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There is an epidemic of single parent households in our country, the majority of which are run by mothers. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the number of children living with their mother only has doubled in the last 50 years. Currently, 18.4 million children, 1 in 4, live without a biological, step, or adoptive father in the home.
In Monroe County, 42% of families are headed by a single parent, as compared to a national rate of 34%. In the City of Rochester, 72% of families—that’s 16,283 households—are headed by a single parent.
Many single mothers are strong and capable women. But data shows that children with a father present in their lives function better cognitively, socially and emotionally, and are at a lower risk for poor childhood outcomes.
After decades of dealing with fatherless households, child welfare agencies have collaborated to create a local program that helps to reunite fathers with their families.
Data from the U.S. Census Bureau, 2022
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“The majority of child welfare cases are opened in the mother’s name,” said Steven Shannon, Program Director for Engaging Fathers and Young Men, an initiative of Coordinated Care Services, Inc., “As a result, many fathers are voiceless in the system. But when fathers are engaged, foster numbers go down.”
Data shows that when fathers are identified in child welfare cases, children spend fewer days in foster care and are more likely to be reunited with their parents.*
“Our program is focused on the father, hearing his voice and understanding his needs,” said Shannon, while helping them develop a collaborative relationship with caseworkers to support children Ultimately, it’s about the children.”
He explained that it’s not always intentional when a father doesn’t take an active role in the family. Separation or divorce can alienate a father. Poverty, job loss, addiction, incarceration, military deployment, depression or anxiety can create physical and mental barriers between a father and his family.
Shannon—himself a father of three children under the age of five—has made it his mission to give fathers a voice in a system that has at times shown a bias against them.
*Source: Journal of Child Custody, “Do Dads Matter?”
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Birth of Fatherhood Program
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The Engaging Fathers and Young Men program was spawned from the Monroe County Department of Human Services, Child and Family Services Division, through a bid won by CCSI. Child and Family Services, The Hub 585, and Healthy Baby Network partnered to write a narrative about providing support and community resources for fathers that eventually grew into the program.
“As Program Director, I’m responsible for building the program from using the Narrative created from Department of Human Services and partners,” explained Shannon. “In my role, I’m defining the referral process, hiring staff, developing policy, even down to creating the marketing vision and messaging.”
The Engaging Fathers and Young Men program was spawned from the Monroe County Department of Human Services, Child and Family Services Division, through a bid won by CCSI. Child and Family Services, The Hub 585, and Healthy Baby Network partnered to write a narrative about providing support and community resources for fathers that eventually grew into the program.
“As Program Director, I’m responsible for building the program from using the Narrative created from Department of Human Services and partners,” explained Shannon. “In my role, I’m defining the referral process, hiring staff, developing policy, even down to creating the marketing vision and messaging.”
Fathers can be referred to the program when a CPS caseworker is working with a family that wants to do better, where the father may be missing or not engaged. The program’s male Fatherhood Specialists— Pete Hopkins and Clayton Waller—use tools to search for the father, initiate contact for engagement and intake, then meet with the father to assess his needs.
“Our Fatherhood Specialists work in tandem with the caseworker to help these men find resources and achieve goals to be more engaged and better fathers,” said Shannon.
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When fathers are separated from their children, the longer it goes on, the harder it is to come back. There is a cycle of shame and guilt that makes it harder to return to the family.
The Engaging Fathers and Young Men program —which is still in its infancy with Shannon in his role for only a few months now—is currently working with seven referrals. “One thing I keep hearing from our Fatherhood Specialists working with fathers is, ‘This is the first time I’ve felt heard.’”
“I want people working with children to have a new perspective of understanding that the father may just need to be seen,” said Shannon. “Be that one advocate, see the whole person, make the referral and you can make a difference in the whole family.”
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