The O.A.R. Leadership Institute was created with the mindset that nonprofit, social work, marriage and family, early childhood, and other professionals often do not get training programs for their personal and professional development centered on leadership. Fathers and Families Coalition of America invites you to enroll, now invest into yourself with the leadership institute, September 22-24, 2021. #socialwork #leadership #leadershipdevelopment #coaching #mentalhealth #wellness #mentoring #nonprofit #inspiration #success #mindset

Limited Call for Workshop Slots Available

OPEN CALL FOR WORKSHOP APPLICATION FORM HERE

Be sure to head on over to the WEBSITE to learn more about our new 22nd Annual Families and Fathers Conference plans and see the inspiration behind each track, roundtable, and special hybrid conference that is supported by our talented team of collaborations and the Annie E. Casey Foundation and the Law Office of Jeffery M. Leving, just two of our 2021 Sponsors.

Final Call for Workshop.pdf

SEND YOUR WORKSHOP NOW

22nd Annual Families and Fathers National Conference
Hilton Los Airport
5711 West Century Boulevard
Los Angeles, California 90045
May 16-19
Virtual Experience with FFCA Live and Limited Planned In-Person Enrollment Opportunities
REGISTRATION IS EASY AS 123 HERE

Read a Book to a Child, and Make the World a Better Place
By Caitlin Burnham

Families come in all shapes and sizes… and species! From a caravan of camels, a herd of elk, a pride of lions, a colony of bats, or a community of people, we need each other to survive and thrive.

In a community, we come together to support each other, learn from each other, and inspire each other. A community gives us a sense of fellowship, safety, and belonging. One of the best ways to foster community in young children is to teach them about empathy. A strong sense of empathy helps children build strong relationships with the other community members and encourages tolerance and acceptance of others.

Stories about mammal families can be a safe and powerful way to foster community and promote compassion. Mammals grow up in so many different ways -- deep in the ocean, high in the trees, in vast deserts or abundant rain forests. Mammal young can be raised with lots of siblings with a mother and father, can be a twin raised in a community of females, or a single baby with a single parent. Showing the variety of families and communities in the natural world opens the door to new ways of understanding what community means.

This is How I Grow, and the Spanish edition, Así crezco, are two new children’s books about mammals families. The book explores the different paths baby mammals take to become “all grown up.” Through beautiful, panoramic illustrations and fascinating text, kids learn about the skills baby mammals, such as whales, polar bears, and giraffes, must learn from their family -- and community -- on their way to maturity.

The Fathers and Families Coalition of America continues a series of public policy. We invite you to join us and share with your friends, parents, professionals, and leaders concerned about the wellness of children and families. How can we increase the effectiveness of services to fathers engaged by child support and other government programs? We host a wonderful group of experts on Wednesday, October 7th, at 12:55 p.m. Eastern Standard, 11:55 a.m. Central Standard, 9:55 a.m. Pacific Standard Time zones. 

Have you joined in virtual meetings and wanted to ask a question? FFCA is using our forum to give a fireside chat based on questions from our community partnerships. Please use the quick sign-up enrollment form and consider an item you want to ask of the guests to give you the best outcome from this time together. We will send a confirmation email to join the Webex via Cisco. Sign-up here today to join us for this powerful event (enrollment form)

GUEST INVITED FACILITATOR
Mr. James Murray, M.P.A., Senior Advisor, Office of Child Support Enforcement
Washington, D.C.

INVITED FIRESIDE SPEAKERS

Ms. Kelley Cote, Director, Lassen County Department of Child Support Services
Susanville, California

NEW OFFICE & LATINO INSTITUTE IN PUERTO RICO

I do not get overly excited about professional purpose-driven opportunities; however, I am delighted that we have formerly established FFCA in Puerto Rico!  Dr. Aida Diaz has based us at the Medina Professional Center, Calle Monseñor Torres, San Juan, Puerto Rico, 00925.  FFCA will form the new Latino Institute led by Dr. Aida Díaz Rivera.

DR. AIDA DÍAZ RIVERA

Health & Wellness
What does it mean to you?

Dr. Haynes (Educator and healthcare leader), Monifa Martin (Physician Assistant), and Sekena Rochelin (Fitness Expert) will be discussing health and wellness at our next Café. Come prepared to chat about what health and wellness mean to you? They will be discussing the connections to other chronic medical conditions such as diabetes, hypertension, weight management, and more and the impact sound and consistent health and wellness can have on you physically and psychologically!

ENROLLMENT IS EASY & FREE

Text Women2Women to 31996 or Click Here

Preparing Parents and Educators in the Pandemic
A Virtual Conversation Open to Professionals and Parents
Tuesday, July 28th, 2020
12:55 p.m. Eastern Standard - 11:55 a.m. Central Standard - 9:55 a.m. Pacific Standard Time zones

Enrollment form here. 

Duration is excepted to be one hour.

Save the Date Flyer For Share to Join Us Here

The Fathers and Families Coalition of America continues a series of public policy. We invite you to join us and share with your friends, parents, professionals, and leaders concerned about the wellness of children and families.  FFCA is using our forum to give a fireside chat based on questions from our community partnerships. Please use the quick sign-up enrollment form and consider an item you want to ask of the guests to give you the best outcome from this time together. The COVID-19 is a public health crisis that has intersected with varying philosophies politically. However, we will introduce a nexus to focus on children. What happens to the well-being of children emotionally? What are the barriers for pre-school to k-12 educators' self-protection and safeguarding of the children entrusted in their care as professional educators? How can entities from Head Start, Day-Care Provider, and K-12 ensure developmental and educational needs are provided, especially in distance-learning to avoid children "falling through the cracks?" Where are the plans for children in poverty and children with special needs that will require added support in this pandemic?

"I think the Fathers & Families Coalition of America Advance Practitioner Credential Seminar is a fundamental seminar for any practitioner at any level. Dr. James Rodriguez and his team do a phenomenal presentation going from the theoretical to a pragmatic approach in a uniquely engaging way. Practitioners that take the seminar will not be disappointed." -  Michael Cupeles, Male Initiative Coordinator, Gateway Community Action Partnership Head Start/Early Head Start, Atlantic City, New Jersey

Standing up for justice requires the ability to expand the context and complexities of societal needs. Join us for quarterly national and international discussions as community leaders and advocates to increase our awareness, collaborations, alliances, and examine current and potential public policy initiatives. Please join as one group on Thursday, July 9th FFCA will host a National Stakeholders Meeting that will focus on social justice, health, gender/racial equity, and 11-points developed from amazing leaders. Fathers and Families Coalition of America is discussing possible (4) areas of collaboration with the National Coalition of 100 Black Women (NCBW) Manhattan Chapter.

The additional agenda items include developing a social policy/justice strategic plan for 2020-2021 and discussion of issues as well as areas of concentration of issues going forward through 2022. FFCA is aware it is another virtual meeting. However, your involvement is essential. We are asking you to join us for this meeting, and review the information, are er is below as well as sign-up today here

National Policy & Social Justice Stakeholder's Meeting
Hosted by Fathers and Families Coalition of America

Together, Let us Weave A New Fabric for Change!

As a country in 1526, the first subjugated Africans (100) brought to the now Carolinas. At the same time, there were an estimated 17 to 20 million First Nation tribal members through this nation and over 60 million in the Americas. In 2020, there are an estimated 45 million African-Americans, and there are over seven million Native Americans in the United States, 78% of whom live outside reservations in which this nation forces them to live. Unfortunately, death by kneeling to George Floyd is not the first time by another. So many painful truths of this nation of racism, oppression, and barriers for achieving dreams of childhood. I write this blog, meant to remind, and call us to action. We can no longer kneel on the hopes of millions.

Saturday, my youngest daughter and I spoke with a colleague to address the pain in America from the eyes of my daughter and her friends' insights. One of my peers shared that maybe, today's youth may not want to hear about the slaughter of over 300 women and children at The Wounded Knee Massacre. Sadly, that 1890 domestic massacre by men in uniform led to the killing of several hundred Lakota Indians, most of whom were women and children, at this Wounded Knee. My daughter shared, "No, dad, the schools do not teach our history! We need to know of the systemic and historical inequalities. See dad, and they do not want to teach the truths of horrible treatment, only a fake version of history." Our conversation continued with this local leader and advocate as she quickly reminded me of teaching her about the Tulsa Massacre. The Oklahoma National Guard called to take the lives of Blacks in Tulsa protesting for the rights of a wrongfully accused teenage boy. My daughter can see the history and the systemic barriers for people of color and the obstacles women have based on the lack of gender equity. Today, our graphic designer, an early 20-year-old young man in Serbia who created the blog's accompanying images, wrote, "James, it's insane how people get killed, and we are in the 21st century. There’s a lot of bad people in the world right now. I don't know what to say." I believe it is clear that all over this nation, people are protesting for a change, from Serbia to Australia, Africa, Asia, and the United Kingdom.

This nation has a well-documented fabric of not dealing with racism, as well as oppression. Two fabrics created the society we now live in. One fabric was an opportunity for those leaving other countries for a better life, and that includes the tens of thousands of immigrants and different ethnicities currently locked up in immigration centers. Latino Americans in the United States make up 52 million people. We know it is well documented that hundreds of thousands of children have been part of a systemic barrier for a better life. We may have forgotten the spotlight on abuses and growth in immigrant detention centers. Maybe many do not even know all the disparities of our nation's criminal justice system. One of my professional experiences on the private networks of criminal justice was when I was told, "You see men and fathers that can change and have a better life. Well, we see dollar bills walking around here and nothing more." That was a statement made to me from a coordinator at a private prison before providing professional counseling/parent education services. If this is the mindset of law enforcement and criminal justice or other systems, how can we really achieve greatness as people?  I wanted to share these realities without educating too much or highlighting the facts impacting well over one hundred million Americans on America's lack of freedom for all people from the years 1526 through 2020.

#InThisTogetherFathersandFamiliesCoalitionofAmerica

Coronavirus has both illuminated crises for individuals, families, institutions, and the world, while it has also opened opportunities for us to nurture ourselves, heal, and ready ourselves to level up to whatever is next. Join us Saturday, May 30, 2020, as Dr. Cio Hernandez shares how to listen to and nurture the little girls inside of us so we can reach our goals now. She will highlight the psychology of survival and success and share practical tools to get you back in your body ready to shine.

Remember to sign up to be one of the first 100 to have access to her Got This! The app is due to be released later this year. If you're interested in a recording of Corona Virtual Healing Circles check out the link below.

Women2Women Community Café
MENTAL HEALTH AWARENESS MONTH

Fathers and Families Coalition of America introduces two exceptional monthly café conversations that focus on positive change as well as finding a cause bigger than self. We host three café programs that were born out of advancing coalition building. Our meetings promote community-based interventions, research, and build community-wide awareness of essential topics for sustaining healthier children and families. FFCA is continuously seeking to strive for excellence with diverse partnerships for profound change and provide a structure for connecting people. 

This blog is an introduction to the two leaders of the Women2Women Community Café movement. The Saturday, April 25th, Women2Women Community Café is an open kick-off to every woman in the globe. Ms. Sylvia Rodriguez and Mrs. Sheila Smith will facilitate this first of many Saturday morning connections with guest speakers starting at 9:30 a.m. California time that has an expected 45 minutes to a one-hour community gathering. We come together through the use of technology and bridging the needs and insights of women through FFCA's realtime video and or teleconference system that allows you to be fully engaged.

April is Child Abuse Prevention Month, and we will end April with a powerful session that you can join by texting Women2Women to 31-996 or email us This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

Women2Women April Community Café - Dealing with Adversity and Helping Children and Parents Overcome Trauma

Fathers and Families Coalition of America introduces two exceptional monthly café conversations that focus on positive change as well as finding a cause bigger than self. We host three café programs that were born out of advancing coalition building. Our meetings promote community-based interventions, research, and build community-wide awareness of essential topics for sustaining healthier children and families. FFCA is continuously seeking to strive for excellence with diverse partnerships for profound change and provide a structure for connecting people.

April is Child Abuse Prevention Month, and we will end April with a powerful session that you can join by texting Men2Men to 31-996 or email us This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. 

Dealing with Adversity and Helping Children and Parents Overcome Trauma

What adversities have you already overcome in your life? Physical, sexual, or emotional abuse? Domestic violence, mental illness, divorce, or poverty?  For some, adversity begins before the age of one, with over 4 million cases of child abuse reported in the United States in 2017. * Four out of five of these abusers were the children’s parents. Approximately 75% of this abuse is neglect for failure to provide adequate food, shelter, clothing, medical care, and supervision for children. One in ten children will also be the victim of sexual abuse before their 18th birthday. ** 

Abuse does not only occur, children, one in four women and one in nine men have experienced severe intimate partner physical violence. *** This abuse of severe mental or physical pain produces trauma, which can negatively impact the rest of a person’s life if they do not get the support and resources to heal.

Dear FFCA community:

FFCA will use a realtime video class that is accessible for all attendees for an exceptional learning experience. The course is very interactive, requiring approx. 4-5 hours a day with three on-demand (playback) sessions that attendees will be expected to participate fully. This rigorous, highly interactive online course is designed for serious practitioners who are looking for a solid understanding of methods, philosophies, tremendous new curriculum to work with parents, families, children and want to work with peers, guided by proven professors, to learn how to use powerful and effective engagements using the FFCA Credential.

Registration is Open

REGISTRATION FORM HERE
Realtime - Interactive - Inspiring - Engaging
Spring 2020 Next Level Regional Institute
April 16th & 17th
Realtime Virtual Class Starts Thursday, April 16th
Closing Class is Friday, April 17th
10:00 AM to 4:30 PM Daily
Three On-demand Taped Sessions
Comprehensive Practicum - An Approved Continuing Education Program