Thursday, November 21, 2024
11/21/2024
Project Name: Montefiore Medical Center HERO Dads Program (formerly Supporting Responsible Fatherhood Program) Organization and Grantee Name: Montefiore Medical Center Authorizing Official's Name: Geoffrey Browne, gebrowne@montefiore.org Principal Investigator's Name: Scott Wetzler, Ph.D., swetzler@montefiore.org, 929-234-4783 Program Director's Name: Traci Maynigo, Psy.D., tmaynigo@montefiore.org, 347-920-1655 Address: 111 E. 210th St., Bronx, NY 10467 Web Site Address: www.cmocares.org/HERO Montefiore Medical Center (in partnership with BronxWorks) is proposing continuation of a large scope program to promote responsible fatherhood in the Bronx among low-income adult (18 years or older) fathers with non-custodial children (under the age of 24) by enhancing relationship and anger-management skills and providing marriage education; providing skills-based parenting education, disseminating information about good parenting practices, and encouraging child support payments (in partnership with our local OCSE); and fostering economic stability by providing employment-related supports inclusive of job search, vocational skills training, job referrals, and job retention. Our HERO Dads program is based on the notion that non-custodial fathers lack models of responsible fatherhood and are subject to numerous stressors that undermine their ability to remain engaged with their children and meet their child support obligations. These stressors include financial difficulties, un- and under-employment, poor relationships with the co-parent, and immediate and extended family pressures. Under stress and lacking basic relationship, parenting, and communication skills as well as knowledge of child development, many fathers become disengaged with their non-custodial children. We believe that relationship and parenting education, coupled with access to employment services that address these stressors, will support and strengthen fragile families with the goal of building resiliency and family-focus. Our program model is based on the premise that relationship and parenting skills can be taught, and will lead to improvements in relationships (knowledge about relationships, communication skills, stress management, reduction in destructive conflict), parenting (knowledge about child development, engagement with non-custodial children, effective parenting, co-parent communication, child well-being), and economic status (vocational skills, new employment or career advancement, f inancial literacy, child support). We propose to provide core relationship and relationship education workshops using an empirically supported curriculum: 24/7 Dad plus employment workshops, numerous supplemental activities to promote responsible fatherhood, individualized vocational case management, and job-driven employment services. In total, we expect to enroll 1,475 non-custodial fathers in the program and provide an average of 34 hours of total programming per participant (including 24 hours of primary workshop hours), which we believe is a sufficient dosage to detect impacts. We estimate that at least 1180 clients will receive 90% of primary workshop hours in Year 2. Finally, Montefiore is also conducting a local evaluation to study the implementation of 24/7 Dad using Zoom video technology so that couples can participate remotely. We are planning a randomized control trial design where fathers are assigned to Zoom or In-Person workshops, using the same curriculum. We hypothesize that the Zoom workshops will be equally effective and impactful as the In-Person workshops. We hypothesize that the Zoom workshops will be equally effective and impactful as the In-Person workshops. Given the limitations due to COVID-19, we will be providing our services only via Zoom until state and local authorities determine that it is safe to provide services to groups in-person. Therefore, we will not begin randomization until that time.
HHS’ Tracking Accountability in Government Grants System (TAGGS) website provides access to detailed descriptions of grants, loans, aggregated direct payments and other types of financial assistance awarded by the HHS Operating Divisions (OPDIVs) and the Office of the Secretary Staff Divisions (STAFFDIVs).
