As described in earlier articles, children whose parents have higher income and education levels are more likely to grow up in stable two-parent households than their economically disadvantaged counterparts. These widening gaps in fathers' involvement in parenting and in the quality and stability of parents' relationships may reinforce disparities in outcomes for the next generation. This paper reviews evidence about the effectiveness of two strategies to strengthen fathers' involvement and family relationships-- fatherhood programs aimed at disadvantaged noncustodial fathers and relationship…
The Building Strong Families evaluation is a multisite, random-assignment evaluation of a relationship skills education program for unmarried parents. From Mathematica Policy Research, this report evaluates the impact of a partnership between the Building Strong Families program and the Child Support Division of the Texas Office of the Attorney General. Researchers evaluate the partnership in terms of child support outcomes, including paternity establishment, child support orders, and child support payments.
New York conducted a three-year pilot project (2006-2009) in five locations to help unemployed parents without custody of their children find work called the Strengthening Families Through Stronger Fathers Initiative. This report describes the implementation of this initiative and discusses challenges encountered and lessons learned. While all programs used a case management model to deliver employment and supportive services, the intensity of those services, the linkages to the child support program, the recruitment strategies, and the organizational structure of the programs varied. Despite…
