Family & Corrections Network

THE NORTH AMERICAN CONFERENCE ON FATHERS BEHIND BARS & ON THE STREET

Agenda

Wednesday, September 13, 2000
Regal University Hotel
Durham, North Carolina

10:00 - 11:30 AM
Opening Plenary Keynote - Oliver J. Williams, Ph.D.

Dr. Oliver J. Williams, Executive Director of the Institute on Domestic Violence in the African American Community, is an Associate Professor in the Graduate School of Social Work at the University of Minnesota in Minneapolis.

He is a practitioner as well as an academician. As a practitioner, he has worked in the field of domestic violence for more than 20 years and has provided individual, couples, and family counseling. He has been a child welfare and delinquency worker, worked in battered women's shelters, and developed and conducted counseling on partner abuse treatment programs. As an academician, Dr. Williams' research and publications have centered on creating effective service delivery strategies that will reduce the violent behavior among African Americans.

Additionally, Dr. Williams writes about ethnically sensitive practice, as well as aging and elder maltreatment. He has conducted training nationally on research and delivery issues in the areas of child abuse, partner abuse, and elder maltreatment. Dr. Williams serves on several national advisory boards focused on the issue of domestic violence.

His articles have appeared in numerous professional journals, among them the Journal of Multicultural Social Work, the Journal of Comparative Family Studies, The Gerontologist, The Journal of the National Association of Black Social Work, the Journal of Family Violence, and Health and Social Policy. He has also contributed chapters to a number of books on family violence and African American men.

11:30 AM - 1:30 PM
Poster Session And Exhibits Luncheon

The Poster Session and Exhibits Luncheon will feature a number of tables in the Greenbriar Ballroom hosted by individuals representing a variety of fatherhood related programs and activities and, in the Greenbriar Foyer, the opening session of the exhibits being sponsored by several participating organizations. The Borders Books and Music Book Sales Booth will also open, with a number of publications of interest - including several by conference presenters.

The lunch is being served buffet style in order to allow participants to move among the hosted Poster Discussion tables and visit the exhibits.

1:30 - 3:00 PM

A Profile of Parents in Prison: Recent Findings from the Bureau of Justice Statistics
Allen J. Beck, Chief, Corrections Statistics, and Christopher J. Mumola, Policy Specialist; Bureau of Justice Statistics, U. S. Department of Justice, Washington, D. C.

By mid-year 1999, the population of State and Federal prisons had surpassed 1.3 million people, and a majority of these prisoners were the parents of children under the age of 18. How many children are impacted by the incarceration of a parent? For which types of crimes are parents serving time in prison? How often do parents in prison have contact with their children? In order to profile the population of incarcerated parents, this workshop will draw on data from a recently released report from the U. S. Department of Justice's Bureau of Justice Statistics (BJS), Incarcerated Parents and their Children. This BJS Special Report will present findings from the only national survey of State and Federal prison inmates, and includes estimates for the total number of parents in prison and the number of children they have, with trends for the 1991 - 1999 period.

Successful Fatherhood Programs for Ex-Offenders
The Reverend Joyce M. White, Parenting Skills Specialist, & The Reverend Sherman White, Parenting Skills Specialist, Father's Support Center, St. Louis, Missouri

The topics to be explored in the workshop include profiles of incarcerated fathers, challenges fathers face upon re-entry into the community, and the needs of ex-offender fathers. The workshop's objectives are to present background and statistical information on incarcerated fathers, share information regarding the hardships fathers face upon their release, discuss the role of the father, the family, and the community in helping fathers to become successful, and discuss strategies for effective collaboration among agencies to meet the needs of ex-offender fathers.

Access and Visitation for Never Married Parents: What Fatherhood Program Practitioners Should Know
Moderator: David L. Arnaudo, Deputy Director, Division of Planning, Research, and Evaluation, Office of Child Support Enforcement, USDHHS
Panelists: David Levy, President, Children's Rights Council, Inc. Washington, D. C.; Jeffrey M. Johnson, Ph. D., President, National Center for Strategic Nonprofit Planning and Community Leadership, Washington, D.C.; Marilyn Ray Smith, Assistant Director and General Counsel, Child Support Enforcement, Commonwealth of Massachusetts, Boston, Massachusetts; Jessica Pearson, Ph.D., President, Center for Policy Research, Denver, Colorado

This panel will discuss the latest developments in responsible fatherhood/fragile family programs and access and visitation approaches being formulated or tested by Federal and State governments, especially at the Office of Child Support Enforcement (OCSE). David Arnaudo will discuss programs now being funded by OCSE. Dr. Jeffrey Johnson will discuss the Fragile Families Demonstration approaches now being funded, as well as other Federal efforts. Marilyn Ray Smith will discuss the access and visitation efforts in Massachusetts and the Governor's Commission on Responsible Fatherhood. David Levy will national access and visitation approaches. Finally, Dr. Jessica Pearson will discuss early implementation lessons from Responsible Fatherhood Projects funded by OCSE.

Long Distance Dads Incarcerated Fathers Program
Randell Turner, Ph. D., Vice-President, National Fatherhood Initiative, Gaithersburg, Maryland; Parris Baker, L. S. W., Administrative Director, The Fathers Workshop, Erie, Pennsylvania; Martha Eichenlaub, M. Ed., Psychologist, Department of Corrections, SCI Albion, Pennsylvania

Long Distance Dads is a character-based educational and support program developed in collaboration with the Pennsylvania Department of Corrections at the State Correctional Institution at Albion, to assist incarcerated men in developing skills to become more involved and supportive fathers. The program is designed to be facilitated by trained peer leaders, in twelve weekly sessions, in a small group format. The program can and has been adapted to a short time-span, such as twice a week for county institutions. The workshop will constitute an overview of the Long Distance Dads program, materials, and outcomes. Information will be presented on the Long Distance Dads Training Institute, which has trained and implemented the program in over thirty federal, state, and county prisons throughout the country. Additionally, the workshop will present information on transitioning incarcerated fathers home, research, and outcomes, and the Incarcerated Fathers Resource Center.

Reading Family Ties for Men
Anne Haw Holt, Program Consultant, Florida Department of Corrections, Tallahassee, Florida

The workshop will demonstrate how the Reading Family Ties for Men helps to reinforce the connection of incarcerated fathers with their minor children through group discussion, keeping a journal, letter writing, and helping them read a story on audio-tape to mail to their child. Activities that maintain the bond between father and child during this separation will improve the transition of the father from custody back to family and society, reducing recidivism. When a man views himself as a father, he can feel pride in his ability to improve daily by writing letters to his children, learning from other fathers about parenting, and even seeking educational and other needed help. Men active in this program change for the better in their relationships to each other, officers and staff of the institution, and their families.

It Begins Before Release: A Comprehensive Parenting Program/Casework Model for Reunification
Gretchen Nehls Newby, M. A., Northern Regional Director, Friends Outside National Organization, Stockton, California

The California Department of Corrections has been providing contracted case management services to incarcerated fathers since 1981. Two years ago the department added a Parenting Program for Incarcerated Parents that articulates with the case management services. Both facets of this model are provided by Friends Outside National Organization. This is the largest articulated program for incarcerated fathers in the world, currently in all 9 California institutions for men. Workshop participants will learn about services offered specifically for incarcerated fathers in California state prisons. They will be given information about a unique and successful cooperation with local county social workers, who work with our case management staff toward meeting the reunification needs of both fathers and their children.

L.I.F.E. (Living Interactive Family Education)
Lynna J. Lawson, 4-H Youth Specialist, and Paula Barr, 4-H Youth Specialist, Washington County 4-H, Potosi, Missouri

L.I.F.E. (Living Interactive Family Education) is a family-strengthening program for incarcerated fathers/grandfathers at Potosi Correctional Center, which is Missouri's highest security prison, and their families. The program includes a 4-H club for the men and their children, family support workshops for the custodial parents and joint parenting and teamwork classes for both parents. This pilot program is unique because it brings the entire family into the prison to learn, play, and work together to establish and maintain close bonds between children and their incarcerated parents as well as strong, nurturing family units. The men have formed an internal organization within the prison to allow them to raise funds for club activities, organize special family dinners, and coordinate monthly 4-H club meetings. Using a team leadership concept, the men are the 4-H club leaders, and guide the children in traditional 4-H meetings and activities, including community service.

Fathers Returning Home From Prison: A Solution-Focused Approach for Restoring Marital Relationships
G. Stan Meloy, Ph. D., Executive Director, A. C. T. Coalition's Fathering Initiative, Thomasville, North Carolina

This workshop explores how imprisonment of a father affects the whole family system, and will present counseling strategies to help couples reconcile their feelings and perceptions of blame, hardship, and distrust. The presenter will describe a standardized counseling model that was developed based on Dr. David Olsen's ENRICH series and will share examples from his dissertation research to support the contention that family counseling is a much more effective way to treat and support this population than is individual counseling.

Child Support Policy and Theory During Incarceration
Robert Conklin, Manager, Paternity Operations Unit,
Colorado Division of Child Support Enforcement, Denver, Colorado

Child support obligations continue during incarceration. Some child support agencies and courts view incarceration as "voluntary unemployment" and refuse to modify orders downward. The process of modifying can also be complicated with unpredictable results. This presentation will describe Colorado's experiences with modification of child support orders and the attachment of prison earnings. We will discuss recent legislation to attach prison accounts for child support and restitution and present policy alternatives.

Research Roundtable on Incarcerated Fathers and Their Children
Moderator: John Jefferies, Ph. D., Director, National Associates Program,
The Vera Institute, New York, New York
Panelists:Vivian Gadsden, Ph. D., Director, National Center on Fathers and Families, U. of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA; Robin Bates, Ph. D., Assistant Professor, Jane Addams College of Social Work, U. of Chicago, Chicago, IL; Creasie Finney Hairston, Ph. D., Dean, Jane Addams College of Social Work, U. of Chicago, Chicago, IL

Until recently there has been little research on incarcerated fathers and their children. A distinguished panel of researchers will discuss the status of studies they have recently undertaken, the challenges and opportunities they have encountered, and directions for future study.

3:30 - 5:00 PM

Agency Assessment for Father Inclusion: Creating a Father-Friendly Service Climate
Neil Tift, Director of Professional Advancement, National Practitioners Network for Fathers and Families, Washington, D. C.; Monica Lee-Currie, Lead Training Consultant, Wisconsin Resource Center on Fragile Families, Goodwill Industries of Southeastern Wisconsin & Metropolitan Chicago, Milwaukee, Wisconsin

This workshop offers a hands-on opportunity for social service professionals to learn how to apply a comprehensive self-assessment to the operation of their agency and to appraise their level of sensitivity to recruiting and serving fathers. It also encourages agency staff to examine their personal attitudes about expanding programs to meet the growing needs of this previously underserved constituency. The categories in the self-assessment include Organizational Philosophy, Physical Environment, Staff Orientation, Program Content, Policies and Procedures, Marketing Strategies, and Outreach Efforts.

Providing Community-based Services to Fathers in Latino Communities
Robert Lee "Bobby" Verdugo, Jr., Fatherhood Program Coordinator, The National Latino Fatherhood and Family Institute, Los Angeles, California

In April of 1998, Latino children became the second largest ethnic group in the United States. This fact presents very significant political, social, and economic implications to the country and to society. In this workshop, we will discuss strategies and programs dealing with fatherhood and male responsibility in the Latino community. Historically, when educators, child welfare institutions, and social service providers initiated any work with children and families, they all but ignored the father. This is especially true when we examine work with Latino fathers. This workshop will not only address the need to change our attitudes and methods when working with Latino fathers, but will present applied methods and programs that have proven effective or are yielding positive results. It will also discuss curricula that are based on ancient indigenous beliefs and teachings of what it means to be a real man. Finally, the workshop will present a challenge to those who attend to reexamine how they have perceived Latino fathers in the past and what they must do to effectively support and help these men to become nurturing and responsible fathers.

Fathers' Programs in Faith-Based Communities: Meeting the Needs of Young Fathers
Wallace McLaughlin, Ph. D., Director, Father Resource Center, Indianapolis, Indiana

Father absence in today's community has created a generational social class of children without fathers in the home. This workshop will explore the related topics of communities without faith, values and masculinity in the community, leveraging spirituality in the community, and the value of fatherhood programs in faith-based institutions. Participants will leave the workshop with tools and strategies for successful faith-based programming initiatives in the their community.

Fatherhood 101: The Basics of Fatherhood Program Practice
Dadisi Elliott, Program Coordinator, Responsible Teen Fathers Program, Long Beach, California

This workshop will provide an overview of the issues, challenges, and opportunities associated with working in a responsible fatherhood program serving men who face a variety of economic, social, cultural, and personal issues that serve to disengage them from their children. The workshop is presented from the perspective of an experienced practitioner who works with young fathers in a community-based program. It will draw on the lessons learned in a successful community-based program and from resources and services available to responsible fatherhood program practitioners through the National Practitioners Network for Fathers and Families (NPNFF), the national membership organization that provides support, training, and technical assistance to individuals working in the responsible fatherhood field.

Working With Low-Income Fathers In The Inner City
Joseph Jones, President and CEO, Center for Fathers, Families and Workforce Development, Inc., Baltimore, Maryland; Moses Hammett, Director of Workforce Development, STRIVE Baltimore, CFWD, Baltimore, Maryland; Eddie White, Case Coordinator, Men's Services, CFWD, Baltimore, Maryland; Todd Hazelton, Youth Employment Trainer, STRIVE Baltimore, CFWD, Baltimore, Maryland

This workshop will present participants with an overview of fatherhood programs that promote services to low-income, urban fathers. It will provide a set of strategies focusing on such service elements as outreach, recruitment, retention, conflict resolution, domestic violence, incarceration, child support management, workforce development, and other relevant issues related to serving inner city men and fathers.

Services for Paroled Parents in Colorado: The Work and Family Center Model
Kathy Rodriguez, Program Administrator, Denver County Child Support Enforcement Unit; Jessica Pearson, Director, Center for Policy Research; Vickey Rickett, Former Director, Division of Reintegration, Colorado Department of Corrections,Denver, Colorado

This workshop will present information on The Work and Family Center, an ambitious pilot program for paroled parents in Colorado funded by the Federal Office of Child Support Enforcement, with additional support for the Colorado Department of Corrections, the Welfare-to-Work program, a local foundation, and a church. The presentations will describe the development of The Work and Family Center pilot program, discuss the services provided to paroled parents, and present preliminary results from the program.

My Father, My Self
Ari Davis, Emani Davis, and Chesa Boudin, The Osborne Association, New York, New York

This workshop will provide an opportunity to observe and discuss the impact of a father's incarceration from the perspective of young people who have grown up with fathers in prison and will assist policy makers and practitioners to utilize the experiences and observations of children of incarcerated fathers in their work. Panelists will discuss their own experiences and their observations regarding other children whom they have gotten to know through prison visiting. They will focus on ways in which programs and corrections policies did or did not meet their needs and ways in which their incarcerated fathers and their caregivers successfully

Incarcerated Fathers and their Families
Denise Johnston, M. D., Director, Center for Children of Incarcerated Parents, Eagle Rock, California

The workshop will review the literature on incarcerated fathers and the children of incarcerated fathers, including original research by the Center for Children of Incarcerated Parents. Historical trends in data collection and their influence on how fathers behind bars and their children are perceived will be examined. Research, policy and practice among male and female prisoners with children will be compared. Substantive interventions for children of prisoners will be described, including major models for incarcerated mothers and their children; the utility and limitations of these interventions for the families of incarcerated fathers will be discussed. Principles for research and practice with these families will be presented, including guidelines for the development of high quality services. The presentation will include excerpts from the videotapes "Children of Incarcerated Parents" and "Children of Criminal Offenders and Foster Care."

The Impact of Public Policy on Low-Income Fathers and Families
Diana Durham-McCloud, Director of Governmental Affairs, National Center for Strategic Non-Profit Planning and Community Development, Washington, D. C.

This workshop will review the impact of the provisions of welfare reform (Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 1996 - PRAWORA) on low-income fathers and their families. Specifically, the workshop will review the provisions of the TANF regulations and Child Support Enforcement program. This review will identify policy issues within the current control of states that would make our current income support programs friendlier to "fragile families."

What are your state's policies and practices related to co-habiting unmarried parents, child support self-support reserves, child support order deviations for low-income wage earners, child support pass-through, earning disregards and other elements of the current welfare system that directly impact available resources for low-income families? This workshop will provide a primer on these and other issues. At the end of this workshop, you will have the basic information needed to ask the right questions of your welfare administrators.

Incarceration and Child Support Issues for Low-Income Fathers
Jacquelyn Boggess, Senior Policy Analyst, and Rebecca May, Policy Analyst, Center on Fathers, Families, and Public Policy, Madison, Wisconsin

In the course of CFFPP's work with the Fatherhood Responsibility Program of the Urban League of Greater Madison (WI), as well as our national series of colloquia with low-income fathers, we have been confronted repeatedly with stories from fathers who have been arrested for failure to pay child support. Others have been arrested on charges not related to child support that lead to an escalated level of hardship because they cannot pay their child support obligation while serving jail or prison sentences. Often the incarcerated father faces civil or criminal contempt charges for failure to pay child support immediately upon release from prison. This workshop will address such topics as federal and state laws regarding nonpayment of child support, criminal enforcement of child support, treatment of nonpayment of child support by the courts, and implications of incarceration on the involvement of fathers with their families.


5:00 - 7:00 PM
Opening Night Networking And Exhibits Buffet

Two hours of fellowship, networking, exhibit visiting, and food will be provided during the Opening Night Networking and Exhibits Buffet in the Greenbriar Foyer and Ballroom. Renew old acquaintances and meet new colleagues, visit the exhibits, browse the Book Sales Booth hosted by Borders Books and Music, and sample the regional delicacies on the "Ocracoke Picnic" buffet. A cash bar will be available. The Opening Night Networking and Exhibits Buffet is supported by the National Center on Strategic Nonprofit Planning and Community Leadership (NPCL). At 7:00 PM, please move into the Greenbriar Ballroom for a very special and inspiring Opening Night Plenary Session.

7:15 - 8:45 PM
Opening Night Plenary Session - Thomas Moore, Ph. D.

Dr. Thomas Moore is nationally recognized as an early childhood consultant, author and children's recording artist. From a keynote address to 1200 K-12 teachers at Harvard University to a study tour of child care in China, to teacher-training workshops in Nigeria, St. Croix, and Germany, to a solo voice recital at Carnegie Recital Hall, Dr. Moore creates learning experiences that educate and encourage those who teach young children.

He has produced eight educational recordings, which are used in early childhood classrooms all over the world. He is the co-author of Where Is Thumbkin?, a resource book for teachers of young children and is featured in the NAEYC resource video, "Music Across the Curriculum." Dr. Moore earned a Bachelor of Music at the Manhattan School of Music and a Master of Education and Ph. D. in Early Childhood Education at Indiana State University.

Presently he is a keynote speaker for numerous early childhood organizations, a workshop leader, and early childhood and diversity consultant for school districts, the U. S. Department of Education and the U. S. Department of Defense. He is also a columnist for Children and Families, the official magazine for the National Head Start Association. His honors and awards include the Charlotte (NC) Jaycees' Young Man of the Year, the NAACP Humanitarian Award and the Order of the Long Leaf Pine (North Carolina's most distinguished civilian award). However, his most prized honor is the "Angel Among Us" award, presented by Mrs. Fullagar's K-2 class in Laurinburg, North Carolina.

Thursday, September 14, 2000

8:30 - 10:00 AM
Plenary Session - Issues in Funding and Assessing Outcomes of Fatherhood Programs

A critical issue facing the evolving field of responsible fatherhood program practice is that of sustaining local programs and services beyond the demonstration and trial funding stages. In all too many communities, responsible fatherhood programs get started by existing social service agencies or faith-based organizations - usually with a very small funding base - only to be dropped when the initial funding is used up or when expectations for recruitment and retention of clients are not immediately realized. Much of the early funding and support for responsible fatherhood programs has come from a few major national foundations, including Annie E. Casey. Ford, and Charles Stewart Mott. In many instances, these foundations have made large investments in building the infrastructure of the field, and investing in community-based program and service development through demonstration projects. While the investment of the national foundations has been central to establishing responsible fatherhood program practice as an emerging field, it is highly unlikely that sustained funding for locally-based programs can be anticipated to come from foundations having a national focus.

Likewise, the federal government has played an important role in promoting and "seeding" responsible fatherhood program practices. During the past seven years, all of the departments of the federal government have been directed and encouraged to find opportunities to support and promote father inclusiveness in their programs and services. Current pending legislation could conceivably direct some limited financial resources to community-based programs. Yet, as with the national foundations, it is unlikely that federal funding can be counted on to sustain the field of community-based responsible fatherhood program practice. This plenary session will address the issue of sustaining programs serving fathers from the perspective of individuals who are involved in providing and seeking funding at state and community levels.

Moderator: Preston J. Garrison, Executive Director, National Practitioners Network For Fathers And Families
Panelists:Patrick Patterson, Program Officer, Sisters of Charity Foundation of South Carolina, Columbia, SC; Dr. Dallas H. Wilson, Project Director, Project RESTORE, Charleston, SC; Arn Boezaart, Sr. Program Officer, Community Foundation for Muskegon County, Muskegon, MI

10:30 AM - 12:00 PM

Developing Legal Resources for Fathers
Neil Tift, Director of Professional Advancement, National Practitioners Network for Fathers and Families, Washington, DC

Anyone who works with fathers knows how critical the need is for legal resources. The vast majority of communities, from large urban areas to small rural towns, provide no organized legal assistance that is accessible, affordable, and sensitive to the family law concerns of fathers. This workshop will showcase one model - Family Law Clinics - that has proven to be highly effective and very popular. Developed in the Twin Cities in 1991, the clinics continue to provide a simple method of offering legal information to low and moderate-income fathers on a large scale. The objectives of the workshop are to examine the model of creating Family Law Clinics (FLC), develop a plan to create Family Law Clinics to serve a specific population, and propose strategies to adapt the FLC model to replicate in participants' communities.

Fatherlessness: Its Effect on Families, Communities and Society
Benjamin T. Muhammad, Health Educator/Program Facilitator, The Fathers & Friends Program, Forsyth County Department of Public Health, Winston-Salem, North Carolina

The face of fatherhood is changing rapidly. Yet, most men enter into this most important and certainly most difficult undertaking with only a rudimentary concept of what it expected. Coupled with the various expectations and attitudes of segments of society, many men are confused about the role of fathers and the responsibilities of fatherhood. This workshop is a power-packed, energized session designed to draw attention to the devastation that absent fathers have on their families, communities, and society. There are too many children who have no memory of a loving, protective, and nurturing fathers. Participants in this session will depart with a greater understanding of the tremendous impact of fathers.

Fatherhood Issues in Native American Communities
Thomas Four Winds Bates, American Indian Institute, University of Oklahoma, Norman, Oklahoma

Very little attention has been given to issues relating to fatherhood in Native American communities. This workshop will focus on the implications and ramifications of public policy that is developed without accurate information about Native Americans and their values and beliefs. Current policy developments promote the "invisible male" phenomenon in the Native American community. Fatherhood is important within the cultural context of Native American communities, but current rules within social work policy establish an environment that tends to exclude men. This workshop will offer information about how to include the Native American father and how to work cross-culturally.

Parenting Education for Young Fathers in UK Young Offender Institutions
Dr. Catherine Dennison, Senior Research Officer, Trust for the Study of Adolescence, Brigthton, East Sussex, United Kingdom

Within the United Kingdom young male offenders have been identified as a group particularly likely to become parents in their teens. Recent estimates suggest that 25% of young men, between the ages of 15 and 21, incarcerated within young offender institutions, are fathers or expectant fathers. Parenthood training in young offender institutions appears to offer a unique opportunity to carry out early preventative work with this group of young men and their families. The majority of British young offender institutions offer parenting training, in some form. The overall objective of the workshop will be the exchange of information about UK practice in this area. The session will give details of the different forms this takes and other ways in which incarcerated fathers are being supported. It will also present the results of an evaluation of the impact of such training after release carried out by the author. The workshop will be as interactive as possible, utilizing video to hear from the young fathers themselves, providing time to look at materials and course contents, and lots of space for discussion and comparison of the UK and North American contexts.

Community-based Services to Children of Incarcerated Fathers
Carol Burton, MSW, Program Director and Supervisor of Prevention Programs, Project S. E. E. K., Mott Children's Health Center, Flint, Michigan; Susan Quinlan , MSW, Executive Director, Families in Crisis, Inc., Hartford, Connecticut; Joanna Hurt Sargeant, MSW, Caseworker, Families in Crisis, Inc., Hartford, Connecticut; Joyce Skinner Betts, MSW, Program Coordinator, The YES Program, Families in Crisis, Inc., Hartford, Connecticut

This workshop will describe the core principles, service components and evaluation outcomes of two community-based programs for children and families of incarcerated adults. Attendees will gain a thorough understanding of program objectives and the best practices for supporting children and families.

Working with Men Who Batter
Anneliis Koiv and Douglas Gregory, Caseworkers, Families in Crisis, Inc., Hartford, Connecticut

Families in Crisis, Inc., (FIC) provides an intensive six month intervention program (END DV) for men that have been arrested and/or convicted of battering their partners. In this workshop presentation, FIC counselors will present an overview of the program's core principles for effective interventions with batterers, describe the educational curriculum and treatment methods used in the group model, and identify the most important criteria to measure client success. Special emphasis will be given to the program model's component that addresses parenting matters. Workshop facilitators will employ a variety of learning tools to present materials (i.e., videos, power point, experiential role-plays, etc.).

Juvenile Corrections: Engaging Young Fathers in Jail
Johnny Wilson and Ben Trujillo, Health Educators, New Mexico Young Fathers Project, Albuquerque, New Mexico

The objective of this workshop is to outline and address the issues around adolescent fathering and the young father involved in the criminal justice system. The presentation will address recruitment and retention of young men in the Young Fathers Project, inter-agency cooperation in implementing the program, and masculinity stereotypes, and the programs role in promoting positive images of men and fathers. The desired outcomes for the workshop is to increase awareness of major issues impacting the effectiveness of adolescent fathers, in and out of locked facilities, and to assist in developing strategies for designing intervention that assists incarcerated young fathers while they are detained and after their release.

Prison Visiting: Issues for Families with Incarcerated Parents
Peter Breen, Executive Director, Centerforce, San Quentin, California

One of the most controversial issues facing incarcerated parents is that of visitation. As one visitor said, "Visiting can really be a trip...about 800 miles!" This workshop will explore with conference participants the pros and cons of visiting, what it means, and how to organize a prison/jail visiting program in a local community.

Educating Parents About Their Legal Rights and Obligations During Incarceration
Christopher Hardaway, Director and Attorney at Law, Parents' Legal Resource Center, Denver, Colorado

Colorado is educating incarcerated parents about their rights and responsibilities through in-person presentations to prisoners and prison staff. Colorado is also preparing a handbook that addresses the issues of child support modification and the custody of children during and after a parental incarceration. This presentation will describe Colorado's efforts to educate within the prison walls: gaining access to a relevant audience (parents) for in-person presentations, the content of the Parent Handbook, the distribution of the Handbook, topics of key interest, prisoner reactions, and staff attitudes.

Inequity and Fathering: The Institutional and Social Policy Forces
Kirk E. Harris, Ph. D., J. D., Associate Executive Director and General Counsel, Family Support America, Chicago, Illinois; James Mustin, Executive Director, Family and Corrections Network, Palmyra, Virginia; Preston J. Garrison, Executive Director, National Practitioners Network for Fathers and Families

Institutional forces and policy play a critical role in shaping the opportunities for fathering in American society. While the historic role of a father as a financial provider slowly gives way to a more inclusive vision of father as nurturers and caregivers for children, that emerging opportunity has paralleled a shift in institutional and social supports for some fathers to articulate this new role. Corporations have instituted policies that encourage work/family balance and societal norms are increasingly valuing the contributions of fathers as an important factor in child development and well-being. As a result, social and business policies have supported parental leave, flexible work schedules, on-site day care, subsidies for child care as a strategy for enhancing the quality of care for children, and growing the opportunities for parents to spend time with their children. Unfortunately, these benefits and trends have primarily inured to those who are well educated, skilled, and well-paid. Issues of race and class inequities play prominently in the societal and institutional supports for families. This session will bring together the leadership from organizations working on issues related to incarcerated parents, fathering, and family support practice to discuss strategies for addressing institutional and social inequities and their impact on low-income fathers and their ability to engage meaningfully with their families and communities.

12:00 - 2:00 PM
Thursday Luncheon Plenary - James Garbarino, Ph. D.

Dr. James Garbarino is Co-Director of the Family Life Development Center and Elizabeth Lee Vincent Professor of Human Development at Cornell University. Prior to his current position, he served as President of the Erikson Institute for Advanced Study in Child Development (1985 - 1994). He earned a B. A. from St. Lawrence University in 1968, and his Ph. D. in Human Development and Family Studies from Cornell University in 1973. He is a Fellow of the American Psychological Association.

Dr. Garbarino has served as a consultant or advisor to a wide range of organizations, including the National Committee to Prevent Child Abuse, the National Institute of Mental Health, the National Science Foundation, and the National Resource Center for Children in Poverty. In 1991, he undertook missions for UNICEF to assess the impact of the Gulf War on children in Kuwait and Iraq, and has served as a consultant for programs serving Bosnian and Croatian children.

Books he has authored or edited include: Lost Boys: Why Our Sons Turn Violent and How We Can Save Them (1999); Raising Children in a Socially Toxic Environment (1995); Let's Talk About Living in a World of Violence (1993); Children in Danger: Coping With The Consequences of Community Violence (1992); and Towards a Sustainable Society: An Economic, Social, and Environmental Agenda for Our Children's Future (1992). He serves as a consultant to television, magazine, and newspaper reports on children and families, and in 1981, received the Silver Award at the International Film and Television Festival of New York for co-authoring "Don't Get Stuck There: A Film on Adolescent Abuse." He also serves as a scientific expert witness in criminal and civil cases involving issues of violence and children.

2:15 - 3:45 PM

The MELD for Young Dads Program in the Hennepin County Home School
Dwaine Simms, Replication Manager, MELD for Young Dads Program, Minneapolis, Minnesota

The MELD for Young Dads (MYD) Program supports young single fathers as they seek to become involved in raising their children. At the Hennepin County Home School, a juvenile detention facility, this project serves 15 - 18 year old fathers. This program is designed to increase young fathers' awareness of the choices they have in parenting and to encourage the development of their commitment to be loving, caring parents involved in the lives of their children. MYD helps the young men realize that becoming a father is a turning point in their lives and encourages them to recognize both the responsibilities and rewards of fatherhood.

Fathers from the Streets: Innovative Approaches to Substance Abuse, Domestic Violence, and Family Formation
John Wilson, Jr., Ph. D., John Wilson and Associates Consulting, Washington, D. C.

This workshop is derived from the Transforming Never-Married Fathers (TMF) study being conducted by the presenter in Baltimore, Maryland. The workshop will give an overview of the study with its intended purposes and goals and show the manner in which the original intent has had to be adjusted in the face of the data. The workshop presents the study's preliminary findings. The workshop has an ambitious agenda but it builds in time to allow for a significant question and answer period. It is expected that the workshop will benefit both practitioners and researchers. It will provide researchers, policy analysts and policy makers additional information in the design of other studies and approaches to the problems of fathers in the streets as well as those in the criminal justice system.

Working With Adolescent Fathers
J. Neil Tift, Director of Professional Advancement, National Practitioners Network for Fathers and Families, Washington, D. C.; Dadisi Elliott, Program Coordinator, Responsible Teen Fathers, The Job Center, Long Beach CA

According to the Alan Guttmacher Institute, one million teenage females - 12% of all females ages 15 to 19 - become pregnant each year, with 70% of them unmarried. With a significant expansion in pregnancy and parenting resources for young women that provide educational, vocational, family planning, and support services, little attention has been focused upon the young fathers. As the need to serve this population has emerged, a growing number of family service agencies have recently initiated attempts to recruit staff and develop specific strategies to work with young dads. This workshop will offer ideas to assist agencies to expand their capacity to effectively serve young fathers, explore common myths about young fathers, identify the psychological profile of the adolescent father, and generate effective strategies for working with adolescent fathers.

Therapeutic Group Work with Incarcerated Fathers
Dr. Carl Mazza, Professor, Lehman School of Social Work, City University of New York, Bronx, New York

This interactive workshop will discuss the experiences of a clinician in running a time-limited group with incarcerated fathers in a maximum security prison in New York. The workshop will focus on the individual and collective experiences of the participants from the initial group formation to the termination of the group. The group centered on the participants' feelings about themselves as men and fathers as well as explored why they made certain decisions in the lives which altered their life choices. Workshop participants will be able to see group therapy as an effective tool for helping incarcerated fathers deal with their feelings, especially their feelings of fear, anger, and loneliness. The steps developed within this time-limited group could be replicated in any prison.

Managing Multi-Generational Anger in African American Males
Virgil A. Gooding, Sr., Family Therapist/Treatment Coordinator, Sixth Judicial District Department of Correctional Services-Iowa, Cedar Rapids, Iowa

The rate of incarceration and other correctional programming experienced by African American males in the United States represents an epidemic. Though various offenses are cited as reasons for this odd situation, the accused have one thing in common besides their color. They are all exceedingly angry. In fact, they are often enraged. Routinely this is the most vivid emotion experienced by these and other African American males and fathers. Although these feelings are intense, there is often no clear external event or circumstance that seems to relate directly to them. Thus, many of those effected do not know why they are so angry and cannot find ways to cope with, process, and escape the consequences of free floating anger. This presentation will explore the phenomena of multi-generational anger in African American males and its effect on problem-solving techniques, life's expectations, and involvement in the criminal justice system.

"Ripley's Believe It or Not": How Child Support Agencies Can Actually Help Dads in Prison and Upon Release
Moderator: Debra Pontisso, Advocacy Relations Specialist/Fatherhood Liaison, Federal Office of Child Support Enforcement, DHHS
Panelists: Joseph Mason, Project Officer, Paternity Establishment Prison Project and Manager, Community Outreach & Non-custodial Parent Unit, Division of Child Support Services, State of Illinois; Barry Burger, Assistant Chief, Project Operations, Child Support Enforcement, State of North Carolina; Richard Claytor, Director, Responsible Fatherhood Project, Department of Revenue, Child Support Enforcement, State of Massachusetts; Jessica Pearson, Ph. D., Director, Center for Policy Research and Education, Work and Family Center for Recently Released Inmates, Child Support Enforcement, State of Colorado

This workshop will focus on the innovative efforts undertaken by various state child support agencies to encourage and enable incarcerated fathers to begin or continue their parenting responsibilities behind bars and upon release. Specifically, workshop presenters will share examples of a variety of services offered in prisons that include establishing paternity for unwed fathers, 'how to' request changes in a father's child support obligation to reflect reduced income while incarcerated, and parenting programs that offer options on how to stay involved as a parent during incarceration. This workshop will also demonstrate types of services and programs that can be made available to 'ex-offenders' with minor children that can better position them to emotionally and financially provide for their children upon release.

Improving Outcomes for Children and Families of Incarcerated Fathers
Robin Bates, Ph. D., Assistant Professor and Creasie Finney Hairston, Ph. D., Dean,
Jane Addams College of Social Work, University of Chicago, Chicago, Illinois

Over the past decade, there has been tremendous growth in the number of adults incarcerated in jails and prisons. Of incarcerated individuals, approximately three-quarters are parents of minor children. Currently, an estimated 1.5 million children have an incarcerated parent and many thousands of others have experienced the incarceration of parents at some point in their lives. Little is known, however, about the key attributes, status, or geographic location of children and families of incarcerated parents, about the impact of parental incarceration on them, or about programs and services that might ameliorate negative effects of parental incarceration. In order to gain a better understanding of the unique circumstances and needs of this population, the presenters conducted their focus groups and interviews with children and families of incarcerated fathers, formerly incarcerated fathers, practitioners in community and justice system settings, researchers, policy makers, and members of national advocacy and correctional organizations on the problems, issues, needs, and strengths of children and families of incarcerated fathers. Results will be presented and discussed, as will recommendations for future research and policy changes that will lead to improved outcomes for this population. Attendees will be encouraged to contribute their experiences and ideas to the discussion.

Child Development and Father-Child Relationships
Ann Adalist-Estrin, MS, Director, BRIDGES, Parent-Child Counseling and Consultation for Families and the Community, Jenkintown, Pennsylvania

This session will help participants look at basic developmental tasks and conflicts that each child experiences and examine the role of fathers in the process. The influence of mothers and other female caregivers as well as impact of father's (and mother's) absence on each stage of development will also be addressed.

The Responsible Fatherhood Management Information System
Bert S. Barnow, Ph. D., Associate Director for Research, Institute for Policy Studies, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, Maryland

The U. S. Department of Health and Human Services has developed a new tool to help fatherhood programs manage and assess their programs. The Responsible Fatherhood Management Information System (RFMIS) will help programs to track the progress of individual fathers and to aggregate data on program participants for reporting purposes. The RFMIS is available to use as a paper and pencil or as an electronic database that can be downloaded into any computer system that uses Microsoft Access. This workshop will present an overview of the RFMIS and its application for fatherhood programs.

2 Million in 2000: The Impact of Mass Incarceration on Fathers, Families, and Communities
Elizabeth Gaynes, Esq., Executive Director, The Osborne Association, New York, New York; Dina Rose, Ph. D., Assistant Professor, Department of Sociology, John Jay College of Criminal Justice, NY, NY; Precious Bedell, Family Resource Center Coordinator, The Osborne Association, New York, NY

The objective of this presentation is to utilize research and policy analysis to increase the understanding of the impact of America's incarceration and punishment policies on families and communities, and to explore ways in which communities and families can address these issues. Using research by Dr. Dina Rose that demonstrates the negative impact of mass incarceration on communities and crime rates, as well as data and survey information collected by The Osborne Association in its operation of programs for incarcerated fathers and their families, panelists will discuss the policy implications of removing large numbers of African American and Latino men from their families and communities.


4:30 - 6:30 PM Seminars

The Impact of Workforce Development on Improving Prospects for Responsible Fatherhood
Moderator:Lorin Harris, Associate Program Officer
The Charles Stewart Mott Foundation, Flint, Michigan
Presenters:"Dad Deserves a Job - The Economics of Inmate Labor Force Participation," Thomas W. Petersik, Ph. D., Economist, Citizens United For Rehabilitation of Errants (CURE), Burke, Virginia; "Employing Individuals with Criminal Histories: Barriers and Solutions," Debbie Mukamal, Staff Attorney, Legal Action Center, New York, New York

Connecting fathers with employment is a critical issue for today. Without employment, fathers are not ready to carry out responsibility to provide for their families. A distinguished panel will examine the barriers to employment faced by fathers. For offenders, these barriers include the lack of meaningful jobs in prison and a variety of legal and informal employment practices in the community. For many fathers, the lack of work experience and jobs skills is a significant deterrent to employability. Ways to successfully enable fathers to find and keep sustainable employment in prison and in the community will be explored.

The Georgia Fatherhood Program: State Agency Partnerships Promoting & Equipping Responsible Fathers
Presenters:Robert Johnson, State Consultant, Georgia Fatherhood Program, Office of Child Support Enforcement, Department of Human Resources, Atlanta, Georgia; Frank Bates, Director, Special Workforce Development Services, Department of Technical and Adult Education, Atlanta, Georgia; Johnnathan R. Ward, State Coordinator, Georgia Fatherhood Program, Department of Technical and Adult Education, Atlanta, Georgia; Dee Bell, Program Director, Department of Pardons and Paroles, Atlanta, Georgia; Danielle Ruedt, Program Evaluation, Georgia State University, Atlanta, Georgia

This seminar will describe the Georgia Fatherhood Program, a collaborative effort of four state agencies with the common goal to assist Georgia's children by ensuring that parents are prepared to support their children both financially and emotionally. The program was originated by the Department of Human Resources, Child Support Enforcement section through a contract with the Georgia Department of Technical and Adult Education to provide services to non-custodial parents with delinquent child support orders. These services were designed to assist participants in becoming appropriately trained and employed, thus becoming capable of paying child support.
The Department of Technical and Adult Education and the Georgia Board of Pardons and Paroles recognized that many offenders under parole supervision met the criteria of the Fatherhood Program and a Memorandum of Understanding was developed that included the original partners as well as the Board of Pardons and Paroles and the Georgia Department of Labor. The four agencies agreed to the main objective of providing comprehensive employment and training through the technical institutes within the Georgia DTAE for non-custodial parents who are currently under the supervision of the State Board of Pardons and Paroles and have a child support order with the Child Support Enforcement section.

Fatherhood Training for Prisoners: North Carolina's Pilot Project
Moderator:C. J. Edwards, Program Director, North Carolina Department of Correction, Division of Prisons, Raleigh, North Carolina
Presenters:The Honorable Theodis Beck, Secretary, North Carolina Department of Correction, Raleigh, North Carolina; Boyd Bennett, Director of Support Services, Division of Prisons, North Carolina Department of Correction.Raleigh, North Carolina; Mitch Braswell, Director, North Carolina Governor's Commission on Responsible Fatherhood
Raleigh, North Carolina; Anne Tew, Education Specialist, Division of Prisons, North Carolina Department of Correction
Raleigh, North Carolina; Carolyn Dickens, Director of Programs, Motheread, Inc.
Raleigh, North Carolina; Nancy Gaj, President, Motheread, Inc., Raleigh, North Carolina

Panel members will discuss their effort during the past year to establish a Fatherhood training program for North Carolina Division of Prison inmates. The initiative was begun by Dr. Peter Leousis (NC Department of Health and Human Services) at the request of Governor James Hunt. Dr. Leousis began the task by pulling together a working group composed of representatives from a variety of state agencies. Existing programs were reviewed in an effort to locate a suitable curriculum for the North Carolina inmate population. When an existing program that would meet the needs of the target population was not found it was decided that the Department of Corrections would seek an appropriate contract source for its own curriculum. The cost of the curriculum development was funded from the Division of Prisons Inmate Canteen Fund, which includes profit from prison canteens and pay telephone use by inmates. The contract was awarded to Motheread, Inc., an organization with extensive experience in curriculum, training and technical assistance for programs offered in the prison setting. The pilot sites chosen for the project's testing represent medium and minimum custody populations, as well as the youth (14 to 18) population. The curriculum will be taught by community college instructors from local colleges that are already providing educational programs to the pilot prison sites.

The panel will include representatives who can describe all aspects of the project itself, the curriculum that was developed, and the implementation process. Panel members will share information with the audience, and will be available to respond to specific audience questions.

Knowing the Rules: How Federal Policies Effect Reunification and Reintegration Efforts of Formerly Incarcerated Fathers and Mothers
Linda Mellgren, Senior Social Science Analyst, Office of the Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation, U. S. Department of Health and Human Services, Washington, D. C.

The objective of this panel presentation is to identify how current federal policies, including at the HHS Fatherhood Initiative, effect family reunification and community reintegration efforts for formerly incarcerated fathers and mothers and to provide information on actions that the state could take in implementing federal policies that could effect the potential impact of those policies on incarcerated parents and their families. HHS policies to be discussed include: Child Support (and all enforcement tools such as drivers license revocation that can be used when a parent is behind in child support payments); Adoption (termination of parental rights when a child is in foster care for 15 of 22 months); and TANF (prohibition on payment of TANF benefits to convicted drug felons). HUD policies on housing and DOL policies on elimination of the federal bonding program may also be included. Experts in each of these areas will present an overview of the federal policy, how that policy is being implemented at the state and/or local level, the degree to which there is flexibility in state implementation, and who in the state is responsible for determining how these polices will be implemented.


8:00 - 9:30 PM
Special Evening Session - "Voices Of Incarcerated Fathers" - Video Project Screening
This session will present the products of a joint effort on the part of the Family and Corrections Network and the Center for Children of Incarcerated Parents. Earlier this year, FCN and CCIP solicited grant applications from agencies and groups that work with prisoners to produce videotapes of interviews with incarcerated fathers. Grants were awarded to ECO, Inc of Charlotte, North Carolina; Washington County (MO) 4-H in Potosi, Missouri; and P B & J Family Services, Inc. in Albuquerque, New Mexico. Portions of the videos resulting from the grants will be shown during this session. The videotapes are not available for purchase or distribution at this time. Audience feedback and discussion of the videos will be appreciated. This project was funded by the Center for Children of Incarcerated Parents.


Friday, September 15, 2000

8:30 - 10:00 AM
Plenary Session - Stefan LoBuglio
Our scheduled plenary speaker for the Friday morning plenary, Arthur White, was regrettably unable to be with us, due to an illness requiring hospitalization. However, Arthur White arranged for one of his colleagues, Mr. Stefan LoBuglio, to make the plenary presentation. Mr. LoBuglio is Director of Program Services, Community Corrections Division, of the Suffolk County Sheriff's Department in Boston, Massachusetts. His presentation is: "Integrating Fatherhood Programs, Corrections Education, and Workforce Training Programs."

10:30 AM - 12:00 PM

Ethical Thinking and Practice in Fatherhood Programs
Neil Tift, Director of Professional Advancement, National Practitioners Network for Fathers and Families; Glen Palm, Ph. D., Professor, Child and Family Studies, St. Cloud State University, St. Cloud, Minnesota; Vivian Gadsden, Ph. D., Director, National Center on Fathers and Families, U. of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA

The rapid development of fatherhood programs during the last decade has created new standards for fatherhood and advocacy for father involvement. Fatherhood programs are located in a variety of different settings and practitioners represent a number of different backgrounds. Practitioners are advocates for involved fatherhood by the nature of their work. However, the fathers who participate in programs represent a variety of complex and fragile family systems. The diversity and complexity of family situations, the range of goals in fatherhood programs and the diverse backgrounds of practitioners working with fathers compound to create new ethical dilemmas. This workshop will present the importance of ethical practice and different approaches to thinking about ethics. Case studies to practice the process in small groups and discussion of ways to encourage ethical practice in fatherhood programs will be utilized in the workshop.

Welfare-to-Work: Implications for Fatherhood Programs
Mindy Feldbaum, Manpower Development Specialist, Division of Welfare-to-Work, United States Department of Labor, Washington, D. C..

The U. S. Department of Labor's Welfare-to-Work (WtW) grants program presents an important opportunity for states and localities to provide services to non-custodial parents. In addition, in 1999, the WtW amendments simplified the eligibility requirements, expanding the number of low-income parents who could be served under the program. This workshop will provide an overview of the WtW program, with a particular focus on the amendments. It will also identify and discuss opportunities, challenges, and strategies related to the WtW program.

Head Start and Father-Male Involvement
Jo-Ann Nelson-Hooks, Fatherhood Coordinator, National Head Start Association, Alexandria, Virginia

In this workshop, in keeping with the goals of strengthening the role of all Head Start fathers/father figures, participants will learn about elements leading to successful fatherhood initiatives within various Head Start programs. Also, participants will discuss strategies for using the Father Friendliness Organizational Self-Assessment Tool (FFFSAT).

Developing Successful Funding Proposals to Support Fatherhood Programs
Cynthia H. Sadler, Development Consultant, CHS Enterprises, Alexandria, Virginia

Seeking and finding funding to support responsible fatherhood programs is one of the great challenges to sustaining this new field of practice. This workshop session is designed for program managers and practitioners who want to increase their skills in preparing, submitting, and cultivating grant proposals to support services offered by responsible fatherhood programs. This session will present a proven, common-sense approach to grant proposal preparation. The workshop will focus on researching and cultivating support from local and regional funding sources, the key to long-term sustainability of the field. This workshop is sponsored by NPNFF's State Development Project, funded by the Ford Foundation.

Working With Incarcerated Fathers: A Multi-Dimensional Approach
Tom Alexander, Director, Family Works Program, The Osborne Association, New York, New York; Annemarie Lewis, Upstate Family Works Coordinator, The Osborne Association, New York, New York; Roy Hester, Children's Center Coordinator, The Osborne Association, New York, New York

The Osborne Association operates the FAMILY WORKS program in three prisons in New York State. The purpose of the program is to assist men to rebuild and/or maintain family ties during incarceration and prepare the fathers to reintegrate into their families upon release. We believe that in order to effectively motivate incarcerated fathers and help them begin to truly understand their potential as men, partners, and fathers, many areas of their lives must be examined. This is accomplished by offering a visible Children's Center in the visiting room where fathers can interact with their children using toys, games and books modeling a homelike setting. Through interaction with staff in the Children's Center, incarcerated men move toward learning new skills by enrolling in the basic parenting skills course. The program offers a sixteen-week course that addresses many fathering issues including the difficult task of parenting from prison. Many of the men who participate request individual counseling as well to get help with their specific issues including paternity, visitation, and communication with the mothers. The workshop will consist of a panel presentation covering the three components of the FAMILY WORKS program: the Children's Center, the basic parenting skills program, and counseling. A class exercise illustrating the format of the parenting skills class will also be presented.

HOPE for Life Parenting Program
Dominic Herbst, President, Bethesda Family Services Foundation, West Milton, Connecticut

Bethesda Family Services Foundation will provide an overview of its Parenting Program, HOPE (Helping Offenders Pursue Excellence) for Life. The objectives of the workshop will include presenting our strategic relational healing approach to family members, professionals and practitioners providing them with an overview of Bethesda's model of family systems counseling. The pervasive theme throughout the Bethesda program is one of expanding self-awareness and knowledge, followed by a positive change and a feeling of greater preparedness to cope with the complex demands of raising a child. These goals are accomplished by addressing the root causes of irresponsible and antisocial behaviors. The workshop will provide participants with a step-by-step method for reaching the source of the inmate's anger to bring about the emotional healing necessary to break the destructive cycle and restore the individual with his/her family and society—thereby ensuring a solid foundation for providing proper parenting techniques.

Children of Incarcerated Parents: Risk and Protective Factors
Carol Burton, MSW, Program Director and Supervisor of Prevention Programs, Mott Children's Health Center, Flint, Michigan; Ann Adalist-Estrin, Director, BRIDGES, Parent-Child Counseling and Consultation for Families and the Community, Jenkintown, Pennsylvania

Lessons learned from programs in community and faith-based settings tell us that a variety of supports can be provided to the children and families of the incarcerated. These supports act as protective factors against the risk of parental incarceration. This session will focus on the characteristics, issues, and concerns of incarcerated parents. Strategies from effective community responses will also be explored.

Weed and Seed: A Collaborative Model of Re-Entry Programs (workshop not presented due to scheduling conflict)
Nancy Ware, Director of Technical Assistance and Training Executive Office for Weed and Seed, U. S. Department of Justice, Washington, D. C.

Weed and Seed is a strategy of collaborative modeling that takes advantage of an array of community assets to address problems in a comprehensive manner by relying on community-based services provided in both the local government and community-based non-profits. Ms. Ware will present information on reentry programs that are being supported at the Federal level. There are several reentry sites that are unique in nature that could provide the basis for other models throughout the country. The workshop will provide information on these models, in addition to presenting important insight into the activities of the Federal government in the area of reentry Major topics to be discussed include community involvement, funding sources, and private and public collaboration.

Strengthening Fragile Families Through Father Involvement: The Strengthening Fragile Families Initiative
Hillard Pouncy, Ph. D., Princeton University, Princeton, New Jersey

Dr. Hillard Pouncy will discuss the evolution of policy, research and practice focusing attention on low-income, unmarried non-custodial men and their families. He will provide an overview of the demographics of 'fragile families' that are evolving from recent research studies, and the public policy issues related to welfare reform that have contributed both to the growth of fragile families and to increased attention on unmarried non-custodial fathers. He will present some of the policy and practice strategies that have been developed through the Strengthening Fragile Families Initiative to address the issues related to the field and the people SFFI attempts to serve.

Elements of an Effective Fatherhood Program [A special workshop sponsored and presented by the National Center for Strategic Nonprofit Planning and Community Leadership (NPCL), a conference co-sponsoring organization.]