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| Promoting Responsible Fatherhood | Federal Resource Site |
[ Around the Regions, Main
Page ]
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Colorado, Montana, North Dakota, South Dakota, Utah, and Wyoming
Thomas F. Sullivan
Regional Administrator
Byron G. Rogers Federal Office Building
1961 Stout Street, Suite 926
Denver, CO 80294
Phone: 303-844-1129
Fax: 303-844-2624
Colorado, Montana, North Dakota, South Dakota, and Utah have begun implementation of Statewide Head Start Fatherhood Workplans, all of which complement the Region 8 Strategic Fatherhood Plan.
In Montana, South Dakota, and Utah, statewide Fatherhood Coordinating Committees are working with their respective Head Start Associations to share and suggest actual activities for individual Head Start sites. The State Head Start Collaboration Offices fund and support this work.
In South Dakota, the Fatherhood Coordinating Committee attends, presents, and participates in Regional and State Head Start Association meetings. Region 8 HSA meetings tend to have a strong Responsible Fatherhood component.
They have also developed a Head Start Training video for Home Visit staff regarding working with and being inclusive of fathers.
Also in South Dakota, the Committee has translated its Fatherhood T/TA website into Spanish to broaden its appeal nationally. The site, www.ruralfathers.com, is designed for Head Start and Early Head Start staff, fathers, and families. While it is a subscription site, they offer a free newsletter.
In Wyoming, a grant was awarded by the state to tailor The Father Factor model for local fatherhood programs. The new program is being used in Gillette and Torrington, Wyoming.
Montrose Head Start is working collaboratively with the Montrose County Child Support Enforcement Office on Responsible Fatherhood initiatives.
ACF Region 8 convenes quarterly teleconferences with our six states regarding Head Start Fatherhood issues and programs.
The State of Colorado has devoted effort across programs to develop a collective resource/website for all the Colorado Fatherhood programs and contacts. The result can be found at: http://www.cdhs.state.co.us/coworks/PDFs/FatherhoodProgramContactsNew.pdf (PDF, 11 pages). This website is updated regularly.
The Colorado Department of Human Services (CDHS) was awarded a grant by the Office of Family Assistance in the summer of 2006 to promote responsible fatherhood. CDHS is currently requesting proposals from organizations that can assist the state in meeting the goal of promoting the responsible fatherhood community access program. Requests for proposals must be submitted by Jun 8, 2007. The grant period will run July 15, 2007 through September 30, 2008.
The Florence Crittenton School, Denver Public Schools, and other partners, offers a Young Father's Program. Participants are 14-21 year old fathers. The program offers several services, including: parenting skills training, baby supplies, job readiness training, case management, referrals for visitation and custody, and more. More information can be found at their website: http://florencecrittenton.dpsk12.org/YoungFathers
Action for Eastern Montana Head Start: A father-friendly environment assessment was given to families and staff in the fall and will be given again in the spring. The program also offers a Dads and Donuts event.
A.W.A.R.E., Inc. Early Head Start: The program developed a weekly male/dads group, made up of fathers from the program and the community that is a forum to discuss the challenges of fatherhood. These meetings are conducted in collaboration with the Health Department and A.W.A.R.E. Case Management. At each of these meetings, a literacy activity is sent home with the fathers to share with their children. The program has seen a great increase in the number of dads that participate in the classrooms as a result of their fatherhood efforts.
Central Montana Head Start, Inc.: Currently, Central Montana Head Start distributes a newsletter titled "Father Times" on the first and third Wednesday of every month. They will be hosting a Male Involvement week during the week of March 27-30, where a male figure in the child's life will attend breakfast, lunch or snack in the classroom. Favorite Male Day will be hosted on April 22 which will include bowling, pizza and door prizes. Every Thursday in April the program will host a crock pot class that families can come for a meal, recipes and nutritional information. There are several fathers signed up to take the classes. After the final class, families will be sent home with a new crock pot and the ingredients to cook a meal. Central Montana Head Start will also be co-hosting a Spring Conference with the Child Care Resource and Referral program on May 13 which will include a four hour Fatherhood Workshop.
Child Start, Inc.: Child Start, Inc. initiated the planning and implementation of their Fatherhood Initiative by conducting needs assessments, purchasing materials to make the program more father friendly, planning activities, recruiting volunteers, and providing fatherhood training for the Head Start staff.
Deer Lodge County Commission: The program is continuing the Mr. Reading program and dedicated a week to the males in the program, whether they are fathers, grandfathers, uncles, or other males in the child's family. Fathers attend and participate in activities around the building with the children, such as getting the yard ready for summer and projects in the classroom. Kiwanis are involved with the males in the program. They also get a large number of high school boys which are part of the key club to come and read with the children, perform plays, and other activities.
District IX Human Resource Development Council: The program’s Fatherhood Advisory Council for Engaging Dads (FACED) offers take-home totes with books and corresponding activities and materials. The program has also developed a partnership with the local library and a community agency to promote literacy and provide trainings to males in the program.
Families in Partnership, Inc.: A Father Involvement/Family Involvement Specialist facilitates a male involvement group that meets once a month for an activity night. Staff are provided with training and information on the importance of male involvement with children, including non-custodial fathers. Support for fatherhood involvement is also provided by a group of Head Start fathers called Dedicated As Dads (DADs). The group makes an effort to call each father involved in the program to inform them of upcoming fatherhood activities.
Human Resource Council District XII (Butte): Donuts for Dads days are held monthly. Fathers and other males built a library room in the gym for families and children to use. Fathers attended a class to help the kids make special gifts for their mothers for Mother's Day. A scholarship fund for males volunteering at least a specified number of hours has been established. The male volunteers write an essay to qualify for funds to continue their education goals.
Kootenai Valley Head Start: A part time Fatherhood Coordinator position was created to assist in the coordination of fatherhood activities. "Guys Night" is held once a month which offers various male focused activities. A local newsletter for men is distributed and a bulletin board with information related to fatherhood topics is displayed.
Missoula Early Head Start: All of the fathers in the program participate in all activities provided, including a social work intern who started a father's group. The fathers have elected their own leadership, a president and vice-president. They are now deciding on the activities they would like to do during the summer. The vice-president of the Parent Committee is a father in the center-based program.
Northern Montana Head Start: The program has developed four main objectives to support the fatherhood initiative: Increase the amount of time that fathers positively interact with their children; Increase fathers' knowledge of early childhood literacy development; Increase fathers' recognition of their important role; and Help fathers develop a positive peer support system. The program is working towards these goals by hiring staff dedicated to these goals, purchasing books, and hosting a "21st Century Exploring Parenting" class.
Northwest Montana Head Start: The program hosts Dinner for Dads, including a speaker on the important role father’s play in the lives of their children.
Opportunities, Inc.: The program has established the "DIG IN" project, an incentive program for fathers and males to earn "credit" for one-on-one time spent with children in the program or community. There is a wall of fame at each school which recognizes each male that participates in the program. The Male Involvement Advisory Committee includes staff, parents and community members and assists in guiding father involvement projects. The Nurturing Fathers workshop was offered last year.
Ravalli County Head Start, Inc.: The Wise Guys curriculum was used to provide 25 hours of fatherhood training to males in the program. The Dad’s Inc. group was established and continues to meet regularly to discuss and participate in various aspects of the Head Start program. A father’s retreat was offered to all males in the program to enhance their awareness of the relationship they have with their children
Rocky Mountain Development Council, Inc.: The staff at Rocky Mountain Development Council was trained on the importance of involving fathers. The program offered a father-child activity called Bookshelf Build. Each father and child was given a nutritious meal, free books, and participated in building a take-home bookshelf.
Community Action Agency VI: Each parent committee plans one activity per year that is focused on father/child interaction in addition to fatherhood classroom activities that are planned twice a year. Information is mailed to the non-custodial father to ensure he is kept up to date on his child's progress in school. The "Father Times" newsletter is distributed to every father in the program while a special section focused on fatherhood related topics is included in each sites monthly newsletter.
Community Action Partnership (CAP): The program provided training to parents and staff to increase their skills and knowledge of the important role fathers play in children's and family's lives. Father and father figures of the program were fully involved as parenting partners for all the program activities such as parent-teacher conferences, field trips, home-base socializations, parent committee meetings, and parent training. In addition, a Fatherhood Week was hosted for fathers to spend at least one hour in their child's classroom.
Partnerships of Understanding were developed with key community agencies. West Dakota Parent and Family Resource Center provides specific parenting training for families, some of which is geared specifically toward fatherhood involvement. The Dickenson Public Schools Early Childhood Speech and Language Pathologists developed a series of Borrowed Boxes containing a book, a list of suggested follow-up activities and instructions, and needed materials to complete the activities by parents. CAP also established partnerships with other community, state, and nationwide agencies to support early literacy development and fatherhood involvement.
The program hired a Fatherhood Initiative Coordinator who organized a Fatherhood Advisory Committee comprised of fathers and father figures. The committee organized fatherhood activities throughout the program year.
Grand Forks Public School District: S.A.F.E. (Strong Active Fathers Educate) is an active program committed to involving fathers in every aspect of the Head Start program including promoting special events planned especially for fathers and mailing weekly newsletters to fathers who live out of town. Two Head Start parents that are involved in the S.A.F.E. program attended the Fatherhood Conference in Dallas, Texas.
Mayville State University (0-5): The program encourages father involvement through monthly parent/child activity days, participation in Donuts for Dads, requesting assistance from fathers in helping out around the facilities, and providing fatherhood materials to families. University male sports team members volunteer in classrooms and males provide childcare for Policy Council and Parent Trainings and meetings.
Early Explorers Head Start (Newport School District #4): The
program invited a local famous racecar driver to the HS site to meet with
the children and their fathers. He also brought his racecar. The children
and their fathers were able to have their picture taken with the driver and
his car. They also held a race with Matchbox cars that children brought from
home.
A MAPS (Males Achieving Parental Success) newsletter is sent monthly to each
father in the program. Articles include Fathering Non-Custodial Children,
Fathering, Couple Relationships, Kids, etc.
Williston Public School District #1: Outreach to male participants has increased over the past year, through an effort led by a father-friendly evaluation of the program, with the guidance of a father on Policy Council. Male support was reflected in many ways: through parent surveys, parent meeting agendas, resources specific for fathers in the parent lending library, male involvement events, and with fathers volunteering in the classroom. The Trenton HS center has books on display featuring fathers joining their children in the classroom, participating in literacy activities for a "Daddy, Donuts, and Me" event, and family activities. Last year events focused on fatherhood included a game and fish program, bowling night, ice-fishing project, and a football game.
A Purity Ball was held on March 11, 2005 in Sioux Falls, SD. Nearly 200 dads and daughters participated in this event, organized by the Abstinence Clearinghouse in conjunction with other abstinence organizations in South Dakota. The evening of dinner and dancing was designed to help young women make healthy choices for their future.
In April, 2004, the Sioux Falls, SD Fatherhood Initiative held "A Celebration of Fatherhood" in conjunction with a game played by the Sioux Falls SkyForce, a local Continental Basketball Association team, which donated 2,000 tickets for fathers and their children to attend the game for free. The theme of half-time activities was a celebration of Fatherhood. They have also obtained the cooperation of local Krispy Kreme franchisees, which have begun a 'Donuts for Dad' each month. On these days they give free donuts to each father and their children who come into their stores on these days.
Northeast South Dakota Head Start Inc.: At the beginning of the program year, a Fatherhood Leader is selected/recruited from each site to help organize fatherhood activities in the area of literacy. Activities include father/child readings in the classrooms, father/child bowling, and Donuts with Dad. The program also provides training, fatherhood resources, and Making a Difference videos for parents and staff.
South Central Child Development: The program has made efforts to train staff and to sustain a father-friendly environment for fathers and father figures. The program has provided ongoing staff and parent in-service trainings, a joint Dakota Fatherhood Conference, the Father Factor Training, and fatherhood materials and packets for both staff and fathers. In addition, a father-focused activity/event is held at least twice a year and in-service trainings are held on healthy marriage for staff to use in collaboration with fatherhood materials to better educate families.
Youth & Family Services: Youth & Family Services (YFS) Prenatal to Five Head Start has worked hard to include fathers in all aspects of the program. YFS has accomplished this by reviewing all policies, procedures, documents and overall agency philosophy to determine how they currently affect fathers and how they could be altered to better serve fathers and families.
Staff have attended various formal fatherhood training sessions, and receive the RuralFathers.com newsletter to stay informed on current fatherhood programming information and issues. YFS staff regularly distribute the newsletter along with Father Child Development Activities to fathers. These father-friendly activities are hands-on, age-appropriate, interactive activities designed to promote a strong emotional bond between infants, children, and their fathers through play. The age range for these activities is from prenatal first month through age 5.
YFS also administers monthly Father Child Group activities. Infants and children learn through observation and interaction as they socialize with their peers. These hands-on, age-appropriate, masculine activities are intended for fathers, infants, and children to use as a way to learn together in a group setting that promotes social skills, child development, and strengthens the bond between a father and his child.
In September 2005, YFS launched RuralFathers.com a one-of-a-kind program created to empower fathers and staff of fatherhood programs to fully understand the vital role males play in the proper development of children. RuralFathers.com contains resources and materials developed by YFS to help service agencies and early childhood educators, including Head Start and Early Head Start, develop a new program or enhance an existing fatherhood program. The site contains a free monthly newsletter, staff trainings, father child development activities, a question and answer bulletin board, father child group activities, father/male involvement meeting materials, multi-media resources, and links to other fatherhood sites. See www.ruralfathers.com for more information.
Davis County Public Schools in Farmington, Utah: A fatherhood specialist was hired and assisted in the development of a program called F.I.S.H. (Fathers Involved in Shaping Head Start children). Various tools are used to assist the men involved in the program in becoming successful fathers. Some of the tools include an educational video on father involvement, a fatherhood workshop that teaches the men "secrets" to effective parenting, monthly FISHin' trips, and a literacy project called "License to Read".
Mountainland Head Start, Inc: Many efforts are being made to encourage and involve fathers and father figures. Several activities have been held to promote fatherhood involvement such as the Daddy Dodgeball activity. Staff are trained to make specific requests to get men involved in the classrooms. The program held a Dads and Donuts literacy program in classrooms offering the opportunity for men read to their child and finish with donuts. Trained Family Service Specialists provide a pamphlet titled "Be there, Be a Dad" to families on their second home visit during the year. A monthly newsletter is sent out, which includes a special page titled "Activities for Men and the Children they Love".
Ogden-Weber Community Action Partnership (CAP), Inc.: Ogden-Weber
CAP has been very successful in the implementation and continuation of
father-focused activities. The Transportation Specialist oversees the fatherhood
activities in the community. A Fatherhood Committee comprised of current
Head Start parents provides input and support for father focused
activities.
Funding for the fatherhood programs have been made possible through donations
of goods and time by our community partners and very limited Head Start funds.
Monthly Fatherhood Newsletters are sent home to all families advertising
upcoming fatherhood activities, recruiting fathers for the Fatherhood Committee
and providing useful information on how fathers can impact the lives of their
children in a positive way. Ogden-Weber CAP strives to host a fatherhood
involvement activity at least once a month. Past monthly events include the
following:
Rural Utah Child Development: Each center classroom and home-based unit has elected a Fatherhood Volunteer to assist in the coordination of male activities and the recruitment of fathers to participate in Head Start functions. The Fatherhood Volunteer is also in charge of the "Male Home Work" project which provides ideas and materials for activities fathers can do with their children at home. Many of the ideas come from the fathers themselves. In the past three years RUCD has seen a 60% increase in male involvement.
Absaroka Inc.: At the beginning of the year, a Male Involvement Survey is given to each family from every center. A Spanish survey is available for males that primarily speak Spanish. If there is no father in the home the staff finds a male role model for the child (with the mother's permission) to fill out the survey. This survey is used to set up activities and to solicit resources from father /males. The program has shared the survey with other Head Start programs in Wyoming. The program maintains a Father Liaison for each center. The program has hosted activities for dads such as:
Carbon County Child Development Program, Inc.: The Carbon County Child Development (CCCDP) has successfully made their program a more father friendly place. They accomplished this through improving the environment, ensuring communication, increasing activities, and implementing trainings. CCCDP staff are diligent in ensuring that fathers receive all communications such as newsletters, and announcements for activities and trainings. The staff is especially conscientious in ensuring that fathers who are absent or have a joint custody arrangement receive these communications so that they can stay involved.
Children Development Services of Campbell Co. (Gillette, WY): The strategies geared toward Male Involvement at CDS-CC/EHS this program year include; Family Fun Nights, information dissemination on the importance of male involvement and ways to be involved, scheduling home visits and socializations to fit the father's schedule, networking session at the Wyoming Head Start Association meeting, and additions to their library resources. Some of the male-focused activities offered include Family Fishing Day, Dads and Doughnuts, and Dad’s Dino Dig.
Community Action Laramie County, Inc.: The program is in the beginning stages of creating a comprehensive family and community involvement plan that will include a specific plan for fatherhood development and male involvement. Father Factor, a 12-week program designed to provide fathers with a safe environment to discuss difficult issues, was provided in 2005. Men who participate in the program provided staff with information on fatherhood related issues and also recruited new fathers to participate in program activities.
Laramie Child Development Corporation: Laramie Head Start is now part of the University of Wyoming's Athletic Department-sponsored community program to donate home-game football tickets to children and their families. In addition, the University of Wyoming's men's basketball team is working with Laramie Head Start to plan activities and social events for children and their families. Some of the basketball players are volunteering weekly in the classrooms.
Lincoln-Unita Child Development Association: The program has used funds from a previous grant to implement a literacy program emphasizing the involvement of fathers, including a Dining with Dad event.
Wyoming Child & Family Development, Inc. EHS: A Male Activities Committee comprised of fathers and father figures assists in planning and organizing two father and child activities each year. Activities have included Big Truck Day, Tailgating Lunches, and Drive-In Movie Night to name just a few. Intensive training during Pre-Service and In-Service have been provided to staff discussing the influence of fathers in children’s lives. Efforts have been made to create more male friendly environments by hanging posters featuring men and children in the centers. Trainings have been offered to fathers that provide information on developing and strengthening relationships, co-parenting techniques, and guidance and discipline strategies.
Last Revised: July 31, 2007
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