Fatherhood Research & Practice Network

Upcoming FRPN Webinar: State Policies and Practices to Promote Father Involvement

Thursday, April 18, 2019
3 – 4:30 p.m. EST

Mark your calendar for the next FRPN webinar which will highlight innovative state policies and practices to engage fathers in key family programs. We will address such questions as:

What are innovative state policies and practices to engage fathers in key family programs?
How are some child support agencies passing through more child support to families, adjusting orders for fathers with low incomes, engaging fathers to avoid court involvement and using debt forgiveness and driver’s license reinstatement to promote father engagement in workforce and parenting programs?
How are some child welfare agencies locating fathers whose children are in child welfare cases, including fathers in prevention, case planning and treatment services, staffing father outreach efforts and adjusting child support collection to promote family reunification in foster care cases?
How are some maternal and child health agencies engaging fathers in prenatal and post-partum care, efforts to improve infant health and reduce mortality, initiatives on vaccinations and nutrition, home visiting, family preservation services and early learning experiences?
What type of fatherhood research is needed to move the policy agenda forward in these areas?

Webinar presenters include:

Frances Pardus-Abbadessa, Executive Deputy Commissioner, HRA/Office of Child Support Services, New York City, NY
Sasha Rasco, Associate Commissioner, Prevention and Early Intervention (PEI) Division, Texas Department of Family and Protective Services, TX
Fernando Mederos, Simmons College School of Social Work, MA and Ann Ream, Director of Community Relations, Summit County Children Service, OH
Cynthia Osborne, Associate Dean for Academic Strategies and Director, Child and Family Research Partnership, TX

FRPN State Planning Mini Grants

Eleven states have received funding from the FRPN to enhance father inclusion, with an emphasis on nonresidential fathers, in state programs and policies dealing with children and families.

Recipients will involve a wide array of stakeholders, including administrators in key state agencies such as child support and child welfare, to conduct planning activities aimed at improving father involvement and generating more reliable funding for community-based fatherhood programs. The awards will help to support strategic planning efforts, interagency convenings and data collection activities designed to produce system change.

Learn more about the specific grant activities being conducted in the 11 states.

On March 5, 2019, the FRPN held its first webinar for state planning mini grant recipients. Fatherhood Commissions: A Conversation with Kim Dent and Tony Judkins outlined various pathways to create state fatherhood commissions, as experienced in Ohio and Connecticut. The webinar is available for viewing here.

FRPN Paper Receives National Award

FRPN paper, "Self-perceived Coparenting of Nonresident Fathers: Scale Development and Validation," received the "Best Research Article Award of 2018" by the National Council on Family Relations Men in Families Focus Group. This paper was published in Family Process and co-authored by W. Justin Dyer, Jay Fagan, Rebecca Kaufman, Jessica Pearson, and Natasha Cabrera.

FRPN Co-Director Jay Fagan, PhD | Professor, Temple University School of Social Work
FRPN Co-Director Jessica Pearson, PhD | Director, Center for Policy Research

© 2019 Fatherhood Research & Practice Network. All rights reserved
The Fatherhood Research and Practice Network is supported by grant #90PR0006 from the Office of Planning, Research and Evaluation, Administration for Children and Families, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. The contents are solely the responsibility of the Fatherhood Research and Practice Network, Temple University and the Center for Policy Research and do not necessarily represent the official views of the Office of Planning, Research and Evaluation, the Administration for Children and Families or the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.