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Journal Article This editorial shares lessons learned from providing a parenting intervention, employment support, an internship, case management, and behavioral health services to young fathers in a community-based program, FatherWorks (an adaptation of Supporting Father Involvement), designed to reduce unintended pregnancies. These lessons were identified through monthly team meetings over the course of a six-year grant from the Personal Responsibility Education Innovative Strategies Program of the Family and Youth Services Bureau. (Author abstract modified)
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In August 2015, the HHS Office of Adolescent Health (OAH) awarded the New Hampshire Department of Education a multi-year Pregnancy Assistance Fund (PAF) Program grant to support teen fathers and their families. The E3 Teen Fatherhood Program aims to increase the likelihood that teen fathers will develop skills and knowledge to lead successful lives and to fully engage in the parenting of their child(ren). To this end, the E3 program approach is to improve education, employment, and family engagement for teen fathers and to build a sustainable network of stakeholders and partners to serve the…
Brief
Low-skilled men, especially minorities, typically work at low levels and provide little support for their children. Conservatives blame this on government willingness to support families, which frees the fathers from responsibility, while liberals say that men are denied work by racial bias or the economy--either a lack of jobs or low wages, which depress the incentive to work. The evidence for all these theories is weak. Thus, changing program benefits or incentives is unlikely to solve the men's work problem. More promising is the idea of linking assistance with administrative requirements…
Brief
This brief provides a general overview of four Responsible Fatherhood (RF) grantees involved in the Parents and Children Together (PACT) Evaluation. The brief: 1) provides a general overview of two approaches to service delivery in fatherhood programs; 2) documents how service delivery is linked to fathers’ characteristics; and 3) describes how service delivery approach may be linked to program participation and retention rates. Data gathered via staff interviews, program observations conducted during site visits in fall 2013; ongoing interactions with leadership at each program; and data on…
The following executive summary outlines current research gaps and future opportunity for study of fathers' ability to support themselves and their families economically. (Author abstract)
Brief
The Fatherhood Research and Practice Network (FRPN) convened a workgroup of experts in the field of fatherhood and father involvement to develop a research agenda that defines the state of the current research in this area, identifies extant gaps in this research, and generates suggestions for future research. The goal is for the workgroup's ideas to inform subsequent funding by the FRPN for evaluation and research projects that seek to enhance our collective understanding of the important role fathers play in the lives of their children and how programs and policies can strengthen this role…
According to this paper, the parenting gap is a big factor in the opportunity gap. The chances of upward social mobility are lower for children with parents struggling to do a good job -- in terms of creating a supportive and stimulating home environment. Children lucky enough to have strong parents are more likely to succeed at all the critical life stages, which means policies to help weaker parents do a better job can be investments in opportunity, and equality. Key findings indicate: 1) The quality of U.S. parenting, as measured on the HOME scale, strongly varies by income, family…
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This guide offers a list of low-cost or free curricula to support efforts to strengthen relationships for singles, couples, parents or families. It will help you find Web-based and other resources including materials developed with federal funding that are available for public distribution. It is the second in a series of guides designed by Administration for Children and Families' (ACF) Healthy Marriage Initiative staff to support the implementation of valuable programs under the Healthy Marriage and Responsible Fatherhood Initiatives. (Author abstract modified)
Employment rates for single mothers with dependent children have been rising, partly because of welfare reform and expansions in the Earned Income Tax Credit. This paper examines this trend and implications for future retirement security. The results show that employment and earnings gains for single mothers during the late 1990s will translate into modestly higher Social Security benefits and better retirement outcomes when they reach later life, assuming these trends persist. However, most single mothers will fare worse in retirement than other women, primarily because they generally earned…
The Caring Dads program is one of the first group intervention manuals designed specifically for men who have maltreated their children and / or exposed them to domestic violence. Developed and piloted over five years, this 17-session program draws from best practices in the fields of batterer intervention, parenting, child maltreatment, behavior change, and working with resistant clients. The Caring Dads manual provides clear, easy-to-follow guidelines and activities for the implementation of the program and is a useful tool for both experienced and relatively novice service providers.…
