Fathers Make a Difference

by Mike Kildee, Family-Community Support Coordinator, Bendle/Carmen Ainsworth Learning Community, Flint, MI

Like all caregivers, dads play a critical role in the growth and development of their children. In fact, research shows that children whose fathers were highly involved in their schools were more likely to do well academically, participate in extracurricular activities, and enjoy school; they were less likely to have repeated a grade or been expelled compared to children whose fathers were less involved in their schools.^*

The culture of early childhood education has traditionally been a female’s world. Mom has often been the one who enrolls her child in school, talks with the teacher when there is a problem, attends parent meetings, and volunteers in her child’s classroom. At the Bendle/Carmen-Ainsworth Learning Community 0-5 Head Start program in Flint, we learned it can be a challenge just to get dads to step through the school doors. For the benefit of our students, we have attempted to change the culture so that all caregivers, including dads and men, feel welcome in our schools and are valued as important people in the growth and development of their children. We change culture by learning to do business differently. After nearly seven years of effort, the learning community culture is beginning to change.

At first, change efforts were as simple as hosting a monthly Dads’ Night where dads (or grandpas, uncles, big brothers, or any special adult male friend) and their children played together in the gym for an hour. At Dads’ Nights, activities were planned by dads around themes they selected (such as dinosaurs, sports, trucks, etc). During the 2002-2003 program year, the Learning Community added early literacy programming thanks to an Early Head Start Fatherhood Initiative grant. At the end of each night, every child received a book to take home, along with some suggested fun activities for home. This initiative has gone a long way in helping dads feel more welcome in the centers and comfortable with staff. It has led to seeing more dads reading with their children, volunteering in their children’s classrooms, taking time off work to attend field trips, attending parent meetings, and generally getting more involved with their children at school.

Next, a group of dads who were very involved with the Learning Community’s early childhood programs formed a group called Men at W.O.R.K.—Working On Relationships with Kids. These dads meet monthly with staff to plan programming. The focus is on encouraging more males to value themselves as important nurturers of their children’s growth and development. As these dads transition with their children from Head Start into the K-12 system, they have established Men at W.O.R.K. groups at the elementary schools to promote continued involvement of dads in their children’s education.

The cornerstone program within Men at W.O.R.K. is the Nurturing Fathers Program, a 17-week parenting class for fathers. The Nurturing Fathers Program provides a forum for dads to reflect on how they were parented by their own fathers. Beyond this, the program provides an opportunity for ongoing discussion and supports men to be the fathers they want to be for their own children. This program has been life changing for many dads. Two of the dads who participated in the Nurturing Fathers Program have now been trained as facilitators of this curriculum and will offer the class at their children’s elementary schools.

As more fathers have become involved in school programming and have begun to build trusting relationships with school staff, it has become apparent that fathers need to know how to find resources and advocates. The Michigan Fatherhood Coalition meets the need, allowing programs and agencies that work with fathers to network with others so everyone can do their best work for dads, children, and families. The Michigan Fatherhood Coalition meets monthly in Lansing to expand the network, identify new resources, and build new partnerships.

^*National Fatherhood Initiative’s Father Facts, Fourth Edition

If you would like to learn more about how to enhance your parent involvement programming to include dads and men raising children, contact: Mike Kildee or Marie Snodgrass, Bendle/Carman-Ainsworth Learning Community Early Childhood Programs, 1181 W. Scottwood Ave., Flint MI 48507, (810) 591-3890, mkildee@carman.k12.mi.us,
msnodgrass@carman.k12.mi.us, or visit the Michigan Fatherhood Coalition Web site at www.michiganfatherhood.org.

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