NRFC Quick Statistics and Research Reviews, Report
Besides their role as financial providers, fathers today are also recognized for their roles as caregivers, playmates, and nurturers. This is demonstrated by the growing research on the link between fathers’ involvement and children’s well-being, as well as the shifting focus and rigorous evaluation of programming designed to improve broad outcomes for fathers and their families. This research scan provides information on recent data with a focus on what fatherhood looks like today. (Author introduction modified)
This Resource Guide was developed to support service providers in their work with parents, caregivers, and their children to prevent child abuse and neglect and promote child and family well-being. It was created by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ Children’s Bureau, Office on Child Abuse and Neglect, its Child Welfare Information Gateway, and the FRIENDS National Center for Community-Based Child Abuse Prevention. The resources featured represent the work of a broad-based partnership of national organizations, Federal partners, and parents committed to strengthening…
The Alabama Department of Child Abuse Prevention (DCAP) -- The Children's Trust Fund (CTF) has a more than 25 year history as the only state agency explicitly focused on educating our communities about child abuse and neglect and providing prevention programs. DCAP is focused on supporting family-strengthening community programs andinvesting upfront in efforts to enhance the chance that children in our state grow up in a nurturing and supportive home. A 2007 study by the Universityof Alabama revealed that child abuse and neglect costs taxpayers $520,800,290 every year.In Project Year 2007-…
Intended for court appointed special advocate volunteers and guardians ad litem, this guide offers practice tips for identifying and engaging fathers in cases involving child clients. It begins by describing the benefits of father involvement, including improving children's quality of life and providing children with adult connections. Barriers to father engagement are identified and a framework for involving fathers in children's lives is offered. Strategies discussed include: help to identify and locate the father, encourage the agency to find missing parents, assess whether the father…
This action plan reviews both federal and state barriers to identifying and serving children of incarcerated parents, and offers policy recommendations for the U.S. Congress and the Administration. The action plan is designed to help federal leaders improve policies for children of incarcerated parents, but also includes recommendations of value to states and local governments that can facilitate and complement federal initiatives and result in better responses to this population. (Author abstract)
This report details the experiences of six two-generation intervention projects in New York City supported by grants from the Foundation for Child Development. The two-generation projects help low-income families gain access to employment-related services for parents, and developmental services such as quality child care and health care for children. Although programs varied, all included voluntary services, used counseling, and had a moderate level of openness to parent input and decision making. Chapter 1 of the report describes recent changes in the welfare system and efforts to develop…
Through this issue brief, young people who are in, or have been in, foster care offer their insights and aspirations to help guide the actions of child welfare systems as they seek to provide more normal experiences for these youth. The brief begins by explaining new provisions in the Preventing Sex Trafficking and Strengthening Families Act that promote normalcy, including the requirement for States to implement a “reasonable and prudent parent” standard that allows caregivers to make more daily decisions for young people in their care; a mandate that child welfare systems engage all young…
Current policy regarding child protection services places increasing demands for providers to engage fathers whose children are involved in the child protection process. This requisite brings to the fore the ongoing challenges that fathers have historically faced in working within these systems. Despite this need, there is little empirical evidence regarding the factors and strategies that impact the engagement of fathers in interventions relevant to child protection services. This comprehensive and systemic review synthesizes the available literature regarding factors and strategies that may…
Report, Other
This document proposes strategies that communities can consider to promote the types of relationships and environments that help children grow up to be healthy and productive citizens so that they, in turn, can build stronger and safer families and communities for their children. It is organized into four sections. Each section focuses on one goal and lays out suggested steps to help you move toward that goal. The four sections include: Goal 1: Raise awareness and commitment to promote Safe, Stable, and Nurturing Relationships (SSNRs) and prevent Child Maltreatment; Goal 2: Use data to inform…
This study documents that nonresident fathers of children in foster care are not often involved in case planning efforts and nearly half are never contacted by the child welfare agency during their child's stay in foster care. By not reaching out to fathers, caseworkers may overlook potential social connections and resources that could help to achieve permanency for the child. A total of 1,222 local agency caseworkers were interviewed by phone about 1,958 specific cases between October 2004 and February 2005 to examine front-line practices related to nonresident fathers. Interviewers achieved…
