ALL ABOUT FATHERS* AND THE MEN* IN CHILDREN’S LIVES? (*cis and transgender)
Maternal Child Health. Mother-Infant Dyad. What about fathers? And the male providers in classrooms, clinics, home visiting, and other services for expectant families and families with young children?
Men are critically important to children’s development, learning and wellbeing, yet they are often little more than an afterthought in supports and programming for families. When father engagement is the focus, it is frequently limited to “masculinizing” waiting rooms with Sports Illustrated and Car and Driver magazines and undergirded with negative assumptions and fears.
Families are changing, and so is fatherhood. So many men want to be more involved in raising their children. Yet they’re not always welcome when they show up at programs and services for families. Programs and providers are often unprepared to open up space for fathers and the other men in children’s lives.
BTC’s 2023 virtual National Forum: All About Fathers* and the Men* in Children’s Lives (*cis- and transgender) will bring together fathers and the men in children’s lives for a series of conversations about
- fathers and male professionals at the beginning of life and before,
- Black fathers’ mental health: trauma, loss, hope and joy
- rhe challenges men face and the opportunities they bring as early childhood educators and home visitors, and
- Indigenous fathers through the life circle, among others.
We’ll also hear from a father who is a children’s book author about deep looking and love, at this year’s T. Berry Brazelton Award Ceremony!
Explore the full Forum agenda at the Forum website.