Brief Supporting Healthy Marriages among Fathers with Histories of Incarceration
Subtitle
Activities and Lessons from Six Responsible Fatherhood Programs
Jocelyn Fontaine, Joshua Eisenstat, Lindsey Cramer
Display Date
File
File
Download
(254.34 KB)

After incarceration, fathers must overcome several reentry barriers, including reconnecting with their spouse, partner, or coparent. To help fathers reunify with and support their families, six Office of Family Assistance-funded Fatherhood Reentry programs implemented a range of healthy marriage activities aimed to strengthen fathers’ relationships with their partners or coparents, encourage effective coparenting, and prevent domestic violence. This implementation evaluation documented the array of healthy marriage services offered to participating fathers, such as relationship classes, family activity days, coached telephone calls, special events, assistance navigating child support issues, and domestic violence screenings and programming. Drawing on the six programs’ implementation experiences, this brief recommends that providers consider partner/coparent interaction activities as a targeted and meaningful component of any family-focused reentry program and that providers work with partners on family reunification when they are ready.
Research and Evidence Justice and Safety Work, Education, and Labor Tax and Income Supports Family and Financial Well-Being Nonprofits and Philanthropy
Expertise Families Nonprofits and Philanthropy Courts, Corrections, and Reentry Early Childhood
Tags Economic well-being Corrections Job training Children and youth