Responsible Fatherhood and Healthy Marriage Grants

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Wednesday, June 29, 2011
Contact: Kenneth J. Wolfe
(202) 401-9215

ACF announces $150 million in available funding for Responsible Fatherhood and Healthy Marriage Grants

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), Administration for Children and Families, Office of Family Assistance today announced the availability of funding for four discretionary grant awards totaling $150 million for Healthy Marriage and Responsible Fatherhood grants.  These grants will go to help fathers meet their parenting and financial responsibilities to their children and assist married couples or those considering marriage in building strong relationships with each other and their children.
“To invest in the success of fathers is to invest in the future of our children, our economy, and our communities,” said HHS Secretary Kathleen Sebelius. “This funding provides organizations in underserved communities with the tools they need to promote responsible parenting, to encourage healthy marriage and relationships, and to remove barriers to financial security and self-sufficiency.”
The Responsible Fatherhood program has $75 million in new funding intended to promote or sustain responsible parenting, marriage and economic stability. The Healthy Marriage program has $75 million in new funding intended for pre-marital education; marriage enhancement programs; divorce reduction programs; marriage mentoring programs; and skills programs that may include parenting skills, financial management, conflict resolution and job and career advancement.
The funding opportunity announcements made available today include: 

·       Community-Centered Healthy Marriage and Relationship grants support programs that have the capacity and proven track record of providing a broad range of healthy marriage and relationship skills training.

• Pathways to Responsible Fatherhood grants support organizations that demonstrate the ability to successfully promote responsible fatherhood, including economic stability, responsible parenting, and healthy marriage and relationship skills.

• Community-Centered Responsible Fatherhood Ex-Prisoner Re-Entry Pilot Project grants support re-entry programs that provide Responsible Fatherhood pre- and post-release case management services to recently released or re-entering fathers and mothers.

• National Resource Center for Strategies to Promote Healthy Marriage grants support the development, implementation and management of a resource center to gather, develop, and disseminate information and research related to promoting healthy marriage. 

“We recognize the need for fathers to be present in their children’s lives,” said George Sheldon, HHS acting assistant secretary for children and families. “These funding opportunities bring us closer to preparing more fathers to nurture and take full responsibility for their children and for couples to sustain healthy relationships.”
For more information on the Office of Family Assistance visit http://www.acf.hhs.gov/programs/ofa/ .
For more information regarding these Funding Opportunity Announcements visit http://www.acf.hhs.gov/grants/open/foa .
For more information on Healthy Marriage and Responsible Fatherhood visit www.fatherhood.gov .

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Note: All ACF news releases, fact sheets and other materials are available at www.acf.hhs.gov/opa/index.html .
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