August 2012 Fatherhood Deck for the U.S. Office of Family Assistance

1. Bringing Back the Dads!
Effective Evidenced-Based Practice for
Engaging Fathers
in the Child Welfare System
Paul Frankel, Ph.D. (with the assistance of many other Colleagues…)
Evaluation Specialist, Mental Health Center of Denver
(Formerly) Research Project Manager
Quality Improvement Center on Non-Resident Fathers 1
2006-2011

2. Quality Improvement Center for
Non-resident Fathers in Child Welfare
QIC-NRF
American Humane Association, Children’s Division
ABA Center on Children and the Law
National Fatherhood Initiative
A Project of the Children’s Bureau
Administration on Children, Youth and Families
Administration on Children and Families
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services
2006-2011 2

3. Fathers and the Child Welfare System
“Is there a difference in family outcomes
based on father involvement?”
“Are kids better off?” 3

4. Communities and Agencies are Changing
Organizational Cultures
QIC-NRF Research & Demonstration Sites:
Marion County, Indiana -
Indiana Department of Child Services in Indianapolis
Indiana Fathers and Families Center, http://www.fatherresource.org/
King County, Washington -
Division of Children and Family Services in Seattle
Divine Alternatives for Dads, http://www.aboutdads.org/
El Paso County, Colorado -
El Paso County Department of Human Services in Colorado Springs
Center for Fathering, http://dhs.elpasoco.com/COF.htm
Tarrant County, Texas –
Texas Department of Family and Protective Services in Ft. Worth
New Day Services for Children and Families, http://www.newdayservices.org/
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5. Exercise: Who is “Father of the Year?”
“Alfonso” (V.I.P. Dad) “Chris” (Non-resident Dad)
• High paying job • Low paying job(s)
• Pretty stable marriage • Never married
• Works long hours • Works regular hours
• Travels • Has small apartment
• Moderately affectionate • Highly affectionate
• Minimally engaged • Fairly engaged
“Cheng” (Underemployed Dad) “LaRon” (Step-Dad)
• Some part-time work • Full-time construction
• Pretty stable marriage • Pretty stable marriage
• Works from home but bored • Works regular hours
• Not the “bread-winner” • Paycheck to paycheck
• Mildly affectionate • Mildly affectionate
• No night “duty” • Good night “duty” 5

6. The Facts of Father Absence
Proportion of Children in Father-Absent Homes
“The Living Arrangements of Children,” U.S. Census Bureau, 2005
30
25
20
15
10
5
0
1960 1970 1980 1990 1995 2000 2004
• In 1960, 8 million children lived in father-absent homes.
• Today, over 24 million children live in homes
without their fathers.
• 2 out of 3 African American children live in father-
6
absent homes.

7. What about the Dads?
Is there a child welfare system bias?
1,958 children removed from homes where the Father did not reside
88%
Agency had identified the Father
55%
Agency had contacted the Father 70% of caseworkers had
received training on
engaging fathers
30%
Father had visited the Child
28%
Father expressed interest in
child living with him
Based on interviews with 1,222 caseworkers
http://aspe.hhs.gov/hsp/06/cw-involve-dads/report.pdf
Malm, Murray, & Geen (2006). What About the Dads? Health and Human 7
Services, Administration for Children and Families, Children’s Bureau

8. CFSR Case-Level Data: 32 States
Differences In Serving Mothers and Fathers
Average Across States: Percent of Cases Rated as Strength
8

9. Interactive Discussion:
Challenges to
Engaging Fathers 9

10. Common Barriers to Involving Fathers
 Mothers’ reluctance to reveal name or
location of father. (“Gatekeeper!” )
* violent or unhealthy episodes.
* a new romantic relationship.
* protect father from further involvement
with the court.
* reluctant to bring the current abuse or
neglect incident to the attention of the father.
“Mama Says”: http://www.fatherhood.org/mamasays/
9 in 10 mothers (93%) agree that there is a father absence crisis
in America today.
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11. Caseworker Ambivalence
 Caseworkers’ ambivalence about finding
fathers due to:
* negative experiences with fathers.
* suspect that the father is not interested in
the child. (Is this true?)
* fear that bringing the father into the child
welfare case may increase conflict.
* the belief that involving fathers is more
work and expense for the agency.
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12. Effective Father Engagement Strategies
 What does “HELP!” look like for
these fathers?
• Strongly influenced by gender
roles.
• No “Sissy Stuff!”
• Admitting to a problem is not
easy.
• Difficulty in asking for help and
depending on others.
• Being perceived as “weak.”
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13. QIC-NRF Father Engagement Curriculum
• Dad as Part of the Solution: Overview of the Child Welfare System -
How does the child welfare system work? A CW representative will join.
• Dad as Planner: Service Planning in the Child Welfare System –
How does the child welfare system give help to families? A CW
representative will join.
• Dad as Part of the Juvenile Court Process: Legal Advocacy and
Court Etiquette - How does the juvenile court/legal process work? An
attorney for parents will join.
• Dad as a Healthy Parent: Taking Care of You - What will it mean for
my children if I am healthy?
• Dad as Community Member: Identifying and Accessing Resources -
What kinds of help or services are available to me and my children in
my community?
• Dad as Cultural Guide: The Role of Culture in Parenting -
What cultures am I a part of ? How does my culture influence how I 13
parent my children?

14. Father Engagement Curriculum [-cont’d.]
• Dad as Parent: Understanding Your Children - What do children need
at all ages to grow up in a healthy way?
• Dad as Part of Children’s Placement: Visiting with Your Children -
How does the child welfare visitation process work?
• Dad as Provider: Supporting Your Children - What is “child support”
and what is expected of me as a Dad who does not live with my
children? A CSE representative will join.
• Dad as Team Player: Shared Parenting - How do I get along better
with my children’s mother, our extended families and the foster parents
or other involved caregivers?
• Dad as Worker: Workforce Readiness - Why is it important for my
children and for myself that I have a job? A workforce readiness expert
will join.
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15. Effective Father Engagement Strategies
Check your attitude at the door!
 Address your personal biases.
 Resist stereotyping
non-resident fathers.
 Provide a welcoming physical
environment.
 First contact by a male (if possible).
 Avoiding using “system” jargon!
“We have a new family that just entered CPS and we are awaiting TPR. The child may have DD
and ADHD, but I’m not sure of the DSM. The MOC told us about past abuse, but we need an
assessment by an LCSW or Ph.D. Let’s see if we can use some of our IV-D or IV-E money to
help. Also, the child may be under the jurisdiction of ICWA.” 15

16. Outcomes: Treatment by CPS
Percent within Site of Treatment by CPS at Last Interview (T2)
Percent of Fathers
SITE
CO IN TX WA Overall
Not at all
fairly 5.88% 14.86% 11.11% 39.13% 16%
Unfairly on
the whole 0.00% 4.05% 17.78% 8.70% 8%
OKAY 17.65% 18.92% 28.89% 13.04% 21%
Fairly on the
whole 5.88% 5.41% 6.67% 8.70% 6%
Very fairly 17.65% 22.97% 20.00% 30.43% 23%
Missing data 47.06% 32.43% 15.56% 0.00% 25%
Total 100% 100% 100% 100% 100%
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17. Outcomes: Visitation
Percent within Site of Visits Since Last Interview (T2)
Percent of Fathers within Site
SITE
CO IN TX WA Overall
Less than 10 75.0% 3.3% 40.0% 100.0% 21.7%
10 to 19 25.0% 26.7% 50.0% 0.0% 30.4%
20 to 29 0.0% 6.7% 0.0% 0.0% 4.3%
30 to 39 0.0% 16.7% 10.0% 0.0% 13.0%
40 to 49 0.0% 3.3% 0.0% 0.0% 2.2%
50 to 59 0.0% 6.7% 0.0% 0.0% 4.3%
80 to 89 0.0% 10.0% 0.0% 0.0% 6.5%
90 to 99 0.0% 10.0% 0.0% 0.0% 6.5%
100 and up 0.0% 16.7% 0.0% 0.0% 10.9%
Total 100.0% 100.0% 100.0% 100.0% 100.0%
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18. Parents are people too…
“When I was a boy of
fourteen, my father was so
ignorant I could hardly
stand to have the old man
around. But when I got to
be twenty-one, I was
astonished at how much he
had learned in seven years.”
-- Mark Twain (1835-1910)
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19. “I cannot think of any need in
childhood as strong as the need
for a father's protection.”
--Sigmund Freud (1856-1939)
For more information please contact:
Paul Frankel, Ph.D.
Ph. 719/237-0338 or 303/504-6791
19
Paul.Frankel@mhcd.org or Pifrankel@comcast.net