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Engaging & Involving Fathers and Paternal Family Members
The involvement of fathers and paternal family members is critical to a child's growth and development. Historically, child welfare agencies have not been effective in involving fathers in the family work that is needed to achieve safety, permanency, and well-being.
Increasingly, agencies are focusing on ways to engage and involve fathers and paternal family members, creating greater opportunities for them to be connected in a number of important ways that benefit their children.
Fatherhood Initiative
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services
A special initiative to support and strengthen the roles of fathers in families. Provides information on fatherhood activities throughout the Department. Highlights of the website include improving opportunities for low-income fathers, caring for young children, fathers and children's health, and a toolkit for fatherhood. Statistics, research, and program evaluations also are available.
National Quality Improvement Center on Non-Resident Fathers and the Child Welfare System
Promotes best practices for engaging non-resident fathers and paternal family members in child welfare and examines the impact of non-resident father involvement on child and family outcomes.
Engaging Nonresident Fathers in Child Welfare Cases: A Guide for Court Appointed Special Advocates (PDF - 574 KB)
Kendall & Pilnik (2010)
Offers Court Appointed Special Advocates practice tips to identify and engage nonresident fathers in child clients' cases while keeping the child's best interests at the forefront.
Father Involvement: Meeting CFSR Standards (PDF - 371 KB)
National Family Preservation Network (2010)
Helps child welfare agencies improve their father involvement policies, practices, and outcomes through assessment, staff training, and cultural change. The document includes a father-friendliness organizational self-assessment tool.
Father Involvement in Child Welfare
North Carolina Division of Social Services and the Family and Children's Resource Program
Children's Services Practice Notes, 11(1), 2005
Examines ways that practitioners and their agencies can improve the way they work with fathers.
Fathers and Their Families: The Untapped Resource for Children Involved in the Child Welfare System (PDF - 61 KB)
American Humane
Child Protection Leader, September 2003
Focuses on the critical role of fathers in their children's development and how the Fatherhood Initiative leverages fathers' care and support.
Finding Your Way: Guides for Fathers in Child Protection Cases. | |
Author(s): | National Quality Improvement Center on Non-Resident Fathers and the Child Welfare System. |
Availability: | Download (PDF - 15,811KB) |
Year Published: | 2011 - 30 pages |
Studies have shown that increased father engagement in children's lives results in better outcomes for children and families. This series of short guides provide important tips for non-custodial fathers involved in child protection cases, focusing on issues such as the father's legal rights, child support and courtroom etiquette. They include information written specifically for fathers on how they can be active participants in their children's case and successfully navigate the protection system. (Author abstract) |
Getting Noncustodial Dads Involved in the Lives of Foster Children
Urban Institute (2003)
This policy brief looks at the extent to which fathers are involved in the lives of their children in foster care and ways to increase their involvement.
The National Family Preservation Network
Provides training, tools, and resources, including a comprehensive fatherhood initiative, to help policymakers and practitioners build on a family's strengths and preserve family bonds so children can be protected and nurtured at home.
National Fatherhood Initiative
Dedicated to educating, equipping, and engaging the public so children can grow up with involved, responsible, and committed fathers.
Study of Fathers' Involvement in Permanency Planning and Child Welfare Casework
The Urban Institute (2002)
Reviews available literature on noncustodial fathers and their relationships with children involved in the child welfare system.
What About the Dads? Child Welfare Agencies' Efforts to Identify, Locate, and Involve Nonresident Fathers | |
Author(s): | Urban Institute., U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Office of the Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation. |
Availability: | View Download (PDF - 820KB) |
Year Published: | 2006 - 186 pages |
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 an 83% response rate to the survey. Cases were ... |