Pregnancy Centers: Restoring Fatherhood Webinar 2013

©2013 National Fatherhood Initiative 1
PRC’s on the Frontlines of Restoring
Fatherhood, Restoring Families
________________________________________________
Integrating Responsible Fatherhood Programming
in Pregnancy Centers
The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy.
I came that they may have life and have it abundantly. John 10:10

©2013 National Fatherhood Initiative
your LIFE work…
And think more about it as promoting…
Life ABUNDANT!
I want you to re-think …
2

Stages of Adoption
 Awareness
I know there is a problem.
 Interest
I want to find out more.
 Decision
I have to do something.
 Implementation
This is what I am going to do.

I attended either the PRC’s on the Frontlines of
Restoring Fatherhood last October (2012)? And/or the
workshop Reaching Men at the recent Care Net
Conference in Denver?
 Yes
 No
POLL
4

Our Center is intentional about reaching out to
fathers (or fathers to be):
 All the time
 Sometimes
 We need help!
 Not really
 Never
POLL
5

Our Center has partners with other agencies for
resources and services for fathers or fathers to be:
 Yes
 No
 Not really
 We’d like to
POLL
6

Who is NFI?
Understand Why Fathers Matter and are worth the effort
Recognize some barriers to father engagement
Involving Moms in Involving Dads
Talk about your center’s Father Friendliness and...
Some Next Steps
Q&A
In today’s webinar we will...
7

NFI is a non-profit, non-partisan organization that was founded in 1994 to begin a society-wide
movement to renew fatherhood in America.
8
NFI’s Mission is carried out using a “Three E” Strategy
Who is National Fatherhood Initiative (NFI)?

NFI, continued
Key Message:
Fathers are
Irreplaceable
& an Essential
Ingredient for
Child Well-Being

So, What Areas do Fatherlessness Impact?
 Poverty
 Emotional/Behavior
 Maternal and Child health
 Crime/Incarceration
 Sexual Activity and Teen Pregnancy
 Child Abuse
 Child Obesity
 Education

Impact on Maternal and Child Health:
 Babies with a father’s name on the birth certificate are 4 times
more likely to live past 1 year of age!
 Source: Alio, A.P., Mbah, A.K., Kornosky, J.L., Marty, P.J. & Salihu, H.M. "The Impact of Paternal
Involvement on Feto-Infant. Morbidity among Whites, Blacks, and Hispanics". Matern Child Health J.
2010; 14(5): 735-41
 Infant mortality rates are 1.8 times higher for infants of unmarried
mothers than for married mothers.
 Source: Matthews, T.J., Sally C. Curtin, and Marian F. MacDorman. Infant Mortality Statistics from the
1998 Period Linked Birth/Infant
 A study of 2,921 mothers revealed that single mothers were twice
as likely as married mothers to experience a bout of depression in
the prior year. Single mothers also reported higher levels of stress,
fewer contacts with family and friends, less involvement with
church or social groups and less overall social support.
 Source: Cairney, John and Michael Boyle et al. “Stress, Social Support and Depression in Single and Married
Mothers.” Social. Psychiatry and Psychiatric Epidemiology 38 (August 2003): 442-449

Impact on Teen Pregnancy & Sexual Activity:
 Being raised by a single mother raises the risk of teen pregnancy, marrying
with less than a high school degree, and forming a marriage where both
partners have less than a high school degree.
 Source: Teachman, Jay D. “The Childhood Living Arrangements of Children and the Characteristics of Their
Marriages.” Journal of Family Issues 25 (January 2004): 86-111.
 ...adolescents in father-absent homes were more likely to report being
sexually active compared to adolescents living with their fathers...the
study also revealed a statistical significance between father absence and
adolescent self-esteem
 Source: Hendricks, C. S., Cesario, S. K., Murdaugh, C., Gibbons, M. E., Servonsky, E. J., Bobadilla, R. V.,
Hendricks, D. L., Spencer-. Morgan, B., & Tavakoli, A. (2005). The influence of father absence on the self-
esteem and self-reported sexual activity of rural. Southern adolescents. ABNF Journal, 16, 124-131.): 442-
449
 ...based on the study, findings, the inability to bond in satisfactory ways
with a father or father figure may result in earlier onset of sexual activity
and the higher risk of teen pregnancy.
 Source: Burn, V. E. (2008). Living without a strong father figure: A context for teen mothers’ experience of
having become sexually active. Issues in Mental Health Nursing, 29, 279–297.

Children in father-absent homes are two to five times more likely to:
 live in poverty
 fail in school
 develop emotional or behavioral problems
 abuse drugs
 be abused and neglected
 become involved in crime
 commit suicide
Why Fathers Matter – at a glance:
> The Consequences of Father Absence
> The Benefits of Father Involvement
Children with involved fathers are more likely to have:
 better cognitive outcomes, even as infants
 higher self-esteem and less depression as teenagers
 higher grades, test scores, and overall academic achievement
 lower levels of drug and alcohol use
 higher levels of empathy and other pro-social behavior

NFI’s National Surveys

There is a father absence crisis...
93 91
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
90
100
Percent who agree there is a father
absence crisis
Moms
Dads

… But Dads are Seen as “Replaceable”
55
66
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
90
100
Percent of moms who agree
that fathers are replaceable
By mothers
By other males
What moms
think…

Do Dads Have the Skills?
• Over half of dads feel they are replaceable.
• Only half of dads reported that they felt ready to be fathers when they first became
fathers.
• Only a third of dads strongly agree with the statement that they have all the necessary
skills and knowledge to be good fathers.
What Dads think…
2006 Pop’s Culture: A National Survey of Dads’ Attitudes on Fathering

Do Dads Have the Skills? (cont.)
• Moms not living with dads reported “lack of knowledge about
how to be a good dad” as the biggest obstacle to good fathering
and “lack of parenting resources designed specifically for
fathers” as 3rd highest. These obstacles ranked 3rd and 4th for
moms overall!
• Moms not living with dads were very dissatisfied with dad’s
performance…
2009 Mama Says: A National Survey of Mothers’ Attitudes on Fathering
What Moms think…

Moms and Dads Disagree on Obstacles
What Dads Overall Think The Obstacles Are
1. Work responsibilities
2. Media/popular culture
3. Financial problems
4. Lack of knowledge
5. Child’s mother*
What Moms Overall Think The Obstacles Are
1. Work responsibilities
2. Dad’s relationship with own dad
3. Lack of knowledge
4. Lack of parenting resources for dads
5. Lack of support from relatives/friends

New or Expectant Fathers say...
 My dad was never there. I want to be there for my kids.
 I realize the impact that my father had on me. Even though he
wasn’t there, he made a huge impact on my life- he left a lot of
questions unanswered.
 I’m here because I want to do things right!
 I want to give my child the one thing I never had, an involved
father!
 I want to get this one right!
 A Careerbuilder.com survey of 1521 working dads in 2007
indicated that 38 percent would take a pay cut to spend more time
with their children

The following part of the presentation is taken
from a webinar presented by the
National Resource Center for In-Home Services
and
National Fatherhood Initiative
Barriers? What Barriers?
21

22
NRFCBI Logic Model
The National Resource Center for In-Home Services, a service of
the Children’s Bureau’s national child welfare Training and
Technical Assistance Network, serves as a national center of
child welfare expertise on
In-home services designed to ensure the safety and
well-being of children and youth in their homes,
prevent their initial placement or reentry into
foster care, and preserve, support and stabilize
their families.

23
NRFCBI Logic Model
The NRC for In-Home Services promotes EARLY efforts to engage
nonresident fathers in:
 Hospital-based parenting programs
 Home-visiting programs
 Early-childhood programs
 Family-support programs
 Family-preservation services offered to families involved with
the child protection system
 Services to prevent placement

24
NRFCBI Logic Model
The Role of Nonresident Fathers in Maintaining Children Safely at
Home
 Studies specific to families involved with the child welfare
system have found that:
 Children who had contact with a noncustodial parent in the last year
were 46% less likely to enter foster care
 Involvement by nonresident fathers associated with more
reunifications and fewer adoptions
 Higher levels of nonresident father involvement are associated with
substantially lower likelihood of later maltreatment allegations
 Children with highly involved nonresident fathers exited foster care
more quickly
Sources:
Chen, Henry. Karin, Malm, and Erica Zielewski. More About the Dads: Exploring Associations between Nonresident Father Involvement and Child Welfare Case
Outcomes. Washington, DC, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office of the Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation 2008
available at http://aspe.hhs.gov/hsp/08/moreaboutdads/report/pdf; “A National Study of Male Involvement Among Families in Contact with the
Child Welfare System” Jennifer L. Bellamy, Child Maltreatment 2009, 14:255-262

25
NRFCBI Logic Model
A Few Stats about Fathers...
 67.8 million: Estimated number of fathers across the nation
 25.8 million: Number of fathers who were part of married
couple families with children younger than 18 in 2009
 24 million: (34 percent): Number of children who live absent
their biological father
 Source: National Responsible Fatherhood Clearinghouse. Dad Stats. Available at: http://fatherhood.gov/library/dad-stats

26
NRFCBI Logic Model
What About The Dads?
2006 Report- What About the Dads
Data based on telephone interviews with 1,222 caseworkers in four states

27
NRFCBI Logic Model
Importance of Father Involvement
 Increases informal supports and resources
 Promotes family and cultural connections
 More “eyes” on the well-being of the child
 Facilitates concurrent planning, when necessary
 Gives you (and the child) a greater understanding
about his/her life

28
NRFCBI Logic Model
Foster Youth Talk About Fathers
“Every kid has a right to know their father.”
“Having a male as part of your life is a big deal. There is just a connection
that father and son have that cannot be replaced. [I think child advocates
should] try their best to make sure that there is a connection with son and
father.”
“I didn’t talk to my dad from the time I was 4 to 14. I lived with him for 6
months while I was 14. Now we talk just about every day.”
I think that once the state gets involved with children, fathers tend to stay
away, so [child advocates] or some other service providers should work on
keeping fathers involved with their kids.”
Source:
“Engaging Fathers in Child Welfare Cases: A Guide for Children’s Attorneys and Lawyer Guardians ad Litem: and “Engaging Nonresident
Fathers in Child Welfare Cases: A Guide for Court Appointed Special Advocates” Washington, DC: American Bar Association Center on Children
and the Law, 2010.

29
NRFCBI Logic Model
Barriers to Engagement
Studies suggest that fathers are not engaged in child welfare processes
because:
Child welfare agencies have a history of being primarily mother focused
Some child welfare caseworkers view involving fathers as complicated and
burdensome
Child welfare agencies are hesitant or fear involving fathers with a history of domestic
violence because their engagement may compromise mothers’ and children’s safety
Sources:
Dungee Greene, A. & Anderson Moore, K. “Nonresident Father Involvement and Child Well-Being among Young Children in Families on
Welfare.: Marriage & Family Review, 29(2/3), 2000, 159-180; Franck, E. “Outreach to Birthfathers of Children in Out of Home Care.” Child
Welfare, 80(3) 2001,381-399; Malm, Murray & Geen, 2006; O’Hagan, K. “The Problem of Engaging Men in Child Protection Work.” British
Journal of Social Work, 27(1), 1997,25-42.

30
NRFCBI Logic Model
Studies suggest that fathers are not engaged in child welfare processes
because:
Child welfare caseworkers may view fathers as insignificant to the family unit, or may
avoid fathers out of fear of violent reactions, or have a general distrust of men
Some fathers need assistance with parenting skills before assuming a more prominent
role in their children’s lives
Some out-of-State fathers cannot access reliable transportation
Sources:
Dungee Greene, A. & Anderson Moore, K. “Nonresident Father Involvement and Child Well-Being among Young Children in Families on
Welfare.: Marriage & Family Review, 29(2/3), 2000, 159-180; Franck, E. “Outreach to Birthfathers of Children in Out of Home Care.” Child
Welfare, 80(3) 2001,381-399; Malm, Murray & Geen, 2006; O’Hagan, K. “The Problem of Engaging Men in Child Protection Work.” British
Journal of Social Work, 27(1), 1997,25-42.

31
NRFCBI Logic Model
Mother’s Role in Engagement
Some studies have also revealed several reasons why mothers and relatives do
not identify or engage fathers, including:
Concerns that he might get in trouble with the law because he has outstanding child
support payments, or owes a large sum of back payments
He is an undocumented immigrant
He has outstanding arrest warrants
There is a history of domestic violence and the mother fears for her and her children’s
safety
The mother receives informal financial and in-kind support from the father, and chooses
to conceal the father from child welfare authorities who could order him to pay child
support (which may be less than what she receives from him already)
Sources: Curran, Laura. “Social Work and Fathers: Child Support and Fathering Programs.” Social Work 48(2), 2003; Sonenstein, Freya, Karen Malm & Amy Billing.
Study of Fathers’ Involvement in Permanency Planning and Child Welfare Casework. Washington, DC; Urban Institute 2002. http://aspe.hhs.gov/hsp/CW-dads02/

32
NRFCBI Logic Model
The Quality Improvement Center on Non-Resident Fathers (QIC-NRF) conducted numerous focus
group and interviews with child welfare professionals, asking them what their barriers to father
engagement were. They said:
Lack of training for child welfare professionals
Unfriendly “father” environment
Lack of interagency collaboration to locate fathers (e.g. child support agency connections
Lack of policy/procedures to help identify, locate, and contact fathers
Worker reluctance to contact fathers
Feeling that it makes case management more difficult
Mothers act as “gatekeepers”
Fathers don’t want to be contacted
Protecting informal support arrangement
Domestic violence issues
Don’t know the father’s identity

Barriers to Engagement:
What are the barriers in pregnancy centers?
Men in the center? (what is the message—are all men unsafe?)
Are we waiting for all things to fall in place? (will that ever happen?)
Are assumptions for what is best correct?
Wasting God given opportunities?
Can’t get male volunteers

Maternal Gatekeeping:
Involving Moms in Involving Dads
________________________________________________

Defining Terms:
Gateway: an opening to a main entrance or exit way.
Gatekeeper: a person who controls access.
Merriam Webster’s Definitions

Maternal Gatekeeping
 Definition
 A collection of beliefs and behaviors
that may inhibit a collaborative effort
between men and women in family
work.
 Behaviors
 Assume primary responsibility for
childrearing tasks.
 Criticize the father’s actions when he
is involved.

Behavioral Aspects
 How the mother speaks about the father in the presence
of their child
 To what extent the father is included or updated on the
child’s health, schooling or social life
 The extent to which the mother communicates to the
father that she knows what is best for their child and the
correct way to do things—while he does not.
An example from a “fatherhood expert”:
Dads Doing Good- Mobile Library
Dad's Doing Good/Honda Odyssey/ Mobile Library

Behavioral Aspects
 Studies have demonstrated that when mothers
perceived their partners as motivated and
competent to engage in child care responsibilities,
fathers were more involved in childcare.

Reasons for Maternal Gatekeeping
Beliefs (conscious/unconscious)
Difficulty relinquishing familial responsibility
Validation of her identity as the “mother”
View the father as incompetent or even dangerous to the child
 Based on actual evidence; or
 On personal perceptions of him and his failures in the male
familial role
 Don’t know? – Do know?
Goal
Regulate the father’s involvement and behavior. (facilitative or
inhibitory)
Allen, S. M., & Hawkins, A. J. (1999). Maternal gatekeeping: Mothers’ beliefs and behaviors that inhibit greater father
involvement in family work. Journal of Marriage and the Family, 61, 199–212.
39

Affects of Maternal Gatekeeping
 The ability of the child to adjust to parental
divorce or separation is weakened
 Can damage the father-child relationship
 Can damage the parents’ ability to cooperate and
keep their conflict levels low and out of the child’s
earshot or awareness
 Threat to the overall well-being and adjustment
of the child
40

Research
 Overall, the implication is that the relationship between
father’s perceived investment in their actual levels of paternal
involvement are moderated by mothers beliefs about the role
of the father.
 There is a strong implication that mothers perceptions of the
paternal role are better predictors of father involvement than
fathers’ own perceptions of the paternal role.
Paternal Identity, Maternal Gatekeeping, and Father
Involvement (Family Relations, 54 (July 2005), 360-
372.Blackwell Publishing.)

Dr. Kyle Pruett Study
 Mothers hold infants 9 out 10 times in the same
position. Fathers hold infants10 out of 10 times in
different positions.
 During play with children, mothers use external
objects (ex., toys, books, balls) but fathers use
their bodies.
 When children encounter novel situations, fathers
are generally 3 times the distance away from
mothers’ position.
Different- not better!

Involvement Benefits Mothers
 More likely to obtain prenatal care
 More likely to breast feed
 Less likely to smoke
 Less likely to become
depressed

Involvement Benefits Babies
 Less likely to be Low Birth Weight infants
 More likely to be breast fed
 Nutrition
 Immune benefits
 Fewer respiratory and allergic disorders
 Less likely to develop SIDS and respiratory illness if
mother is a non smoker

Things to include when addressing Gatekeeping:
 Increase mothers’ awareness of what gatekeeping is,
how it operates, and how it is sometimes misused out
of anger and hurt
 Offer concrete examples that will facilitate mothers’
understanding of the negative impact of excessive
gatekeeping and the importance of supporting father
involvement (one hand)
 Engage mothers in exercises that will facilitate the
reduction of restrictive maternal gatekeeping
behaviors that inhibit father engagement.
 Great to have staff go through the same exercises as
part of professional development

Tool Box Strategies
 Conduct Father Friendly Check Up™
 Keep focus on the Child well being
 Use Mom As Gateway™ workshop
 Use Understanding Dad™ program
 Ask about dads’ involvement during initial intake
process with moms- Pursue! Ask!
 Create opportunities for dads and their kids to do
activities together and market to moms as a
“Mom’s Day Off”
 Offer sessions to staff on gender and parenting
differences between moms and dads
 Offer sessions to moms on gender and parenting
differences between moms and dads

Tool Box Strategies
 Plan activities that will engage dads’ interest
 Small groups
 Fatherhood Resource Centers
 Provide, refer, or connect dads to other
father programs
 Sports related
 Hands-on

Can’t BE what you don’t SEE
 Increasing the skills of the dad, increases the dad’s confidence
as a father.
 Increasing the skills of the dad, increases the mom’s
confidence in him!

 FatherTopics™ Workshop :
Essential Communication Skills®
Domestic Violence Prevention®
Mom As Gateway®
Build up Dad’s Skills
48

What Can PRC’s Do to Engage Fathers?
49
The Father-Friendly
Check-Up™
The Father Friendly Check-Up™ is a stepping stone to help you
successfully engage dads and strengthen the families in your
community! This tool helps you assess the degree to which your
organization’s operations encourage father involvement in the
activities and programs offered by your organization.

Benefits
 Learn to create a father-friendly organization from a
holistic perspective
 Ability to identify the four areas of focus
 Create an organizational culture that can support
exceptional fatherhood programs and services
 Have a foundation for a strategic plan to increase father-
friendliness
 Sample of PRC Strategic Plan available on request
 No and low-cost tactics
 Encourage leadership/colleagues/co-workers to complete
the Father Friendly Check-Up™
 Determine how NFI can help you develop and sustain
exceptional fatherhood programs and services with next
steps

Father Involvement Factors
Motivation Social Supports
Skills and
Self-Confidence
Institutional/
Cultural Factors
FATHER INVOLVEMENT
Source: “The Role of the Father in Child Development” edited by Michael Lamb,
Ph.D.

Motivation & Skills & Self-Confidence
DEVELOPMENTAL HISTORY
 Model of own father
 Father’s age
 Marital history/status
 Socialization around birth of child
PERSONALITY
 Gender-role orientation
 Self-esteem
BELIEFS
 Father’s role is important
 Men are competent parents
SELF-EFFICACY
 Believes has skills necessary to be a good father and parent
PARENTAL KNOWLEDGE
 Child development

Social Supports & Institutional/Cultural
Factors
 Mother’s employment
 Quality of marriage
 Men’s social networks
 Father’s employment
 Media
 Other institutions/sectors
 Government, Education, Faith,
etc.

History of the Father Friendly Check-Up™
 NFI Developed the tool and workshop in 2000
 Used by organizations in every state
 Via workshop or conference session
 Via NFI website
 Created customized versions for many organizations
 Designed to help build capacity in
 Leadership Development
 Organizational Development
 Program Development
 Community Engagement

Assessment Categories
 Leadership Development
 Focuses on influencing the attitudes, beliefs, and
values held by the organization’s employees at all
levels on the importance of serving fathers—the
culture of the organization
 Organizational Development
 Involves how the “nuts and bolts” of an
organization ensures that it carries out its mission
through better organizational capacity as reflected
in areas such as: 1) policies, procedures, and
processes 2) staff development and training, and
3) physical environment

Assessment Categories, continued
 Program Development
 The foundation of an effective program relies on quality staff and
resources, and effective strategies to recruit and retain fathers
 Community Engagement
 It is the essential ability to engage the communities,
increase awareness of the impact of absent/involved
fathers to their community and of resources available
to help fathers become more involved, responsible,
and committed

Staff
• Gender Bias
• Interview questions/vignettes
• Staff training around gender differences and parenting
styles
• Different vs. better
• Female Brain compared to Male Brain
• Balance of work and family
• Addressing parents in home visits
• Feedback to parents in their differences and the way the
child responds

Program Development
 Family driven especially around sensitive issues
 Father Friendly Curricula
 Learning style
 Hands on
 Interactive
 Ages Stages/Social Emotional
https://www.fatherhood.org/countdowntogrowingup

Case Study #1: PCC of Wichita, KS
 Pregnancy Care Center
 Provides guidance on decisions around and services
related to unplanned pregnancies and treatment for
sexually-transmitted diseases (e.g. testing and
counseling)
 Historically served mothers, little or no outreach to
fathers
 Now offer several classes for fathers including NFI’s
24/7 Dad® and Doctor Dad®
 Visit www.pccwichita.org for more information

Sav-A-Life Pregnancy Test Center
60
Sav-A-Life Fatherhood Ministry Coordinator -Russell Worrell
Birmingham, Alabama
https://vimeo.com/63608955

Father Friendly Check-Up®
 Available free for download on NFI website
(www.fatherhood.org) in Free Resources in the For
Organizations section of the website
 Use it to gauge how your co-workers view the father
friendliness of your organization
 Encourage your co-workers and others to complete it
 Complete it at different intervals after implementing a
strategic plan and tactics (e.g. 6 months, 1 year, 18
months) to see how the organization progresses toward
becoming more father friendly—compare scores

62
 Look at your Mission Statement
 Reception Room- Décor
 Scripts
 Forms
 Staff- male?
 Services
 Partnerships

Reception Area:
Is the reception area father friendly?
Magazines for men?
Do you have materials for men/dads?
Do you have forms for them to fill out?
Do you have a male staff for him to
speak with?

Scripts
Many scripts include an invite to bring “someone”
 Make a specific invite to bring the father
 Be aware of the messages center is giving
Look for God given opportunities to reach dads
 Ask about the father situation- at least ask!
Teach staff to ask the questions- more questions
 What do you think of when I say ‘daddy’?
 How did you feel about that situation? Etc.
If no male staff or volunteer- make sure the female staff has
a heart for the father

Generate interest!
Events focused on father involvement
Conduct a focus group of fathers
Conduct a focus group of mothers
Determine/Acknowledge the barriers
 Are all fathers considered as perpetrators or dangerous?
 Or in need of direction, support and skills?
Tie everything back to the Values-
 Are they promoting single motherhood or
 Are they promoting Life …

Or ABUNDANTLife?

Margaret Mead
“The primary task
of every civilization is to teach
the young men to be fathers.”

“From the loving example of one family
a whole state becomes loving.”
- the Great Learning (c.500 B.C)
Confucius
67

He will turn the hearts of the fathers to their children, and the hearts of the children to
their fathers...”
Malachi 4:6
They are to do good, to be rich in good works, to be generous and ready to share, thus
storing up treasure for themselves as a good foundation for the future, so that they may
take hold of that which is truly life.
1 Timothy 6:18-19
The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy.
I came that they may have life and have it abundantly.
John 10:10
God
68

www.fatherhood.org
Ave Mulhern
amulhern@fatherhood.org
240-912-1265
Connect With Us

Q & A
70

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