Father Involvement in Head Start

-  Do you have programs specifically aimed at fathers?

-  Do you have staff in-service programs improving the quality of service delivery to fathers/males?

-  Do you actively recruit and employ male staff members and volunteers?

-  Do you make it clear that the father or other male figures are important and necessary in the delivery of services to the child and family?

-  When you telephone a family at home to discuss the child, do you talk with the father as well as the mother?

-  If the mother is the custodial parent, do you also mail all materials regarding the child to the father (if approved and legally appropriate)?

-  Do you flexibly schedule meetings at hours conducive to male/father attendance, and allow enough planning time so that fathers can arrange their schedules for the meeting?

-  Do your newsletters and printed materials reflect the valuable concerns and roles men play in the lives of their children; do your printed materials and hallways have pictures of men actively engaged with their children?

Head Start's underlying mission is to do what's best for children. And research has consistently shown that what's best for children is the involvement of both parents.

     Father involvement is significantly related to children's school success-even after accounting for mother involvement.1 Research also shows that supportive interactions with an engaged father or father-figure can benefit children both intellectually and socially, even if the father does not live with the child.2

     On a more basic level, children need to feel loved and cherished by their parents. A child who has the involvement of both father and mother has twice the love, twice the supervision, and twice the support.

What Can Head Start Do?

     Head Start should take the lead in recognizing the importance of fathers in the development of infants, toddlers, and young children. Parent involvement is a hallmark of the Head Start program, and we need to be sure that both parents are included in this effort.

     This can be a special challenge if a child's parents do not get along with one another. Head Start, though, can play a unique role as "neutral territory," where the non-custodial parent can spend some time with the child at the Head Start center. Training sessions on the importance of father involvement should be presented to Head Start parents and staff.

     The Head Start program needs to send a message that fathers are welcome-in both obvious and subtle ways. The checklist on this page can help programs ensure that fathers feel welcome at the center. It is crucial that staff be sensitive to the importance of fathers and create an environment that supports their involvement. Negative talk about fathers by staff and mothers should be strongly discouraged. This is especially important for children, whose eyes and ears are always open! Hearing negative comments about their fathers, or men in general, can have a significant negative impact on children.

One key to involving absent fathers in the lives of their children is to discover what pushed them away, and then to give them the appropriate support to become involved again. Head Start can help by: (1) forming partnerships to support the family-mother and father and child, regardless of whether the parents live together; (2) establishing "team parenting practices," regardless of whether the mother and father live under the same roof; and (3) providing staff training around establishing a father-friendly environment.

     Issues between moms and dads can be intense and divisive. Head Start must maintain its focus on the children-and what's best for the children-to cut through those parental relationship issues. This is especially important since welfare is no longer an entitlement and the father's financial and emotional involvement is even more crucial to the child's support and care.

     It is important that we in Head Start: (1) have a greater recognition of and respect for the father's importance in the family; (2) enlarge our focus on the need for both parents to be self-sufficient in order to enhance children's well-being; and (3) increase collaboration and coordination around family support, including social services, child support, and employment training.

     In Head Start, the needs of children come first. Head Start staff and parents should do all they can to support the healthy growth and development of young children-and that means supporting the involvement of fathers.

^1,2 Based on research cited in "What Policymakers Need to Know about Fathers," by Tamara Halle et al in Policy and Practice, vol. 56, no. 3, December 1998, pp. 21-35.