GDP without sacrificing economic growth.

But there’s no way you could get beyond that, in my opinion, without really damaging the economy. And the problem is our spending is at 24% of GDP and going higher. You really can’t chase your spending line with a revenue line, although you could probably get more revenue with a better tax system.

I’m a big fan of the cash flow tax. I think that’s a smarter way to do it. I think it’s more pro-growth. It’s actually very pro-labor and I think you can get probably better revenues through a cashflow tax. But you can’t fix this problem unless you address spending.”

Video: Local data center backlash as a proxy for wider A.I. fears

“I’m from Wisconsin. In my hometown of Janesville, we have a ballot initiative on a data center to go into our old General Motors plant location and it’s like a 50-50 proposition. In Wisconsin, all the ads you see on TV are accusing the other candidate of being more in favor of data centers than the other person. I see it as a proxy on just AI itself.

The [hyperscalers] basically go out there and say: ‘This is going to either take everyone’s job or kill everybody. But please, we need more data centers to do this.’ I think they were really horrible at presenting themselves and the way they entered communities was wrong.

Data centers are going to be built because they have to be built. We cannot afford to lose this race on technology to tyrannies like China. So, we have to build data centers. The question is, can we do it in a way that it benefits everybody in the community?”

Video: Defeating grievance-based populism requires political leadership

“We’re in such a reactionary political moment these days and the way politics works is so algorithmically driven by digitization that it’s a new challenge that we’ve never faced as a human race. We’ve had populist moments before and we’ve followed those populist moments with returns to normalcy…

The question is, will we return to normalcy with our politics after this populist fervor dissipates? The question is, in this digital era where all of us live our lives in this sort of digital cul-de-sac with our feeds on our phones feeding us our biases, estranging us from other people who don’t think like us, can we get through that?

I think the answer is yes. I think Churchill probably said it best. The Americans will solve the problem only after they exhausted all the other possibilities. I think democracy is being stress-tested in two ways. Internally, like I just described, are we disunifying, are we polarizing, can we reach a consensus around the center of the bell curve? Most Americans are in the center, center-left or center-right, not in the extremes. So, can we reach a consensus in the center? Can our politics get there? That’s question one and that’s stress test one.

Stress test two is tyrannies who are trying to exploit our freedoms to turn ourselves against each other. China and Russia in particular, through the things they do to try and exploit our public opinion, are trying to divide democracies from within each other. I really do believe we’ll get through this because I think at the end of the day, our country of all countries is extraordinarily resilient. We are still a good and decent country that believes in the building blocks of freedom and the principles that make us who we are. And I think we will revive these principles.

I think we’ll get there, but it’s going to take political leadership to do that. It’s going to take leaders who set down the exploitation of differences, who are not aimed toward populism and grievance-based populism, but are seeking to inspire and include and direct people to a North Star.

Reagan did it after Carter. I think the ambitious politician of tomorrow is going to say, ‘I think the country is sick of being polarized and I want to unify and inspire and be inclusive and be a problem-solver and demonstrate problem-solving and get stuff done.’ Because the problem with grievance-based populism is you keep talking about problems, but you never solve the problems. Sooner or later the country says this isn’t working. I’m sick of my problems going unsolved. I’m going to take a risk on this proven problem-solver. So, I would like to think that that’s where politics are going to go and that the ambitious political people of tomorrow will go there, offer that, and that can get us out of this. That is sort of the arc of the story that I think will happen and that I hope will happen.”

By: AIF Staff

One of former House Speaker Paul Ryan’s legislative priorities while in Congress was advancing public policies to break the cycle of generational poverty. Driven by a belief that every child deserves the opportunity to achieve their version of the American Dream, Speaker Ryan continues to champion innovative approaches that support early childhood development and open pathways to success for young people facing adverse circumstances.

His non-profit, the American Idea Foundation, has issued annual grants to organizations developing innovative solutions to pressing social challenges, and one of this year’s grant recipients is Kidz2Leaders, a non-profit based in Marietta, Georgia that is delivering transformative outcomes for children and families.

Kidz2Leaders addresses a critical challenge in the American child welfare landscape. Nationally, approximately one in 28 children have an incarcerated parent. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) classifies having a parent in prison as an Adverse Childhood Experience, which is directly linked to elevated risks of chronic poverty, mental health struggles, and lower educational attainment.

Most organizations are often reactive, only helping children of incarcerated parents after problems – like dropping out of school or entering the juvenile justice system – have occurred. Kidz2Leaders is proactive and takes a long-term approach, offering a decade-long continuum of support to minimize the potential disruptions a child faces when a parent is jailed.

Founded in 1999, Kidz2Leaders has methodically grown and developed a framework of services designed to support children from age 8 through young adulthood at age 18. They make a binding, ten-year commitment to each child and family offering year-round services tailored to specific age ranges.

As Executive Director Christina Cummings told Stand Together:

“There are so many people coming in and out of our kids and families’ lives for a short season…When everything else is changing, we keep showing up, advocating for them, and seeing their potential. We value long-term relationships, and we know that makes a difference.”

A cornerstone of Kidz2Leaders continuum of care is Camp Hope, a week-long, overnight summer camp where kids hear the hope of the gospel, form supportive relationships with counselors and peers, and build confidence in new skills. Kidz2Leaders offers two sessions: one for younger children and one for teens.

Covered by outlets like WSB TV, Camp Hope provides children of incarcerated individuals with a space to grow and thrive. It provides a launch point for Kidz2Leaders’ other activities that provide wrap-around support for younger children and their caregivers. They have even created an Interns4Tomorrow Platform to help high-school aged students obtain professional skills through internship placements.

With over 200,000 Georgia children having an incarcerated parent, there is a clear need for Kidz2Leaders services. To date, the organization has helped 2,000 kids through their programming and boasts that “99% of Camp Hope graduates live entirely free from the criminal justice system.”

Additionally, alumni statistics show that Camp Hope graduates have higher rates of employment and educational attainment.

By combining wrap-around interventions with measurable outcomes, Kidz2Leaders offers a proven model for breaking the cycle of intergenerational incarceration and poverty. The American Idea Foundation is proud to partner with and support Kidz2Leaders as they expand their reach and help more Georgia children and families secure a stable pathway to success.