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2000 NCFR Conference
nother NCFR conference has come
Committee members in planning,
to an end. The 62nd annual conferlocating contacts, and being part of the
ence was a success thanks to the
advisory team for the Work/Life Summit,
work of a huge cadre of volunteers who
History Center Reception, and numerous
worked tirelessly behind the scenes to
other duties.
orchestrate this wonderful event-planning
• The outstanding Local Arrangements
the program, executing
Committee who
worked diligently
logistical details and
seeing to attendees
behind the scenes in
needs. Thanh you to
the traditional roles
the following for their
such as Hospitality
Cafe, Employment
contributions:
• Elaine A. Anderson,
Matching Service, VIP
Conference Program
Speaker Hosting,
Chair, for her efforts
Student Assistant
in heading up the
coordination, securing
entire programaudio-visual equipbringing outstanding
ment, emergency
Plenary and RUP
liaison, but also in
speakers, working
serving as hosts, bus
2000 Conference Program Chair Elaine
with Section Chairs
hosts, etc. at the
Anderson was presentcclwitiJ an
in formatting special
History Center
Appreciation Award dHring the Annual
Reception and the
sessions of interest to
Business Meeting.
Penumbra Theatre
attendees and the
media.
production. Chairs
She was truly a
included: M. Janice
partner with NCFR staff lO ensure that
Hogan, Peg Lindlof, CFLE, Sue
the program met the needs of attendees.
Harrington, Ron Pitzer, Marty Rossmann,
• Section Chairs planned the excellent,
Laurie Meschke, Catherine Solheim,
innovative special sessions, paper,
Leslie Koepke, Michael Walcheski, CFLE,
symposia, poster and round table
and Shirley Barber, CFLE.
sessions. They did a tremendous job of
NCFR Staff worked many hours behind
formulating the program.
the scenes making sure that everything
• Mary Jo Czaplewski, CFLE, and Marcie
ran smoothly. They also attended meetBrooke, CFLE, Local Arrangements Coings, provided information, staffed the
chairs did a phenomenal job of making
registration desk and NCFR Exhibit
attendees feel welcome in the Hospitality
booth, and met with the press.
Cafe, at the President's Welcoming
• More than 40 Student Aides assisted in
Reception, and in many other ways. They
registration, employment service,
went "the extra mile" in working with
exhibits, and general assistance. Through
their efforts, the conference ran smoothly.
NCFR staff and the Local Arrangements
�continued from page 1
Other people who were important
to the success of the conference:
• Coordinators of the Pre-conference
Workshops. These sessions provided
"hands-on" tools based on the latest
techniques and research for family
professionals.
• Carl Williams, our AV coordinator
for more than 20 years, worked many
hours seeing to the needs of program
speakers to ensure great presentations. Now that NCFR is producing
its own audio and video tapes, we are
pleased to have Ricardo Astillero
joining Carl. They made a great team.
• Program presenters, discussants,
presiders, and recorders.
• And most of all, to Conference
attendees. Without you, the
Conference would not take place.
Report
of The National Council on
Family Relations
Mission Statement for the Report:
REPORT, the quarterly newsletter of the
National Council on Family Relations,
stJivcs to provide limdy, useful infonnaiton
to help mcmbcTs succeed in their roles as
researchers, educators, and practftioncrs.
Articles address family fie lei issues, programs
and trends, including association news.
President: Stephen R. jorgensen
Editor: Michael L. Benjamin
Managing Editor: Doris A. Harcland
Topics Feature Writer: Nancy Giguere
Layout: Michele Dettloff Design
NCFR Report is published quarterly by the
National Council on Family Relations,
3989 Central Ave. N.E., Suite 550,
Minneapolis, MN 55421.
Third class postage permit.
Report subscription rate: $20.00 per year;
$5.00 per copy. For bulk rates, call
888-781-9331, ext. 14. Annual membership dues include newsletter subscription.
$15.00 U.S. postage per year postpaid at
individual rate.
Marcie Brooilc. CFLE (left), ancl Mwy jo
Czaplcwslli, CFLE (right). Local
An·angements Co-chairs, were presented with
Appreciation Awards during the Anm1al
As professionals working with families,
N CFR attendees are very caring people
who want to share with others. The
1999 local Arrangements Committee
held a Silent Auction with donated
items and gave the proceeds to a local
charity. The 2000 local Arrangements
Committee built on the foundation that
was laid last year. Under the direction
of Rose Allen, many beautiful handmade items were donated to this year's
auction. All proceeds from the auction
were given to the Partners for Violence
Prevention project of the United Family
Practice Center. In addition to this,
Brigham Young University collected
funds for this project at its annual Ice
Cream Social.
Thank you all for your generosity.
Michael L Benjamin
Executive Director
Business Meeting.
Thanks to the friendly, efficient,
Minneapolis Hilton & Towers Hotel
staff who did a yeoman:S job making
quick turns of rooms. They truly were a
team with the NCFR Staff. We also
acknowledge their generous donation
to the Work/Life Summit.
There are many others who also
worked behind the scenes. As you can
see, it requires a tremendous number of
people to orchestrate a conference, and
each person and task is vital. Thank
you one and all.
NEWS DEADLINES: January 8 for
Murch issue; April9 for june issue;
july 9 for September issue; October 15
for December issue.
One copy of any portion of this
publication can be made for personal usc.
Additional reprints of this publication
arc available by contacting NCFR
headquarters at the address (above).
Bulk rates available.
Copyright © 2000 National Council on
Family Relations. All rights reserved.
~,:ern Ikf!IH r
\:()~ll''cR!E~o.!iC~ t:\lfTE~JJDEES
Sf'JPJSED VnTH OTHERS AT Tfr·U::
I
2
Dcc<:mbe:r 2000
Cindy Winter
Cmifcrt"'tcc
Coonlinator
Snapshots
Jmm tlte Conference
�aml Consumer Science, University of Ge01gia, NCFR Election Council Committee Cl!air
s part of our operational
procedures, the N CFR Elections
%\\Council Committee has developed various methods to encourage
members to become involved in leadership positions of our organization.
There are several avenues to become
involved in NCFR and your involvement can begin by becoming active in
various sections, including the Student
and New Professionals Section.
We have just completed the
nomination slate (ballots will be mailed
to members in spring 2001) for terms
that will be filled at the end of the
national meeting in Rochester, NY in
November 2001. The nominees are:
President-dec%: ( "i
Gay C. Kitson
David M. Klein
Leslie A. Koepke
Rodney M. Cate
Nelwyn B. Moore
Judith A. Myers-Walls
Elections Coundk (2 rosi!io1r1si
Karen L. Wilcox
Roger H. Rubin
Libby B. Blume
Norma Bond Burgess
Pr.oc""'m ChaRr··elect: ( 1
Paul R. Amato
Kerry J. Daly
Here are the Selection Criteria
(Source: NCFR By-Laws, January 1999,
Article IX, Section 2, B 3) to help you
identify potential candidates for
upcoming elections:
• knowledge and/or experience in areas
reflecting broad trends in Family
Science in the United States and
internationally
• knowledge and/or experience with
policy governance and the development of ENDS policies
• knowledge and/or experience in
leadership roles through Sections,
Association of Councils, Elections
Council, Conference Planning,
publishing, public policy or other
committee work
• diversity in race, ethnicity, culture,
sexual orientation, gender, age,
physical ability or religion
• diversity of geographic location
• diversity in employment and/or
professional settings; and
• specific characteristics identified by
the Board of Directors and charged to
the Elections Council before the call
for nominations is developed and
circulated.
Keeping these criteria in mind, we
invite self-nominations or nominations
of others for the following positions for
the next slate to be elected in the
spring of 2002. The terms for these
positions will begin November 2002 at
the end of the annual conference in
Houston, TX.
Board meetings, write articles for the
NCFR Report, Chair the Student Award
Committee, assist in networking
students and new professionals and
other responsibilities at the Annual
Conference.
~J\vo Elections Coundl Cornrnittcc
N\ember.s-2002-2005
It is the responsibility of the Elections
Council to prepare a slate of nominees
for officers and members of the Board
of Directors and the Elections Council
positions, and to ensure that the
policies regarding recruitment as
provided by the By-laws, and the
Elections Policies and Procedures
are followed.
-2002-200lfr
The Fellowship Committee shall review
the applications from nominees for
fellowship status. During the N CFR
Annual Conference, discuss and vote
on which applicants will be recommended to the Board of Directors.
Confere.nce Pn,ar;;on Chair-e[cct2D02~2003
Chair for
Serves one year as Conference Program
Chair-elect, proceeding to Program
Chair the following year and has
primary responsibility for selecting the
theme for the Annual Conference and
selecting plenary and other special
speakers.
Association of Colmd!s Conference
sr.oo2~:zoos
Pr<;si•dent: ( 'i!
NCFR Board Members are responsible
for the overall governance of the
organization on behalf of all NCFR
members. They attend three face-toface Board meetings per year, along
with regular conference calls and e-mail
exchanges. They take responsibility for
maintaining contact with the membership and to renecting the needs of all
NCFR members.
Raeann R. Hamon
Shulamit N. Ritblatt
Student/New Professional Board
Harriette P. McAdoo
Suzanne M. Randolph
Shirley M.H. Hanson
Katherine R. Allen
Lawrence A. Kurdek
Tony Jurich
A.ssodatic~n
of CouncHs
Our charge from the Board was
to develop a slate that reflects the
selection criteria in the revised N CFR
By-laws.
The Student/New Professional Board
Representative serves a two-year term
as a voting member of the Board. They
are responsible to attend all NCFR
3
Chair-2002,-2005
Serves as member of the Annual
Conference Program Committee.
Preside at meetings of the A. C. and the
A. C. Executive Board in the event of
the absence of the A. C. President.
Works with the A. C. President to plan
sessions sponsored by the A. C. during
the Annual Meeting. Allend meetings
of the A. C. Executive Board, consult
with the A. C. President regarding
articles for Affiliate Connection, the
A. C. newsletter, and responsibilities at
the Annual Conference.
For additional information,
please review our website,
www.ncfr.org.
�very two years, the National
Council on Family Relations
presents the Burgess Award to a
scholar with a distinguished record of
contributions to family studies.
Professor E. Mavis Hetherington,
James Page Professor of Psychology
at the University of Virginia, received
the 2000 award at the November
conference.
The award is named after Ernest
Burgess, a member of the Department
of Sociology at the University of
Chicago between 1916 and 1951. In
addition to making important early
empirical and theoretical contributions
to family studies, he was a co-founder
of NCFR, a co-founder of NCFR's first
journal (now thejoumal of Maniagc
and Family), and an early president of
the organization. After his retirement,
friends and colleagues donated money
to establish this award in his name.
Professor Hetherington is an
outstanding recipient of this award. Her
achievements as a family researcher are
legendary. Mavis Hetherington has
conducted three major longitudinal
studies of divorce and remarriage. She
was one of
the first
family
researchers
to rely on
observational methods
to understand family
relationships
following
divorce. And
E. Mavis Hethclington,
Ph.D.
her most
recent study
has made it possible to disentangle
genetic and environmental contributions to child development and family
interaction. Overall, her publications
span more than five decades, beginning
in 1949 with an article on "changing
teachers' attitudes," and continuing
today, with numerous articles in press
in some of the leading family journals
in the country. During her career, she
has published well over 100 articles in
refereed journals and written or edited
15 books.
Mavis Hetherington's leadership
also is reflected in her service to the
ocus on marriage and family using
N CFR's CFLE program and other
models for building a profession
was paramount at a two-day conference
in Singapore October l3 and 24, 1000.
Sponsored by the Singapore Ministry
for Community Development & Sports,
The Fei Yue Family Counseling Center,
and the Family Resource & Training
Center, the conference was attended by
over 200 professionals.
Mary Jo Czaplewski, CFLE,
former NCFR executive director and
now NCFR ambassador at-large, presented two plenary sessions with Dr.
Moira Eastman, of the Catholic
University of Melbourne, Australia on
model programs in the United States
and Australia, program evaluation, and
professional development.
Czaplewski was in Singapore at the
request of the Singapore government, to
discuss the processes necessary for the
establishment of family life education
programs that would lead to professional certification for those providing
services to families.
Of concern in Singapore is the
recognized need for consistently trained
professional staff to deliver services to
families in the areas of family relations,
parenting, and marriage education.
Thus, this country has looked to
NCFR's certified family life educator
designation as a starting point for building a cadre of qualified professionals.
Currently, no Singapore institutions of
higher education offer degrees in family
studies, and the bulk of family service programs are delivered by social workers,
field. She has served as editor of Child
Development, as president of the Society
for Research on Child Development, as
president of the Society for Research on
Adolescence, and as president of
Division 7 of the American
Psychological Association. She also is
known as an outstanding teacher and
has received a number of major teaching awards. And her textbook on child
psychology has influenced an entire
generation of students.
Overall, Professor Hetherington is
precisely the type of person that this
award was designed to honor-a
talented and dedicated scholar with a
remarkable lifetime record of achievements and contributions to our field.
I would like to thank the other
members of the Burgess Award
Committee for their help in reviewing
nominations: Scott Coltrane, Jane
Gilgun, Jan Hogan, Larry Kurdek,
Betty Menaghan, and Steve Small.
Pmd R. Amato
Chai1; Burgess Award Committee, 2000
Maty )o Czaplewshi meets with Raphael Lim,
Deputy Directm; Family Development Division
of the Ministty of Community Development &
Sports, Singapore; Arthur Ling, Exectttive
Direc£01; Fci Yuc Counseling Center; ami Cltee
5iah Ling-Chang, Program Manager. Academy
of Httman DevclDJJillenl Ltd. n:ganlingfamily
life education programs in Singapore.
many of whom have little or na·coursework
in parenting, marriage, or family education.
Singapore continued on page 5
�Snapshots
from the Conference
the focus of many of our
members on research,
education, and practice concerning how families, including their
own, manage stressors in their lives,
ironically NCFR has not had an annual
conference with this theme. To right
this imbalance, the 2001 conference
theme will be Families, Stress, ancl
Coping: Bridging The01y and Practice.
The meeting will be held in Rochester,
New York, November 8-11, 2001.
Proposals on all aspects of the
stress process are clue Thursday,
February 1, 2001 at N CFR headquarters. From there, the proposals will
be sent to the section organizers who
decide on the content of their sessions.
Each of the sections will focus on
issues related to stress and coping and
other topics of interest to its members.
Each section has outlined its program
plans in the Call for Abstracts (see
insert).
The goals of the 2001 conference
are to examine where we've come from
in our understanding of crisis and
coping and to explore new develop-
NCFR Annual Conference
RodtcsteJ; New Yarh
November 8-11, 2001
rnents in the field. Among these new
issues arc how symptoms of posttraumatic stress are seen as part of the
response to major stressors in everyday
living and how physiological, social,
and psychological factors are interrelated in stress and coping.
To obtain a copy of the
Presentation Application Form check
the Call for Abstracts insert in this
issue of the NCFR Report, visit the
NCFR website at www.ncfr.org, or call
NCFR at 1-888-781-9331 to have a
copy mailed to you.
If you have ideas for topics,
sessions, or speakers, contact the
session organizers or me at
Kitson@uakron.edu.
Gay Kitson
Pmgmm Chah; 2001 Annual Conference
Phone: 330-972-6863
E-mail: Kitson@uahron.cdu.
continued from page 4
CuiTently, no Singapore institutions of
higher education offer degrees in family
studies.
Planning has been initiated with
several Western Australian institutions
to deliver credit courses in Singapore in
the content areas defined by NCFR as
the core knowledge base for family life
educators. These courses will be
reviewed by NCFR using the criteria
now used in the CFLE Academic
Program Review process. The goal is to
build a professional certification designation that recognizes the expertise of
the professional service deliverer in
Singapore.
A feasibility survey was conducted
in Singapore to determine the needs
and support of those already working
with families. An enthusiastic response
led to the request that N CFR assist in
helping this small country to develop
strong programs and delivery services
in family relations, parenting and
marriage education. Options for using
electronic distance education were
discussed, as well as bringing specialists
in various areas from the United States
and Australia. This is an opportunity
for NCFR to expand its reach beyond
the shores of the North American
Continent. Further discussions will be
taking place with the NCFR Board of
Directors, and staff. In addition, discussion of possible Singapore affiliation
with NCFR is being considered. Input
from N CFR members is welcome and
can be directed to Dawn Cassidy, CFLE,
Director of Certification.
Submitted by:
Mmy jo Czaplewshi, CFLE
�y the time this December 2000
issue of the NCFR Report reaches
your hands, the Annual Meeting
of the National Council on Family
Relations in November will have come
and gone (successfully, I am sure!).
Since this President's Report was due to
the printer before that time, it was not
possible in this column to give you a
post-conference analysis of the many
highlights of the meeting. But I can
tell you that a focus of this year's
conference was on membership, and
our on-going concern for expanding
our membership base into the future in
a way that assures the fiscal and
professional health of this tremendous
organization.
Given the high correlation between
membership numbers in a professional
organization and the overall fiscal and
organizational strength of that organization, new member recruitment and
current member retention has become a
high priority of the Board of Directors.
Fiscal strength is achieved by an
adequate dues-paying membership
base. Professional strength is achieved
by having a critical mass of diverse
members to stimulate the creation of
new knowledge about families and lO
apply our knowledge to improve the
quality of practice with families and
policies that affect their well-being.
Membership is our life's blood-we
simply could not, and should not, exist
without a solid membership base.
Our annual conference is just one
of many member services we rely upon
to generate and retain new members in
the organization. As we do every year,
we will have hosted a reception in
Minneapolis for first-lime annual meeting attendees with the goal of cementing a relationship with them that will
last a lifetime. Section officers, board
members, and staff members will have
met in a round-table format with these
first-timers to discuss ways in which
NCFR can be a most useful professional
organization for them. We want them
to get to know us, "up front and
personal." And, we want our annual
meeting lObe so dynamic and
informative, providing numerous
networking and learning opportunities
for all attendees, that each and every
person makes it a point to plan to
attend the next year's conference!
But we must be proactive in other
ways if we are to rea1ize our membership goals. Our current total membership in NCFR is 3,819, with 29% of the
New member recntitment and current
member retention ltas become a high
primity of the Boanl of Directors.
membership comprised of males and
7l% comprised of females. This
number has remained reasonably stable
over the past five years, since we last
conducted a major overhaul in the dues
and membership category structure
of NCFR in 1994-95. Our highest
membership total in recent history was
in 1987, at 4,270 members. Our lowest
number was in 1991, at 3,173 members. So while we have gained some
ground, we clearly can benefit both
fiscally and professionally by expanding
our membership base even further.
As you may know, N CFR successfully recruits many new members every
year-from between 650 and 970 every
year between 1994 and 1999, depending upon the year. In fact, the average
number of new NCFR members for that
6-year period is 809 new NCFR members per year! That truly is impressive,
and our membership growth problem
would be solved if they all stayed with
us. But the unfortunate fact is that new
members tend to become ex-members
far too quickly, such that our membership La tal remains relatively stagnant.
On average, about45% of new NCFR
members, most of them students and
new professionals, are lost to attrition
in their second year when they fail to
renew their memberships. Thus, for
whatever reasons, we arc unsuccessful
in retention of new members. In that
the vast majority of these first and
~:U·Ji. fil'/''"'!
l December :2000
6
second year members who allow their
memberships lO lapse do not attend the
annual meeting, we must seek creative
alternative methods or "bonding" new
members in NCFR if we are to realize
our membership goals. What should we
be doing that we are not doing to retain
our new members? What membership
services are lacking? How can we instill
a feeling of organizational loyalty in our
membership?
l, along with the entire Board of
Directors, will be interested in your
thoughts on this matter. The Board will
be deliberating about this issue over the
course of the next year, along with the
possibilities of expanding our credentialing program beyond the CFLE to
include parent and marriage/couple
education certification (sec the
President's Report in the September
2000 NCFR Rq1ort). Our deliberations
will include an attempt to identify just
what our target membership number
should be. How much growth actually
is needed? What should be our membership target numbers? An immediate
goal might be to re-build our membership to our previous high number, and
then continue to build upon it in the
future. Membership targets will have to
be established and justified.
In the meantime, I call upon each
of you in the organization to assist us
in recruiting new members for NCFR
and in working with us to retain their
membership in the organization.
Students and new professionals are a
priority for us, as are more seasoned
professionals who you know and with
whom you work. Feel free to contact
me for information on how new
members can join Nl:FR and become
actively involved in the many
tremendous initiatives that NCFR is
undertaking. You are our best
recruiters, and we need your help to
spread the word about NCFR!
Stepllen R. Jorgensen, Ph.D.
NCFR President
E-mail: sjoJgcn@comp.uarh.cdu
�ON
ongratulations to NCFR members
and staff-especially Elaine
Anderson, Program Chair, and
Cindy Winter, Conference Coordinator
-who made the 62nd Annual
Conference in Minneapolis a success.
What a great way to end the year!
As we come to the close of the year
2000, the future of NCFR looks bright,
but challenging. Our staff continues to
work toward the goals identified in our
strategic plan, namely to
1) establish N CFR as an influential
player in public policy;
2) increase N CFR's visibility nationally and internationally to better
impact family life; and
3) improve member acquisition and
retention.
The general financial picture at the
close of the fiscal year (May 30, 2000)
shows a financially stable organization
with a total fund balance of $914,489
(see financial reports on page 8 and on
this page). The organization reponed
total assets of $1,652,478 and total liabilities of $737,989 for the fiscal year.
A~1fr•HU'At C<Jll~!'E~;r,:·I:,M'?'
By the end of October, registration
income for this year's annual conference was $137,830-an increase of
$25,185 over 1999. 1n fact our total
registration of 1,080 was close to the
all-time high of three years ago (1,096)
when NCFR met in Washington, D.C.
Exhibits were also up and included
both new and repeat participants.
The program was fantastic! Plenary
Speakers Stephanie Coontz, Alejandro
Pones, and Mary Pipher generated
excitement. The appearance of Judith
Wallerstein, whose new book has
received national press coverage, also
drew attention as word spread that she
would speak at NCFR. Local and
national press coverage of the
conference was great!
We also had an exciting preconference event: NCFR's first
Work/Life Summit. The purpose of the
summit was to bring representatives of
business and labor together with family
researchers to foster
family-friendly work
environments and to
establish a Minnesota
Work/Life Committee
that would pursue such
activities as workplace
policy development and
collaborative research
on work/life issues. Also
on the agenda: the
establishment of
Working Family
Resource Centers
throughout Minnesota.
We hope to
replicate this event as a
pre-conference event
each year in the stale
where we hold our
annual conference. We
want to create a stronger
emphasis within NCFR
on work/life issues and a
nationwide network of
researchers, practitioners, and leaders in
business, government
and labor, who are all
committed to creating
and maintaining healthy
world!ife environmcnlS.
Jv\EfvtBEll~SHiP
FAMILY
NATIONAL COUNCIL ON FAMILY RELATIONS
STATEMENTS OF FINANCIAL POSmON
MAY 31,2000 AND 1999
(As repast&{~ Oy/he 1tm ofCl/'P0/1/etiEvort. CPA
Minna11poHs, MN. July f«, 2000)
2000
Current Assets:
Cash
Accounts Receivable (less Allowance tor
Doubtful Accounts of $-0- for 2000 and
$1,749 for 1999)
Interest Receivable
$
$
17,601
23,094
14,648
14,011
11,017
97,914
10,169
1,155
10,245
13.514
52,684
72,836
1,481,728
81,282
1,761,194
$ 1,652.478
$ 1,895,160
$
•
Inventory
Prepaid Expenses
Total Current Assets
Furniture, Equipment and leasehold
Improvements- Net
Investments
TOTAL ASSETS
34,944
1999
LtABILmES AND NET ASSEJS
Current Liabilities:
Acrounts Payable
Accrued Salaries Payable
Accrued Vacation Payable
Other Accrued Uabllltles
Deferred Rewnue
Award Funr.ls Held
Funds Held for Affiliates and Sections
Total Current Uabllitles
Long-term Liabilities:
Deferred Revenue
Total Uabllitles
68,506
4,612
11,082
3,478
224,839
272,011
140,478
724,806
51,467
1,224
12,517
6,388
430,880
261,665
155,506
919,647
13,183
737,989
16,832
936,279
914,489
914,489
954,247
4,634
958,881
TOTALLIABILfTIES AND NET ASSETS $ 1,652,478
$ 1,895,160
Net Assets:
Unrestricted
Temporarily Restricted
Total Net Assets
(A complete audit Is available from headquertera.)
Joum-·Lf.,\JLS
Fiscal Year 2000 was an
exciting year for N CFR. Here's a list of
discussion forums, instant polls, and
member hyperlinks.
membership highlights:
• Monthly policy teleconference seminars.
• A seven percent increase in active
• Annual policy conference.
members (3,544 to 3,819).
Annual work/life pre-conference
• An increase in subscriptions to our
summit.
journals: 2.1 percent for Family
• Multiple listservs.
Relations (2,386 to 2,438); and a two• Two new publicaLions-Public Policy
year increase of 10.1 percent for the
through the Family Lens: 5usraining
]au mal of MaJTiagc ami Family (2,383
Families in the 21st Ccntwy and the
to 2,653).
Decade tn Reviev,J;
New membership services now
• New "Family Focus" section in Report,
in-place include:
the quarterly member publication.
• Updated NCFR website that features
NCFR will continue to solidify
a member database, full text of NCFR
these services while working hard on
journals, database of experts, tips for
member retention. We'll also try to
families and professionals, legislative
alerts, policy and journal author
Executive Review continued on page 8
�continncd from page 7
NCFR STATEMENTS OF ACTIVITIES &
CHANGES IN NET ASSEST FOR THE YEARS
ENDED MAY 31, 2000 AND 1999
(Al tllporled by the ttm afC81p!ln/Dr/Eve~ CPA
Mlnnaapoh, MN. JulY ffl, 2000}
Support and Revenue:
Contributions:
Unrestricted
Temporarily Restricted
1999
2000
$
1,175
•
236,453
541,246
164,566
1,094
5,000
182,041
695,793
147,577
53,546
27,816
29,717
3,620
1,059,941
43,026
8,166
158,266
9 116
1,250,119
210,676
353,036
318,327
882,039
154,963
579,634
248 507
963,124
222,294
1.104.333
238136
1,221.262
Change In Net Assets
(44,392)
28,657
Net Assets- Beginning of Year
958,861
There are currently 51
NCFR-approved CFLE
programs, and 952 certified
members. We received 40
CFLE applications for the
May 2000 review and 25 for
the November 2000 review.
This compares with 43 in
May 1999 and 40 for
November 1999. We also
received 112 Experience
Recognition applications
since we introduced this
streamlined process in
February 2000. The Academic
Program Review Committee
has approved a total of 42
schools representing 51
undergraduate and graduate
family degree programs. Nine
programs have been approved
since January 2000.
Dues
Fees and Subscriptions
Registrations and Exhibits
Investment Income:
Interest and Dividends
Realized Gain
Unrealized Gain
Miscellaneous
Total Support and Rewnue
Expense:
Program Services:
Membership
Information Dissemination
Educational Activities
Total Program Services
Support Services:
Management and General
Total Expense
NetAssets- EndofYear
•
914,489
(A complete audllls available from headquarters.)
make personal contact with each
member-particularly new members.
According to Allen Press, the
]ottnwl of MmTiagc and Family had a
total institutional subscriber base of
2,965 in December 1999. As of
September 2000,jMF had increased
this number to 3,205-an overall gain
of eight percent.
In December 1999, Family Relations
had 1,303 institutional subscribers. As of
September 2000, this had increased to
1,408-an overall gain of eight percent.
These dramatic increases can in
part be attributed to promotions by
Allen Press, specifically in the
international market.
This year NCFR reestablished
a Public Policy Committee,
held its first annual Public
Policy and Education
Conference and put together
a brief document summarizing N CFR's
policy involvement since the beginning
of the organization. Following the
launch of NCFR's new website this
November, NCFR members will be able
to access congressional legislative information and contact their own congressional members through Capitol
Advantage, a service available via the
website. The publication developed
through the Sustaining Families project
(fonnerly the Ccntwy in Review project) may serve as a cornerstone piece to
direct future policy involvement by
NCFR.
930 024
$
e5a 661
PUBUC
COt',~f.S:REli''"1CE
The Board took a significant step by
committing funds and issuing a
Request for Proposal to conduct a
complete market analysis of the fields
of family life, parent and marriage
education. In nine months, NCFR will
have an informed marketing plan that
will provide direction La our CFLE
program and the possible development
of certification programs for parent and
marriage educators.
The 2000 Public Policy and Education
Conference was held in Washington,
D.C. on April 13th and 14th. Sixty
members participated. Presenters covered a wide range of topics, including
Social Security, health care reform,
minimum wage, tax cuts, education,
school violence, welfare refonn, substance abuse, mental health services,
juvenile delinquency prevention, and
federal funding opportunities.
Following these issue briefings, atten-
dees visited their senators and
representatives to share information
about NCFR and the work of our
membership.
The 2001 Public Policy and
Education Conference will take place
on March 1-2 in Washington, D.C. It
will include issue briefings on current
legislation. We'll also discuss how
specific legislation related to the policy
points set forth by the Sttstaining
Families project. Before visiting
congressional offices, attendees will
discuss how their research can inform
current legislative initiatives.
This project was originally conceived as
a review of changes and continuity in
family life during the 20th Century. But
after much discussion, the Advisory
Committee determined that a shorter,
future-focused document would be
more usdul. Three major audiences
and a fourth minor audience were
identified: (1) policymakers,
(2) foundation heads, (3) media
professionals, and (4) college students.
The Advisory Commillee included
N CFR members Vern Bengtson, Alan
Booth, Pauline Boss, Norma Burgess,
Martha Farrell Erickson, Don
Hernandez, Ralph LaRossa, Harriette
McAdoo and Arlene Skolnick as well
as Paula Dressel of The Annie E. Casey
Foundation, editor Nancy Giguere and
graphic designer Michele Denloff.
NCFR staffer Abbey Showalter-Loch
did an excellent job of serving as
project manager for this effort.
The publication consists of an
introduction, followed by four sections
that discuss major family functions and
what families need to fulfill them. A
fifth section presents a "Checklist for
Assessing the Impact of Policies on
Families."
Authors and contributors include
Arlene Skolnick, Martha Farrell
Erickson, Ralph LaRossa, Paula Dressel,
Norma Burgess, Ambilm Krishnakumar,
Vern Bengtson, Pauline Bass and Nancy
Giguere. This project was funded in
part through a $13,500 grant from The
Annie E. Casey Foundation with the
assistance of Dr. Paula Dressel,
Associate Dean of the College of Arts
Exewtivc Review continued 011 page 9
�continued from page 8
and Sciences at Georgia State University
and a Senior Fellow at the foundation.
The project was introduced at a
press conference on November 21 at the
National Press Club. Afterward, individuals involved with this project met with
key congressional leaders and the new
administration's transition team.
MEDIA AWARDS AND OUTREAC!·l
This year marked our 32nd Annual
Media Awards Competition. We had 98
entries. We added two new categories:
Commercial!Entertainment Division
and Amateur Division. Francisco A.
Villarruel and his staff at Michigan
State University did an excellent job of
evaluating the entries.
In further support of our objective
to "Increase NCFR visibility nationally
and internationally to better impact
family life," we are working with the
Mary Jo also conducted a seminar
for 200 students from Duksun Women's
National University in Seoul, Korea, and
met with representatives from the
Korean Association for Family Relations
to discuss an ongoing relationship with
NCFR. In addition, she traveled to
Singapore on October 23-24 at the invitation of Raphael Lim, Deputy Director,
Family Development Division of the
Singapore Ministry of Community
Development and Sports, and Arthur
Ling, Director of the Fei Yue Family
Counseling Center, to participate in a
conference during Marriage Month,
October 2000. There she presented an
overview of family life education in the
U.S. and discussed the professional
development of family life educators.
(See related article on page 4.)
grams focus on prevention and early
contacting individual reporters. We do
not yet have a tracking service to
determine placements of journal
citations or N CFR member citations.
We do know, however, that we received
contract from the Center for Mental
Health Services to develop a document
or series of documents to inform poli-
excellent write-ups in USA Today, The
News-joumal (Daytona Beach), Des
Moines Rcgiste1; Wisconsin State ]oumal,
Associated Press, CBS Netscape, Star
Tlibune (Minneapolis), St. Paul Pioneer
Press (Minnesota), Omaha Worlcl-He.-ald
and the Chicago Sun- Times.
N CFR members have appeared on
objective is: to further educate clinicians, researchers, and policymakers
TI1E FAMil-Y
cymakers and the general public about
how to foster resilience. Specifically, the
and the general public about the concept of resilience, its importance for
building on families' strengths so they
can function better in the world and
concrete ways to promote resilience in
in Minneapolis. Kay Hyatt of the
families throughout the life span.
Co-Managing editors for this project are Kay Pasley, editor of FR and
Robert Milardo, editor of]ME They
assembled a working group that met
during the Annual Conference. The
University of Maine generates the press
releases with financial support from
group will contract with writers to create a series of four to eight articles that
N CFR's Research and Theory Section.
will appear in FR andjME Eventually,
PACifiC RiM OUTREACH
one document. This project will be
completed june 30, 2001.
these articles may be combined into
One of our Marketing 2000 objectives
is to establish an affiliated Pacific Rim
NCFR Family Life Education
Certification. On March 23-24, Mary jo
Czaplewski, CFLE, former N CFR
Executive Director and now NCFR
ambassador-at-large, and Carol
Matusicky, Director of the British
Columbia Council for Families, presented successful seminars on family
life education to over 800 teachers and
school principals in Taipei, Taiwan.
Expert Consortium providing technical
assistance to two groups of federal
grantees: the 54 communities that
A~Ufl
RES!UENCY
In August, NCFR received a $22,000
on national networks and local stations
organizations, N CFR will be part of an
iE.CHIT~~KAL ASS~Sl':,l\NCE O~"i
]oumal of Maniage and Family and
Nightly News and Bill Doherty, CFLE
Public Policy
through a Family
Lens: Sustaining
Families in the
21st Ccntmy
A new publication
from NCFR!
Sec insert in this
issue for prepublication ordering inJonnation.
received the $100 million Safe
Schools/Healthy Students grants and
the 40 communities sharing the $5.6
million School Action grants
announced last September. Both pro-
media via press releases from the
national and local television news
networks: Harriet Presser on NBC
r.Ho<folktTm.-"'•
FAMILY L[NS
SAFE 5CHOOtS/H!EArff}ilV
STUDENTS ACT~ON CENTEr~
intervention programs to help build
resiliency in students, promote healthy
choices, and decrease the risks associated with violence and substance abuse.
As a Consortium member, N CFR's
task is to develop a list of potential
N CFR individual TA Experts whose
names will be added to the project
database. Experts will be selected to
consult with grantees as needed. As of
October, NCFR had received 15 completed Expert Forms. This project will
be completed by September 30, 2001.
COAIJillON !FOf4
PROFESSaOl~At
CERHFlCAiiOI·~
NCFRjoined the Coalition for
Professional Certification, an organization focused on the national recognition
of certifications in national legislation.
This year N CFR participated in a
national conference, "The Transition
Assistance Conference-The Role of
Certification," which brought together
representatives from the federal government and non-governmental organizations Lo discuss how certification could
help former military personnel make the
TECHNiCAl ASSiSTANCE EXPERT
CONSORTIUM
transition to private-sector employment.
As always we welcome membership
In October 1999, NCFR was awarded a
$30,000 contract to work with the
feedback on our plans. I can be reached
at mbenjamin@ncfr.org.
National Mental Health Association
(NMHA) as part of its cooperative
agreement with the Center for Mental
Health Services. Along with l4 other
!';erR nqi(l• t I
9
December :moo
Michael L. Benjamin, M.P.H.
Executive Director
�D~SPAf.UTY ~SSUES
FOR l'tH:: NEVV
CONGRESS
Two major issues I do not remember
hearing discussed in the first two presidential debates were first, the growing
disparities among social, racial and gender groups and second, the effect of privatization of Social Security on women
and the potential loss in the pool of
funds available for the social insurance
feature of todays Social Security. Womens
groups have done their best to bring the
Social Security problem to Congress, but
no remedies have been seriously proposed. This needs to be an issue with the
new Congress.
Disparities were discussed in july at
a hearing before the House Commerce
Committee. The Committee voted to
approve H.R. 3250, which would establish a National Center on Minority
Health and Health Disparities to conduct
and support basic and clinical research
and disseminate the results. Senator Frist,
Chair of the Senate Health, Education,
Labor and Pensions Subcommittee on
Public Heath, testified at the hearing and
noted that recent studies have demonstrated that ethnic minority populations,
in addition to having lower rates of
health care access, exhibit poorer health
a
'
outcomes, and have higher rates of death
from cancer and heart disease, 1-IIV/AIDS,
diabetes, infant mortality, and other
health problems.
Disparities persist in wages and it is
clear that minimum wage does not
provide a living for a single mom, not to
mention a father-mother family. But there
has been resistance to raising this minimum wage.
Housing for low income people is
another disparity which needs addressing.
Will the next Congress address
these problems?
"'"""'''v
DECADE OF
A group of more than 50 societies
representing the behavioral and social
sciences recently kicked off The Decade
of Behavior here in Washington at a
reception in the House Cannon Caucus
Room. Twelve policy-relevant research
projects were displayed by their
authors. One was especially relevant to
me, as a person particularly interested
in improving the social fabric. This
study was by Constance Flanagan from
Penn State University. The program
summary read: This project explored
the developmental roots of democracy
by focusing on adolescents from seven
'
Issue
Topic
Deadline
Mar. 2001
June 2001
Electronic Media and the Family
Family Stress and Coping:
Bridging Theory and Practice
to be determined
to be determined
Jan.8
Apr. 9
Sept. 2001
Dec. 2001
July 9
Oct. 8
We continue to welcome your suggestions and offers to write or be willing to
be interviewed by our joumalis~ Dr. Nancy Giguere.
If you have data, research or practice articles for any of these topics, or know of
outstanding persons who can be interviewed or tapped please call or e-mail
Michael Benjamin immediately at888-781-9331, ext. 21 or mbenjamin®ncfr.org.
Let us hear from you about other topics that you would like to see published in
the Report.
10
countries and from different raciaV
ethnic and social class backgrounds.
Findings indicate that the development
of civic attachment, trust and responsi-
bility is promoted by experiences of
group solidarity, by teacher's and
parents' commitment to tolerance and
inclusion, and by family and community values that orient youth to their
relatedness to and responsibilities for
the common good.
WHAT iS NIC!"ID UP TO?
The National Institute for Child Health
and Development has announced that
draft plans for two more of their five
strategic planning areas, "Developmental
Biology" and "Biobehavioral Development," are now posted on their website
and are open for public comment. They
can be accessed at http://www.nichd.nih.
gov/strategic plan/cells. To aid in forwarding comments, you will find a
"comment window" at the end of each
Internet document.
WHAT HAS HAPPENED Si~"E TriE 1995
BEIJING COi'lFERE~ICE ON WOMEtl?
Perhaps you know that a Beijing Plus
Five Conference on Women was held in
June. The latest UN publication,
Highlights, covers national, international and NGO activities surrounding that
2000 Conference and is available at:
http://secretary.state.gov/www/picw/
beijing/index.htrn. You can download it
as a PDF file from their website if you
would like to distribute additional
copies: women's_office@who.eob.gov
Another useful publication is the
Framcworll on Women in the Global
Economy, which is available at:
http://secretary.state.gov/www.picw/eco
n_framework.html. This framework
went through OMB (Office of Management and Budget) clearance and is now
government-wide policy.
There will be plenty to do in 2001 to
promote a tnte family policy.
Margaret Feldman, Ph.D.
NCFR Policy Representative
E-mail: mcfeldman@aol.com
�CFR is pleased to announce that
we have enlisted the services of
Human Resources Research
market of family, parent, and marriage
education. They chose to issue a
unlikely to apply for certification once
Request for Proposals (RFP) in order to
replaced with a CFLE exam. As
mentioned earlier, we decided to hold
off on the development of the exam
until we felt we had a more solid handle
on the potential of the family life
education field. ln light of this decision,
Organization (HumRRO) to conduct a
market analysis of family life, parent,
attract the most qualified professionals.
and marriage education. HumRRo is a
non-profit research and development
organization with a 49-year history of
research and consulting in a variety of
human resource-related needs.
received three submissions. An RFP
review committee was charged with
the task of reviewing and rating the
proposals. We were impressed with the
The decision to hire I-lumRRO
resulted from a lengthy and thorough
consideration of the Certified Family
Life Educator ( CFLE) program and
N CFR's possible interest in developing
sions but were very excited to accept
specialty certifications in parent
education and marriage education.
Last April, a task force of NCFR
members met to discuss the direction
of current and future cenification
efforts. While the number of CFLEs
and N CFR-approved academic
programs is increasing, and overall
retention of CFLEs is excellent, we
have continued to struggle to increase
the relationship between certification in
This RFP was issued in july 2000. We
quality and effort of all three submisthe proposal submitted by HumRRO.
HumRRO staff will work with a
N CFR advisory committee to
accomplish the following tasks:
Phase One:
l. identify current and potential
employers of family life educators
Il. Conduct a survey of a sample
of employers
Ill. Create a marketing plan and
the current portfolio review process was
we may extend the Experience
Recognition application option past the
original date of December 31, 2000.
Check the NCFR website for updated
information on this issue!
Dawn Cassidy, M.Ed., CFLE
CFLE Certification Director
E-mail: cassidyd®ncfwrg
recommendations to guide future steps
regarding certification
Phase Two is expected to involve
the implementation of the findings and
family life education and d1e job
recommendations of Phase One.
Representatives from HumRRO met
market. In addition, our research into
the development and administration of
with the N CFR Board of Directors at
the N CFR conference and discussed the
a CFLE exam amplified the need for a
better understanding of the field of
family life education. Where are family
marketing analysis. We will continue to
report on the progress of this project
life educators practicing? In what
settings do they work? Who employs
CFLEsl Are there enough family life
educators to warrant the effort and cost
of developing and administering an
exam? Many of these issues have been
addressed in this column in previous
issues of the Report.
The N CFR Board of Directors
recognized the difficulty and scope of
the task of identifying the potential
through the Report and the NCFR and
CFLE listservs. This is a significant step
in the development and growth of the
CFLE program as well as N CFR's
possible role in the development of
other certifications. We welcome and
encourage your input in this important
effort.
E}(PE!UENCE !IECOGI,l!!!ON
pfi:OCIESS STill AVAilABlE!
Response to the Experience
Recognition process for the CFLE
application has been excellent. This
streamlined application process,
available to experienced family life
All applications following the regular
review process must be reviewed by
the Certification Review Committee.
The submission deadline for the next
regular review is March 3, 2001.
education professionals, has resulted in
112 new applications since February.
We originally instituted this option in
an effort to attract seasoned family
professionals who were qualified for
the CFLE designation but would be
r\Cl'll. Hqwu I
December 2000
Access NCFRS website at: www.ncfr.org
To reach NCFR headquarters:
ncfr3989@ncfr.org
To reaclt specific staff members:
Michael L. Benjamin
mbenjamin@ncfr.org
Lynda Bessey
lbessey@ncfr.org
Dawn Cassidy
cassidyd@ncfr.org
Nikld Cunningham
nikki@ncfr.org
Doris Harcland
harelandjd@soncorn.com
Dorothy] ordan
ncfr3989@ncfr.org
john Pepper
peppenv@ncfr.org
Jeanne Ryberg
jryberg@ncfr.org
Abbey Showalter-Loch
abbey@ncfr.org
Sasha Smith
ncfr3989@ncfr.org
Cindy Winter
wintersc@ncfr.org
To reach NCFR President Steve jorgensen:
sjorgen@comp.uarh.edu
�Following is a list of Certified Family Life Educators designated since july 15,2000. A list of all atJTent CFLEs is now
[* - Provisional]
included in the certification section of the NCFR web page at www.ncfJ:Oig.
Alabama
Michigan
Barbaro Ames
Brian Boyer *
Darlene Brown *
Evelyn Conley *
Yvette McCutchen
Shirl Pcttiford-Campbcll *
Michale Vann *
Phyllis Williams *
Michelle Witt*
lllinois
J. Blake Snider *
L·mrie Kramer
Katie Sandler
Arkansas
David Briscoe
*
Indiana
Rebecca Adams
California
Susan Giboney
Walter Kawamoto
Cary Larson-McKay
Colorado
jennifer Dodge *
Frances Rye RN
Connecticut
Rebecca Clock *
Florida
Barbara Allison
Samantha Butler*
Lenore McWey
Connor Walters
Stephen Wood
Georgia
john Beasley
Christine Parker
Idaho
E. I. Williams
Kansas
Meghan Bach
*
Tracy Bruna *
jeannie Buckner
Robert Cave
Taryn Glidewell *
Kristen johnston*
Cari Misch*
Heather Skramstad
Kentucky
jeannette Wilson
Louisiana
Trisha Courtney *
Amy Simon*
Maryland
Georgia Franyo
Robin Rosebrough
Eileen Smith *
Nicholas Tavani
North Carolina
Tina johnson*
Ohio
Rhonda Richardson
Kathleen Shibley
Oklahoma
Minnesota
Valaric ChristopherBrown*
Jericn Berge
*
New York
Francesca Adlcr~Bacder
joan Kuehner
Mississippi
Shalteshia Dean *
Missouri
Patricia Gross
jennifer Hardesty
Lauren Leach
Lorrie Munson
Adriana Umana-Taylor
Nebraska
Emily Biennaier *
Beth Gausman
Oregon
Marilyn Flick
Mary Reed
Pennsylvania
jeanine Musselman
Jacqueline Schwab
South Carolina
Deborah Thomason
Tennessee
Annabel Agee
Beth Emery
Catherine Stogner
Nevada
Shernaaz Webster
Tc.xas
jean Anderson
Carolyn Caplinger
Mary Cole
Stacy Kissling *
julie Smith
Robin Stewart
Roberta White
Utah
Brandy Fowers *
john Howard *
Shirley Klein
David Law
Frances Lightner *
Amy Smoot*
Mikelle Wilcox *
Virginia
Karen Poff
Washington
joan Amby
Gabrielle Huffman *
Sheliah johnson
Jennifer Schlobohm *
WlSconsin
Nicole Ruder *
Timothy Schmidt
*
LESSON PLANS FOR
FAMILY LIFE EDUCATION
Tools for Ethical Thinhing and
Practice in Family Life Eaucation
Based upon NCFR's popular "Teacher's Kit,'' this
collection of 30 NEW lesson plans features a new
design with separate file folders for each of the ten
subsumce areas (same as those used in d1e CFLE
program). The majority of the plans arc designed for
high school and undergraduate level, adull education
and community education classes. Most arc ready to
use and many include handout and overhead
This booklet contains three valuable
resources for practicing family life educators:
Ethical Thinlzing and Practice for Family Life
Educators; Tile Levels of Family Involvement
Model; and Competencies for Family Life
Eduwtors.
Developed by the Minnesota Council on
Family Relations, Ethical Thinhing and Practice for Family
Life Educa10rs provides ethical information and guidelines useful
when making family life education practicl! decisions. Includes a case
study fonnat. Used as ethical guidelines for the Certified Family Life
Educator program.
masters. 191 pages. ISBN: 0-916174-59-X.
Copies of the 1994 Supplement, which includes 30 additional lesson
plans, arc still available. 248 pages. ISBN: 0-916174-44-l.
Tile LL"Vds of Family Involvement Model by William]. Doherty, Ph.D. is
an excellent article that addresses the crucial issues of where to place
parent and family education in the spectrum of professional services
lO families.
CF9910 Lesson Plans for Family Life Education
NCFR Member 534.95
Non-member $39.95
CF94ll 1994 Supplement
NCFR Member $19.95
Non-member
Competencies for Family Life Educators was developed by faculty at
Weber State University. It provides a listing of the knowledge, skills
and abilities needed for competent practice. Based upon the ten substance areas used to define the Certified Family Life Educator criteria.
Second
e
~~~
•
Special Discount! Purchase the Supplement in conjunction wilh d1c
new Lesson Plans and receive the Supplement for just 512.95 ($17.95
Non-members).
Edition~
CF9809
$24.95
1999.1SBN: 0~916174-58-1. 25 pages.
Single copy: CFLEINCFR Member $10.95
Non-member
$12.95
Contact the NCFR office for onlcring infonnation. (888} 781-9331 x 14
National Council on Family Relations
3989 Central Ave. N.E., Suite 550 • Minneapolis, MN 55421
_ _ Toll rrec: (888)781-9331• Phone:(763)781-9331• Fax: (763)781-9348
NCFR E-mail: ncfr3989@ncfr.org • Web: www.ncfr.org
!':c.rt{ n,·porl
fft\
NCFR
I O;.;cembcr <:!:000
12
National Council on Family Relations
3989 Centml Ave. N.E., Suite 550 • Minneapolis, MN 55421
Toll rree: (888)781-9331• Phone: (763)781-9331• Fax: (763)781-9348
E-mail: ncfr3989@ncfr.org • Web: W\'1\V.ncfr.org
�This column features news of NCFR promotions, awards, career changes of interest to all members.
Wlite to u.s and let u.s lmow what you arc doing.
Paul C. Rosenblatt, University of
Minnesota, St. Paul, has authored a
newly published self-help book, Help
Your Maniage Survive the Death of a
Child, published by Temple University
Press. Based on intensive interviews
with bereaved parents, the book offers
perspectives and suggestions on how to
deal with the many different couple
difficulties that may arise following
the death of a child.
he following persons have
contributed donations since
September 2000. Their generosity
aids NCFR in continuing its programs
and awards.
rt[fJ
jane E Gilgun-Minneapolis, MN
M. janice Hogan-Minneapolis, MN
john M. Williams-Menomonie, WI
rt[fJ
CFR recently received notice
of the death of the following
member:
Dr. Dorothy Field, passed away
August 27, 2000. She was a professor at
the University of California-Berkeley.
~'
Dr. Field had been a member of
NCFR since 1970.
1~1
General Fund
~
UJ_lJ
John Lewis McAdoo
Dissertation Award
Leanor BoulinjohnsonScottsdale, AZ
For more infonnation on contributing
to NCFR, contact:
Michael L. Benjamin,
N CFR Executive Director
3989 Central Ave. NE, Suite 550
Minneapolis, MN 55421
Toll free: 888-781-9331 ext. 21
or mbenjamin@ncfr.org
Association of Councils
Lane H. Powell, CFLE-Lubbock, TX
Hot Topics
a
Audio Teleconference Tapes & Transcripts
r.=1 Audio Tapes
~ Transcripts
October 1999
$20.00 each
$20.00 each
$40.00 both
'
\
'
Family Policy Advocacy or Education: Which Approach?,
Karen Bogenschneider
Held on the first Friday of each month.
How Quarrels Over Money(in the Federal Budget) Affect
AmeJican Families, Janes Homey
The next teleconference will be lteld on:
I
November 1999
january 2000
Federal and State Child Care and Early Education Issues,
Helen Blank
February 2000
Welfare Refonn, joan Entmacher
March 2000
Health and Family Policy in the New Millennium,
joy johnson Wilson
january 5, 2001
11:00 a.m. CST
"Family Fonnation Goals and TANF"
Theodora Ooms
February 2, 2001
11:00 a.m. CST
April2000
March 2, 2001
11:00 a.m. CST
May 2000
Social Seauity Solvency, Judy L. Chesser
September 2000
Whats Left on the Congressional Plate? Sheri Steisel
October 2000
The Effects of Divorce on Anwica, Patrick E Fagan
For up-to-date Topics and registration
information, visit our website at
www.ncfr.org or contact Michael L.
Benjamin at rnbenjamin@ncfr.org.
Deadline to register is 24 hours prior to
teleconference.
Insights from the Census Bureau: Data 2001,
Martin O'Connell
To order visit the NCFR website at www.ncf.:Dig or contact Nihhi Cunningham
at NCFR. Phone Toll free: 888-781-9331, ext. 14; Fax: 763-781-9348;
E-mail: nihhi®ncfr.Dig.
�he Research and Theory Section
Paul Amato, RT section chair for
considered an important funding
initiative at its annual meeting on
1997-1999, developed a set of
Friday, November 10, 2000. At the
meeting, section membership voted on
a proposal to fund projects that
advance and disseminate family
research and theory. (Results were not
available at press time. Ed)
For many years, the section has
built up an account based on royalties
from two books, Contcmpormy Tltcmics
about the Family. Vols. I & 2 (Burr et
al., 1979) and Sourcebooh of Family
Themics and Methods (Boss et al.,
1993). A committee appointed by
f!j: hat is your career? What do
, you study? What do you mean
you study families and children? So is that like psychology? Is that
anthropology? These are a few of the
many questions posed to me in Spanish
since my stay in Mexico. I am studying
in the Department of Family and Child
Ecology at Michigan State University
and my focus has always been with
families of color.
In my relatively short stay in
recommendations for publicizing and
awarding funding for projects.
Projects usually would be limited
to authored or edited volumes, such as
reference works, advanced textbooks,
special sections of journals, and books
series. The funds could be used to
support development of the project,
such as for travel, for buying books,
and for some limited supplies.
The members of the commiltee
that developed the guidelines are David
Klein, chair; james Deal, Mark Fine,
Ralph LaRossa, and Shelley
Living the crazy life may not always
Chail; Research & Thc01y Section
E-mail: jgilgtm®tc. umn. edu
teaching about families and children is
lies. Mexicans live in a country where,
I learned this summer, 40 million live
parent what their child will do because
each child is a gift and has a spirit of its
own. How can one predict what spirits
In a culture that is family-Jomsed, many do
not understand that anyone will pay me to
'help families' since it is natural and
expected to IJClp oneS own family.
of connections and of much needed
many Mexicans think my 'career' or
family work between the United States
and Mexico and just hope that the
future allows our field to grow in global
understandings and responsibility. I was
born to a Mexican mother-Anglo father
'what I dedicate myself to' is something
establishing confidence with Mexican
families and youth.
My reflections on family studies as
a career in the international context in
jane E Gilgun
also often foreign to a lot of Mexicans
I have met through conversations since
one learns about and from their children as they grow; one cannot tell a
ly describes my thoughts. Daily, I think
affords me in building rapport and
listserv. Be sure to read the guidelines
and offer your thoughts.
never heard of Family Studies or the
like and at best they tell me they think
it is honorable that I want to help fami-
in poverty-23 million of that in
extreme poverty (90% of the 23 million
are indigenous!). I have observed that
union in the United States. In Mexico,
I am living and learning the intimacy of
sharing ancestry and the power this
MacDermid, CFLE. The guidelines will
be posted on the Research and Theory
Mexico are that most Mexicans have
Mexico, I have several reflections.
describe life for me here, but it certain-
Funds could be used to support development
of projects such as reference worl~s.
advanced lcxlbooii.S, special sections of
jonmals, and bool~s series.
strange or will not make any money in
a country like Mexico. Making money
is important to support your family. In a
culture that is family-focused, many do
not understand that anyone will pay me
to 'help families' since it is natural and
expected to help one's own family.
Additionally, as witnessed in migrant
streams and networks, families help
other families and this is not a paid job.
It is necessary and sometimes means
survival for them. The concept of
NC!'!\ lkt•nn I Dt!ccmbcr '2000
1•1
do? Spirits tell us what is.
The crazy life is reflective in my
personal dedication as a Chicana family
scholar. I feel a certain obligation to the
people of Mexican origin and am proud
to be dedicated to serving them. I just
hope a fraction of the necessary work
I witness, imagine, or think of \vill be
completed in my lifetime by professionals in our field. The thoughts run
strong and heavy, and a little crazy at
times because I think, how can we
continue to ignore the needs of
children and families so close to home?
Heather Ana Hathaway Miranda
Dept of Family & Child Ecology,
Michigan State University
Graduate School Chai1; Latina/a
Graduate Student Alliance
E-mail: hathaw IJ@msu.edu
�Do You Have STRESS in Your Ufe?
Have You Studied the Effects of
Stress and Coping in Your \Vork?
Share \f/ith Others and Submit a
Pnoposal for the 200·1 Conference!
amnu:s, Stress, and Coping: Bridging
TireDly and Practice is the timely
theme for the 2001 Conference in
Rochester, NY, Thursday, November 8
through Sunday, November 11. Preconference workshops will be
November 6-7. Notice that the confucnce is bach to ending on Sunday J When
the members speak-NCFR listens!
You said you wanted to end on Sunday,
so we have worked out dates with the
hotels beginning in 2001 so that the
conference will again end on Sunday!
Now that you have admitled that
Stress is all around-be sure to submit
a proposal and attend the 2001
Conference in Rochester, NY. In the
event that you're not convinced-let's
think of some reasons why you should
submit and come to this conference!
eek wisdom from noted scholars
who have worked with the effects of
stress and resiliency on families. Learn
about new methods of coping, and how
researchers and practitioners can collaborate to effectively help families. We are
planning sessions where we will discuss
the research and learn how we can use
that information to help families be
resilient and cope more effectively.
ochester is a city of hidden treasures. Discover them for yourself.
Here are just a few of the wonderful
historic sites in the city and nearby:
R
•
•
S
T
all::e a trip to wonderful Niagara
Falls. lt's only a 90-minute drive.
The falls are beautiful in the fall and
winter as well as the traditional times of
spring and summer. Last january
Michael Benjamin and I drove to the
falls (when it was below zero-which it
won't be in early November when the
temperature tends to be like Minnesota).
The falls were still running and the ice
formations behind the falls were stunning. In addition, at sunset each day the
falls are illuminated with a multi-colored
light show.
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
Susan B. Anthony House. learn of the
sacrifices that she made in her valiant
efforts to seek women's right to vote.
Frederick Douglass Museum. This
moving exhibit is down the street
from the Hyatt Hotel. Visit with curator Maxine Childress-Brown, and
learn about the struggles for civil
rights that have plagued our country.
We guarantee that after visiting here
you will be "changed."
George Eastman House and Museum
of Photography. This mansion is full
of treasures, including a gigantic pipe
organ that provides music throughout the mansion. The photography
museum is outstanding as you view
the progression from the simple camera to today's modern technology.
High Falls area is a short distance
from the hotel. There is a laser Light
Show, and the gorgeous Genessee
River Gorge. The area has numerous
restaurants in all price ranges, microbreweries and quaint shops-all in
restored warehouse buildings.
Excellent restaurants, shopping, and
cultural events within walking
distance, many are in the covered
skyway system.
Free shuttle service running continuously throughout the evening to all
the sites in town.
Complimentary shuttle service
between the airport and the hotels
Coming Glass Museum, Corning
Women's Rights National Historical
Park and Elizabeth Cady Stanton
House, Seneca Falls
Harriet Tubman House, Auburn
Finger Lakes and Winery Tours
Waterloo: Peter Whitmer Farm, site
of the formation of the Church of
Jesus Christ of latter-Day Saints
And for all you football fans, the
home of the Buffalo Bills football
team is approximately 60 miles away.
program
experts
colleagues. N
Excellent and your presented by CFR
is noted for its top-notch programming.
This will continue as we present NEW
information related to your research,
classroom, or practice. As professionals
we must continually upgrade our skills,
and NCFR provides an excellent opportunity for learning. Graduate students
have shared with NCFR staff that a
week at the Conference is as effective as
a semester of work.
eek refreshment and revitalization
as you continue your quest for
learning. We know that the conference
provides an excellent program, but it
also provides an atmosphere for fun.
NCFR is also known for its effective
networking. Think about the experiences of meeting well-known authors
of textbooks in a friendly setting where
you can actually talk in-depth with
them. The NCFR conference provides
the refreshment that is essential in coping with stress in your everyday life.
S
hare your knowledge with others.
Presenting a paper is a step toward
becoming more involved in N CFR.
Proposal submissions are blind
reviewed, so that everyone has the
same chance for acceptance. Attendees
often wonder why a particular topic has
not been addressed at a Conference.
The answer is that we can't have
sessions on certain topics if we don't
have the submissions. H you have done
work on a topic, submit the proposal.
It is important to submit, because
allocations for Sections are based on
the number of submissions. If a Section
has just a few proposals submitted,
only a few sessions will be allocated.
Many educational institutions provide
travel funds only to those presenting at
a conference. Therefore, it is important
to submit a proposal. If you are hesitant
about submitting one by yourself, ask
a colleague to work with you on a
project, and submit it jointly. If the
proposal is accepted and you present
S
2001 Conference continued on page 16
�ach year we try to add something
new to the Program. The nrst
Conference of the new Millennium,
Century and Decade was a smashing
success with several new developments:
• NCFR initiated its first Work/Life
Summit. Some of the N CFR staff met
with Minnesota businesses, formed an
advisory committee made up of business worl<ilife managers and directors
and planned a model for the program.
Both NCFR members and the corporate community were enthusiastic
about the summit. This was the first
step in a collaborative venture
"hot off the press" conference
newsletter to keep them abreast of
the clay's events, and summaries of
events of the day before.
• Although it wasn't the first time, it
had been many years since N CFR
attendees had an opportunity to
attend a theatrical production as a
special fund-raising event. This year
attendees went to the Penumbra
Theatre for the play, The Jiial of One
Short-sighted Blach Woman vs. Mammy
Louise and Safrcela Mae. Thanks to
between N CFR and businesses in
helping to form policies which benefit
the generosity of Lou Bellamy, director of the Penumbra, for offering
NCFR an "exclusive showing" at a
substantially reduced rate so that this
families. We are pleased to announce
event could be a fund-raiser to endow
that the Work/Life Summit will con-
the John McAdoo Award.
tinue each year at the Conference.
With next year's theme of Families,
Stress, and Coping: B1idging Themy and
Practice, the Summit is a perfect place
to put the theme to action.
The One Stop Shopping round tables
began this year. Attendees were able
to find out about involvement in
N CFR in one place. This will be
continued next year.
• The President's Reception was held in
the beautiful Minnesota History
Center. It was a real treat to view
Minnesota history at its famed
Families exhibit, designed by History
Center staff in collaboration with
NCFR members.
• On Saturday, Sunday, and Monday
mornings, attendees were treated to a
• Poster Symposia- a combination of
posters and a mini
symposia-was
inaugurated.
Tapes of major sessions may be purchased from NCFR. A list and order
fonn is enclosed in this newsletter.
introduced showing off their workplace "flags."
After seeing all the "firsts" this year
-join in the continuing excellence of
sessions and fun with colleagues in
Rochester, NY. The corporate communi-
ty is already eager to collaborate with r,'
N CFR in the Work/Life Summit.
1h1
• Fanfare and
Applause as members of the Board
of Directors were
It's time to switch strategies!
continued from page 15
at the conference, you will be recognized by your peers. Leaders
in your field may be in the audience. You will receive feedback
on your work that will help you learn about your strengths and
weaknesses.
Please call NCFR if you have questions. Phone: 888-7819331 (Toll Free); 763-781-9331; Fax: 763-781-9348. E-mail:
ncfr3989@ncfr.com; Website: www.ncfr.org.
Proposals are now being accepted for the 2001 program. An
application form and instructions for submitting a proposal are
enclosed with this issue of the Report. They are also available on
the N CFR website: www.ncfr.org. The deadline for submission is
February 1, 2001 Postmark.
Cindy Winlcl; CMP
Conference Coordinator
E-mail: wintersc@ncfr.org
Markman, Stanley, Dohertv, Gray, Weiner-Davis, Waite,
Love, Olson,~. Guerne~, Milfer1,Gordon, Ooms, McCarthy,
McManus, r-ittman, Glass, Markey, Browning, Jordan,
Arp, Stasny, Doubl Carlson, Hargrave, Wallerstem, Sotile,
Larson, Harley, Gblin, Kobbe, fteitler, Stahmann - over
200 top marriage & relationship experts.
Train and certifv to, teach couple·ell)Powering,
pract1ce-expl!ndtng programs to 1t1clude:
PREP Couple Communication, RelationshiR Enhancement,. bivorce Busting, 7 Habill!t IMAGO, Hot Monogamy,
PREr-AREIENRICH l'EERS, uommunity Marriages Policies, FOCCUS, Becoming Parents, RELATE, First
Things First, Intentional Mamage~-. Power of Two, Parenting Adolescents Wisely, Marital 1:>ex As It Ought To Be,
Marriage Spirit, Life Partners, Stepping Together, Compassion Workshop, Focused Mediation, Mentor PREP,
Fathering Profiles, How to Avoid Marrying a Jerk, 10
Great Dales & Second Half.
Full-day training Institutes, Exhibits. 64 hrs CEU
Coalition for Marriage, Family & Couples Education, LLC
www.smartmarriages.com • 202-362-3332 • FREE a-newsletter
Dcccmb2r '2000
16
�The Center for Families at Purdue University
and
the Boston College Center for Work and Family
are pleased to muwwlce that
and
have received the
Rosabeth Moss Kanter Award for Excellence in Work-Family Research
for their 1999 paper
Civil Rights Law at Worh: Sex Disnimination and the Rise of Maternity Leave Policies
Pl!blished in the An!Ciican ]DLmwl of Sociology
The Kanter award is given for the best research paper published during the year. The purpose of
the award is to raise awareness of excellent work-family research, to foster debate about standards
of excellence, and to identify the "best of the best" on which to base future research.
We are grateful to the members of the award committee.
Shelley MacDermid, Award Committee Chair
Lotte Bailyn
Naomi Gerstel
Marcie Pitt-Catsouphes
Ellen Bankert
Linda Haas
Phyllis Raabe
Rosalind Barnett
Bridget Hiedemann
Jackie Rogers
Gary Bowen
Jeff Hill
Theresa Rothausen
:<CTH !\cf'urt
Karen Crooker
Ellen Kossek
Mary Secret
Bob Drago
Susan Lambert
Patricia Voydanoff
I
i7
December 2000
Linda Duxbury
Sharon Lobel
Mark Wardell
David Maume
�GE~lETlC SC~Et,<KE
DENv:\.i>H)S
TRA~~~SDtSCli?UH/:SRV !fH~Nf{!li'~G
/h.8(JUI F.i~Jv\ilUES
Dr. Sue K. Donaldson, dean and professor of nursing at the School of Nursing
and professor of physiology at the
School of Medicine at the Johns
Hopkins University, challenged NCFR
members to reach across disciplines to
meet the needs of families in the
explosion of genetic science. She spoke
at the 2000 NCFR Conference special
session, "Genetics and Families." The
new genetics knowledge has the ability
to identify altered genes that cause or
predispose to disease before there are
genetic therapies. Families and their
members face threats to their privacy
and rights. The potential for disruption
of family and social relationships, and
discrimination in health insurance and
employment exists.
NCFR, as an organization of profes-
sionals who work with families in areas
of research, education, social work,
counseling, psychology, sociology,
psychotherapy, family and consumer
sciences, anthropology, and health professions, has the talent and creativity to
confront the issues facing families' health
and well-being. Each discipline works
separately, along side, and sometimes
across disciplines. In her discussion of
scientific breakthroughs, Donaldson
commented that family pathfinders
struggle for acceptance within their
disciplines, and that they persevere
because of a commitment to families
who would benefit from the new lmowledge. Only when a breakthrough is
viewed in its historical context can one
grasp the boldness of the ideas. Family
and Health/Research and Theory sections
co-sponsored this special session in the
spirit of stimulating new ways of thinking about families and their needs.
,_
~:!
NCFR Discussion Listservs
Enrollment is open to all NCFR members.
NCFR Member Listserv
EducationEnrichment@cfapress.org
Ethnic Minorities website:
www.asn.csus.edu/em-ncfr
FamilyHealth@cfapress.org
FamilyPolicy@cfapress.org
FamilyScience@cfapress.org
FamilyTherapy@cfapress.org
FeminismFamilyStudies@cfapress.org
International@cfapress.org
ReligionFamilylife@cfapress.org
ResearchTheory@cfaprcss.org
Student@cfapress.org
(Students/New Professionals)
To enroll, send your name, e-mail
address, and the listserv(s) you wish to
join to: john Pepper at 763-781-9331,
ext. 16; E-mail: pepperw@ncfr.org.
To sign up for the Ethnic Minorities
Section listserv; go directly to its website.
~
<>
Other news: Thank you to Barbara
Mandleco (Secretaryfrreasurer),
Glenna Boyce (Vice-Chair), Curtis
Fox, CFLE, (New Professional!
Student), and Vivian Gedaly-Duff
(Chair) for their services as the Family
and Health Section 1998-2000
Executive Council. We would also like
to acknowledge the blind reviewers of
the abstracts. Without their scholarly
efforts the quality of the NCFR program could not be achieved. Finally,
welcome to the 2000-2002 Executive
Council: Sharon Denham (Secretary/
Treasurer), Teresa Julian (Chair-Elect),
Karel Koenig (Student/New
Professional), and Ann Garwick
(Chair).
We welcome your comments.
Ann Ganvicll
Clwil; Family and Health Section
E-mail: ganvi001@tc.umn.cdu.
~
~
~
B
his issue of N CFR Rcl'ort is
coming to you soon after our
annual conference, but I'm writing
this article bdore the conference. So I
will confidently assume that we had a
wonderful experience, came away with
great ideas, and are eagerly thinking
about ideas we can submit for next
year. Since the conference submission
deadline is only a few weeks away, I
thought it might be helpful for me to
share some observations from the
perspective of having run the review
process in our section this past year.
NCFR sections vary somewhat in
the processes, but not the major
criteria, used to review conference
submissions. Since the sections vary
tremendously in size, some sections
involve far more reviewers than others.
Our section is blessed to have enthusiastic and willing members, so our panel
IS
of reviewers is quite large. Typically, I
ask during our annual business meeting
for members to volunteer to serve as
reviewers. I try to make sure the review
panel is diverse in both perspective and
experience.
Each conference submission is sent
to three reviewers, who are blind to the
identity of the authors (except for
symposium submissions). The reviewers
submit their comments and quantitative
ratings lO me. I then decide whether to
accept or reject based mostly on quantitative ratings, but also taking into
account the fit of the formats requested
to the slots we have available, and the
way submissions fit together (e.g., are
there 3-4 papers that would make a
good group for a paper session).
I learned a few things during the
most recent review process that I'll
FFS conlinuccl on page 20
�e were
fortunate
to have
Bonnie Braun as
facilitator for the
Association of
Councils' pre-conference workshop
during the N CFR
Lane H. Powell,
annual meeting.
Ph.D., CFLE
She asked each of
us as affiliate leaders to consider several
aspects of leadership/legacy development, including:
• Beginnings-where was your leadership first recognized?
Key Players-who nurtured and
supported you?
• Key Events-defining moments in
your development?
• What have you learned?
What would you consider your
legacy so far?
• What are causes for celebration?
These questions would be very
advantageous for all of our affiliates and
their executive boards to consider both
personally and as members of the affiliate board. By doing this, we can address
the continuing problem in many volunteer organizations: the lack of long term
vision and continuity.
I am pleased that the new governance model in NCFR has instituted
longer terms (two years instead of one
year) for all officers and board members. It has given us time to consider,
plan, and execute some of the visions
and missions that have been articulated
in years past. One of my goals is to
carry out as many of the recommendations of the 1997 Task Force on the
Affiliated Councils who sought to
"strengthen the relationships among the
affiliated councils and N CFR, clarify
the relationships between the
Association of Councils and the Board,
and develop new relationships with
NCFR sections."
I am also pleased that all of the AC
Executive Board have agreed to serve a
second year. Many thanks for their
work and commitment to: Denise
Donnelly, (GA) Secretary-Treasurer;
Britton Wood, CFLE, (TX) Program
Chair; Norma Burgess (NY), Past
President and Nominating Committee
Chair; and Aaron Larson, CFLE, (UT),
Section Liaison. A new Student/New
Professional representative (we always
need fresh ideas and input) was elected
at the conference business meeting and
will be introduced in the next issue of
the Report, along with recipients of the
first Meritorious Service Awards.
Finally, a special appreciation to
Lynda Bessey, the N CFR staff liaison
who has worked tirelessly with us to
update the by-laws and the handbook
and to establish more contact with the
af[iliates. She is also working now in
her new marketing role to expand the
number of stale affiliates. She has been
an invaluable resource.
Lane H. Powell, CFLE
President, Association of Councils
E-mail: powcllb@llano.nct
Lane Powell, CFLE, tlie AC president is
available to visit and to spealz at a limited
number of affiliate confemJces during tlte
coming year. Sl1e would be happy to ralh
witl1 you about tit is possibility.
If you I~ave a group of at least 10 NCFR
members who want to fonn a cl!apte1; site
could visit with you to help with the
m;ganizing details.
he Texas affiliate of the National Council on
Family Relations invites everybody to our great
Marriage Education annual conference on April 5-7,
2001, in the great town of Dallas, Texas! The theme of our conference is "Building Healthy Relationships through Premarriage Preparation and
Marriage Enrichment." N CFR's very own David Olson will be our luncheon speaker
on Friday, April 6 and will also lead a research update in the afternoon. Olson will
provide a post conference on April 7, which will train professionals in the PREPARE/
ENRICH curriculum (version 2000).
Terry Hargrave, past president of the Texas Association of Marriage and Family
Therapists, will be our keynote speaker with the topic of "The Essential Humility of
Marriage: Marital Education and Therapy That Works." There is still plenty of time
for you to submit a proposal for the two-day conference and share your wonclc1ful
work in marriage education with professionals from Texas, Oklahoma, Louisiana,
New Mexico, and Arkansas.
We expect to have lots of time for networking as professionals and also to meet
with the students who help make our conference happen. If you are looking for an
edge on meeting potential graduates, please include this conference on your calendar. We are going to have a wonderful time learning and sharing and telling tall
tales. Please join us in April!
For more information, please contact Linda Ladd at 979-845-3803 or
l-ladd@tamu.edu.
Linda Lade!
President, Tc."'Cas Council on Family Relations
E-mail: l-ladd@tanw.cdu
i'iC:!'Il Uqw11
I
19
D'..:ccmbt:r::moo
Affiliate Connection continued on page 20
�continued from page 19
' '
aising Children in a Diverse
Society," was this year's
theme for the Pennsylvania/
Delaware Council on Family Relations
Annual Conference. On October 11, the
Pennsylvania/Delaware Council on
Family Relations and Penn State's
Building Strong Families, offered a
jointly sponsored conference at the
Harrisburg Area Community College in
Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. Over 160
conference participants gathered to hear
the morning keynote address presented
by Stephen Jorgensen, current NCFR
President. The luncheon keynote
speaker was Dr. Nathaniel Gadsen,
author of Self-Therapy Through W1iting.
Throughout the day, concurrent workshops were offered on topics ranging
from "Amish Adolescents" to "The
Latino family." Kate Lloyd and Sara
of Sociology, Shippensburg University,
Moorhead were the recipients of the
and the new Vice President is Denise
Anderson, Associate Professor of Social
2000 P/DCFR Undergraduate Poster
Work, Shippensburg University.
Award for their poster presentation on
"Working Mothers and Homemakers."
Stephen Brown, Associate Professor of
Both Ms. Lloyd and Ms. Moorhead are
students at Messiah College in
Grantham, PA.
The new officers for the
moved from Secretary to Treasurer, and
Pennsylvania/Delaware Council on
Family Relations were also announced
at the conference. After five very active
and productive years, Raeann Hamon,
CFLE (former President) and Debra
Berke, CFLE (former Vice President),
have decided to move on to new chal-
lenges. The new P/DCFR President is
Cynthia Drenovsky, Associate Professor
Psychology, Mansfield University, has
Jane Mecum, CFLE, Penn State
University, will become the new
Secretary.
Many thanks to everyone who
made this year's P/DCFR conference a
success. May we continue to enjoy
success, support,, and collaboration!
Cynthia K. Dl"enovshy
Pl"csident, PA/DE Council on Family
Relations
E-mail: clulren@ship.edu
continued from page 18
ark your
\'' calendars
,:;;\now... The
California Council
on Family Relations
is having its Second Annual Conference,
focusing on Family Resiliency. The con-
ference will be April 27-28, 2001 in
Sacramento, California at the CSU
Sacramento University Union.
This conference is for everyone who is
interested in how family resiliency is
expressed in California. Becoming
informed is the first step in facilitating this
inherent strength in California families. By
providing a place for scholars, parents,
professionals, therapists, artists, students,
faculty, government officials, and others to
network, new and innovative revelations
and perspectives relevant to resiliency and
families will be able to be shared.
Full details of the conference and regis-
tratian information will be available at a
later date.
Some of the highlights feature
national level leaders in family scholarship, family perspectives from the arts
community, cultural performances,
Northern California family service
agency exhibits, and community leaders.
Many of the people who expressed
interests have not confirmed yet, but we
can mention that one of the keynotes
share with you here. First, your chance
of having a submission accepted does
not vary as much as you might think
from section to section. This is because
each section is assigned space on the
conference program in proportion to
the number of submissions to that
section. Second, if you submit a group
of posters or roundtables, it is better for
Eacl1 section is assigned space on the
conference program in propm"tion to tlie
mtmber of submissions to tiJat section.
will be given by best-selling author,
UClA Professor, and Miwok Indian
Nation Chair, Greg Sarris.
To be sent a Call for Abstracts,
please send a request to CCFR
President, Walter T. Kawamoto, CFLE,
6000 J St., Family and Consumer
Sciences Dept., Sacramento, CA 958196053; Fax: 916-278-7520; E-mail:
kawamotw@saclink.csus.edu.
Walter T. Kawamoto, CFLE
President, Califomia Cotmcil
on Family Relations
E-mai 1: hmvamotw@saclin h. csus. cdu
1-rc r;'"i''
11
l
20
Dcccmi.x:r'lDOO
the section (any section) for each to be
submitted separately so that more time
on the program will be available to
present them. Third, pay close attention
when you prepare your proposal to the
content criteria against which it wilt. be
evaluated-reviewers will have to assign
points for each of these things. Finally,
make sure your work is as close to
finished as possible. Submissions
describing work that will be done are
much less likely to be accepted than
FFS continued on page 23
�SIUDlES: Messiah College
invites applications for a tenure track position in Family Studies, to begin Fall 200L
Committed to the integration of Christian
faith with life and learning, the successful
candidate will be able to teach eight familyrelated courses, which may include child
development, foundations of marriage and
family, adult development, human sexuality,
interpersonal relationships, research methods, and strategies for family intervention.
Demonstrated excellence in teaching, desire
to teach, commitment to research and scholarship importam. Ph.D. in Family Studies or
related field required, CFLE preferred.
Messiah College emphasizes instruction but
values research and public service. Strong
support given to faculty growth and scholarship. Submit letter of inquiry, current vita,
copies of transcripts and placement file (if
available) to: Dr. Raeann R. Hamon, Chair,
Department of Behavioral Sciences, Messiah
College, Grantham, PA 17027; 717-7662511, ext. 2850; rhamon@messiah.edu.
EOE.
\"7AJA[tY STUDIES: Assistant Professor
(tenure track), full-time position available
August 2001, the University of Illinois at
Urbana-Champaign. Ph.D. in family studies,
social work, sociology, psychology, anthropology, or related field. The Department of
Human and Community Development seeks
candidates with research in work-family
relationships (e.g., coping strategies, interventions, policies), intimate relationships
and intervention strategies, family stress and
coping (e.g., confiict, resiliency,
migration/immigration, strategies to promote resiliency), or other applied family
studies. Preference \vill be given to candidates who use an ecological approach and
address issues of race, ethnicity, culture,
and/or social class. To receive full consideration, applications must be received by
December 29, 2000. Send a letter of application, including a statement of teaching,
research, and outreach interests, curriculum
vitae; a sample of written work; and three
letters of reference to: HCD Family Studies
Search #7293, Attn: Dr. Constance H.
ZAVED
U
Shapiro, University of Illinois at UrbanaChampaign, 274 Bevier Hall, 905 South
Goodwin Avenue, Urbana, IL 61801. For
more information, contact Dr. Laurie
Kramer, 217-333-0628, e-mail:
1-kramer®uiuc.edu. The University of
Illinois is an AA/EOE. Minorities, women,
and other designated class members are
encouraged to apply.
The Division of Human Development and
Family Sciences, Department of Human
Ecology, University of Texas at Austin, seeks
to fill a nine-month, tenure-track position in
Family Sciences beginning September 1,
2001. Although we anticipate hiring an
Assistant Professor, applicants at more
advanced levels will be seriously considered.
Applicants must have a Ph.D. and expertise
in at least one of the following areas: family
sciences/studies, family economics, family
sociology, family psychology, or related area
of study. Scholars with any substantive
Assistant continued on page 22
NXVERS:J:TV
Founded in 1998, Zayed Univeristy is the newest public university in the United Arab Emirates teaching
national female students on two campuses. We are currently" inviting applications for faculty openings on
either our Abu Dhabi or Dubai campuses at faculty rank.S,--hJ the College of Family Sciences.
THE
OPPORTUNITY
THE
INDIVIDUAL
THE
UAE
THE
BENEFITS
The College of Family Sciences at Zayed University is iri"·its first year. The curriculum prepares
professionals for leadership roles in community, business, gOvernment, education, and healthcare.
The successful applicant for this position will be expected to'~teach in family studies. Desired areas
of expertise include social change, leadership development, h~lp_lng skills and family relationships.
•
•
•
•
•
PhD/EDD degree from an accredited university in Family Scieli_S~s or a related field
Evidence of successful teaching experience at the college level{-_:\
Expertise with instructional technology in the context of famiiY_-:s~lences
Ability to work In a highly collaborative environment
- :->
Evidence of successful innovation in curricuim design
;-::-:>-,
n,::_;s
The United Arab Emirates is one of the most liberal countries d~;~he Middle East, providing a safe
and friendly environment for men, women and families of all cUJF~'res. It offers a high standard of
living with abundant cultural, recreational and travel opportu?lt,j}~S. Its progressive and ~olerant
mlndset combined with visionary leadership has made the U~S:!=omparable to the worlds most
advanced nations. The UAE's business language and the UQIV:ersity's language of Instruction Is
English.
Jf,~;fr
Salaries are highly competitive and are free ofUS, ~6-S~p;-~ tax under most circumstances. The
UAE levies no Income tax. Benefits include hous_lqg}~baslc healthcare benefits, 56 days paid annual vacation, annual air tickets to place of orl_gi_Q_-;{§y:sE!If and family, furniture allowances and educational subsidies for children.
_, 0 t~f!A*fii->""
.
Apply online at www.zu.ac.ae
NC!'lt Hqwrl
l December 2000
21
�continued from
page 21
interest in families will be considered, but
those who study the economic and social
context of families, economic behavior of
families particularly with regard to workfamily roles and issues, and/or ethnic and
cultural diversity of families are especially
encouraged to apply. Successful candidates
will show promise of research productivity,
grantsmanship, teaching excellence and
ability to contribute to a collegial, interdisciplinary academic environment. Send curriculum vitae, preprints and reprints, and
three leuers of recommendation to Drs. Ted
Dix or Sue Greninger, Co-chairs, Search
Committee, Human Development and
Family Sciences, GEA 117/A2700,
University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX,
78712. (E-mail t.dix@mail.utexas.edu or
sgreninger@mail.utexas.edu if you have
questions.) Review of applications will
begin january 8, 2001 and will continue
until position is filled. The University of
Texas is an Equal Opportunity/Affirmative
Action Employer.
OiREGOii~ll STATE UN~VERSiTY
E.t\11LY (~jHJ)~'i()QD DEVEtOPiv'lE!rff
Two Assistant Professor positions, 9 month,
tenure-track. One position emphasizes curriculum applications in classrooms and/or
home visiting. The other position emphasizes child development. Responsibilities:
undergraduate/graduate instruction in some
combination of childhood development,
early childhood education, infancy, children
with special needs, and family/community
collaboration. Secure external funds for
strong program of research or program evaluation. Advise undergraduate/graduate students. VVork with faculty in other disciplines
and institutions. Participate in service to
department and profession. Qualifications:
Ph.D. in field with strong emphasis on early
childhood development. Early childhood
care/education and/or home visiting program experience desirable; interest in infancy and/or special needs and/or multicullural
approaches desirable. Potential for success
in university teaching and scholarship,
including external funding. Submit letter of
application indicating area of emphasis, curriculum vita, and three letters of recommendation to Sharon Rosenkoetter, Chair, Search
Committee, Human Development and
Family Sciences, Oregon State University,
322 Milam Hall, Corvallis, OR 97331-5102;
541-737-8529. To ensure full consideration,
applications must be received by December
I, 2000. OSU is an AA!EO employer and has
a policy of being responsive to the needs of
dual-career couples.
TOWSON UNIVERSITY
The Mandel School of Applied Social
Sciences at Case Western Reserve University
seeks a senior researcher to lead the research
and evaluation component of the Cuyahoga
County Early Childhood Initiative, a countywide publidprivate collaborative promoting the well-being of all county families
with infants and toddlers. For a complete
position description, visit
www.himmelfarbgroup.com or call
The Himmelfarb Group at 708-848-0086.
llf<N!~"'~G B. HARfiJS FEllJYvVSH[P
CfHlD DEVELOPMENT
M~~
The Harris School at the University of
Chicago seeks applicants for a one-year
A.M. training program in childhood development and policy research and analysis.
Full tuition plus SIO,OOO stipend available.
Applicants must hold graduate degree in
early childhood development or related
field. Deadline january 15. Contact Ellen
Cohen at 773-834-2576 or
eb-cohen@uchicago.edu.
Mandel School of Applied Social Sciences,
Case Western Reserve University
COLLEGE OF LIBERAL ARTS
FAMILY STUDIES PROGRAM
VERNA HOUCK MOTTO
PROFESSORSHIP IN
FAMILIES AND COMMUNITIES
FAMILY STUDIES
Entry-level, tenure-track assistant professor position in
undergraduate Family Studies Program beginning in Fall
2001. Candidates should have earned the doctorate in
Family Studies or a related field by September 2001.
Responsibilities include balance of teaching, service, and
scholarship. The typical teaching load is 9 semester hours.
Preferred areas of interest include family law and public
policy, community services, and program planning and
evaluation. Skill in the use of informational technology
for Family Studies education, experience supervising
internship placements, and CFLE credential are desirable.
Salary will be competitive at entry level. To apply, send a
letter of interest stating field of specialization, curriculum
vitae and names and contact information for three profession~! references by january 15, 2001 to Dr. Sandra
Carson Stanley, Director Family Studies Program, Towson
University, 8000 York Road, Towson, Maryland 212520001. FAX: (410) 830-2854; E-mail: sstanley@towson.edu
Case Western Reserve University seeks a distinguished
scholar to hold this newly created endowed research and
teaching professorship. In addition to customary responsibilities of teaching and service in the master's and doctoral programs, the Motto Professor will provide vision and
leadership in building the school's new Program on
Community Initiatives for Families and Young Children.
This program will add research and teaching capacity in
the field of families and communities to an already rich
array of disciplines and interests represented at the
school. An ongoing relationship between public entities,
such as Cuyahoga County, and the Mandel School offers
the Motto Professor an urban community laboratory from
which to conduct research and develop scholarship.
Towson University is an equal opportlmitylaffinnative action
employer and ltas a strong institutional commitment to diversity:
women, minorities, persons with disabilities and veterans arc
encouraged to apply.
For a full position announcement, visit
www.himmelfarbgroup.com or call 708-848-0086.
ANEOE
I
22
December 2000
�''r econd Building Family Strengths International Symposium, May 8-10, 2001,
~~~University
of Nebraska-Lincoln. Welcoming all disciplines and a wide variety
topics focusing on strengthening families. Deadline for proposals is january
15, 2001; notification after peer review by March 1.
For more information contact: Camelia Wills, Department of Family and
Consumer Sciences, University of Nebraska, Lincoln, NE 68583-0801;
Phone: 402-472-8209; or check the website: familystrengths@unl.edu.
~'!!of
NCFR Headquarters has a New Area Code
Effective Fcbntmy 27, 2000, the area code
for NCFR Headquarters office changed from
612 to 763. To contact NCFR, phone
763-781-9331;Jct< 763-781-9348.
Our toll-f><e muubcr (888-781-9331)
remains tl1c same.
continued from page 20
submissions describing completed work.
1 encourage all members to consider submitting proposals to the Feminism and
Family Studies section next year. As you'll see in the conference call, this section is
interested in a broad array of topics that we are eager to see
represented on the 2001 conference program.
Announcing ...
Shelley M. MacDennid, CFLE
Chail; Feminism and Family Studies Section
E-mail: shcllcy@cjs.purdue.cdu
NCFR's 2nd Annual Public
Policy Conference in
Washington, D.C.
Public Policy Tltrouglt a
Family LeliS: Sustaining
Families in tlte 21st Centwy
UNDERSTANDING fAMILIES
INTO THE NEW MILLENNIUM:
A
March 1-2, 2001
DECADE IN REVIEW
Get your 2000 Decade in Review, Understanding
Families Into the New Millennium special edition
Conference begins
Noon on Thursday,
ends 5:00 p.m. Friday
while supplies last.
Holiday lnn Capitol at Smithsonian, Washington, D.C.
Understanding Families Into the Nm Millennium
covers the vast aray of advances made recently
in the major areas of research in family studies,
including:
marital interaction
parent and child relations
fatherhood and motherhood
theory and research on violence
spillover of work and famil}~ and
After only six weeks on the job, help NCFR make its case of
sustaining families in the 21st Century to the new
Administration and the l07th Congress.
Focus on:
NCFR's message to the new Administration and Congress
Issue briefings
Identify the latest research and its implications for public
policy
Discuss family policy issues with major decision makers
Present new publication and member Notebook to
Congress
Visits to Congressional delegations
Reception on Capitol Hill
Framework for future NCFR policy efforts
urban families and neighborhoods.
The limited edition of Decade in Review is available to members for only:
Hardcover edition
NCFR Member $52.95 ($17 d~count)
All NCFR members welcome.
Paperback edition
NCFR Member $41.95 ($18 discount)
Registration Fee: $160
Rooms at the Holiday Inn Capitol at Smithsonian:
$144/night
Contact the NCFR office for ordcling infonnalion. (888) 781-9331 x 14
fti\
NCFR
For registration and hotel forms, contact NCFR, 3989 Central
Avenue N.E., Suite 550, Minneapolis, MN 55421, Toll-free:
888-781-9331, Fax: 763-78I-9348, E-mail: ncfr3989@ncfr.org
Website: www.ncfr.org
National Council on Family Relatiol1S
3989 Central Ave. N.E., Suite SSO • Minneapolis, MN 55421
Toll free: (888)781-9331• Phone:(763)781-9331• Fax: (763)781-9348
E-mail: ncfr3989@lncfr.org • Web: www.ncfr.org
l>Ii.JH fiq'Ul!
I
Occcmbcr'lOOO
�c;;;;!;,:;;;;;:;; on Parent
Education. For further information, contact:
Rebecca Edwards, conference coordinator, or
Dr. Arminta Jacobson, CFLE, conference chair,
Center for Parent Education, P.O. Box 311337,
University of North Texas, Denton, TX 762031337; Phone, 940-369-7246; Fax, 940-3697955; E-mail, jacobson@coef;.coe.untedu or
redwards@coefs.coe.unt.edu; Website:
www.unt.edu/cpe.
I
National Conference on Stepfamilies, New
Orleans Marriott Hotel, New Orleans, !A
Sponsored by the Stepfamily Associate of
America. For registration information: Phone: 617469-67B9, ext. 22; Fax, 617-469-3077; E-mail,
PIRIDC@mail.com; Website, www.EDUPR.com.
~
2nd Annual HCFR Public Policy and
Education Conference, Washington, D.C. For
information, contact Michael L. Benjamin,
M.P.H., NCFR Executive Director. Phone, BBB781-9331, ext. 21; E-mail, mbenjamin@ncfr.org;
Website, www.ncfr.ors.
2001 Education Odyssey: From Froebel to
the Internet, Association for Childhood
Education lntemational (ACE!) Annual
lntemational Conference, Royal York Hotel,
Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Conference will feature more than 150 workshops and seminars on
topics of interest to teachers, teacher educa-
tors, college students, day-care personnel, and
other caregivers. Contact laura Caims, ACE!
Conference Department for registration information at, ACE!, 17904 Georsia Avenue, Suite
215, Olney, MD 20832. Phone, 800-423-3563;
E-mail, ACEimc@aol.com; Website,
www.ACEI.ors.
Building Healthy Relationships through
Premarriage Preparation and Marriage
Enrichment, Texas Council on Family Relations
(TCFR) annual conference, Dallas, TX. For information, contact Linda ladd, TCFR President;
Phone, 979-845-3803; E-maih l-ladd@tamu.edu.
Faces of Change: Embracing Diverse
Cultures and Alternative Approaches, 13th
National Council on Child Abuse and Neglect,
Albuquerque/ NM. For information, contact:
Thirteenth National Conference, c/o Pal-Tech,
Inc., 1901 North Moore Street, Suite 204,
Arlington, VA 22209.
Family Resiliency, California Council on Family
Relations (CCFR) 2nd Annual Conference,
Sacramento, CA. For information, contact Walter
T. Kawamoto, CFLE, CCFR President, 6000 J Street,
Family and Consumer Sciences Department,
Sacramento, CA 95819-6053; Fax, 916-278-7520;
E-mail, kawamotw@saclink.csus.edu.
2nd Building Family Strengths International
Symposium, University of Nebraska-lincoln.
For information, contact Camelia Wills,
Department of Family and Consumer Sciences,
University of Nebraska, Lincoln, NE 68583-
0801; Phone, 402-472-8209; Website,
familystrengths@unl.edu.
Growing with Families: Education for
Parents of Children Ages 5·1 B is the focus
for the University of Minnesota's 4th Parent
Education Institute. Contact Mary Maher at 612624-1294 or maheriJ16@tc.umn.edu for more
information.
5th Annual Smart Marriages Conference,
Coalition for Marriage, family & Couples
Education (CMFCE), Rosen Center Hotel,
Orlando, FL. Co-sponsored by NCfR. For information, call 202-362-3332 or visit the website
at Vv"v\\W.smartmarriages.com.
I
Visions and Divisions: Challenges to
European Sociology, 5th Conference of the
European Sociology Association, University of
Helsinki, Finland. Abstract Deadline, January 31,
2001. For more information, see
www.valt.helsinki.fi/esa/. Registration and
abstracts can be sent by the ESA web page or
to the conference secretariat ESA, CongCreator
CC, P.O. Box 762, FIN-00101 Helsinki, finland_
fax, +358-9-45421930; E-maih
esa2001 @congcreator.com.
�
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December 2000 NCFR Report Magazine
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December 2000
-
https://archive.ncfr.org/files/original/e003a65387883d14b68077e3b0a6da82.pdf
6781313a8a3113321cef3d0fff3145a6
PDF Text
Text
hat's in a a
CFR B ar
han
a
"
ha.t which we call a rose by any
other name would smell as sweet,"
so Shakespeare wrote over 400
years ago. More recently, the NCFR Board
of Directors decided at its June board meeting in Minneapolis to change the name of
its flagship journal to ]oumal of Maniage
and Family.
At the 1999 annual business meeting of
the Feminism and Family Studies Section in
Irvine, section members approved a recommendation to change the name of]oumal of
Maniage and the Family. Section members
recommended that the name be changed to
]oumal of Maniages and Families.
The rationale for such a change was
that the current title "does not accurately
reflect the diversity that characterizes the
realities of people's experiences in intimate
relationships." In particular, "the family"
was described as presenting a "monolithic
and ideological image of conventional,
nuclear families."
Such a position, and the idea of shifting
away from the phrase "the family," is not
unique. For example, several years ago the
B.C. Council for the Family in Vancouver,
Canada changed its name to B.C. Council
for Families. In addition, the Family Studies
Center at Brigham Young University publishes a quarterly journal with the name
Maniage and Families.
Following the November conference in
Irvine, the Feminism and Family Studies
Section formally proposed the name change
to N CFR's Board of Directors. Board members responded by asking members and sections-via the N CFR listserv, the N CFR
webpage, and in the March N CFR Reportfor input about the proposed name change.
The name change was not put to a vote
of the membership. Rather, the Board of
Directors sought input from many sources
in order to help us in our deliberations. The
Board asked which of four titles members
prefer: ]oumal of Maniage and the Family
(current title),Joumal ofManiages and
The new title
Journal of Family and Marriage
reflects both continuity and change.
Families (proposed title),Joumal ofManiage
and Family, or ]oumal of Maniage and
Families.
We asked for your input and you certainly gave it to us! Since February, over 200
members of N CFR have weighed in on the
provocative debate. The Board was truly
impressed with the number of members who
took the time to share their opinions with
us-with some members responding multiple times. The Board was equally impressed
with the extremely wide range of strongly
held, well thought out, passionate beliefs.
Many members supported the change
to ]oumal of Maniages and Families for the
reasons given by the Feminism and Family
�NAME CHANGE
continued from page 1
Studies section, namely that the new
title would be more inclusive. But others
felt having "the family" in the title does
not convey a monolithic view of the
family, and any change is just an attempt
to be politically correct. Many members
felt that "marriages and families" sounds
awkward, but that "marriage and family"
would be a viable alternative.
In its deliberations at the June board
meeting, the Board was determined to be
sensitive to the opinions of all members
Report
of The National Council ou
Family Relations
Mission Statement for the Report:
REPORT, the quarterly .newsletter of the
National Council on Family Relations,
strives to provide timely, useful infonnaiton
to help members succeed in their roles as
researchers, educators, and practitioners.
A1ticles address family field issues, pmgrams
and trends, including association news.
President: Stephen.R. Jorgensen
Editor: Michael L. Benjamin
Managing Editor: Doris A. Hareland
Topics Feature Writer: Nancy Giguere
Layout: Michele Dettloff Design
NCFR Report is published quarterly by the
National Council on Family Relations,
3989 Central Ave. N.E., Suite 550,
Minneapolis; MN 55421.
Third class postage permit.
Report subscription rate: $20.00 per year;
$5.00 per copy. For bulk rates, call
888-781~9331, ext. 14. Annual membership dues include newsletter subscription.
$15.00 U.S. postage per year postpaid at
individual rate:
NEWS DEADLINES: January 8 for
March issue; April 9 for June issue;
July 9 for September issue; October 15
for December issue.
One copy of any portion of this
publication can be made for personal use.
Additional reprints of this publication
are available by contacting NCFR
headquarters at the address (above).
Bulk rates available.
Copy1ight © 2000 National Council on
Family Relations. All rights reserved.
of NCFR as well as to those who
responded to our call for input. We
strove for a title that would be inclusive,
one which we felt members with very
different viewpoints could accept. We
also wanted a title that would reflect the
mission statement of the journal (see
sidebar). We reached a unanimous decision in favor of]oumal ofManiage and
Family.
The Board would like to thank the
Feminism and Family Studies Section for
bringing forward this thought-provoking
proposal. The proposal for a name
change of N CFR's flagship journal has
generated much thought and dialogue
for the membership of N CFR as well as
for the Board of Directors and the staff of
NCFR. Such dialogue, and the consensus reached via such a process, can only
be for the good of a vital organization
like NCFR.
We also want to thank the membership who generously shared their passionate and wide-ranging opinions with
us. We believe that we have listened to
the diverse voices of the membership
and have responded with a new title that
reflects both continuity and change-
JMF Mission Statement:
"The Journal of Marriage and the
Family publishes original theory,
research, and· critical discussion on
a wide an-ay of topics having to do
with maniage, or other similar
fom1s of close relationships, and
families as they are so richly and
broadly conceived. Appropriate
content includes original theory and
research using a variety of methods
typical of the full range of the social
sciences including both qualitative
and quantitative methods. Integrative
reviews as well as reports on methodological and statistical advances are
also welcome. In all cases, appropliate material should advance the
understanding of close relationship
or family structures or processes."
one that is inclusive of all families:
]oumal of Maniage and Family.
For additional information, visit the
NCFR website at www.ncfr.org.
NCFR Board of Directors
Changes to Family lationsInviting Submissions!
n January 2001, begin looking for new additions and expansion to what is
currently offered in Family Relations. A comprehensive and critical review of the
literature on family-related topics will be featured in each issue. Accompanying
these reviews will be invited "rejoinders" that address the implications of the content for family practitioners, such as family life educators, family policy specialists,
and marriage and family therapists. Also included are manuscripts that represent
"Innovative Strategies and Techniques" used by collegiate educators and other
family practitioners. As examples, manuscripts may describe simulations or other
experientially-based activities, clinical strategies particularly relevant for use with
designated families, or teaching philosophies/practices. New criteria have been
established for evaluation of these submissions and can be obtained (e-mail:
Familyrelations@uncg.edu). The book review section is being expanded to include
books and other educational materials (e.g., program materials). For more
information, contact Dr. Lynn Blinn Pike, Associate Editor (PikeL@missouri.edu).
I
Kay Pasley, Ed.D.
Editm; Family Relations
NCFR Rel'ort I September 2000
2
�Input From
Certification
he Board of Directors is now
exploring the feasibility of establishing a creditialing program for
parent educators through NCFR. Parent
education is an emerging, bachelor
level profession that is growing rapidly.
For example, Minnesota requires licensure for parent and family educators
practicing in the Early Childhood
Family Education program. In addition,
the Texas Registry of Parent Educator
Resources (Texas Ropers) is developing
a system for recognizing different levels
of parent education providers.
Currently, there are no professional
standards for parent educators and
practitioners are not credentialed by
any national organization. However, it
is only a matter of time until some
organization expands or is created to
fill this function. Some members of
NCFR see our organization as a logical
home for such a credential, given our
stated commitment to both research
and practice and the obvious relevance
of parent education to the well-being of
families. As we approach this decision,
we are nying to weigh the potential
advantages and disadvantages to the
organization of such a move. At this
point, we would like to share them
with you and solicit your input as to
the appropriate course of action for us
to take.
POTENTIAL ADVANTAGES
First, being the professional association
which certifies parent educators could
bring national recognition to NCFR as
a leader in this area. Certainly visibility
has been an issue NCFR has struggled
with for some time and this could be a
vehicle to bring the national recognition the organization has needed.
Second, certification of parent educators would expand the membership
base. It is important to acknowledge
that the membership numbers for
NCFR have been stagnant for several
years, and as the membership ages,
these numbers are expected to decrease.
Adding parent educators to the organization could be a significant boost for
membership.
Third, the incorporation of parent
educators into NCFR could enhance
embers on Parent
the researcher/practitioner linkage that
the organization has so long promoted.
If those studying parenting and family
life education and those conducting
such education share the same professional home, there is bound to be
increased interaction and a generative
exchange of ideas.
Finally, the field of parent education offers jobs to our undergraduate
students. As those of us who are uni-
Do you believe NCFR should become the
natiohal organization that credentials and
serves as the professional home for parent
educators?
versity faculty know, establishing a reliable avenue for employment for our
students is important. If some organization other than NCFR becomes the credentialing organization the standard for
certification may be set below the bachelor's level. With N CFR setting the
standard at the bachelor's level, we can
ensure our students will be prime candidates for these positions.
POTENTIAL DISADVANTAGES
First, we believe that the establishment
of such a credentialing program would
change the culture of N CFR.
Specifically, the addition of a credentialing program for parent educators could
bring hundreds of new, bachelor level
practitioners into the organization. This
would change our identity from an
organization made primarily of academic researchers and teachers of practitioners to an organization that would
also involve front-line practitioners.
While we do not see such a culture
change as inherently good or bad, the
potential dilemma is that such a cultural shift has not been successfully
achieved by many professional associations. As Bill Doherty wrote in one of
his last presidential columns in the
N CFR Report,
"the challenge would be for NCFR to be a
professional home that nurtures both
excellent researchers and excellent practitioners, a place where both groups feel
valued as cont!ibutors and leamers. Most
NCFR Report I September 2000
3
professional associations specialize in
either research or practice. Some, lihe the
Ame1ican Sociological Association, are
scholarly organizations with little focus
on practice with individuals or families.
Others, lihe the Ame1ican Association for
Maniage and Family Therapy, and the
National Association of Social Worhers,
have traditionally focused on practice and
not on research. When associations have
tried to do both research and practice,
they have faced se!ious intemal obstacles.
The American Psychological Association,
for example, has historically embraced
both research and practice, but as the
practice membership grew in the 1970s
and 1980s, many researchers became
alienated and then split off to fonn their
own association. The same has occwTed
in professional associations of nurses,
where, when the practitioner base
increased, research nurses split off."
Second, the question of whether
such a credentialing program is fiscally
viable is of paramount importance. We
need to be certain that this is a program
that can pay for itself. Toward that end
the Board of Directors is undertaking a
market analysis to be certain that a
financially sustainable market exists for
this certification. We will share the
results of this analysis with the membership.
The Board of Directors is giving
serious consideration to these potential
advantages and disadvantages. At this
point in our deliberations, our question
for you, the members and owners of
the organization, is how do you envision the future of NCFR and do you
want the Board to proceed down this
path? Do you believe NCFR should
become the national organization that
credentials and serves as the professional home for parent educators? We want
and need your feedback. Please feel free
to e-mail your comments to
ncfr3989@ncfr.org. We also plan to
solicit feedback in various forms at the
annual conference. Thank you for participating with us in this most serious
organizational decision.
NCFR Board of Directors
E-mail: ncfr3989@ncfwrg
�Congress Considers Responsible Fatherhood
and Marriage Legislation
n November 1999, the U.S. House
of Representatives passed the
"Fathers Count" bill (H.R. 3073),
sponsored by Representatives Nancy
Johnson (R-CT) and Benjamin Cardin
(D-MD). If enacted, the legislation will:
• Create a new competitive grant
program administered by the U.S.
Department of Health and Human
Services. Grants will support initiatives that promote responsible
fatherhood, especially in lowincome communities.
• Provide significant funding for two,
high-profile projects to support
organizations with extensive
experience in conducting fatherhood
programs.
• Establish a national cleminglwuse
to develop and disseminate materials on fatherhood for the media and
for use by local projects. The bill
also stipulates that programs
should support marriage as the
ideal foundation for promoting
responsible fatherhood.
• Modify and expand welfare laws to
clarify that noncustodial parents of
either sex may participate in the
I
Attention
~CFR
ederal Employees and NCFR
members can now make donations
to N CFR through the "Combined
Federal Campaign" (CFC).
Through the "Combined Federal
Campaign" (CFC), federal employees
and those NCFR members who participate in your local United Way/
Combined Federal Campaign can now
make tax deductible donations to
NCFR by way of payroll deductions
and/or direct donations. NCFR is listed
under the "Women, Children & Family
Services Chalities of Anwica" at
www.womenandchildren.org, a coalition comprised of many of America's
finest charitable organizations, (including NCFR) dedicated to meeting the
needs of women, children, and families
in America and around the world.
NCFR:S four-digit CFC #is 1958.
welfare-to-work program. The bill
also clarifies a "Sense of Congress"
permitting states to use TANF funds
to support fatherhood activities
like those authorized under this
legislation.
• Provide program-evaluation funds
to judge the success of funded
programs.
If enacted, the bill will cost about
$44 million a year, excluding costs
related to changes in welfare legislation.
A similar bill, "The Responsible
Fatherhood Act," (S.l364) was introduced to the Senate last year by
Senators Evan Bayh (D-IN) and Pete
Dominici (R-NM). Although there are
some differences in the two bills, they
are directed at similar goals. The Senate
bill will cost $77 million a year, excluding costs associated with changes to
existing welfare legislation.
The "Responsible Fatherhood Act"
is now before the Senate Finance
Committee but no action has been
taken as of July 15. Policy analysts
believe there is a reasonable chance of
passage during this session, although
the bill will likely undergo some
changes during debate.
House officials have promised they
will work with Senate officials to iron
out any differences in the two bills in
conference. President Clinton has indicated his desire to sign this legislation
into law before his term expires in
January. However, if it does not pass
this session, both Vice President Gore
and Governor Bush have said they support legislation to promote responsible
fatherhood and marriage.
The passage of this legislation
could signal a formal recognition of the
serious problem of father absence in
our society N CFR members may want
to contact their congressional representatives and express their views.
For more information on this legislation, including the full text, visit the websites of the U.S. House of Representatives
(www.house.gov) and the Senate
(www.senate.gov).
Alan]. Hawhins, CFLE
Bligham Young University
E-mail: hawhinsa@byu.edu
Members!
COMBINED FEDERAL CAMPAIGN
The "Combined Federal Campaign"
(CFC) is the annual fund-raising drive
conducted each fall by Federal agencies
and, in some communities, United Way
for employees in their workplace. Each
year these employees and military personnel raise millions of dollars through
the CFC that benefits thousands of
non-profit charities. To learn more
about CFC go to www.opm.gov/cfc.
DONATE TO NCFR DIRECTLY
ONLINE
Make a donation to NCFR from our
website at www.ncfr.org or at
www.charityamerica.com. Help NCFR
meet its goal of $10,000.00 in CFC contlibutions for the year 2000.
NCFR Members! If you have colleagues or friends who are Federal
NCFR Report I September 2000
4
employees encourage them to consider
donating to NCFR through the CFC
campaign this year. Funds donated to
NCFR will go to: Providing tools for
family researchers, parent educators, and
family practitioners to share in the development and dissemination of Jmowledge
about family well being. Go to NCFRS
website for more details: www.ncfwrg.
Thank you members! Your
r, •
support is truly appreciated!
lfll
NOTICE!
NCFR Headquarters has a New Area Code
Effective February 27, 2000, the area code
for NCFR Headquarters office changed from
612 to 763. To contact NCFR, phone 763781-9331;fax 763-781-9348. Our toll-free
number(888-781-9331) remains the same
�Deliberating With Many Voices
s I write these words, we are
now about 8 months into our
organizational operation under
the new model of board policy governance approved by the NCFR membership in 1999. I am continually learning
something new about how this paradigm operates, and every day I become
more impressed by the power that this
model instills in you-the NCFR membership. A primary guiding principal of
the governance model is that the Board
of Directors "deliberates with many
voices, but speaks with one voice." In
brief, discussion, debate, and even dissension are welcome during the Board's
deliberation of issues on the table.
However, when decisions are made, the
Board stands together in unity behind
that decision.
Key to making this process work is
the fact that NCFR members represent
the "moral ownership" of our organization, and the Board of Directors "stands
in" for you. This means that when
issues arise that clearly impact the
NCFR membership, the Board of
Directors is obligated to consult with
the membership to determine the range
of ideas, attitudes, and opinions prior
to making any binding decisions. Thus,
the "many voices" we use in our deliberations must include your voices! We
cannot do our job effectively without
involving you in the discussion.
Most recently, we invited the membership to weigh in on an issue that
the Board determined was clearly a
"membership issue" -the proposed
change in title for the]oumal of
Maniage and the Family (JMF). Our
goal was not to conduct a member vote
or scientific survey on the issue.
Rather, we sought to obtain a good
feeling for what various members
thought about the proposal submitted
by the Feminism and Family Studies
Section to change the name of ]MF to
the ]oumal of Maniages and Families.
We were particularly interested in the
rationale underlying whatever opinions
were held. By way of calls for feedback
in the N CFR Report, on the N CFR
membership listserv, and the N CFR
webpage, we asked you to tell us what
you thought about this possible name
for ]MF, along with others that had
been suggested along the way (including not changing the name at all).
More than 200 members responded
to this issue, supplying the Board with
thoughtful and reasoned viewpoints,
muchas the Feminism and Family
Studies Section had done with their
original name change proposal. The
depth of feeling and, in some cases
pure passion, among so many was
remarkable to us (clearly justifying the
decision to seek member input!). This
was precisely the kind of information
that we needed in order to conduct our
deliberations about the title of the journal in the most comprehensive and rea-
Key to making this process work is the fact
that NCFR members representthe "moral
ownership" of our organization, and the
Board of Directors "stands in" for you.
soned way that we could. Elsewhere in
this issue of the NCFR Report (see article on page 1), you will find an article
that outlines the process and our final
decision. The decision was to drop the
word "the" from the journal title, so
that the revised name of]MF will be
]oumal of Maniage and Family. I mention all of this now to let you know
that we did, in fact, "deliberate with
many voices," including yours.
Although this process took a little more
time than might otherwise have been
the case had we just conferred among
ourselves at a Board of Directors meeting, it was absolutely necessary to have
done it. Every NCFR member who
chose to do so did have a say in the
matter, and the Board listened-and listened carefully. For that, we say thank
you for being an important part of this
decision. You share in its ownership.
You will soon have another opportunity to engage in this form of participatory dialogue with the NCFR Board
NCFR Report
I September 2000
of Directors. In another article in this
NCFR Report (see page 3), you will see
a call for your thoughts on another
matter vital to NCFR's future-the
establishment and operation of a certification program for parent educators.
This decision will affect the character of
N CFR's membership and prospects for
future membership growth. Such a certification program will most certainly
attract a different type of professional
into N CFR's membership ranks than we
have previously known. Changing the
composition of NCFR's membership
will have implications for other aspects
of our operation, including the nature
of the annual meeting, programs, and
related activities. I urge you to take this
opportunity to assist us in "deliberating
with many voices" within our organization on this critical issue. As with the
name change for JMF, your Board
defines the possible expansion of the
certification activity of the organization
as a membership issue that warrants
your careful thought and attention. We
need the benefit of your insight! We
need to hear your voice!
In closing, I am looking forward to
what promises to be an outstanding
annual meeting in Minneapolis in
November. Elaine Anderson, Annual
Program Chairperson, and the Annual
Program Committee have put together
a first-rate program for you. Remember
that the annual meeting provides a
forum for face-to-face exchanges with
other NCFR members, networking and
learning opportunities, and opportunities to dialogue directly with your
Board of Directors on issues of interest
to you and of importance for the future
of this professional organization. As a
"moral owner" of the organization, you
do have the attention of the Board of
Directors. Your voice is an integral part
of our deliberations. You have the power
to shape the future of NCFR. See you in
Minneapolis!
Stephen R. jorgensen, Ph.D.
President
E-mail: sjorgen@comp. uark.edu
NCFR
�Recruitment and Retention
his months article on improving
member acquisition and retention
completes the three part series
dealing with major staff objectives for
2000. The previous articles addressed
NCFR's expanded role in public policy
and increasing NCFR's visibility nationally and internationally to better impact
family life.
In reviewing the research literature
on association membership recruitment
and retention, I found that education,
infonnation and networking are the top
three reasons professionals join associations. These findings are consistent with
my own experiences in association management and with discussions I've had
with some of our members as well. So
what are we doing new to attract new
members and keep members?
With respect to education and information, we have updated the Report format and consolidated the special focus
articles into a special section that can be
"pulled out" as a separate piece. Our
intent is to provide you with the latest
information on family related matters
that can be utilized as supplemental
reading material in your classrooms or
for your own professional enrichment.
In fact one of our members e-mailed
me the following statement recently:
"I've always attempted to draw from
information in the Report in my classes.
The quality of the submissions has
markedly increased during the last year,
and now I have several articles to stimulate discussions in my Social Welfare
Fields of Service and Poverty,
Contemporary Cultures of the U.S., and
Community and Social Systems courses.
I have also used some of the mate1ials to
provide professional perspectives on
social issues (in addition to social
work) ... " wrote Dr. Edith A. Lewis of
the University of Michigan's School of
Social Work.
Look for more changes with this
format based on your feedback and comments. In fact, each of the Report's past
seven special topic issues (e.g., Health
Care Refonn, Immigrant & Refugee
Families, Impact of Welfare Reform on
Families, etc.) were refonnatted into
individual booklets that have a look that
is consistent with this current "pullout."
Check our website (www.ncfr.org) for
ordering!
The aforementioned topic specific
project in the Report began as a membership retention tool, now we're using
it as a new-member development tool.
Recently, we've mailed out over 7,000
"professor letters" and copies of the
June "Family Focus on Visions for
Families: Continuity and Change Across
Cohorts and Generations" issue to faculty in various college departments
(e.g., sociology, psychology, nursing,
public health) across the United States
as a marketing tool.
.Of course, when it comes to education, our journals and the annual confer-
In reviewing the research literature on
association membership recruitment and
retention, I found that education, information
and networking are the top three reasons
professionals join associations.
ence still rank high in the field and with
our members. In the 1999 edition of the
journal Citation Report, the journal of
Maniage and the Family ranks 42nd out
of 1679 social science journals worldwide and 4th out of 32 journals in the
family studies field. Family Relations
ranks 277th out of 1679 journals and
14th out of 32 journals in the family
studies field. Currently anyone can
access our journals free online, but
beginning january 2001, only members
will be able to access the journals
online. A new service for members only
will be the ability to access all of our
past journals online. Watch for the
announcement on our member listserv.
Will this additional service attract new
members and retain current members?
And will this accessibility increase those
journal ratings? We would like to hear
from you about this new service!
Another project is tl1e monthly 60minute "hot topics" teleconferences on
N CFR Rep01·t I September 2000
6
public policy issues and other technological advances affecting the family
field. This is a member benefit where tl1e
fee reflects only direct costs (e.g., cost of
the phone line). A teaching fellow emailed me about the hot topics for
September, October and November.
"I am teaching a course on Family Life
Education at the University of Maine
and thought that if one of tl1e topics was
relevant to the class, we could possibly
join the teleconference," said Mary
Madden. Look to the N CFR website for
"hot topics" updates!
Speaking of websites, NCFR's website (www.ncfr.org) is undergoing reconstruction. We are making the site easier
to navigate so that members can access
useful information more efficiently One
of our additions will be an online tool
permitting members to be involved in
the political process and act on our public policy agenda. Members will be able
to access up-to-date and accurate legislative and government information affecting family well being. Stay tuned!
With respect to networking,
NCFR's annual conference is still the big
draw. Did you know that almost 40% of
our conference attendees come from
within 300 miles of the conference city?
Did you also know that close to 60% of
conference attendees are on the program? And did you know that almost
22.2% of attendees have returned to
more than 3 conferences over the past
ten years? And the big draw is networking opportunities and ease of meeting
peers. We have scheduled receptions,
fireside chats with our major speakers,
breaks and many opportunities for
N CFR Board of Directors, Section
Chairs and Affiliated Council Officers,
and speakers to mingle with attendees
particularly with students and new professionals. Our leadership is very
approachable, giving nonmembers
opportunities to learn more about the
benefits of being associated with N CFR.
And lastly, we give members opportunities to showcase their expertise by
asking members to write articles in the
Review continued on page 11
�Initiatives from the Federal Interagency Forum on
Child and Family Statistics
ne of the most interesting
meetings I attend is the Federal
Interagency Forum on Child
and Family Statistics. Several initiatives
are being worked on and at least two
will be on the web for you by the time
you read this.
I. "America's Children, 2000," the
latest report of indicators of child wellbeing, is to be released on July 13th.
The indicators are those found in official Federal statistics covering children's
economic security; health, behavior,
social environment, and education. The
material can be used in studies of many
different kinds. Web: childstats.gov.
A study based on last year's version: "America's Children: Key National
Indicators of Well-being, 1999," was
used to compare the well-being of children and the elderly. The report,
"Economic and Social Conditions of
Children and the Elderly;" found in the
Monthly Labor Review of April 2000 (p.
19), states that "the proportion of children in the population has fallen from
36% in 1960 to 26% in 1998, and is
expected to drop to approximately 24%
by 2020. At the same time, the proportion of the elderly has risen from 9%
tol3% and is projected to increase to
16% by 2020." "The elderly are now as
well off, if not better off than the non-
elderly; while the children are an
increasing fraction of the poor, despite
the reduction in family size." These
projections are very important for policy discussion, particularly as we discuss
education for the children and the
future of Social Security in this preelection year.
II. A second initiative of the Forum
is the Fatherhood Indicators Project.
Designed to study "Family Formation,
Parenting, and Fertility: What do we
know about American men and
women." Indicators are being gathered
from fifteen studies conducted by six
federal agencies: Bureau of Labor
StatistiCs, National Institute of Child
Health and Human Development,
National Center for Health Statistics,
ASPE/Department of Health and
Human Services, U.S. Census Bureau,
and the National Center for Education
Statistics. A time line for completion of
this product has been created and it is
planned for release on Father's Day
2001. Mark your calendar.
Ill. A third project for the Forum is
the beginning of an initiative:
"Measuring the Formation and
Dissolution of Marital and Cohabiting
Unions in Federal Surveys." A working
draft has been prepared and it will be
on the web soon. Some of the statistics
are surprising. The National Survey of
Family Growth for 1995 shows that
half of all persons under age 40 have
lived in a cohabiting relationship. U.S.
Census Bureau data show that 4 million
couples currently live together outside
of marriage, eight times as many as in
1970. As the draft states, "The main
story to be told is that the significance
of marriage continues to decrease and
has affected childbearing patterns."
Cohabiting couples account for about
40% of all non-marital births but federal statistics do not track cohabitation.
There are important data and policy
questions. Since the marriage penalty
does effect lower income working people, does it keep people from marrying?
What are the effects of cohabitation on
later marital stability and quality; and
on the children? What are the effects of
divorce? These are only a few of the
questions needing answers.
IV Does everyone know about the
Kids Count Data Book? The lOth
anniversary edition is now available by
calling the Annie E. Casey Foundation
at 410-223-2890, or checking their web
at www.aecf.org.
Margaret Feldman, Ph.D.
NCFR Policy Representative
E-mail: mefeldman@aol.com
Report from the UN
THE NGO MILLENNIUM FORUM
his past May; over 1,300 representatives from non-governmental
(NGO) organizations convened at
UN headquarters in New York.
Participants discussed six pre-chosen
topics and collectively prepared a final
document to be presented to the world
leaders at the United Nation's official
Millennium Assembly this September.
They wished to inform leaders about
the kind of world "the people" envision
for the next century. The six topics
were peace, poverty; human rights,
environment, globalization, and
"strengthening and democratizing the
United Nations and other International
Organizations."
It is hard to gauge what the majority of the representatives believed, but
those who spoke were concerned about
the effects of globalization and its
inequities, the developing countries'
need for debt relief, famine relief, the
NCFR Report I September 2000
7
draining of their natural resources, and
the growing disparity between North
and South.
Caucuses on the focal topics
attempted to prepare statements for the
final declaration. I attended the caucus
on poverty eradication, which included
families and children in its agenda.
Participants criticized the World Bank
for its power and "unfair" practices;
they also criticized globalization and
UN Report continued on page 11
�Increasing
c
n the June issue of the NCFR
Report, NCFR Executive Director
Michael Benjamin wrote of his goal
of increasing NCFR's visibility. He
shared information on his and other
staff members' attendance at various
N CFR Affiliate Council meetings
throughout the country.
We have been increasing our visibility with other family-related organizations as well. I attended a number of
conferences in the past few months representing N CFR in general and the
Certified Family Life Educator program
specifically. Our presence at these meetings provided an excellent opportunity
to let more people know about NCFR
and our services.
In April I attended the Family
Support America (formerly Family
Resource Coalition) conference in
Chicago. NCFR had an exhibit and I
participated in a panel discussion on
the current status and future direction
of credentialing in parent education.
In early June I traveled to Denton,
TX to present a workshop on the CFLE
application process at the University of
North Texas Center for Parent Education
Summer Institute. Again, NCFR had an
exhibit and shared information on
membership and resources.
The Ameli can Association of Family
and Consumer Sciences conference in
I
At last ••• an easier way for
established family
professionals to apply for
the CFLE designation.
NCFR is offering a limited-time,
streamlined application process for
expe1ienced family life educators. This
process will only be available until the
end of the year. Take advantage of this
opportunity and apply now. There is
no submission deadline. All the information needed to apply under the
Expe1ience Recognition process can be
printed out directly from the NCFR
website at www.ncfr.org.
's Visibility
Chicago in late June also provided a
great opportunity to get NCFR's name
out in front of a large group of family
professionals. Attendees at this conference were especially interested in the
Experience Recognition option currently available for the CFLE program.
Many people were already familiar with
NCFR but we found that they often
weren't aware of the range of products
ani:l services available.
Finally, NCFR exhibited at the
Coalition for MaJTiage Family and
Couples Education (CMFCE) conference
June 29th-July 2nd in Denver, CO.
Again, people were especially interested
in finding out more about the
Experience Recognition process for
CFLE as well as membership in N CFR.
We coded our literature so that we
can track the response received from
each conference. Certainly not all contacts will result in direct sales or orders.
Still, because of our presence at these
meetings, more people know about
NCFR. Repeated exposure to our name,
logo, and offerings will increase the
likelihood that NCFR will be the first
organization people think of when they
hear the word family.
TRANSITION ASSISTANCE
CONFERENCE
N CFR has also been working to expand
our relationship with family support
programs within the military. Michael,
N CFR President-elect Dr. Carol
Darling, CFLE, and I attended the
"Transition Assistance Conference The Role of Certification" in mid June.
The conference was sponsored by the
Coalition for Professional Certification in
conjunction with the United States
Department of Labm; the American
Legion, and the Department of Defense.
The purpose of the conference was to
bring together representatives from federal government and non-government
organizations to focus on helping the
transition of active duty military personnel to employed veterans through
the certification process.
One goal is to provide military
NCFR Report I September 2000
8
personnel with training and certification that will be recognized outside of
the military. N CFR already has a
strong relationship with the U.S. Air
Force and has certified a number of
military employees working in family
support. When this relationship first
began back in 1995, the goal of the Air
Force was to ensure that military families were served by the most qualified
people possible. This newer effort
takes certification a step further by
increasing the marketability of the
employee after they leave active duty.
The CFLE designation is readily applicable to those currently employed by
the military in family services but has
the added advantage of being transferable to a number of other family-related occupations outside of the military.
We have heard that government and
funding agencies are increasingly
interested in independent, national
certifications rather than licensing
because they provide a less expensive
and more broadly applicable source of
creden tialling.
We will continue to work with the
Coalition for Professional Certification,
the American Legion, and the
Department of Defense to determine
how we can best work together to
increase the qualifications and marketability of family life educators both
while serving in the military and upon
their entrance into civilian life.
Dawn Cassidy, M.Ed., CFLE
CFLE Certification Director
E-mail: cassidyd@ncfwrg
Next Regular CFLE Review
Deadline is September 3, 2000
The regular CFLE application review
will be held in November 2000. The
submission deadline for the Fall 2000
CFLE review is September 3rd, 2000.
Contact NCFR headquarters for information or to order an application
packet.
�Certified Family life Educators
Following is a list of Certified Family Life Educators designated since May 15, 2000. A list of all cutTent CFLEs is now
included in the certification section of the NCFR web page at www.ncfr.org.
[* -Provisional]
Alaska
Octavia L: Thompson
Kentucl;y
Azetta Z. Williams
Arkansas
Roberta L Weiss
Louisiana
Angie Marie Gautreaux *
Darin Perry *
California
jack 0. Balswick
Colorado
Clifton E. Barber
Connecticut
Ronald M. Sabatelli
Lois S. Sadler
Florida
Athena Staik
Georgia
Nancy M. Kingsbury
Illin:ois
Donna Coonce
Katie A. Sandler *
Indiana
Holly Baumann *
Shelley M. MacDermid
Barbara Riggs
Betty]. Runyan Bricker *
Gloria Gonzalez-Kruger
New Mexico
Kevin M. Green *
Nevada
LiSa C. Hill
Anthony]. Taylor
Maryland
KarenEskow
M. Todd Steffy
New York
Karen Sherman
Michigan
Thomas R. Gillespie *
Maurinejones *
Gordon E. MacKinnon
jane A. Sanderson *
Cherie D. Seitz*
Charles M. Tresenriter "
Paula Marie Wilson *
Ohio
Vickie Teeneen Brown-Smith
AnrieT. Ellison*
Sr. Margaret Link
Susan D. Maxymiv *
Oregon
SallieDee Cahill *
Susan A. George *
Mary A. Reed *
jan Spencer*
Karlene Stutzer *
Minnesota
DonL Divis
Carole Gesme
Susan K. Nash
Michael]. Walcheski
Pennsylvania
Christina Genchur *
Missouri
Bridget Brennan
Tennessee
jack B. Hollan
Nebraska
Debra K. Anderson·
Texas
Mary Bold
Linda Brock
Dianna Clayton
Charity Linderman *
Robin Stewart
Utah
David C. Dollahite
E. ] effrey Hill
Christine Ann Hutchinson *
Kevin B. Skinner
Terry L Thiel *
Crystal Twitchell *
Virginia
Bob Ruthazer
Washington
Sandra ]. Bailey
DrewL Betz
Wisconsin
Larry L Ballard
Dave Riley
New Brunswicl{, Canada
Ken Neilson
Military
Cassandra Lee Adams
Tools for Ethical Thinking and
Practice in Family Life Eaucation
This booklet contains three valuable
resources for practicing family life educators:
Ethical Thinhing and Practice for Family Life
Educators; The Levels of Family Involvement
Model; and Competencies for Family Life
Educators.
an interactive CD-ROM for training in
essential parenting skills for treatment
and prevention of behavior problems.
Parents of 5-18 year olds watch nine
common problems, choose solutions
and watch them enacted. Research
demonstrates high parental satisfaction
and substantial improvements in
parenting and child behavior.
Developed by the Minnesota Council on
Family Relations, Ethical Thinhing and Practice for Family
Life Educators provides ethical information and guidelines useful
when making family life education practice decisions. Includes a case
study format. Used as ethical guidelines for the Certified Family Life
Educator program.
The Levels of Family Involvement Model by William]. Doherty, Ph.D. is
an excellent article that addresses the crucial issues of where to place
parent and family education in the spectrum of professional services
to families.
For more info, write:
FAMILY WORKS INC
20 E. Circle Drive
Suite 190
Athens, OH 45701
740-593-9505
or e-mail: gordon@ohiou.edu
Competencies for Family Life Educators was developed by faculty at
Weber State University. It provides a listing of the knowledge, skills
and abilities needed for competent practice. Based upon the ten substance areas used to define the Certified Family Life Educator criteria.
Second Edition - 1999. ISBN: 0-91617 4-58-1. 25 pages.
CF9809
Single copy: CFLE/NCFR Member $10.95
Non-member
$12.95
e
• a·
~r
National Council on Family Relations
• . 3989free: (888)781-933l•Phone:(763)781-933l•Fax: 55421
550 • Minneapolis,
1 Toll Central Ave. N.E., SuiteWeb: www.ncfr.org MN (763)781-9348
Email: ncfr3989®ncfr.org •
vis if our: weiJsit~:
familyworRsinc.com
NCFR
NCFR Report I September 2000
9
In use in 35 states!
This 3-hour program
is self-administered
and needs no
, ~,,~: computer literacy.
�In Memoriam
What challenges and opportunities lie ahead for
families living in the 21st Century? How can
professionals who provide educational and
support services prepare to meet the needs of our
nations' children, youth and families? Help
answer these questions by responding to this call
for proposals. Submit your 500 word proposal
addressing one of the following tracks:
•!• Managing Resources
•!• Strengthening Families and Developing Youth
•!• Improving Health and Nutrition
•!• Developing Leadership and Volunteerism
CFR recently received notice
of the death of the following
member:
Dr. Dorothy Fahs Beck, passed
away May 5, 2000 in Kennett Square,
Pennsylvania. She served for many
years as the Director of Research at the
Family Service Association of America.
She and her husband funded the FahsBeck Fund for Research and
Experimentation, which funds two
grant programs, a Doctoral Dissertation
Grant Program and a Post-doctoral
Program. Dr. Fahs Beck had been a r,.,,
member of NCFR since 1958.
lhl
Request details from:
University of Arkansas, Cooperative Extension
Service; P. 0. Box 391, Little Rock, AR 72203
Dr. Judith Urich: jurich@uaex.edu; (501) 6712066 or Dr. Swarna Viegas: sviegas@uaex.edu
(501) 671-2295
NOW AVAILABLE
Hot Topics
Donations
he following persons have contributed donations since June
2000. Their generosity aids NCFR
in continuing its programs and awards.
Audio Teleconference Tapes & Transcripts
r:=1
Audio Tapes
~ Transcripts
$20.00 each
$20.00 each
$40.00 both
a'
1
.~
.·
'
Peace Focus Group
jacqueline Haessly-Milwaukee, WI
For more information on contributing
to N CFR, contact:
Michael L. Benjamin,
NCFR Executive Director
3989 Central Ave. NE, Suite 550
Minneapolis, MN 55421
Toll free: 888-781-9331 ext. 21
or mbenjamin@ncfr.org
Family Policy Advocacy or Education: Which Approach?,
Karen Bogenschneider
November 1999
How Quarrels Over Money(in the Federal Budget) Affect
American Families, Janes Homey
January 2000
Federal and State Child Care and Early Education Issues,
Helen Blank
February 2000
Welfare Reform, joan Entmacher
March2000
General Fund
Connie Steele-Knoxville, TN
Helen Westlake-Wheaton, IL
David N. Yarbrough-Lafayette, LA
October 1999
Health and Family Policy in the New Millennium,
joy johnson Wilson
April2000
Insights from the Census Bureau: Data 2001,
Martin O'Connell
May 2000
Social Security Solvency, Judy L. Chesser
September 2000
Whats Left on the Congressional Plate? Sheri Steisel
To order visit the NCFR website at www.ncfr.org or contact Nikki Cunningham
at NCFR. Phone Toll free: 888-781-9331, ext.14; Fax: 763-781-9348;
E-mail: nikki®ncfr.org.
NCFR Report I September 2000
10
�UN Report
continued from page 7
complained about their communities'
loss of autonomy in decision-making.
A provisional Declaration, entitled
"We the People Millennium Forum
Declaration for Action, Strengthening the
United Nations for the 21st Centwy," was
distributed the last day of the meeting.
It states: "Eradication of poverty has
become a matter of urgency. Poverty
eradication is not an automatic
consequence of economic growth but
requires purposeful action to redistribute wealth and land, construction of a
safety net and the universal free access
to education."
The Declaration calls on the United
Nations, Governments and Civil Society
to aid in this process and outlines specific tasks for each.
THE UNICEF PREPARATORY
COMMITTEE
The Millennium Forum was followed
by UNICEF sponsored meetings of the
First Substantive Session of the
Preparatory Committee for the Special
Session of the General Assembly in
2001 for Follow-up to the World
Summit for Children. I also attended
those meetings, as a representative of
NCFR and of the UNICEF NGO
Working Committee on the Rights of
the Child.
Discussion focused on children's
·e·~
'.
~
'
Issue
\
rights as human rights, not simply as
charitable impulses. The notion of "the
best interest of the child" as the overriding principle in the formation of social
policy was reiterated, and the rights of
the girl child were emphasized.
Ten years after the World Summit
on Children, UNICEF is still working
to reduce infant and under-five mortality rates by one third, to cut maternal
mortality rates to one half and to
decrease malnutrition among children
under five to one half-based on the
1990 rates.
BEIJING +5
The UNICEF conference was followed by
the Beijing +5 preparatory meetings. I
attended a panel, sponsored by UNIFEM,
on widows and widowhood. Discussion
centered on the plight of widows in traditional societies, but a contingent of war
widows also participated.
UNIFEM was praised for addressing the issue of inhumane treatment
of widows. The Beijing Platform for
Action mentions widowhood only in
the context of aging, and efforts to
introduce the topic are usually
dismissed by feminist groups.
In South Asia and Africa, the AIDS
pandemic and ethnic cleansing have
increased the percentage of adult
women who are widows to close to 70
Mmilyn Bensman
NCFR UN Representative
E-mail: M mi lynB ensman@ao!. com
REVIEW
NCFR REPORT-Family Focus on ...
Call for Topic Papers
Topic
Deadline
Children/Adolescent's Mental Health/Substance
Abuse Treatment and Prevention
Oct. 16
Mar. 2001
Technology's Influence on Family Well-being
Jan. 8
june 2001
Family Stress and Coping:
Bridging Theory and Practice
Apr. 9
Dec. 2000
percent. In these regions, lack of inheritance rights exacerbates their problems
and adds to the persistence of poverty.
Their children often go unschooled and
remain mired in poverty In many
countries, the word widow often refers
to a prostitute or witch.
A woman doctor from Nigeria
explained that in her country, the wife
is always blamed for her husband's
death, no matter how he died. If she
willingly submits to the abusive rituals
-which include going unwashed and
unclothed for a year, starvation, submitting to sexual advances of male relatives, and allowing her children to be
taken from her-she is absolved of
guilt. But her status remains low. She is
deprived of a means of livelihood and
often forced to marry the husband's
brother. Many widows are scarcely more
than children, as girls are often forced
to marry much older men.
UNDA is putting out an issue of
UN WOMEN 2000, focusing on widows, and Mary Robinson has committed
the High Commission on Human Rights
to addressing the rights of widows.
For a complete report on these meetings, see the U.N. website at www.un.org.
We continue to welcome your suggestions and offers to write or be willing to
be interviewed by our journalist, Dr. Nancy Giguere.
If you have data, research or practice articles for any of these topics, or know of
outstanding persons who can be interviewed or tapped please call or e-mail
Michael Benjamin immediately at 888-781-9331, ext. 21 or mbenjamin@ncfr.org.
Let us hear from you about other topics that you would like to see published
in the Report.
NCFR Report I September 2000
11
continued from page 6
Report and to be involved in specialty
publications. Moreover, through our
awards process, we acknowledge the
outstanding work of those in the family
studies field.
Oh, yes we are extremely interested
in "reaching out" to former members of
N CFR. As such, we have a special project that is targeted to those suspended
members to encourage them to rejoin.
As always I welcome your comments and feedback about our services
to you, the members of NCFR. I look
forward to meeting you in Minneapolis
at the annual conference!
Michael L. Benjamin, M.P.H.
Executive Director
E-mail: mbenjamin@ncfr.org
�Why Should I Come to the CFR Conference?
I'm So Busy, and Eve hing is Expensive!
e on the Program Committee
are excited about the 2000
annual NCFR conference entitled "Visions for Families: Continuity
and Change Across Cohorts and
Generations."
By the time you receive this N CFR
Report you should have also received a
special detailed flyer that highlights the
conference for you. Included in this
flyer is not only a description of
Minneapolis and the many exciting
places for you to visit and things for
you to do in the city, but the flyer also
briefly describes the over 20 special
sessions the Program Committee has
prepared for us this year, along with 5
very exciting pre-conference interactive
sessions. As you can tell, we are
thrilled with the enthusiasm generated
for this year's theme and conference
and are confident that you will benefit
from your attendance.
So beyond coming to the conference because of the informative and
stimulating sessions available for you
to attend, why else should you come to
Minneapolis in November?
NEW AND EXCITING
INFORMATION
Yes, you will find there is a lot of new
and exciting information for you to
gather from the sessions. There is no
doubt that the material presented at
N CFR is among the most cutting-edge
research, programmatic initiatives, and
policy development in the field of family. For many of us we find that the
information we cull from the sessions
we attend and the informal discussions
we have with other colleagues, stimulates us to conceptualize new ideas and
engage in new activities. But my experience in attending NCFR for many
years also goes beyond the new
insights I receive every year.
One time a graduate student came
to NCFR for the first time. At the end
of the week she came to the N CFR
staff and said, "What I have learned
during this conference is equally as
valuable as one semester's work at the
university."
PROFESSIONAL AND PERSONAL
RELATIONSHIPS TO HELP
SUSTAIN US THROUGHOUT
THE YEAR
The relationships both professional and
personal that are renewed yearly at this
conference are also well worth the trip.
Not only is the time spent with other
attendees at the conference fun, but
the friendships that are established
often sustain us through many professional and personal decisions we must
make throughout the following year.
Likewise, the interactive nature of
many of the sessions we attend enables
us to be exposed to and meet individuals who may have had very different
life experiences from our own. These
interactions and new relationships we
develop are enriching to all of our life
experiences, and may be valuable to
you as you work on your next research
project. When I went to my first professional conference someone said,
"Even if you don't have any connections with some of the people at this
point, introduce yourself to them anyway. At a later date you or the other
people may have changed jobs or
emphases, and you may find a valuable
resource." This has been true.
LEARN HOW TO BECOME MORE
INVOLVED IN THE
ORGANIZATION
For those who may be first time attendees or recent new members of NCFR
there also will be many enriching experiences for you. The conference, program, and hotel setting are designed to
help you quickly become and feel a
part of NCFR. From the moment you
register for the conference you are
identified as someone special who we
want to be attending the meeting.
NCFR Report I September 2000
12
There are special
sessions designed
just for you as
someone who is
learning to navigate the program
and conference,
there are opportunities for you to
Elaine Anderson,
ask questions
Ph.D.
about what things
mean and why we run the conference
the way we do. Further, there are many
opportunities for you to become
involved with NCFR through the
smaller section meetings, the
student/new professional sessions, the
diversity forum, and the Association of
Councils pre-conference workshop.
And lastly, but certainly importantly,
there are opportunities designed for
you this year to socialize with others in
the organization through food, dance,
and the arts and theater.
MATURE PROFESSIONALLY
From my perspective, as a member of
N CFR who has traversed through the
trials of being a scared 20 year old student member, to graduating to a new
professional in the organization, to
now after 25+ years becoming one of
the young/old sages of the organization
I believe the annual N CFR conference
can be a wonderful experience on
many fronts. So I and other members
of the 2000 Program Committee
encourage you to attend the conference
this first year of a new millenium, and
help us navigate and begin to develop
new initiatives for the next decade in
the field of family.
Elaine Anderson
2000 Program Chair
E-mail: eaS@umaii.umd.edu
Cindy Wintel; CMP
Conference Coordinator
E-mail: wintersc@ncfwrg
�List-NC
Conference in Minnesota
This is a great conference. I am sure
there are many colleagues and
f1iends who would enjoy and benefit
from this national conference. Mahe
list of possible names from business,
health, education, committees I am
involved with. Call colleagues and
f1iends to see if they would lihe to
attend NCFR conference.
ovemor jesse Ventura, has proclaimed November the Month of
the Family in Minnesota. Mayors
Sharon Sayles Belton of Minneapolis and
Norm Coleman of Saint Paul urge all
family professionals to join in the celebration of families at the 62nd annual
convention from November 8-13, 2000.
~ Today Mark calendar for November
8-13 National Council on Family
Relations conference "Visions for
Families" in Minneapolis.
September 11 Make airline reservation. Call 1-800-458-9383 or go
online (www.assntravel.com) to
reserve discounted airfare.
September 14 Define what I want
from this conference. Decide which
poster sessions, round tables, research
updates and policy seminars to
attend.
HOT TOPICS
D September 15 Send in payment and
registration for NCFR conference.
D
September 16 Make hotel reservation
1-800-Hiltons (national reservations)
or online (www.ncfr.org).
September 18 Order tickets for
Penumbra Theatre play- call
NCFR 888-781-9331 or order online
(www.ncfr.org).
September 25 Tell Minnesota friends
and family about the special one-day
fees on Friday, November 10, for the
Minnesota Council on Family
Relations joint meeting.
Septe~ber 28 Fill out forms for
professional leave.
D October 1 Write holiday gift list in
Teleconferences
Held on the first Friday of each month.
Mark your calendar!
The next teleconference will be held on:
September 8, 2000
11:00 a.m. CDT
"Whats Left on the Congressional
Plate?"
Sheri Steisel, National Conference of
State Legislatures
October 6, 2000
11:00 a.m. CDT
"The Effects ofDivorce onAme1ica"
Patrick E Fagan, The Heritage
Foundation
November 3, 2000
11:00 a.m. CST
December 1, 2000
11:00 a.m..CST
For up-to-date Topics and registration
information, visit our Website at
www.ncfr.org or contact Michael L.
Benjamin at mbenjamin@ncfr.org.
Deadline to register is 24 hours prior to
teleconference.
November 10 Plan to visit History
Museum Exhibits on Families and
African American Families in
Minnesota after Penumbra Theatre
in Saint Paul.
D November 11 Listen to Alejandro
Partes, professor of Sociology at
Princeton University and author of
The New Second Generation.
D November l2 Worship at conference
worship service. Plan to hear Mary
Piper, Clinical psychologist and
visiting professor, University of
Nebraska; author of Reviving
Ophelia.
D November l3 Attend Research
Update on Young Children with Dr.
Marti Erickson, Executive Director
of the Children Youth and Family
Consortium at the University of
Minnesota.
November l3 Check holiday gift list.
Marcie Broohe, CFLE
Co-chai1; Local Arrangements
E-mail: mbroohe@pressenter.com
case there is time to shop at Mall of
America
November 1 E-mail colleagues and
friends on possible times to meet for
breakfast, lunch or dinner.
November 4 Visit
www.exploreminnesota.com for
maps, weather, and transportation
info.
November 8 Plan to attend the first
annual Work/Life Summit. The
summit goals are to bring
researchers, practitioners, and the
business and labor communities
together to dialogue and gain an
understanding of work/life issues on
families. Look for practical ideas to
share with business and industry.
November 9 Decide on the
Gerontology and Geriatrics Summit
or the Diverse Experiences of Males
in Families.
D November 10 Attend plenary
session featuring Stephanie Coontz,
professor of History and Family
Studies and author of The Way We
Really Are: Coming to Tenns with
Americas Changing Families, and
The Way We Never Were.
N CFR Report I September 2000
13
f11;
1111
62nd Annual
NCFR Conference
Nov. 10-13, 2000
(Conference)
Nov. 8-9, 2000
(Pre-conference
Workshops)
!vfinneapolis, MN
Hilton & Towers
Program Chair: Elaine Anderson, U of Maryland
Plenary Speakers
Stephanie
Coontz
Alejandro
Portes
Mary Pipher
Evcrgn."cn State:
U.., Olympia, W,\
i'riday, Nov. 10
Princeton Univ.-
Lincoln, NJ·:
Saturday, Nov. 11
Sunday, Nov. 12
Private Practice,
Highlights
• Research Updates for
Practitioners
• Fund Raiser for John
McAdoo Award - an evening at
the Penumbra Theater
• Presidential Reception at the
Minnesota History Center.
Visit Families and Afn.t'an Amedtmts in
Millmiola Exhibits
• Intensive Pre-conference
Workshops
• Numerous Special Sessions
Sponsored by Sections
• Public Policy Seminars
Check the NCFR Website: www.ncfr.org for up-to-date
information.
�How do We Mentor
ew Professionals?
ndergraduate programs of family
science or human development
and family studies seem to be
flourishing in most universities. In spite
of the fact that there are few direct
career paths, students are drawn to the
subject matter and often plan graduate
study before launching their careers. It's
a time when academicians have great
opportunity to teach young students
about the value of professional involvement and identity.
A recent student survey was conducted by Drs. ]add Fitzpatrick and
Miriam Mulsow of Texas Tech as part of
the AC Task Force on Student Affiliates.
Responses were solicited from several of
the larger graduate programs in family
studies, but included undergraduate
programs as well. A total of 57 surveys
were returned: 30 were undergraduates,
27 were graduate students. When asked
if their college/university had an affiliated council, I2 answered yes (several
were from the same school), 6 answered
no, and 38 did not know.
In general, students seem to have
had very little information about the
professional organization or about the
benefit of having a student affiliate.
Students, as a whole, did not provide
evidence that they have been encouraged to join NCFR, become active
members or organize a student chapter.
This lack of awareness and involvement
in the profession was particularly frequent at the undergraduate level. A
number of questions were asked regarding how N CFR could be more helpful
to students, at the local, state or regional and national levels. In general, the
students see identification with the profession as a very important reason for
membership in NCFR. They want more
local/state/regional involvement. They
see affiliate involvement as providing
more options for presenting their work,
and for meeting and networking with
colleagues and professionals in the
field. Additionally; they see having
more information on careers, job possi-
r Students i
bilities, and certification as another
important value of
a student affiliate.
The cost of
membership and
of traveling to conferences is seen as
a roadblock for
Lane H. Powell,
many students.
Ph.D., CFLE
The Task Force
and the Association of Councils will be
looking at ways to address these issues.
But students don't have to go far to
participate in a university organization.
And they will attend, if they understand'what NCFR does and they are
encouraged by their faculty mentors.
As AC president, I would like to see a
student affiliate in every university
where we have an undergraduate or
graduate program. Accrediting agencies
see this as an important component in
quality education, and we should see it
as our best opportunity to mentor a
new generation of family scientists and
educators.
Lane H. Powell, CFLE
President, Association of Councils
E-mail: powellb@llano.net
Lane Powell, CFLE, the AC president is
available to visit and to speah at a limited
number of affiliate conferences during the
coming year. She would be happy to talh
with you about this possibility.
If you have a group of at least 10 NCFR
members who want to form a chapter, she
could visit with you to help with the
organizing details.
Texas
neil on
mily Relations
II for Abstracts
exas is looking at Marriage-marriage education and marital relationsand wants your input into our conference. We invite all NCFR members to
submit an abstract for a program or a research project for the upcoming 2001
April TCFR conference. Don't delay as you probably have the information that the
rest of us are eager to hear!!! Please contact Linda Ladd at 979-845-3803 or
l-ladd@tamu.edu for an abstract form.
Please consider this your first invitation to participate in the 2001 TCFR
Conference, which will be held on April 5-7 in Dallas, Texas at the Marriott
Quorum Hotel. The main events of the conference will be featured on April 5-6
with April 7 held for accredited training in a marriage program. We are eager to
have you join us in Dallas! Ya'll come!
Linda Ladd, President,
Texas Council on Family Relations
E-mail: l-ladd@tamu.edu
Affiliate Connection continued on page 15
NCFR Report I September 2000
14
�See you in Minneapolis!
am hoping that many students and
new professionals will be joining us
at this year's annual conference in
Minneapolis! Previews of the program
promise an exciting conference!
Attending the national conference is a
great way to learn about cutting-edge
research, to get more involved in NCFR
as an organization, and to network and
socialize with colleagues and friends.
And don't forget that Minneapolis is the
home of Mall of America!
I am especially pleased to
announce that Dr. Sharon Price (former NCFR President) will be joining us
for the S/NP Developmental Forum.
For well over a decade, Price has
shared her expertise about the academic job application process. She has
informed me that since she has retired,
this will be the last time she will present the trials and tribulations of lma
Lookin'. Don't miss this opportunity to
share the wisdom-and the humor!
For those of you planning on coming to the conference, you should know
that 30 hotel rooms are being reserved
I
Affiliate Connection
for students at the Minneapolis Hilton
&: Towers Hotel on a first-come, firstserved basis. Once these rooms are
filled, students will have to pay regular
rates for a single or double room
($121). Student members are responsible for their own room costs. Bills will
not be assumed by N CFR or the hotel if
roommates fail to attend.
If you need to find roommates,
please e-mail your request to me, Dr.
Hilary Rose, S/NP Rep to the N CFR
Board (hrose@mail.wsu.edu). Send
your name, address, phone numbers
where you can be reached, date and
time of arrival and departure, smoking
preference, and type of roommates
desired (male or female). I will publish
the information on an e-mail list of students who are searching for roommates.
You will be responsible for making your
own rooming arrangements.
See you there!
Hilmy A. Rose
5/NP Representative
E-mail: hrose@mail.wsu.edu
NOW AVAILABLE!
NCFR Discussion Listservs
Enrollment is open to all NCFR members.
NCFR Member Listserv
EducationEnrichment@cfapress.org
Ethnic Minorities website:
www.asn.csus.edu/em-ncfr
FamilyHealth@cfapress.org
FamilyPolicy@cfapress.org
FamilyScience@cfapress.org
FamilyTherapy@cfapress.org
FeminismFamilyStudies@cfapress.org
International@cfapress.org
ReligionFamilyLife@cfapress.org
ResearchTheory@cfapress.org
Student@cfapress.org
(Students/New Professionals)
To enroll, send your name, e-mail
address, and the listserv(s) you wish to
join to: John Pepper at 763-781-9331,
ext. 16; E-mail: pepperw®ncfr.org.
To sign up for the Ethnic Minorities
Section listserv; go directly to its
website.
continued from page 14
Pennsylvania/Delaware Council
on Family
ations
ual
Conference ctober 1
he Pennsylvania/Delaware Council
on Family Relations has joined
forces with Penn State's Building
Strong Families group in co-sponsoring
our annual conference this year. The
conference will be held at the
Wildwood Conference Center,
Harrisburg Area Community College,
Pennsylvania. The theme is "Raising
Healthy Children in a Diverse Society."
Keynote addresses will be provided by
Dr. Stephen Jorgenson, Professor at the
University of Arkansas and current
President of the National Council on
Family Relations, and Dr. Nathaniel
Gadsden, Tressler Lutheran Services on
the topics of "Adolescent Pregnancy
Prevention" and "Teaching Tolerance,"
respectively. Several additional, exciting
workshops on the theme will also be
available. Contact Jane Mecum, CFLE
(e-mail: jam37@psu.edu or
NCFR Rel'ort I September 2000
15
717-921-8803) for more information.
Participants may elect to receive
Continuing Education Units from a
variety of professional organizations,
including NCFR. Mark your calendar
and plan to attend. Hope to see you on
October 11!
Raeann R. Hamon, Ph.D., CFLE
President, PIDCFR
E-mail: rhamon@messiah.edu
ftil
�Outstanaing Eaucational Prowams for Worl<,ing Aaults
Concordia University now offers a Master of Arts in Human Services, Family
Studies. The program is designed for working adults and allows you to immediately apply what you learn to your work.
You WILL earn your degree:
• Via distance education
• With a group of adults who are passionate about families and communities
• In a way that will fit your busy lifestyle
You WILL focus on:
• Family systems as they relate to different
groups, organizations and individuals
• Demographic and cultural perspective of
families and institutions
• Critically examine ethical questions
and issues
• Advocacy and Leadership
Additional distance education programs are available in school-age care,
early childhood, youth development, criminal justice and leadership.
Call 1-800-211-3370, visit our website at www.cshs.edu
or e-mail us at cshs@csp.edu.
Concordia University, St. Paul was established in 1893 and is accredited by the North Central Association
of Colleges and Schools. Concordia admits students of any race, color, sex, national and ethnic origin.
Study culturally diverse families and family policy within miles of the nation's capital
DEPARTMENT OF FAMILY STUDIES
UNIVERSITY OF MARYLAND
•
Ph. D., Family Studies
A new research-oriented program providing students with broad knowledge of family theory, family policy; family
programs, family law; and qualitative and quantitative research methodology.
M.S., Family Studies
M.S., Marriage and Family Therapy, AAMFT accredited program with therapy clinic
Program Focus
Special emphasis on studying culturally and socioeconomically diverse families. Current research focuses on family policy,
welfare reform, fathering, domestic and community violence, African American families, Chinese families,
interracial marriage, child care, substance abuse treatment, and family therapy.
Graduate Faculty
Elaine Anderson, Bonnie Braun, Johnetta Davis, Norman Epstein, Ned Gaylin, Robert Hampton, Jinhee Kim, Sally Koblinsky;
Leigh Leslie, Manouchehr Mokhtari, Noel Myricks, Suzanne Randolph, Roger Rubin, Susan Walker, Jacqueline Wallen,
Carol Werlinich
Financial Assistance
Fellowships and/or graduate assistantships are available to all Ph.D. students and many M.S. students.
To Learn More
Dr. Roger Rubin, Graduate Director
Department of Family Studies
University of Maryland, College Park MD 2074 2
Phones: (301) 405-3672, (301) 314-9161/Fax
E-Mail: rr3S@umail.umd.edu
http://www.inform. umd.edu!HLHP/FMST
NCFR Report
I September 2000
16
�Employment Matching Service
N CFR offers an employment matching
service during the conference. This
popular service helps to match
employers looking for qualified
candidates with professionals looldng
for currently available jobs.
Universities or employers that
have a job opening are encouraged to
sign up by November 1 to use the
service. Employers post current jobs
and qualifications. Candidates attending the conference sign up for on-site
interviews-a great opportunity to
meet face to face.
Several innovations at this
conference will be computer access to
job postings and an effort to add job
listings for practitioners. Stop by the
employment matching room to pick
up a handout with tips for an online
job search and lists of helpful websites
specific for job seekers in the family
relations/family education fields.
Family/Child Sciences: Chair/Professor,
Department of Family and Child
Sciences, Florida State University.
Provide leadership in undergraduate
and graduate education, research, and
service. Responsible for personnel, fiscal management, and development and
implementation of external development plans. Nine-month tenure track
appointment with flexible summer
employment. Earned doctorate in an
area of study within the department
(child development, family and consumer sciences education, family relations, and family therapy). Credentials
for faculty appointment as full professor or advanced associate professor,
record of significant accomplishments
in research, demonstrated experience
in contract or grant activities, and successful experience in graduate education. Submit letter of application, vita,
and names of three references by
November 20, 2000 to Search
Committee Chair, College of Human
Sciences, Florida State University,
Tallahassee, FL 32306-1490. Phone:
850-644-2484, Fax 850-644-0700,
E-mail: msumner@mailer.fsu.edu.
FSU is an affirmative action, equal
opportunity employer.
Family and Human Development, Utah
State University has two 9-month,
tenure-track positions available for individuals with expertise in either: 1) marriage and/or family relationships; or 2)
adult development and aging. Both
positions emphasize teaching and
research. Summer research and teaching
support are available. See
http://personnel.usu.edu (2-128 and
2-131) for full descriptions. ANEOE.
University of Tennessee
Department of Child and Family Studies
PROFESSOR AND HEAD
Qualifications: Earned doctorate required in Child Development,
Early Childhood Education, Family Studies, or related field. Strong
record of research, teaching, community service, and peerreviewed publication required. Demonstrated administrative experience; effective management and interpersonal skills essential.
Qualifications for rank of full professor required. Prefer individuals
with teaching, research and/or administrative experience across
some of the content areas within the department. Successful grant
experience preferred. The successful candidate will have an understanding of and commitment to equal employment opportunity
and affirmative action.
Twelve-month appointment. Starting date July 1, 2001.
January 1, 2001 also acceptable. Salary is competitive and commensurate with qualifications.
Application Process: Review of applications will begin
September 15, 2000, and will continue until the position is filled.
Send letter of application (Including list of reference with address,
phone, and e-mail information) and vita to: Dr. Cheryl Buehler,
CFS Head Search Committee Chair, The University of Tennessee,
115 Jessie Harris Building, Knoxville, TN 37996-1900.
cbuehler@utk.edu
TWO ASSISTANT OR ASSOCIATE
PROFESSOR POSITIONS
Qualifications: Earned doctorate in Child Development,
Early Childhood Education, or related field. Strong background in development theory and research, combined
with a demonstrated area of emphasis within Child
Development or Early Childhood Education required.
Record of research productivity and teaching experience
essential. Experience in grant writing and a commitment
to seek external funding for research. Background in K-4
education desirable for one of the positions.
Nine-month tenure track appointments effective
January or August 1, 2001. Salary commensurate with
qualifications, experience, and rank.
Application Process: Review of applicants will
begin October 1, 2000 and continue until the positions
are filled. Send letter of application, vita, and contact
information for three references to : Dr. Sandra
Twardosz, Search Committee Chair; Dept. of Child and
Family Studies, 115 JHB; The University of Tennessee,
Knoxville, TN 37996-1900. stwardos®utk.edu
UT Knoxville is an EEO/AAffitle VI/Title IX/Section 504/ADA/ADEA institution in the provision of its education and employment programs and services.
NCFR Report I September 2000
17
�Postdoctoral Training in Research on Family Processes and
Child/Adolescent Mental Health in Diverse Populations
Family Research Consortium Ill, a NIMH-sponsored program,
announces the availability of six, three-year postdoctoral positions beginning June 1, 2001. The program provides research
training in theoretical, methodological, and substantive issues
concerning family processes and chilclladolescent mental health
in ethic/racial and socioeconomically diverse populations. The
training is multi-disciplinary in content, involves mentoring from
a diverse faculty across the United States, and emphasizes multiple levels of investigation from the biological correlates of individual adjustment to the social context of family functioning.
Each trainee will have a primary appointment at one of twelve
universities represented by Family Research Consortium faculty.
In addition, trainees will work with at least two faculty members
on a multisite, collaborative research project and may work with
Consortium advisory board members and liaisons who collaborate with their faculty mentors. Trainees also will be involved in
summer workshops and research institutes, seminars, and course
work consistent with their professional objectives. Program faculty are: Mark Appelbaum, U of California, San Diego; Linda
Burton, Penn State; Ana Mari Cauce, U of Washington; Marion
Forgatch, Oregon Social Learning Center; E. Michael Foster,
Georgia State; Xiaojia Ge, U of California, Davis; Donald
Hernandez, SUNY, Albany; Robin Jarrett, U of Illinois,
Urbana/Champaign; Spero Manson, U of Colorado,
Denver; Vonnie McLoyd, U of Michigan; David
Takeuchi, U of Indiana, Bloomington; M. Belinda
Tucker, U of California, Los Angeles. Advismy board
members include: David Almeida, U of Arizona; Pauline
Boss, U of Minnesota; Felton Earls, Harvard; Lindsay
Chase-Lansdale, U of Chicago; Rand Conger, Iowa
State; Peggye Dilworth-Anderson, U of North Carolina,
Greensboro; Steve Suomi, NICHHD. Liaisons are:
jeanne Brooks-Gunn, Columbia; jacqueline Eccles, U
of Michigan; Martha Cox, U of North Carolina, Chapel
Hill; Stuart Hauser, Harvard; Howard Markman, U of
Denver.
To apply: Applicants must have completed all
requirements for the Ph.D., including the dissertation
defense, by the time of appointment and must be U.S.
citizens or permanent residents. For application forms
and information write to Dee Frisque, Research Center
Coordinator, Center for Human Development and
Family Research in Diverse Contexts, 106 Henderson
Building, Penn State University, University Park, PA
16802. Call814-863-7l06. E-mail: dmr10@psu.edu.
Applications close ]anumy 12, 2001.
An iVfinnativc Action!Eqital Opportunity Employn Women anclmin01ities cncouraged to apply.
The University of Iowa
School of Social Work Ph.D Program
The University of Iowa School of Social Work is accepting applicants for the Ph.D. Program. The
program has three major goals: 1) to train students to conduct research that will contribute to the
knowledge base of Social Work; 2) to prepare students for leadership at the policy and practice levels
in social work with families, children, and the elderly; and 3) to prepare students for teaching roles in
higher education. Student's select one of two focal areas of study: children and families or elderly and
families. A combined MSW/PhD is being proposed for students who do not currently have an MSW
degree. An outstanding faculty represents a broad range of research interests concerning today's families. All doctoral students will receive financial support for at least the first two years in the program.
Iowa City is a lively cultural center and offers the advantages of living in a pleasant university setting.
Applications must be submitted by March 1st.
For additional information, please contact: Dr. Lorraine T. Dorfman, Professor and Coordinator,
Ph.D. Program, School of Social Work, 207A North Hall, Iowa City, IA 52242 (319) 335-0513; email: lorraine-dorfman®uiowa. edu.
The University of Iowa prohibits disclimination in employment or in its educational programs and activities on the basis of race, national 01igin,
col01; creed, religion, sex, age, disability, veteran status, sexual 01ientation, gender identity, or associational preference. The University also affinns
its commitment to providing equal opportunities and equal access to University facilities. For additional irifonnation on nondiscrimination policies, contact the Coordinator of Title IX, Section 504, and the ADA in the Office of Affinnative Action, (319) 335-0705 (voice) or (319) 335-0697
(text), 202 Jessup Hall, The University of Iowa, Iowa City, Iowa, 52242-1316.
NCFR Report I September 2000
18
�II
OM THE MET
Access NCFR's website at: www.ncfr.org
VISIO~S A~D DIVISIO~S
CO~FERE~CE
To reach NCFR headquarters:
isions and Divisions: Challenges to
European Sociology, 5th
Conference of the European
Sociology Association, will be held
August 28-September 1, 2001 at the
University of Helsinki, Finland.
Abstract Deadline: ]anumy 31, 2001.
Topics include: Divisions in Europe and
Global Challenges, Theoretical
Di/visions, New and Old Social
Divisions, New Technologies and New
Visions of Society. For more information, see www.valt.helsinki.fi/esa/.
Abstracts can be sent by the ESA web
page or to the conference secretariat:
ESA, CongCreator CC, P.O. Box 762,
FIN-00101 Helsinki, Finland. Fax:
+358-9-4542 1930; E-mail:
esa200 1@congcreator.com.
ncfr3989@ncfr.org
To reach specific staff members:
Michael L. Benjamin
mbenjamin@ncfr.org
Lynda Bessey
ncfr3989@ncfr.org
Dawn Cassidy
cassidyd@ncfr. org
Nikki Cnnningham
nikki@ncfr. org
Doris Hareland
harelandjd@soncom.com
John Pepper
pepperw®ncfr. org
Jeanne Ryberg
jryberg@ncfr. org
Abbey Showalter
abbey@ncfr.org
Cindy Winter
wintersc@ncfr.org
MARK THESE DATES!
2001 PUBLIC POLICY
AMD EDUCATIOM
CONFERENCE
Next year's Public Policy and
Education Conference will take
place on March 1st and 2nd, 2001
in Washington, D.C. The conference will focus on NCFR's message
to the new Gore? Bush?
Administration, and to the new
Congress. Begin planning to attend
now-it promises to be an enlightening experience.
To reacf1 NCFR President Steve jorgensen:
sjorgen@comp. uark. edu
MARCH
.. 2. .
~
~
Graduate Study in Family and Life Course
Department of Sociology-Georgia State University
Graduate Degrees Offered
M.A., and Ph.D. in Sociology.
Family and Life Course Specialization*
The Family and Life Course specialization includes required courses in Family Sociology and Life Course Sociology, and
elective courses in: Family Studies; Families in Cross-Cultural Perspective; Family Diversity; Sexual and Intimate Violence;
Birth and Parenthood; Children and Childhood; Sexuality and Society; Sociology of Gender; The Field of Aging; Aging
Policy and Services; Social Psychology; Adult Socialization; Sociology of Aging; Aging, Health and Disability; Aging and
Long-Term Care; Death, Dying and Loss; and Sociology of Education.
Sociology Graduate Faculty (FLC Graduate Faculty in italics)
]ames Ainsworth-Damell, Dawn Baunach, Elisabeth Burgess, Cecilia Cantrell, Phillip Davis, Denise Donnelly, Behrooz Ghamari,
Paula Dressel, Kirk Elifson, Charles Gallagher, Charles jaret, Toshi Kii, jung HaKim, Ralph LaRossa, Lesley Reid,
Donald Reitzes, Wendy Simonds, Elic Stewart, Franh Whittington, and Jenny Zhan.
Graduate Assistantships
Research and teaching assistantships are available for qualified students. These awards provide a stipend and a waiver of
matriculation fees and tuition costs.
For More Information
Director of Graduate Studies
Department of Sociology
Georgia State University
Atlanta, GA 30303-3083
phone: 404-651-2285
e-mail: socinfo@gsu.edu
web page: http://www.gsu.edu/-wwwsoc
'' The department also offers specializations in Gender and Sexuality; and Race and Urban.
NCFR Report I September 2000
19
�IssueFF7
A Blueprint for Strengthening
Family Courts
by Michael W McPhail, County and Youth Court judge, Fonest County, Hattiesburg, Mississippi
ociety's institutions-the family;
churches, schools, government, and
so forth-operate in the broad social
environment and are responsible for setting
and enforcing standards that define right
and wrong, for protecting those who cannot
or are unable to protect themselves, and for
helping us all be better
and more caring than we
might otherwise be.
The family has the
primary responsibility
The
to care for and
unified family
nurture children.
court would have
However, when
the family cannot care for,
protect or control the children,
or when the child is
endangered within the family, the juvenile and family
courts must, by law, resolve these
issues.
The National Council of Juvenile and
Family Court Judges (NC]FC]) recently set
forth a statement of core principles that are
the foundation of an effective juvenile and
family court system. This short statement,
"Children and Families First-A Mandate
For America's Courts," serves as a blueprint
on how to maintain and strengthen the
laws, the court system, and the resources
necessary to assist children and families.
THE DOCTRINE OF PARENS PATRIAE
The courts, under the doctrine of parens
pat1iae, start with the concept that the family is the foundation of society. When fami-
lies fail, the law mandates that the juvenile
and family courts work to remedy these
problems. Court intervention is based on
the idea that when the parents fails, the
state has the authority to substitute for the
parent and act on the child's behalf.
Juvenile and family courts also recognize
that children should be treated differently
than adults. These doctrines and theories
gave rise to the juvenile court a century
ago and, in more recent times, to the
family court.
As our society becomes more
troubled, juvenile and family courts
often fall short of their goals when
intervening on behalf of children
and families. All too often, we pay
attention to troubled children and
families only when the public feels
threatened by them.
THE UNIFIED FAMilY COURT AND THE
FAMILY COURT CENTER
All 50 states include a juvenile or family
court as a part of their judicial system.
Although all juvenile and family courts
function similarly; the structure of the
court, the powers granted to the judge and
the types of cases the court hears are different in every jurisdiction. NCJFC] advocates
for a unified family court, housed in a centrally located family court center in every
jurisdiction. The unified family court
would be the equal of the highest trial
court of general jurisdiction and be staffed
by trained judges and other professionals.
This court would have under its jurisdiction an array of family related cases, including juvenile delinquency; dependency;
�Family Focus On ...
"Impact of the Justice System on Families"
BLUEPRINT continued from page Fl
status offenses, paternity, custody, support, mental health, adoption, family
violence and marital dissolution.
The facility housing the court
would be the center for intake, evaluation and referral to an array of public
and private services, many of which
could be located on site. This family
court center could also offer counseling,
mediation, and other nonadversarial
means to resolve cases, thus avoiding a
formal court process when possible.
Under the NC]FC] blueprint, the
unified family court would retain the
delinquency functions of the traditional
juvenile court. This would allow the
court to address delinquent behavior
through a balanced approach that
includes protection of the community, accountability; constructive
punishment and the development of
competencies the child needs to become
a productive adult in our society.
Noting the recent erosion of jurisdictional age limits, NC]FCJ advocates
that juvenile delinquency jurisdiction
should be returned to age 18. In most
cases, juvenile offenders under age 18
can be effectively maintained in the
juvenile justice system. Only in rare
instances, should a child be transferred
for adult prosecution, and then only
after a court hearing. The decision to
transfer or certify a child to the adult
court should only be made by the juvenile or family court judge-not by
prosecutorial discretion or automatic
waiver by law.
Furthermore, traditional notions of
confidentiality should be re-examined
and relaxed to promote public confidence in the court's work. A community has a right to know how courts
deal with its children and families. The
court should be open to the media,
interested professionals and students,
and, when appropriate, the public, in
order to hold itself accountable, educate others and encourage greater community participation.
THE JUDGE'S ROlE
Because they deal with the lives of
America's children and families, juvenile and family courts must be the best
of all courts. judges must excel as
jurists and be well educated in the law,
advocate publicly for the needs of children and families, and understand family dynamics and child development.
Above all, they must want to be juvenile and family court judges, instead of
waiting out their time on rotation.
In court proceedings, court judges
must assure due process for the children and families who appear before
them. judges must also
be committed to
prindples
of treatment,
rehabilitation and
family preservation, as
well as community protection and
accountability. This commitment
includes the willingness to impose constructive punishment when necessary
to enhance effective rehabilitation or
correction of the child.
The role of the juvenile and family
court judge is unique because it combines judicial, administrative, collaborative and advocacy components. It is
essential that judges be active in the
development of policies, laws, rules and
standards that govern the functioning
of the courts and participating agencies
and systems. Clearly; judges must
inform the community of the unique
and diverse needs of troubled children
and their families.
judges should promote effective
working relationships among courts,
and legislative and executive branches
of government-including social services, schools and law enforcement agencies-as well as with business and community organizations. The very nature
of the office mandates that the judge
act as an advocate and convener to
assure that needed services are available
and accessible. judicial responsibility
for impartiality does not prevent the
judge from providing that leadership.
All judges who work or serve in
the juvenile and family court system
need continuing education. This should
include racial and cultural competence
and gender fairness, as well as training
in disciplines-such as child development-needed to understand the situation of children and families who come
before the court.
judges must have the authority by
statute or court rule to order, enforce
and review delivery of specific services
for children and families if the court
finds that services are necessary;
reasonable and supported by the
evidence. The juvenile and family court
judge must be prepared to hold all
participants accountable for fulfilling
their roles in the court process and the
delivery of services if court orders are
not met-even when this proves
unpopular.
RESOURCES
The NCJFCJ recognizes that family and
juvenile courts need sufficient
resources. The escalation of caseloads
in areas of violent youth crime, abuse,
neglect, non-support of children and
other family violence means that the
Court struggles to fulfill its legislative
mandates with inadequate resources.
National, state and local funding and
resources must be redirected and allocated in favor of children and those
who care for and nurture them.
The courts need enough judges,
probation and administrative staff,
court security, and attorneys, prosecutors, public defenders and guardians ad
litem. Every child charged with a delinquent offense has the right to counsel
at every stage of the proceedings, and
every child alleged to be the victim of
neglect, abuse or dependency should be
represented by a guardian ad litem. In
addition, NC]FC] recommends the following services be available to the
Court in sufficient quality and quantity:
• Family preservation services: intensive social services provided in the
home for a limited time.
• Physical, mental, educational, and
substance abuse evaluations: access
to experts who can provide timely
assessments of a child's and family's
needs.
Bluep1int continued on page F3
�Family Focus On .....
"Impact of the Justice System on Families"
BLUEPRINT
continued from page F2
• Parenting education: classes that
teach the skills necessary to successfully rear children.
• Medical, mental health and substance abuse treatment: inpatient
and outpatient programs to provide
timely treatment for the child and
family.
• Guardians ad litem or Court
Appointed Special Advocates
(CASA): trained volunteers
appointed by the court to advocate
for abused and neglected children.
• Volunteers: people working with the
court in a variety of tasks who, in
addition to their work, become advocates for children in the community.
• Citizen Advisory Groups:
community members who advise the
court and advocate for children and
families.
• Alternative Dispute Resolution
Services: nonadversarial processes,
such as mediation, arbitration and
settlement conferences. (This
keeps the child and family out of
at is a C
the system.)
• Foster Care: specially trained families who care for children removed
from their homes.
• Residential and Day Treatment
Programs: specialized treatment,
correctional facilities and other
services for children.
• Secure Detention and Alternatives:
programs that provide an alternate
environment during court proceedings.
• Secure Correctional Facilities:
regional or community-based facilities for the care and rehabilitation of
serious or chronic offenders.
The private or nonprofit sectors are
the best providers of many of these
services. Private agencies are often
more flexible than government and can
augment public funds with private
resources. With the growth of privatization, it becomes increasingly important
for the c;ourt to monitor these services,
which should be delivered through
locally administered programs. More
government funding would give local
providers greater flexibility in matching
service delivery with local needs.
Standards for services should be
mandated by legislation or court rule.
A comprehensive analysis should be
undertaken to establish the level of need
and to help state and local legislative
bodies develop the necessary standards.
The NCJFCJ believes that a clear
understanding of the role of the juvenile and family court system will lead
to an effective response to the complex
problems of failing families and dangerous youth. A determined commitment
of government is also necessary, as is
collaboration between community and
courts to develop the public and private
resources that families need.
To leam more about the National Council
ofJuvenile and Family Court Judges, go
to www.ncjfcj.wn:edu. Recent issues of
NC]FC]'s publication Juvenile and Family
Justice Today can be downloaded in PDF
format from http:brendan.ncjfcj.um:edu! ~ ,\
homepage!today!JuvFamJus.htm.
1h1
,•
by Nancy Giguere, Report topics feature w1iter and guardian ad litem, Ramsey County, Minnesota
ince 1974, federal law has
42,000 men and women volunteer as
review records and reports; and attend
required that a guardian ad litem
guardians ad litem in some 800 programs
court hearings. Although guardians do
(also called a court-appointed
throughout the U.S.
establish a relationship with the child, their
special advocate or CASA) be appointed
A CASA functions as "the eyes and
role is never that of a Big Brother or Sister.
to represent the best interests of abused
ears" of the judge when children are
and neglected children in every case that
involved in juvenile or family court due to
litem/' says John S. Connolly, a Ramsey County,
results in a judicial proceeding. For the first
allegations of child abuse or neglect,
Minnesota, Juvenile Court Judge. "The
few years after the law was enacted, this
delinquency, and domestic violence.
guardian is a neutral party, a friend of the
role was usually filled by court-appointed
Guardians ad litem are also appointed in
court, who can provide an independent
attorneys.
custody and visitation disputes that result
evaluation of the case."
In 1976, a Seattle judge decided to
use trained community volunteers. So suc-
"The court relies a lot on guardians ad
from divorce proceedings.
As the case unfolds, the CASA will
To team more, contact National
cessful was the program that soon judges
visit with the child at home or in foster are;
0\SA Association, at 800-628-3233 or
across the country began using citizen
talk with family members; interview profes-
inquiry@nationalcasa.org, or visit
advocates for children. Today more than
sionals, such as teachers and therapists;
www.nationalcasa.org.
Family Focus I September 2000
�Family Focus On ....
"Impact of the Justice System on Families"
Understanding the Juvenile Justice System
by Douglas Dodge, Senior Policy and Legal Advis01; Office of juvenile justice and Delinquency Prevention, U.S. Department of justice
he juvenile justice system is
difficult for most parents to
understand and navigate. This
article provides an introduction to the
basic organization of the system. For
each of the six stages, I offer suggestions on how parents can help themselves and their children cope with the
juvenile justice and associated systems.
ARREST
The process usually begins with an
arrest by a law enforcement officer.
Juveniles may be taken to the police
station for questioning. If there is
probable cause to believe they were
involved in the offense, they will be
booked. Sometimes, police take
suspected offenders to the court
or detention center and turn them
over to court intake workers (probation
officers) to begin the court process.
Youths taken to a police station for
interrogation have the right to be
informed that they can have a lawyer
present during questioning. Depending
on the jurisdiction, a youth might also
have a right to talk to a parent or have
a parent present during the interrogation. In many cases, however, youth are
taken into custody for questioning as
witnesses, in which case they are not
entitled to a lawyer.
Because a child with mental health
problems is particularly vulnerable in
the context of questioning at a police
station, it is very important for parents
to go there and demand that they be
present when their child is questioned.
If the police do not honor this request,
many courts will not allow incriminating statements to be admitted at the
adjudication hearing. If parents are
permitted to be present, they should
also make sure that the youngster's
rights are protected.
INTAKE
Intake workers may divert the youth,
release the youth to his or her parents
with a summons to return to court for
an initial hearing or detain the youth
pending a judicial hearing. In many
cases, intake workers also file the formal
charges, usually called a petition.
In other jurisdictions, information
on the case is turned over to the prosecutor's office for the decision on what
charges to bring against the youth.
Prosecutors have the authority to
dismiss the case, divert the youth to a
diversion program, file formal charges
in juvenile court, or in some jurisdictions, if the charge is serious,
in adult court. Cases
will be
lawyer. Parents should not waive this
right or allow their child to waive this
right, even if the youth will plead
guilty. A competent lawyer can have a
significant impact on the outcome of
the disposition by developing and
advocating for a dispositional plan.
Parents should insist that the lawyer
develop such a plan with their input. It
may also be necessary to meet with
service providers to develop the plan.
ADJUDICATION
A parent's
willingness to work
with and supervise a youth may
make all the difference when it comes
to the decision on detention or
out-of~home placement:
dismissed
if the prosecutor finds that
there is insufficient
evidence or the case hinges on
evidence/statements that were taken
under circumstances that violate rights
guaranteed by the U.S. Constitution.
DETENTION HEARING
The detention hearing is a very critical
stage of the process, because youth who
are detained are more likely to be incarcerated if they are found guilty of the
offense. Detention also makes it more
difficult to develop the defense case.
That's why it's important for parents to provide information to the
child's lawyer and the court on how the
youth will be supervised if released,
and how they will cooperate with any
conditions of release pending the adjudication hearing. The presence of
parents at the detention heating is
absolutely essential.
A juvenile who is formally charged
and detained or who comes to court for
the first time after being released on a
summons is entitled to a lawyer. The
lawyer may be hired by the parents or
appointed by the court, if the parents
are eligible for a court-appointed
Family Focus I September 2000
At the adjudication hearing, the youth
is again entitled to be represented by a
lawyer, to call witnesses, to cross examine the prosecution's witnesses and to
introduce any relevant evidence that
may establish innocence. The youth is
not required to testify at this hearing.
Whether he or she does should be
based on the lawyer's assessment of all
the circumstances of the case.
DISPOSITION
If after this adjudication hearing the
youth is found guilty of the offense, the
court generally sets a elate for a disposition hearing. Prior to this hearing, the
probation staff will develop a pre-disposition report which provides background information on the youth and
makes a recommendation to the court.
It is ve1y important that the youth's
lawyer and the parents develop a dispositional plan and that they both advocate for the youth at the disposition
hearing. Parents should attend this
hearing and be prepared to provide
information on their willingness to
work with both the child and juvenile
probation so that the child can receive
the least restrictive disposition.
The judge's decision will be based
on the severity of the offense, the
offense history and the youth's response
to prior placements if there have been
some. The judge can place the youth
on probation, order the youth to do
community service or pay restitution
to the victim, place the youth in a nonresidential, community-based program
such as clay treatment, place the youth
in a community-based residential
Understanding continued on page F6
�Family Focus On ...
"Impact of the Justice System on Families"
Status ffenders: Intervention and Rehabilitation
or Incarceration?
by Gina E. Wood, Direct01; South Carolina Department ofjuvenile justice
o you know a child who engages
in one or more of these behaviors? Skipping school, disturbing
school, running away from horne, being
incorrigible or drinking underage.
These are some examples of a status
offense, a
noncriminal offense
for which a
child can
be arrested,
but not an
adult.
Maybe
the child
you are
thinking
Gina E. Wood
about is a
distant relative, a friend, or a neighbor. Perhaps
the child is your own.
Regardless of the child's identity,
unless someone, preferably the immediate family, intervenes to stop the status
offending behavior(s), statistics show a
high probability that this child will
eventually be incarcerated in a juvenile
justice facility. Not because of the status
offense, but because the status offense
led to more serious trouble.
Of all of the status offenses, truancy
(skipping school) is the most powerful
predictor that a child is headed for serious trouble. Studies reveal that truancy
leads to risky behaviors such as substance abuse (alcohol, drugs, and
tobacco), teen pregnancy, school drop
out and violence. A California deputy
assistant attorney who handles truancy
cases says he has "never seen a gang
member who wasn't a truant first."
Several studies have documented
the correlation between drug use and
truancy. A report from the University of
Maryland found that 51 percent of
female juvenile detainees not in school
at the time of their arrests tested positive for drug use. Another study by the
United States Department of Justice's
Drug Use Forecasting program reported
that more than half (53 percent) of a
group of 403 male juvenile arrestees in
San Diego, California, tested positive for
drug use when taken to juvenile hall.
Not surprisingly, those who did not
attend school were more likely (67 percent versus 49 percent) to test positive
for drug use than those who did attend.
CAUSES OF TRUANCY
There are many causes of truancy, but
parental neglect is a common one. Many
parents of truant students do not value
education. Some children are kept at
horne to work or baby-sit pre-school siblings. Others are prevented from attending school because of problems at horne,
at school, or in their neighborhood. One
truant officer described a student whose
parentS kept him horne so he would not
have to walk past the neighborhood crack
house. Immigrant students in Minnesota
reported staying horne because they fear
students at their schools.
Regardless of the cause of truancy
or any other status offense, the appropriate initial response is not incarceration in a juvenile justice facility. Status
offenders are troubled children whose
parents often are in need of counseling
for a variety of problems. These children are much more in need of adequate supervision than incarceration.
Some states have now decriminalized status offenses. In these states, the
behaviors are no longer law violations.
Juveniles who are status offenders may
be classified as dependent children, a
classification giving child protective
service agencies rather than juvenile
courts the primary responsibility for
responding to this population.
WORKING WITH STATUS
OFFENDERS
Several years ago, the South Carolina
State Legislature gave Family Court
judges the authority to create a determinate commitment disposition (i.e.,
30, 60, 90 days) and commit status
offenders, a noncompliance with the
Juvenile Justice and Delinquency
Prevention Act of 1974, as amended.
Family Focus I September 2000
This resulted in the commitment to the
South Carolina Department of Juvenile
Justice (DJJ) of a population of low-risk
juveniles for whom there is no effective
rehabilitative or educational program.
DJJ has excellent rehabilitative programs for indeterminately sentenced
juveniles; however, we do not have 30-,
60-, or 90-day rehabilitative programs
in place for youngsters who are not
criminals.
Fortunately, the current administration, under the leadership of Governor
Jim Hodges, understands that with
appropriate intervention instead of
commitment, these children's lives can
be turned around. Governor Hodges has
taken an aggressive approach to solving
the problems of incarcerating status
offenders and federal noncompliance by
working closely with DJJ, other key
state agencies, and local communities.
For example, through his Safe
Schools Task Force, the Governor
charged DJJ with reducing truancy and
status offending behaviors throughout
the state. As a result, DJJ developed a
comprehensive Truancy Intervention
Plan with a set of principles to
empower families, school officials, law
enforcement agencies, and communities
to design their own strategies to successfully battle truancy. Our plan gives
examples of existing, highly successful
truancy intervention programs in South
Carolina. As much as possible, we want
to see these programs duplicated in
communities around the state.
SUCCESSFUl. PROGRAMS
One of our most successful programs
was developed in Kershaw County in
collaboration with the South Carolina
Department of Mental Health. It is
called HITCH, which stands for Healthy
Intervention for Teenagers and Children.
When HITCH was implemented in
1997, there were 92 new court petitions
for first-time truancy and 27 petitions
for contempt of court for a total of 119.
And truancy and contempt of court are
the two most prevalent status offenses.
Status Offenders continued on page F6
�Family Focus On ....
"Impact of the Justice System on Families"
UNDERSTANDING
Juvenile Justice Facts
• Students are more apt to be victims
of serious violent crime away from
school than at or on the way to
school.
• Serious violent crimes by juveniles
occur most frequently in the hours
immediately following the close of
school on school days.
• On average, juveniles were involved
in one-quarter of serious violent victimizations annually over the last 25
years.
• The rate at which juveniles committed serious violent crimes changed
little between 1973 and 1989,
peaked in 1993, then declined (by
1997) to the lowest level since 1986.
continued from page F4
program, or commit the youth to the
division of juvenile services. The judge
may also order the youth to undergo
treatment if a substance abuse or mental health problem exists.
Parents should participate in any
and all treatment planning and advocate for the appropriate treatment services. They should also participate in
treatment to assist with the youth's
process towards making changes. Since
many jurisdictions lack services, this
can be one of the most frustrating
aspects of the juvenile justice system.
Lack of cooperation or coordination
between juvenile justice, mental health,
substance abuse and other providers
can also hinder treatment. Moreover,
many jurisdictions still rely on out-ofstate placements for children with special needs. This makes it very difficult
for parents to participate in the child's
tre~tment.
PLACEMENT
• In 1997, juvenile offenders were
known to be involved in about 1,400
murders in the United States.
When juveniles are placed in a residential facility or secure facility; planning
and managing their reentry into the
community is critical. Parents should
• The 1997 juvenile court delinquency
caseload was more than 4 times the
caseload in 1960.
STATUS OFFENDERS
• In 1997 courts with juvenile jurisdiction disposed more than 1.7 million
delinquency cases.
• For every 100,000 non-Hispanic
black juveniles in the population,
1,018 were in a residential placement facility on October 29, 1997for Hispanics the rate was 515, and
for non-Hispanic whites the rate was
204.
• Females accounted for 1 in 7
juveniles in residential placement in
1997.
-
from the The OJJDP Statistical
Briefing Book,
http://ojjdp.ncjrs.org!ojstatbblindex.html
insist on being involved in the planning
process and enlist community-based
agencies that can provide services to
the youth. At the very least, parents
should work with the aftercare workers
to identify helpful community-based
agencies that can address specialized
needs such as substance abuse treatment, mental health services, special
education, or employment training and
placement. In addition, parents should
take advantage of opportunities to learn
better parenting skills so they can foster
a better relationship with their child
and apply more effective discipline.
A parent's willingness to work with
and supervise a youth may make all the
difference when it comes to the decision on detention or out-of-home
placement. Parents should not have to
do this alone; they should have the
support of advocates, community-based
agencies and public mental health and
substance abuse agencies who are
working in concert in the best interest
of the child and family
For more infonnation, contact
DOUG@ojp.usdoj.gov.
continued from page Fs
For the 1999 school year, there were only
ment, family counseling, and coordina32 truancy and 12 contempt petitions.
tion of resources. Twelve-month recidiThis represents a 63 percent drop in
vism results indicate that 91 juveniles
petitions since the HITCH
exited the program on planned
program was initiated.
discharge. Of those 91 juveniles, 86
According to former
percent has notre-offended.
Family Court judge
These programs and
William Byars, there
similar others show
are currently no
that intervention and
the status offenses,
youth on probation
rehabilitation work
truancy is the most powerful
for truancy in
for troubled children
predictor that a child is headed
Kershaw County
in South Carolina,
for serious trouble.
Another
and they can work
successful interfor other troubled
children as well.
vention program,
Family Crisis Intervention
Unit, is in Lexington County
For more infonnation on the
This program provides services to
South Carolina Department of
all Lexington County youth and their
juvenile justice~ Truancy
families who are in crisis as a result of
Intervention Plan, contact Brett
Mac gargle, director of D]]~ Office of
family conflicts, runaway behavior, or
truancy In addition, the program
Delinquency Prevention, at
provides immediate intervention, assessbmmacg@winthrop.djj.state.sc.us.
�Family Focus On ....
"Impact of the Justice System on Families"
Juvenile Court Use of Parent Training
Increasing
by Don Gordon, Ph.D., Professor of Psychology, Ohio University
consensus has been building
among social scientists and government agencies (O]]DP, for
example) that some of the most promising avenues for delinquency and substance abuse prevention are family
interventions. There is strong evidence
that parent and family skills training
can improve child problem behavior,
parenting skills, family functioning; and
that these have lasting effects and
reduce diagnosed problem behaviors in
children.
But widespread implementation of
parent and family interventions has
been hampered by several formidable
factors. Cost, accessibility, and social
stigma prevent those at highest risk
(low-income families) from participating. Another barrier is the belief of
many juvenile court personnel that
punishment or treatment should focus
on the offender, not on the family.
There is also public pressure for judges
to be tough on juvenile crime, which
may arise from the public's being uninformed that deterrence is ineffective or
counterproductive, while family-centered interventions are often effective.
In addition, many judges do not
consider parenting to be a contributing
factor to the offending since parents
routinely point the finger elsewhere
(peers, scapegoating by police, drugs,
media). Few parents tell the judge that
they do not know how to communicate
with, support, discipline, or supervise
their children.
DIFFICULTIES WITH TRADITIONAL
PARENT TRAINING
When courts do look for help to
improve parenting skills, the availability of well-trained family therapists and
ongoing parent education groups is
often scarce. When courts suggest that
parents receive some help with their
parenting skills, parents usually ignore
that advice. In our experience with
courts nationwide and internationally,
we recommend that courts mandate
parental
training for service providers. In addiparticipation, it minimizes the barriers of cost,
tion.
accessibility, and social stigma faced by
low-income families. This intervention
English
parents, for
is a self-administered CD-ROM,
example,
Parenting Wisely (PW), which teaches
are equally
parents and their children important
positive
skills that have been linked to delinquency prevention (communication,
about good
support, supervision and discipline).
parenting
programs
The program requires and invites
whether
interaction by presenting nine liveDon Gordon, Ph.D.
action video scenarios of common partheir partieipation is
ent/child problems followed by three
mandated or voluntary, and the effect
possible solutions for each one, along
on their parenting and children's
with explanations of why each solution
behavior is equivalent. Many courts,
is or is not the most effective. Problems
howev~r, do not want to implement
include homework, sibling
and maintain a time-consuming
conflict, defiance,
monitoring system to ensure
chore avoidance,
parental compliance.
disrespectful talk
An
In the past few years the
and associating
unanticipated
emphasis on best practices
with undesirable
benefit of this techand evidence-based methpeers. The proods has resulted in the
gram design
demand for
and content
Functional Family
are based on
Therapy Qames
family systems and
Alexander) and Multisystemic
cognitive behavioral
Therapy (Scott Henggeler), the two
methods.
most well-supported family intervenControlled research
tions. Because of the complexity and
demonstrates high parental satisfaction, improvements in knowledge
cost of training in these models, only a
small percentage of courts will be able
and use of skills, improvements in famto implement them. Parent education
ily relations, and large improvements in
classes have been more popular and are
child problem behavior. For difficult
more cost-effective than family therapy,
children and teens, behavior improved
but have not had as much research supby more than 50 percent. Many of these
port as the family therapy models menteens had behavior problems in the
tioned above. Extension agents and cerclinically deviant range, which then
tified family life educators have been
moved into the normal range after their
the most active in offering parenting
parents used the program. Because of
classes.
these results and the program's design
and ease of dissemination, CSAP and
WHAT IS PARENTING WISELY?
O]]DP rated PW an Exemplary
Several years ago we developed a famProgram.
ily-centered intervention that is not
Juvenile courts are becoming more
dependent upon social service personresponsive to this technology. Parents
nel for its delivery, which is inexpencomply with court orders to use it since
it can be completed in one sitting (2-3
sive, and which can be replicatea and
sustained in communities without
hours). Approximately one third of
Parent Ii·aining continued on page FB
�Family Focus On ...
"Impact of the Justice System on Families"
Juvenile Justice System and Families Must Work
Together
by ]ames H. Hayes, L.I.C.S.W, retired juvenile Division Directo1; Ramsey County Community Corrections, St. Paul, Minnesota
he criminal justice system is our
collective way of supporting our
values and enforcing our mutual
expectations regarding criminal behavior within our society. This system supports the need that all families have to
live in a safe community. By providing
consequences and rehabilitative interventions for criminals, the system also
supports families' desire for their members to be law-abiding and responsible
individuals. Lastly, the criminal justice
system supports families' right and
desire for justice when their members
are victims of crime.
The juvenile justice system is more
geared to working directly with families
than the adult system, although it's
important to note that the majority of
individuals involved in both systems
are not removed from their families or
the community. Most adult offenders
are not incarcerated, and about 80 percent of juvenile offenders are at home
on probation.
PARENT TRAINING
HOW JUVE~ILE PROBATIO~
WORKS
Juvenile probation begins as soon as
the Court establishes jurisdiction by
accepting an admission or
sustaining a petition for
a criminal offense, a
petty offense, habitual truancy or
runaway. Our
responsibilities
are to supervise the
juvenile, assess his
or her risk and needs,
advise the Court on dispositional
options, and provide access to appropriate services that will continue uninterrupted until the young person is dismissed from Juvenile Court jurisdiction. In the long run, each individual's
family and community will continue to
have the most influence and impact
upon his or her future choices and
behavior, regardless of the level of
intervention provided by the juvenile
justice system.
In the majority of cases, probation
lasts three to l2 months, although for
petty matters, jurisdiction may be as
short as four to six weeks. For more
serious or repeat offenders-which in
Ramsey County
comprise only 25
percent of the total
juvenile offender population-probation can
last from one to five
years, or longer, if the individual continues to re-offend. During
probation, the juvenile may be involved
in multiple community or residential
programs.
In all situations, our basic goals
and responsibilities are the same. We
must try to:
• protect public safety,
• hold offenders accountable,
• assist decision-makers,
Worh Together continued on page F9
continued from page F7
juvenile courts in Ohio now use the
program, and Ohio's use of PW reflects
national trends.
EASE OF ACCESS
The courts have placed the program in
accessible locations in their communities, such as libraries, schools, public
housing, child protective services and
extension offices. The search for venues
has led to increased interagency cooperation. Often the juvenile court judge
has taken a leadership role in promoting parenting skills training. Creative
approaches have surfaced, such as
requiring parents to attend Saturday
schools with their delinquents and
attend a parallel parenting class. Case
managers and caseworkers take the PW
program into the homes on laptop
computers to reach parents who will
not go to community locations.
"This is the only way to reach parents who feel blamed by the rest of the
community, and they really love the
program. The family uses it together
and have great discussions" reported LP
of Columbus, OH.
Some courts are drawn to this form
of parent training for dealing with firsttime offenders who are unruly and
often placed in diversion programs.
"My son now will talk to me, and he
says I am listening better. We do more
together now and have fewer fights"
said SN of Marietta, OH after she used
PW
Parents of young teens will begin
to disengage when they feel powerless
to control them, and are tired of the
conflict that arises when they try to
limit their teen's independence. Good
..
Family Focus I September 2000
parent training, even when forced upon
them by a court order, can reverse or
prevent this insidious process from
producing disengagement.
An unanticipated benefit from this
technology has been an increased
demand for traditional parent education
classes and, to a lesser extent, family
therapy. Parents often want more parent
education after using PW, and they
want the support of other parents
struggling with similar issues. The
program convinces parents that their
children's behavior and their parenting
are related, and they learn this concept
in the non-threatening, private environment of a computer.
For more information, contact
gordon@oah.cats.ohiou.edu.
�Family Focus On ...
"Impact of the Justice System on Families"
WORK TOGETHER
continued from page FS
• assist offenders to change, and
• restore victims and the community.
Even when a child is placed in a
residential program, the family is often
relieved because they know their child
FAMILY RESPONSE VARIES
is supervised, safe and not running the
streets. This sometimes gives parents
Most juveniles become and remain lawthe break they need to get involved in
abiding through the influence of their
counseling and begin working on famfamily and community values, guidance, support and expectations. It is
ily problems or substance abuse.
only when that doesn't happen that the
Although parents play the major
role in their child's development,
juvenile justice system has the right
to intervene. By its very nature,
they are not necessarily to
the juvenile justice system
blame for their child's
becomes an outside force
wrongdoing. But for
that reduces a family's colbetter or for
Parents,,
lective power to control
worse, they have
have far more
what will happen to
far more influinfluence over a child's
them. Whether the
ence over a
future than the juvenile justice
result is good or bad
child's future
system can ever have.
for families (or perthan the juveceived as good or
nile justice sysbad by them)
tem can ever
depends on a multitude
have. Parents can
of factors.
be a great resource for
These factors include the qualboth the child and the
ity of the staff and services provided to
system-which is why it's
essential that the system and
young offenders and their families. Also
important is whether the parents accept
the family work together.
that their child is guilty of a crime and
share the goals of the system. The
INVOLVING FAMILIES
response of the individual juvenile to
But both sides have to be willing. We
the system's intervention is also crucial
try to involve parents by requiring
to the outcome and the family's percepthem to be present at juvenile hearings.
tion of the system.
We may also require that they pay for
some of the costs associated with their
Some parents have great difficulty
child's actions. In addition, the Court
admitting that their child has done
may order that both the child and the
wrong and needs to be responsible for
his or her actions. These parents usuparents participate in a family counselally see the system as intrusive, and
ing program or other treatment intertheir experience with it is generally not
ventions.
positive. We also see the other extreme:
Ramsey County runs a counseling
parents who complain that the system
program for families of children on prois not harsh enough. In these families,
bation. Groups of families meet
there is often a high level of conflict
together weekly to discuss their conbetween the parents and the child.
cerns and problems with each other
Sometimes the juvenile is actually
and two counselors. When we order
improving-or at least not re-offendfamilies to participate, we require them
ing-but the parents want the system
to attend six sessions. In the beginning,
to intervene more strongly.
it's common for families to complain
Many families, though, are seeking
that they don't want or need to attend.
help and are grateful that their child
But many become active participants
has become involved with the system.
and continue voluntarily well beyond
They're willing to cooperate with the
the six mandated sessions.
probation officer, come to weekly famThree years ago, we began to comily groups and participate in other propile comprehensive outcome data for
grams. The experience of these families
the juvenile justice system in Ramsey
County. The overall results have been
is often quite positive.
Family Focus I September 2000
positive, with 70 percent of all juveniles
dismissed over the past three years
remaining offense-free for one year.
When we followed all juveniles dismissed in 1996 for three years, 50 percent still had committed no new
offenses. We appear to be doing a very
good job of holding juvenile offenders
accountable, impacting their behavior
in the short-term, responding to victilns' need for restitution and earning
the respect of the professionals we
work with.
But we would also like to see
improvement in some areas. In both
1998 and 1999, over 80 percent of parents and their children told us that they
were treated fairly. In 1998, 78 percent
of parents and their children indicated
they had been treated with respect, but
this percentage dropped to only 63 percent in 1999. Overall, however, 7l percent of parents and juveniles believed
the county systen1 provides "good overall quality of services."
This feedback seems quite positive
compared to the often negative picture
of the juvenile justice system held by
the public and portrayed in the media.
But we believe that it is essential to
continue to seek feedback and to strive
to improve these outcomes in our relationships with those most directly
involved in our system.
Like all systems or organizations,
the juvenile justice system is no more
than a group of ordinary people Uying
to work together to achieve some common goals. The people who work for
the system are, by and large, a dedicated group of individuals with good
skills, strong values and a sincere desire
to help others.
But they're not perfect. They don't
have magical knowledge or powers.
They can't "fix" other people. And they
face the difficult responsibility of trying
to change the future behavior of others,
whom they don't control. Their efforts
are most effective when the system and
families become true partners and are
able to work together with mutual
respect.
For more infonnation, contact
]HayesMinn@aol.com.
�Family Focus On ...
"Impact of the Justice System on Families"
The Courts, Child Custody and Visitation
by Isolina Ricci, Ph.D., Assistant Dircct01; Center for Families, Children & The Courts, Califomia]udicial Branch (Judicial Council of Califomia)
ost parents faced with custody
and visitation decisions say that
they want an arrangement that
gives their child the best chance in life.
While this sounds good in theory; few
people are prepared for the real world
of adversarial procedures, legal terminology, forms and due process.
Moreover, the interplay of custody, the
disposition of the family home, support
issues, and assets can obscure the initial
resolve to focus on the best interests of
the children. These processes affect
most acutely families struggling with
problems of family violence, child
abuse or substance abuse.
In our concern over these at-risk
families, it's easy to ignore the legions
of families who go to court ostensibly
without serious problems. But when
these families are unprepared, the
adversarial process can also seriously
impair their judgement and desire to
partner as parents in the future. When
this happens, the needs of the children
fall by the wayside. The attitude that
"all is fair in war and divorce" has
brought about great tragedy to many
children and their families.
Family practitioners, mediators,
educators and physicians can help.
They can not only develop a list of professional and educational referrals for
their clients, but they can also provide
parents with perspective, support, nonlegal advice and common-sense guidelines. Here are some suggestions:
Let parents know that they
will need to devote a
considerable amount of time
to "legal business." People are surprised at how much time they need to
spend in the courthouse itself, to think
through options, to prepare documents,
to participate in negotiations. Yet, it is
time that must be spent. If one is unaccustomed to thinking about long-range
impacts on children, life style, and economics, the demands of making legal
decisions with long-term consequences
can be daunting. "It takes over your life
for a while," one father said. This is
true even
when people have
retained
attorneys.
Unmarried
parents,
especially
those who
dispute
custody or
visitation,
Isolina Ricci, Ph.D.
are not
spared. They too must deal with paternity actions, legal decisions around
child custody, support and visitation.
Urge parents to settle disputes
outside of the courtroom.
There are many dedicated and experienced judicial officers and court staff,
and there have been many advances in
the family courts and in family law.
Nonetheless, the best advice is still to
do as much as you can to settle the
issues about the children outside of
court where parents can maintain
control of the process and keep their
discussions private, and where they;
not a judge, decides what is best for
their child.
Family mediation, many attorneyto-attorney negotiations, and settlement
procedures of various kinds are all
alternatives to courtroom hearings.
Today; many courts, aware that the
adversarial process may not bring about
the best long-term outcome, mandate
family mediation or insist on other settlement procedures before the family
can engage in court hearings. Working
with a skilled family mediator can be
especially helpful. Good mediation is
problem solving. It can rebuild a parenting relationship and it may help parents to focus on their child.
Encourage the development of a
well-thought-out Parenting
Agreement or Plan. A solid
Parenting Plan is a detailed alternative
to the traditional "custody agreement"
that has been used in many courts for
over 20 years. The Plan not only meets
legal requirements, but it can help the
family establish a mutually acceptable
reorganization process. The U.S.
Commission on the Welfare of Children
and Families recommends that all parents develop such a plan.
In addition to describing how and
when parents will spend time with the
child, a plan can set forth a series of
guidelines about schooling, health care
and other decisions that affect the
child. A plan may even have preambles
that describe each parent's philosophy
and intent. It should meet the best
interests of the child and take into
account the family circumstances.
Many parents, with encouragement
from professionals, can set aside their
own grief and anger to think through a
detailed, workable way for the children
to have a normal upbringing. When
parents engage in this effort, practitioners should applaud them.
Recommend good parent
education. Parenting through
separation and divorce requires skill
and determination. A child caught in
the middle of parental conflict is at risk
for difficulties in the long-term.
Children need to feel secure and safe,
and parents need expert coaching.
Hands-on publications and education
programs can be especially helpful.
Many parents, when encouraged, are
pleased that they took the time to learn
more about stages of child development
and how to help their child traverse
these difficult times.
Distressed parents may also unwittingly involve their child in the details
of the adult's legal business. These
blurred boundaries often results in the
children feeling they must choose sides
or take responsibility for their parents'
behaviors. Good parent education
addresses this misconception. Courts
often offer parent education hoping to
influence parents to develop parenting
plans appropriate to their child's age
and development as well as to encourage sound parenting and civil behavior
Custody & Visitation continued on page FIB
Family Focus I September 2000
�Family Focus On ...
"Impact of the Justice System on Families"
Custodial lnte renee:
An Extreme Form of Domestic Violence
by Deborah Linnell, M.A., N.C. C., C.R.C., Doctoral candidate, Counselor Education Program, Department of Counseling & Personnel Services,
University of Mmyland, College Parh
physically and emotionally. Even when
magine that you are in the grocery
store with your child and turn to
children are not physically injured, they
are forced to live on the run and may
pick an item off the shelf. When you
turn back, your child has disappeared.
be prohibited from attending school,
Panic-stricken, you search for your
making friends, and maintaining conchild, while every horror story you've
tact with extended family members.
ever heard races through your
Some children suffer developmental
mind. Then you catch sight of
delays along with psychological trauma.
the child in the next aisle.
The added stress of this
This story has a happy
lifestyle
ending. But for other famiincreases the
lies, there is no happy
risk of neglect
Abduction
ending. In these famior injury; and
harms parents and
lies, the child has
medical attenchildren, sometimes both
been abducted
tion is often
physically and emotionally.
by a parent or
avoided.
other "loved
Harm to the
one" out of anger or
family is permanent,
revenge. The searching
since threats and violence
parent may find it difficult to get
permeate the interactions
help because it is assumed that the
between parents as well as between
child is in good hands since the abducparents and children. The searching
tor is the child's other parent and legal
parent loses all trust in the former partner and is forced to undergo an excrucustody may have yet to be established.
ciating wait for information. Children
The local police may erroneously
assume that the child is not at risk or
are reduced to objects used by one parthat a crime has not been committed.
ent to hurt the other. They may wonder
Even mental health professionals often
if either parent truly loves them. In
fail to realize that this kind of interfersome situations, children are even told
by the abducting parent that the other
ence with child custody is an extreme
form of domestic violence and that the
parent has died or no longer wants
child may indeed be at serious risk of
them.
harm.
ADDRESSING THE ISSUE IN
In reality, it is more likely that chilTHERAPY OR MEDIATION
dren will be abducted and abused by
family members than by strangers.
Mental health professionals and family
About 350,000 families experience
mediators have an opportunity to pre"family abduction" or "parental kidnapvent custodial interference when workping" every year. Children may be gone
ing with separating families if they ask
from a few hours to many years. Some
the right questions in the assessment
families experience multiple abducprocess. While general questions about
tions.
abuse history are common, and some
therapists use standardized scales to
identify specific abusive behavior, rarely
WHAT IS CUSTODIAL
does a therapist or mediator ask each
INTERFERENCE?
In the studies published since family
parent about efforts to prevent the
other from maintaining contact with
violence began receiving national attention, little reference has been made to
the child.
custodial interference as a form of intiHelpful questions for parents
mate violence. But abduction harms
include these:
parents and children, sometimes both
• Have you (or your spouse/partner)
I
ever failed to promptly return a child
following scheduled visitation?"
• Have you (your spouse/partner) ever
failed to disclose the location of a
child to the other parent?
• Have you (your spouse/partner) ever
threatened to hide a child from the
other parent if the relationship
ended?
Questions that may be helpful in
working with children include these :
• Has there ever been a time when you
didn't know where mommy/daddy
was?
• Has there ever been a time when
your mommy/daddy told you that
(other parent) didn't love you?
• Has there ever been a time when
your mommy/daddy told you that
(other parent) didn't want you
around or didn't want you to live
with him/her?
• Have you (or your brothers and sisters) ever gone away with
mommy/daddy and not been allowed
to call (other parent)?
Such questions should also be used
to inquire about the ending of previous
relationships where children were
involved.
Sometimes parents say they stayed
in an abusive relationship "for the children." Professionals often assume such
parents mean that children will be happier in a two-parent household. But in
fact parents may fear never seeing their
children again. This is often the case
when the other parent has residency or
extended family outside the United
States or if there have been threats that
divorce or separation would mean permanent loss of the child through
abduction. Clarifying this issue may
lead to discussion of the risk for custodial interference or potential abduction
of the child. But the therapist or mediator must be willing to openly discuss
the issue.
LEGAL AND POLICY ISSUES
Courts (and their designees, e.g., family
Custodial Inte1jerence continued on page F18
�Family Focus On ...
"Impact of the Justice System on families"
Mothers in Prison •••
• By the end of 1996, 859,400 women
were under correctional supervision
(either in prison, jail, on probation or
parole). (U.S. Department of]ustice:
Office of Justice Programs)
• 75 percent of women in prison are
mothers. Two-thirds of these women
have children under the age of 18.
(U.S. Department of Justice: Bureau
of Justice Statistics)
• 25 percent of adult women in prison
have either given birth at some point
during the year prior to their
incarceration or are pregnant at the
time of their arrest. A survey of state
prison wardens found that "less than
50 percent [of their facilities] had
written policies specifically relating
to medical care for pregnant women
[and] only 48 percent offered
prenatal services. Of the facilities in
this second category, 21 percent
offered prenatal counseling,
15 percent offered counseling to
help mothers find suitable placements for their infants after birth
and 15 percent had policies for
lighter or no work during
pregnancy." (U.S. Department of
Justice: Office of justice Programs)
• Most women who use illegal drugs
while pregnant are white, yet in
several studies, the vast majority
of the women either reported or
arrested for drug use are women
of color. (The Guttmacher Report,
1998)
• There are now 146,600 women
incarcerated in U.S. prisons and jails.
(Bureau of Justice Statistics!fhe
Sentencing Project, ll-99)
• The number of women in prisons
and jails is increasing at a faster rate
than that of men. Nationally, there
are now nearly seven times as many
women in prison as in 1980. (U.S.
Department of Justice: Office of
Justice Programs)
• 78 percent of women in prison report
that they have been physically or
sexually abused. 50 percent of these
women were abused by someone they
knew, in contrast to 3 percent of
men. 56 percent reported that the
abuse included rape. (U.S.
Department of justice: Bureau
of justice Statistics)
• Women who were abused or
neglected as children face a 77
percent higher chance of arrest than a
comparison group of women who did
Family Focus I September 2000
not experience abuse or neglect.
(U.S. Department of Justice: Office of
Justice Programs)
• Of those prisoners who commit
violent acts, women are two times
more likely than men to know the
other person involved. (U.S.
Department of justice: National
Institute of justice) In fact, nearly
two-thirds of the women serving a
sentence for a violent crime knew the
other person involved in the crime.
(U.S. Department of]ustice: Bureau
of justice Statistics) The vast majority
of these women were defending
themselves or their children from
abuse. The average prison time for a
woman who kills her spouse/partner
is twice that of a man who kills his
spouse/ partner. (Turning the Tide,
1998)
• Black women are incarcerated at a
rate eight times that of white women.
(The Sentencing Project)
• 5.1 percent of black and Hispanic
females are likely to go to prison or
jail at least one time during their lifetime, as compared to .5 percent of
white females. (The Sentencing
Project)
• 22.3 percent of women in prison held
no job prior to incarceration. Of
those who had jobs, two-thirds
reported never receiving more than
$6.50 per hour. (Wellisch, Anglin
and Prendergast,]oumal of Drug
Issues, 1993)
Fact sheet prepared by Justice Works
Community, a national nonprofit organization, based in Brooklyn, New York.
justiceWorks Community was founded in
1992 by criminal justice experts, exprisoners and religious leaders in response to
the social crisis triggered by the tripling
of the female U.S. prison population in
one decade. For more information, call
(718) 499-6704 or visit www.justice- r,j
works.org.
II
�Family Focus On ...
"Impact of the Justice System on Families"
••• Children in Crisis
• While children usually remain with
their mother during the incarceration
of their father, children of incarcerated mothers are much more likely to
experience a change in primary caretaker. (The Osborne Association)
• Nearly 2 million children have a
parent or close relative in jail or
prison. (Fox Butterfield, As Inmate
Population Rises, So Does Focus on
Children, New York Times, 4-7-99)
An estimated 10 million more
children have parents who have spent
time in prison or jail at some point in
their lives. (City Limits, 1995)
• Women currently in prison or jail are
mothers to nearly 250,000 children,
the majority of whom are under 18
years of age. (U.S. Department of
Justice: Office of Justice Programs)
• The National Council on Crime
and Delinquency estimates that
conservatively 9 percent of women in
U.S. prisons and jails are pregnant.
As such, given that 146,000 women
are currently incarcerated, we can
assume that at least 13,190 incarcerated women are currently pregnant.
• Yet another National Council on
Crime and Delinquency study
found that 36 percent of the women
interviewed had been separated from
at least one child during the child's
first three years of life. This correlates
with the common finding that
women who give birth while
incarcerated often have to relinquish
care of their child to a relative, friend
or foster parent within 24 hours of
the child's birth.
• The majority of children separated
from their mother because of her
incarceration subsequently live with
their maternal grandmother. Only 17
percent of the children stay with their
father. The remaining children live
with other relatives, friends or in
foster care. (National Council on
Crime and Delinquency)
• Many states do not recognize family
relations as legitimate foster care and
deny them financial support and
social services. (National Council on
Crime and Delinquency)
• More than half of the women in state
prisons never see their children during their incarceration. An additional
21 percent have less than monthly
visits. (City Limits, 1995)
• Over 60 percent of mothers in prison
are incarcerated more than 100 miles
from their children making visitation
difficult, financially prohibitive and
often impossible. (National Council
on Crime and Delinquency)
• Children of prisoners can experience
anger, alienation, hostility to
authority, feelings of abandonment
and overall dysfunction. "Without
the proper community support,
children of prisoners can suffer an
array of behavioral problems which
can lead to truancy, early pregnancy,
drug abuse and juvenile delinquency."
(The Osborne Association)
• Nationally, foster care for a prisoner's
child costs an average of $20,000 per
year, adding to the cost of incarcerating their care givers.
• Mothers in prison can literally lose
their children in the foster care
system as the child is shifted from
family to family. The woman prisoner
must depend on prison officials who
are often indifferent to the child's
whereabouts or needs.
Fact sheet prepared by justiceWorks
Community, a national nonprofit
organization, based in Brooklyn,
New York.
�Family Focus On ...
"Impact of the Justice System on Families"
Jill
War on Drugs
Devastating African
American Communities
and Families
ur current criminal justice
policies are decimating
African American communities and impeding the movement of
disadvantaged blacks into the social
and economic mainstream of America.
In Malign Neglect, Michael Tonry
demonstrates that the rising levels of
African American incarceration rates
did not just happen. "They were the
foreseeable effects of deliberate
policies spearheaded by the Reagan
and Bush administrations and implemented by many states. Anyone with
knowledge of drug-trafficking patterns
and police arrest policies could have
foreseen that the enemy troops in the
War on Drugs would consist largely of
young, inner-city minority males.
Blacks in particular are arrested and
imprisoned for drug crimes in numbers
far out of line with their proportions of
the general population, of drug users,
and of drug-traffickers."
This decimation of African
American communities is particularly
evident in the increased imprisonment
of women with children. Why Punish
the Children?, a report issued by the
National Council on Crime and
Delinquency, concluded, "The system
has become more rigid, sacrificing the
flexibility to consider alternative outcomes for women with young children.
Unfortunately, while policyrnakers have
shown women that they will receive
the same consequences as men for
their offenses, they have also systematically punished their children."
-JusticeWorks Community
Inmate Mothers Seldom See
Children
ccording to a 1995 report on
if the national estimates mentioned
children of incarcerated parents,
above on the percentage of female
inmate parent-child visitations
inmates with minor children are true,
are beneficial because such visits allow
it appears that most imnate mothers at
the facilities visited did not receive
• children to express emotional reacvisits from their minor children.
tions to separation, which they may
not be permitted to do elsewhere;
Of the three jurisdictions studied,
California was unique in providing for
• parents to work out their feelings
family or overnight visitation at each of
about separation and loss, which
its facilities. However, visitation logs
better enables them to help their
and interviews with prison officials
children with the same issues;
indicated that few female inmates used
o children to see their parents realistithis program for mother-child visits.
cally, calming inational feelings and
unrealistic fantasies;
Prison officials told us that because
overnight visitation was infrequent at
o parents to model appropriate
both of the California institutions
interactions for children who are
visited, some of the apartment-like
misbehaving, to provide support to
facilities that were specifically designed
the caregivers; and
• parents and children to maintain
for family visitations have been
their existing relationships and,
converted into offices for prison staff.
According to the federal and state
thereby, increase the
correctional system officials contacted
changes of successful
family reunification
during the study, travel
after prison.
distances and
Although research
economic costs
Travel distances
indicates that inmate
associated with
and economic costs are the
mother-child visits
such travel are
primary reasons for infrequent
can be valuable, the
the primary
visits.
Bureau of justice
reasons why child
Statistics (BJS)
visitations were
1997 national
relatively infresurvey of state
quent. For example,
prison inmates
California officials told
indicates that most female inmates are
us that while approximately 60 percent
not visited by their minor children. For
of all female offenders are from southexample, about 56 percent of female
em California, the majority of female
inmates in states prisons who had
inmates are housed in Chowchillaminor children said they were never
about 260 miles from Los Angeles and
about 390 miles from San Diego. The
visited by their children since entering
prison.
officials explained that because there
The BJS survey also showed that
are only two prisons located in southan estimated 38 percent of female state
em California, it is difficult to house
prison inmates with minor children
women in prisons that are in close
talked with those children by telephone
proximity to their children.
at least once a week, and about 46 percent had contact by mail at least once a
Excerpted from Women in Prison: Issues
week.
and Challenges Confronting U.S.
Most of the facilities visited [by
Correctional Systems, GAO/GGD-00-22,
researchers from the U.S. General
1999. To order a single copy, write U.S.
Accounting Office during the course of
General Accounting Office, P.O. Box
37050, Washington, DC 20013. To access
a study published in 1999] did not
have statistics on the number of female
GAO reports on the Intemet, go to
rh1
inmates with minor children. However,
www.gao.gov.
Family Focus I September 2000
�Family Focus On ...
"Impact of the Justice System on Families"
Fathers in Prison
by Elic BremieJ; Senior Policy Analyst at the National Center on Fathers and Families
nformation on the exact number of
prisoners who are fathers is difficult
to determine, in part due to the
unreliability of prisoner surveys. A
1991 survey of men in prison estimated
that 64 percent of incarcerated men
were fathers, and 56 percent had
children under the age of 18.
A 1995 study reported that
67.5 percent of the male felons
in Tennessee prisons had
children, and that each
felon/father had an average of
2.4 children. Another study
estimated that of the 36,000
prisoners incarcerated in
Georgia state prisons, 88 percent had at least one child.
While most incarcerated
men are fathers, most are
not married, and most did
not live with their children
at the time of their arrest.
In New Jersey it is
estimated that over 50
percent of male inmates
have children but only
10 percent of the inmates
lived with their children
prior to incarceration.
This is related to the finding
that approximately 75 percent
of female state prisoners are
mothers of children under
18, but in only 25 percent of
these cases are the children
cared for by the father.
I
estimated 1.5 million children who
have a parent behind bars, 10 million
more children have parents who have
been imprisoned at some time in
their lives.
The connection between
parent criminality and youth
criminality
A MilliON AND A HALF
KIDS LEFT BEHIND
One result of the 1.6 million people incarcerated in
prisons and jails, is that an
estimated 1.5 million children are left behind as a
result of parental incarceration and the crimes that lead to the
incarceration. These estimates are based
on the most conservative of the estimates around the number of fathers in
prison. The 90,000 incarcerated women
have 145,000 minor children. The 1.23
million incarcerated men have 1.38 million minor children. In addition to the
has long been recognized by research,
but there are other effects of parent
criminality that are just as dramatic for
their children. Approximately 10 percent of the teenage children of offenders will be incarcerated as juveniles or
adults. A 1994 survey of children of
offenders found that 41 percent of the
teenagers had been suspended from
Family Focus I September 2000
school and 31 percent had run-ins with
the police. Children of offenders are six
times more likely than their peers to
end up in prison.
FAMILY TIES MATTER
Despite the disturbing facts
about the connection
between parent and youth
criminality; there is reason to
believe that family ties matter.
The few studies that have
been completed show that prisoners who maintain family ties
have significantly greater success upon moving onto parole.
Parole for male prisoners in
New Zealand is more successful when inmates maintain
strong family ties and receive
frequent family visits. In the
United Kingdom the lack of
contact between prisoners
and children has been shown
to jeopardize the chances of
families reuniting after
prisoners are released.
Does contact with families benefit children as well
as prisoners? This is an area
of controversy as some would
argue that any contact between
children and their parents
while the parent is in prison is
detrimental to the child. These
same people may see this as
weakening the punitive effect
of prison (for example, if
you want to stay united with
your family; don't commit
the crime). But others
would say that when both
parents agree on the value
of contact with the
children, the greater the level of
visitation, the better the chances of
benefits for both prisoners and their
children. While parents whose children
visit them in prison are more likely to
be motivated to improve parenting
skills, only one-half of incarcerated
parents receive visits from their
children, and most who receive visits
do not do so regularly.
Fathers continued on page F19
�Family Focus On ...
"Impact of the Justice System on Families"
CUSTODY & VISITATION
between former mates. Practitioners
can encourage people to attend these
classes and acknowledge their commitment to their children by taking
this step.
Read, and encourage parents to read, your state's
important custody,
visitation and child
support laws.
While nothing
can substitute for a
knowledgeable family
law attorney who will focus on
a specific case, the time the litigants
take to read their state laws on custody
is well spent. Laws and legal labels
differ among states and countries.
"Visitation" in one locale is called
"access" in another. "Sole Custody"
may mean total authority over a child
by one parent, or it may have built-in
allowances for the rights of the other
parent. Although non-attorney practitioners should not interpret the law nor
give "legal advice," there are benefits
from even a single reading of the law.
continued from page FI2
Recommend that parents keep
emotions in check and stay
healthy. Parents going to court often
enter the system understandably
anxious and upset.
These feelings may be
heightened
by the
unexpected
intensity
of the legal
journey. Strong
emotions, stress,
frequent illnesses
and depression can
impair the ability of the
parent to think clearly, negotiate or use
good judgement. Everyone can be
affected, including the children. At a
time when children need parents to be
especially attentive and comforting,
parents are preoccupied with their own
problems.
This period often coincides with
the suggestions to overstate or distort
concerns or claims on legal papers. The
CUSTODIAL INTERFERENCE
mediators) need to address the possibility of abduction during separation and
divorce proceedings and all child custody, support, and visitation hearings.
This only works, however,
when specific behavior is
prohibited and specific
sanctions are in place
if the court order is
violated.
For example,
the court might
state that failure to return the
child at the specified
time, unless prior arrangements
were approved by both parents, will
result in a court review of the custodial
arrangement with the costs of the
proceedings paid by the violator. Or the
court might specify that failure to
disclose a child's whereabouts to the
other parent will result in the loss of
combination can be lethal. The pain
and bewilderment and eventual retaliation that can result from these "overstatements" should not be underestimated. "These papers say I am not
home enough so he wants sole
custody;" says a mother of school-age
children who is attending school 15
hours a week. "He works 50 hours a
week and hardly sees the kids now!"
Such parents are poised for battle,
and the development of a sound
Parenting Plan can suffer. Practitioners
can help patients and clients by suggesting expert help, including counseling, additional legal consultation, and
mediation. Finally, practitioners can
urge parents to take extra steps during
these stressful times to safeguard their
own and their children's physical and
mental health.
Isolina Ricci is the author of Mom's
House, Dad's House: The Complete
Guide for Parents Who Are Separated,
Divorced, or Remarried (Second Edition,
Simon and Schuster, 1997). She can be f.
contacted at Isa.Ricci@jud.ca.gov.
continued from page Fn
visitation for six months.
Professionals who work with families should keep abreast of the laws that
govern their practice. For example,
many family therapists and mediators
are unaware that a 1991 federal law
eliminated all waiting periods
for the police to take
a report of a missing child and mandated the immediate listing of the
child with the FBI's
National Crime
Information Center
regardless of the circumstances of
the child's disappearance. Many other
state, federal and international laws
also deal with the interference of child
custody Therapists and mediators need
to help families facing the potential or
actual loss of a child to access these
resources.
Family Focus I September 2000
You can obtain information on
domestic and international family
abduction free of charge by contacting
the National Center for Missing &
Exploited Children at
wvvw.missingkids.org or
1-800-THE-LOST (1-800-843-5678).
This toll-free hotline is available
24 hours per day and can take calls in
140+ languages.
For more infonnation, contact
dlinnell@wam. umd.edu.
1hl
�Family Focus On ...
"Impact of the Justice System on Families"
FATHERS
continued from page F 17
LINKS TO WELFARE REFORM AND
CHILD SUPPORT ENFORCEMENT
The recent changes related to welfare
reform, which include efforts to
increase child support payments, also
present opportunities to do more work
with fathers in prison. Traditionally,
fathers are less likely than mothers to
see themselves as part of their children's
future and less likely to plan on reuniting with their children after release.
Using prison-based fatherhood
programs to shift attitudes in
this area can have the effect of
increasing the incentives for
fathers to find and maintain employment upon
their return to the
community: The
desire to keep a
job could be
enhanced by
the desire to
become more
involved in the lives of
their children, which in turn
can lead to more voluntary payment of child support. The more exoffenders work and pay child support,
the lower the welfare caseloads.
Government should have multiple
incentives to assist with these efforts.
Current child support enforcement
law rests on the principle that parents
have an obligation to support their
children. When a father goes to prison
the ability to meet this obligation is
greatly diminished. Many states require
a portion of any money earned in
prison to go toward child support payments, but child support enforcement
orders are often not modified when the
father goes to prison, despite the obvious reduction in earning ability. When
the father leaves prison he has often
built up a large arrearage, increasing
the difficulty in finding a job (he no
longer is just an ex-con, but an ex-con
with a large financial obligation) and in
some cases increasing legal barriers to
having contact with his children.
This also hurts the state in trying
to reduce the gap between child support payments owed and child support
paid. Even though the father may have
no reasonable way to earn the money to
pay off the arrearage, the state appears
to be lax in its enforcement procedures.
Making sure that child support orders
are modified for fathers in prison can
reflect changes in earnings accurately,
while not adding another barrier to
increased father involvement upon
release.
The Nation's Prison
Population Growth Rate
Slows, but 2 Million
People Remain
Incarcerated
DUAL BENEFITS
With all of the diverse efforts states are
making to promote responsible fatherhood, the efforts made around inmates,
usually around the time of their release,
have the potential to have the
dual benefit of
increasing positive
outcomes for
children while
reducing the
recidivism
rates for the
adults. This
can reduce welfare
caseloads and increase
child support payments.
Preparing soon-to-be-released
men for the world of work through job
training and skills development should
be just as important as preparing them
for fatherhood.
The long-term preventive aspect of
crime is clear: lowering the number of
children who grow up in single parent
households should reduce long-term
crime rates. What is less clear, or what
remains to be tested, is the relationship
between ex-offenders committing
future crimes and their becoming
successfully reunited with their
children (or in many cases, living with,
or being around, their children for the
first time).
Developing and implementing
policies that can demonstrate measurable improvements related to prisonbased fatherhood programs remains the
challenge for everyone in this field.
Excerpted from "Fathers in P1ison: A
Review of the Data," an NCOFF Brief
Used with pennission. To download the
entire publication, complete with
bibliography, go to
fatheJjamilylinh.gse.upenn.edu/
org!ncofflbriefslbriefs. htm
Family Focus I September 2000
1111
uring 1999, the nation's prison
population rose at the lowest
rate since 1979 and recorded
the smallest absolute increase since
1988, according to the Justice
Department's Bureau of Justice
Statistics (BJS). The prison population
growth slowed to 3.4 percent last year
-less than the average annual amount
of 6.5 percent during the 1990-1999
period.
At the end of 1999, more than 2
million people were held in some type
of incarceration. The nation's prisons
held 476 inmates sentenced to at least
a year's confinement per 100,000 U.S.
residents-equivalent to 1 in every 110
men and 1 in every 1,695 women.
About 1 in every 11 black males
in their late twenties was serving a
sentence of a year or more in a state
or federal prison. At the end of last
year African Americans constituted
46 percent of all inmates with sentences of one year or more, white
inmates accounted for 33 percent
of such inmates and Hispanics
18 percent.
From 1990 to 1999 the rate of
imprisonment of those serving a year
or more increased by 60 percent
among males and 84 percent among
females.
For more information, visit the U.S.
Department of Justice website at
www.usdoj.gov.
�Family Focus On ...
"Impact of the Justice System on families"
Classes for Incarcerated Fathers
by Anthony G. Maoi, M.Ed., M.Re., CFLE, Parent Education for Yellow Umbrella, Melboume, Flo1ida
e all know that fathers have an
important role in the formation of their children. Fathers
who take an active interest in their sons
and daughters help them to develop
positive self-esteem, a system of moral
standard, and intellectual and social
competence.
Sons whose fathers are not
involved with them can experience
poor school performance, poor peer
relationships, problems with impulse
control and a variety of other difficulties with social adjustment. Daughters
show adverse effects more often in their
adolescence, having more difficulty
establishing good relationships with
boys and later, with men.
Few people ever think of conducting fathering classes in jails or prisons.
Yet most inmates are fathers and will
eventually leave prison to take their
place in society and with their families.
Separation and reunion present
challenging tasks for all fathers. In fact,
the armed services have done extensive
research and spent millions of dollars
on program development to help members of the military and their families
deal with the problems they experience
as a result of tempormy duty station
changes.
Incarceration is an even more
traumatic form of separation for fathers
and their families. It often places the
entire family in crisis. Families may
experience anxiety, uncertainty and a
sense of loss. The family may suffer
financial loss, the children may lose a
parent and the full burden of family
responsibility may shift to the remaining parent or other family members.
Research, however, has indicated
that maintaining and
strengthening family
ties of
incarcerated
individuals
maybe
related to
positive
adjustment
when the
Anthony G. Maoi, M.Ed.,
family
M.Re., CFLE
reunites.
The cost of not helping these men
learn to be good fathers is high. They
may be less attached to their children,
and both the children and society as a
whole will pay the price: more juvenile
crime and delinquency, premature sexual activity and more teenage births,
lower education achievement, depression, substance abuse and more children raised in poverty.
Those of us who work with incarcerated men have learned that many of
them lack not only fathering skills but
also life skills. Parent education can be
a springboard to learning life skills
because any human development topic
can be taught under the heading of
"fathering."
I teach two courses for incarcerated
men, "fathering," and "prevention of
violence." In both, discussion centers
on the following themes:
• acknowledgement of paternity;
• acceptance of financial responsibility;
• how to create an atmosphere that
nurtures children physically, morally,
socially, spiritually and emotionally;
• learning to tell right from wrong,
instead of playing a guessing game
about life's choices; and
• acting out one's spirituality through
word and deed.
Each program consists of ten lessons, each approximately 90 minutes
long. In the violence prevention program, the focus is on changing oneself.
In the fathering program, the focus is
on changing how a man fathers his
child. In both classes, we discuss the
importance of changing the self, not the
child.
I choose topics that the men can
relate to and put into practice while
they are in prison-handling stress and
controlling anger, for example, which
are important for both violence prevention and effective parenting. So far feedback from inmates and their families
has been very positive.
Anthropologists such as Margaret
Mead have pointed out that women
tend to be more attached to nurturing
and mothering than fathers are to
fathering. That's why it makes sense for
society to promote responsible fatherhood for the roughly half a million
ex-convicts-the majority of them
male-who reenter the community
each year.
In practical terms, it's as simple as
this: my child may go to school with
their child; my child may one day
marry their child. So it behooves us as
a society to help prisoners learn the
skills they need to reunite with their
families and become good fathers to
their children.
Tony Maoi can share course outlines,
some handouts and other infonnation
with interested colleagues. Contact
him at carewmac@hotmail.com.
•
rhi NATIONAL COUNCIL ON FAMILY RELATIONS
3989CentralAve.N.E., Suite 550; Minneapolis, MN s542'L ·. . . . ·. · ·. .
.\
Phone: 763~781-9331 • Fax: 763~7.81-9348 J• E~mail: ncfr3989@ncfr.org • Website: www;rtcfr,org
Relations.Om~
anyportion\~hhispublicatio:
1Tiadeforp~rsonai use.
Copyright ©)000 by the National Col1l1cil ori Farnlly
'copy of
canlJe
Additional :reprints of this publication are ~vailable by contacting NCFR~eadquarters aL the address above .. Bulk rates. availabl~.
�
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-
https://archive.ncfr.org/files/original/247f1fc3c277cbec3fdec658581fd0e4.pdf
e81c3945cb7192d7b7266b4daa1abc19
PDF Text
Text
I
.Volume .45: 2
2000 MCFR Election
Results Announced
he following NCFR members were
T
elected to serve as At-Large Board
members during the 2000-2002 term:
Joe F. Pittman, Ph.D., Professor and
Director of Graduate
Programs, Human
Development and
Family Studies,
Auburn University. He
has served as N CFR
Publications Vice
President, Vice-chair of
the Family Science
joe E Pittman, Ph.D.
Section, Associate
Editor for both JMF
and FR, and as Chair of the Search
Committee for Editor of]MF. His goals as a
is in a unique position to provide
researchers, clinicians, and educators with
leadership in bridging the disciplines that
affect family process," he said. "Our organization must play a larger role in the national debates on critical issues such as marriage and committed relationships, parenting, and supporting families in their
attempts to develop compassionate, responsible citizens. Please join me in continuing
NCFR's valuing of ethnic diversity and the
familial experiences of males and females
across the lifespan. These will be positive
resources for empowering the ever-widening range of families in an increasingly
complex world."
Marilyn Flick,
MS, Family and
Board member are to promote N CFR's
Consumer Studies
Teacher, North Eugene
growth trajectory by supporting its new
governance model, leadership strategy, and
executive director. "I will also place a high
High School, Eugene,
OR, has served on
NCFR's Board as Vice
priority on supporting and promoting in as
many ways as possible the already clearly
evident value that NCFR places on inclu-
President for
siveness and diversity in its activities and
policies," he stated.
William D. Allen, Ph.D., Consultant,
Family Therapy Resources, Minneapolis,
MN, and Adjunct
Faculty member,
Family Social Science,
University of
Minnesota. He has
served N CFR on the
Elections Committee
and as Co-chair of the
Males in Families
William D. Allm, Ph.D.
Focus Group. "NCFR
Matilyn Flicll, MS
Membership and as
Affiliated Councils
President. Flick has
chaired the Osborne Award Committee, and
the Adoption and Sexuality Focus Groups;
and served on the NCFR and Education
and Enrichment Nominating Commiuees,
and the Local Arrangements Committee.
She has also been active with her state
councils serving as Oregon CFR president,
and as vice president, nine year board
member, and newsletter editor for the
Indiana CFR. When asked what she sees for
NCFR's future, Flick stated, "With new
�ELECTIO~
RESULTS
conunucdfrom page 1
governance, new staff, and new directions, the board must be decision makers responsive to membership. As we
initiate policy and strengthen our representation of the field of family studies
nationally and internationally, we must
not lose the positive feeling that comes
from being a part of the network we
have created."
Tammy L. Henderson, Ph.D., was
elected to the Board as Student/New
Professional and will serve a two-year
term, 2000-2002. She is an Assistant
Professor at Virginia Polytechnic
Institute and State University.
Henderson has served as Student/New
Professional for both the Ethnic
Minorities and Family Policy Sections
and has been an active member of EM,
FP, the Feminism and Family Studies
Sections, the SoUlheastern CFR, and
. . ,1
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Louisiana CFR.
"My goal is to
complete my
responsibilities in
ways that bring
honor to the
organization,
S/NPs and myself,"
she stated. "After
Tammy L
eight years of
Henderson, Ph.D.
membership and
previous experiences as the S/NP
Representative to the Family Policy and
Ethnic Minorities Sections, I am in a
good position to successfully put your
ideas and needs to work in the prescribed duties as chair of the Student
Award Committee, coordinator of the
S/NP skills exchange, business meetings, and other tasks."
Alan Booth, Ph.D., Professor of
Sociology and Human Development,
Pennsylvania State
University, has
been elected
Program Chairelect 2000-2001.
He will be the
2002 Conference
Program Chair.
Booth is an N CFR
Alan Booth, Ph.D.
Fellow, has served
as editor of JMF, on
thejMF Publications Committee, the
Rueben Hill Award Committee, and the
Burgess Award Selection Committee. He
has chaired the Research and Theory
Section, the Burgess Award Selection
Committee, and the Task Force on the
Future of the Journals. His goal is to
assemble a cadre of speakers that reflect
the very best in research, education,
and practice.
National Elections Council members elected to 3-year terms (20002003) were: Ben Silliman, Ph.D.,
CFLE, Associate Professor/Family Life
Specialist, University of Wyoming; and
Edith A. Lewis, M.S.W., Ph.D.,
Associate Professor, School of Social
Work, University of Michigan.
National Fellowship Committee
members elected to 2-year tenns (20002002) were: Ralph LaRossa, Ph.D.,
NCFR Rq10r1 I June 2000
2
Professor of Sociology, Georgia State
University; and Dena B. Targ, Ph.D.,
Extension Specialist and Associate
Professor, Child Development and
Family Studies, Purdue Universit)~
SECTION OFFICERS
ELECTED WERlE:
Education and Enrichment
H. Wallace Goddard, Ph.D., CFLE,
Chair-elect 2000-2002; Karen S. MyersBowman, Ph.D., CFLE,
Secretaryrrreasurer 2000-2002; and
Jacqueline]. Kirby, MS, Student/New
Professional 2000-2002.
Ethnic Minorities
Wynona Bryant-Williams, Ph.D.,
Chair-elect 2000-2002; AnnMaria
Rousey, Ph. D., Secretary/Treasurer
2000-2002; and M. Dewana
Thompson, Ph.D., Student/New
Professional 2000-2002 .
Family and Health
Ann E. Garwick, Ph.D., R.N., L.M.ET.,
LP, Chair 2000-2002; Teresa W. julian,
Ph.D., Chair-elect 2000-2002; Sharon
A. Denham, DSN, Secretary/Treasurer
2000-2002; and Karel Koenig, Ph.D.,
Student/New Professional 2000-2002.
Family Science
Deborah Gentry, Ed. D., Chair 20002002; Terrance D. Olson, Ph.D., Vicechair 1000-1002; Laura 5. Smart,
Ph.D., CFLE, Secretary/Treasurer 10001001; and Laura A. Cobb, MS,
Student/New Professionall000-2002.
Family Therapy
Kathleen Briggs, Ph.D., Chair-elect
1000-2001; Mark B. White, Ph.D.,
Secretaryffreasurer 1000-1001; Roy A.
Bean, Ph.D., Student/New Professional
1000-1001; Colleen M. Peterson,
Ph.D., Member-at-Large 1000-1001;
and Briana S. Nelson, Ph.D., Liaison
1000-1002.
Research and Theory Nominating
Committee
Leanne K. Lamke, Ph.D., CFLE, and f~j
Patrick C. McKenry, Ph.D., CFLE. Ill
�Synopsis of the Public Policy Conference in
Washington, D.C.
CFR's Inaugural Public Policy
and Education Conference was
a success! Sixty members participated in the Conference, held in
Washington, D.C. on April 13th and
14th. Conference presenters covered a
wide range of topics, including Social
Security, health care reform, minimum
wage, tax cuts, education, school violence, welfare reform, substance abuse,
mental health services, juvenile delinquency prevention, and federal funding
opportunities. Following the issue
briefings, attendees conducted Capitol
Hill visits to Senators, Representatives
Senator Pard \Vcllstonc (MN) was presented
witl1 a special NCFR Distinguished Service to
Families Award by D1: Bill Doherty, 19981999 NCFR President and Minnesota resident,
at a reception honOJing Sen. \Vcllstone during
the Public Policy Conference.
and legislative staffers. Attendees
shared information about NCFR and
the work of our membership with 34
Congressional offices, from 29 different
states.
NCFR presented Senator Paul
Wellstone (MN) with a special NCFR
Distinguished Service to Families
Award for his extraordinary efforts and
sustained support for the well-being of
American families. Dr. Margaret
Feldman, Dr. Catherine Chilman, and
Dr. Karen Bogenschneider also
received awards for their consistent
commitment to engaging in familyfocused conversations in the policy
arena.
The Public Policy Committee met
prior to the Conference. The Committee
formed four subcommittees, or task
groups, to complete some of its desired
goals. The four subcommittees cover:
(1) governance ntles and procedures,
(2) Annual Conference acth~ties, (3)
policy involvement goals and parameters, and (4) a strategic plan for national
involvement. The Committee is made
up of 21 members: Dr. Margaret
Feldman, Chair; Dr. Elaine Anderson,
University of Maryland; Dr. Howard
Barnes, CFLE, University of Northern
Iowa; Dr. Jean Bauer, University of
Minnesota; Dr. Karen Bogenschneider,
University of Wisconsin-Madison; Dr.
Bonnie Braun, University of Maryland;
Dr. Thomas Chibucos, Bowling Green
State University; Dr. Denise Donnelly,
Georgia State University; Dr. Vivian
Gedaly-Duff, Oregon Health Sciences
University; Dr. Jane Gilgun, University
of Minnesota; Dr. Maxine HammondsSmith, CFLE, Texas Southern
University; Dr. James Harper, Btigham
Young University; Dr. Dale Hawley,
Woodbury Church of Christ, WI; Dr,
Mary Ann Hollinger, Messiah College;
Dr, Walter Kawamoto, California State
University-Sacramento; Dr. Dennis
Orthner, University of North CarolinaChapel Hill; Dr. Thomas Rane,
Washington State University; Dr.
Francisco Villarruel, Michigan State
University; Dr. Stephan Wilson,
University of Kentucky; Dr. Steven
Wisensale, University of Connecticut;
and Dr. Btitton Wood, CFLE, Britton
Wood & Associates.
Conference feedback was positive.
One member commented: "This was
very informative and energizing about
how to participate in various ways in
Public Policy-from communicaling
research and programs {information},
Public Policy Conference Kcynore Spcalw·
Francine Kiefe~; White House coJTcspmulcnt
for tlte Christian Science MonitOJ; speahs on
Jmnily-rclated issues moving through
Wmltiugton, inchuling Social Senility and
liAedimrc rcfonH, -~clwol violence, the minimum wnge, t(LX cuts, and education. Scc!ted at
left is D1: Step1teu R jorgCIIscn, 1999-2001
NCFR President, wlw served as modem tor for
the presentation.
educating public officials, to the idea of
advocacy." Another wrote: "As a result
of the Public Policy Conference I feel
enthused and energized, both personally and with regard to NCFR, at the
potential to meaningful1y engage in and
contribute to the public policy dialogue
at the national, state and local levels."
Highlights included knowledgeable presenters, conversations about public policy with col1eagues from around the
country, and the opportunity to visit
congressional offices and promote
NCFR.
N CFR plans to hold an Annual
Public Policy Conference each spting,
Submitted hy:
Abbey Slwwalter-Loch
NCFR Project Manuger
NCFR Represented at
International Family life
Education Conference in Taiwan
CFR's Certified Family Life Educator (CFLE) program is gaining interest
among family professionals, policymakers, and the education community in
the countries of Taiwan, Korea, Singapore, and japan as demonstrated at the
recent International Family Life Education Conference held in Taipei, Taiwan,
March 23-24, 2000. Keynoters were Dr, Mary Jo Czaplewski, CFLE, fanner NCFR
Executive Director, representing NCFR and the United States, and Dr. Carol
Matusicky, Executive Director of the BC Council for Families, representing Canada.
NCFR Report I June 2000
3
Tcliwan COJttinued on page •f
�TAIWAN
continued fmml'agc 3
The conference, "Family Life
Education: Impacting the Future," was
planned and hosted by the Taiwan
International Family Life Education
Center, directed by Alice Lee Shih Wu
Lu assisted by Michelle Sun of
Shanghai, China. Co-sponsors included
the Ministry of Education ROC,
Archilife Research Foundation,
National Cultural Association, and
Taipei County Government. Over 720
school administrators, teachers, parents, government officials, and business
personnel attended the two-day event.
Drs. Czaplewski and Matusicky
each presented 6 topical sessions
describing the similarities and differences between Canadian and American
family life education programs, and
national issues in those two countries
which have impacted the ways in
which family life education is developed and delivered. Discussions highlighted:
• Family Life Education in the U.S. and
Canada-its history, content and
scope and professional credentialing
• Current trends in family life education, parenting, and marriage education
• Health care as it impacts U.S. and
Canadian families
Socioeconomic issues in balancing
work and family life including welfare reform
• Education including pre-school, early
childhood education, adolescents,
and school violence. The Iauer was of
great interest to the audience.
• Environmental issues such as the
depletion of natural resources, pollution, and the agricultural crises
affecting rural families
The closing session was a discussion with the audience about their concerns for families and family life education in Taiwan, a country experiencing
political, cultural and economic
upheaval derived from rapid change
and globalization. These educators
shared concerns and questions about
children coming to school hungry; the
increased youth violence (not with
guns) and disrespect for authority; the
resulting drop in youth achievement in
school; school truancy and managing
emotional problems or children; the
growing need for parenting education; a
climbing divorce rate of 26%; and care
of the growing elderly population.
Further discussions with individuals indicated that though family life
education is becoming more recognized
as a discipline, the Eastern culture does
not interpret the content and sub-categories of the field the same as do
Canada and the United States.
Interest in establishing some type
of coordination and communication
with other countries such as Singapore,
Korea and japan was expressed. NCFR
is making an effort to provide better
coordination with these countries
through the Internet. Exploration of
other ways of assisting these countries
will be discussed with the International
Section and the Association of Councils
in the future.
Dr. Czaplewski traveled on to
Seoul, Korea where on March 28 she
presented a session on "Trends in
Family Life Education in the United
States," to 215 Human Relations students at Duksung Women's University.
In addition, she met with six officers
and members of the Korean Association
of Family Relations, most of whom are
also NCFR members. They expressed
interest in building stronger ties with
NCFR and in exchanging information
on family life education, parenting, and
marriage education. This organization
also collaborates with other related
Korean organizations that have a family
studies emphasis. As the world is
increasingly interconnected, NCFR also
has rich opportunities to link with
other countries in its work for families.
SJ!bmittcd by:
Mwy ]a C:.::.aplt..·wshi, CFLE
Fonner NCFR Executive Director
E-mail: czaplcwsllimj®jww.com
NCFR to Sponsor Inaugural Work/Life Summit
n Wednesday, November 8,
N CFR is planning its First
Annual Work/Life Summit at
the Minneapolis Hilton &: Towers Hotel,
prior to the Annual Conference.
The one-day Summit is planned
with the following objectives in mind:
• To create an opportunity for dialogue, and act on an alliance
between the research community and
work organizations.
• To generate an agenda for how
NCFR can be responsive to the needs
of large and small work organizations.
• To create strategies/products responsive to the business and labor communities.
0
SUMMIT GOALS
To bring researchers, practitioners,
and the business and labor communilies together to dialogue and gain an
understanding of work/life issues on
families.
To discuss the impact of diversity,
immigration, and welfare reform on
work/life issues in the business and
labor communities.
• To develop a product to be disseminated throughout the business and
labor communities.
In preparation for the Summit,
NCFR met with an advisory committee
comprised of members of the business
community and of NCFR to develop
the agenda, identify speakers, and be
involved in partnering with NCFR in
NCFR Rctwrt I June !2000
4
this venture.
For the future, NCFR is planning to
have a Work/Life Summit for each
Annual Conference in the Host City of
the Conference.
Additional information will be presented about the Summit in special
Conference mailings, the printed Conference Program, and the September
NCFR Report.
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! i4"dttVeh"eb';'~,jzz, 2000, the area code
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fil2to:(~~· T?c~ntact NCFR,
763"
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plwne
7.§T:Z~31;Jax.76~:781-934Bc·Ottrtoll-fr~c
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�A Step in the Right Direction
primary objective of N CFR is to
make a difference-for families
and family members in society.
From April 13-14 of this year, we took a
major step in that direction when nearly
Families Award. Sen. Wellstone has
championed progressive legislation pertaining to child abuse and other forms
of domestic violence. Sen. Wellstone
treated us to an impassioned, albeit
60 NCFR members participated in our
first annual Public Policy Conference in
Washington, D.C., including the NCFR
Board of Directors and the NCFR Public
brief, speech on the impact of quality
Policy Committee. The program was a
complete success. Executive Director
For me, this hands-on learning
experience was one of those "good
news-bad news" scenarios. The good
news for me was that these legislative
Michael Benjamin and other N CFR staff
members worked hard to create an educational experience that would bring
contemporary issues facing families to
the forefront of our attention. We heard
from Washington insiders about legisla-
tion and legislative debates that will significantly impact the well-being of families, depending on respective outcomes
in the U.S. Senate and House of
Representatives. We heard government
and private analysts debate the meaning
of early data on welfare reform and the
Temporary Assistance to Needy Families
(TANF) program. And we learned via
hands-on experiences how to make successful contacts and have effective visits
with representatives on "the Hill."
We were scheduled to meet with
legislative staff members who work for a
number of U.S. senators and representatives. l must admit that l have never
taken advantage of opportunities to visit
representatives from any state in which
I have resided (which includes
Minnesota, Arizona, Texas, and
Arkansas). We met the legislative staff
members in teams of 2 to 5 NCFR
members, each of us meeting at least
once as "constituents" of our own senator or representative. Our agenda
quality of family life in America.
implications that this knowledge has for
liaisons expressed a high level of interest in NCFR as an organization. We
informed them about the expertise of
our membership as researchers and
practitioners in the family realm, our
two scholarly journals, and the true
potential that we have to inform policymakers about family issues and the
implications that their policy decisions
have for family well-being in the United
States. They listened intently as we
described the unique blend of basic and
applied research on families that NCFR
members bring to tl1e table, and how we
strive to bridge the gap between basic
research and its implications for practice
and action.
However, the bad news for me was
the fact that few, if any, had ever heard
of NCFR and the wealth of knowledge
and expertise that we have accumulat-
ed. Reality hit hard for me-NCFR is
just not well known beyond our own
borders. As we continue to make additional contacts in the future, including
public policy conferences that we will
sponsor in coming years, this situation
well as concerns that any of us individ-
makers and others concerned about fos-
ually might have had about the impact
tering family well-being in our society.
Little by little, we will expand the reach
of N CFR to a much broader audience
One highlight of this experience
Wellstone (D-Minnesota) a special
NCFR Distinguished Service to
great pride in the contributions we continue to make to knowledge about fami-
lies, the broad range of family-related
included informing these policymakers
about NCFR and its membership, as
was convening in a meeting room of the
U.S. Senate to bestow upon Sen. Paul
ship, collectively we can and should take
health care, employment opportunities,
and educational opportunities on the
will change. For most of us,
step was the biggest step we
toward making our valuable
resources available to public
of specific policies on families in our
respective states.
fessional and scholarly disciplines.
While we do have some distance to go
in furthering diversily in our member-
this first
will take
NCFR
policy
than we have known heretofore.
The strength of NCFR lies in our
diversity. We are represented across gen-
ders, multiple disciplines and perspectives, racial and ethnic groups, and proNCFR Rqmrt l June 2000
5
issues in contemporary society, and the
practitioners on the front lines of work-
ing with family issues each and every
day. No other organization in the world
has to offer what we have to offer. We
will continue to invest in programs and
priorities that take us closer to our goal
of making a difference in this world of
families that we care so deeply about. It
is most certainly a long road with many
twists and turns-but taking this first
step means that we are on our way.
Stephen R. jorgensen, Ph.D.
NCFR President
E-mail: sjorgen@comp.uurh.cdu
�Increasing NCFR's Visibility
n the last issue of the Report, the
first of three major objectives for
2000 was highlighted-that of
establishing NCFR as an effective player in public policy. Consistent with
addressing that objective and as reported by NCFR's President Steve
Jorgensen in his column on page 5, the
Public Policy and Education
Conference in Washington, D.C. was a
success. Over the year you will be hearing more about the work of the Public
Policy Committee.
In this issue of the Report, attention
will be focused on our second objective
for 2000: increasing N CFR's visibility
nationally and internationally to better
impact family life. From my perspective, one way that N CFR can become
more visible nationally is to become
more knowledgeable about activities at
the state and local levels and to become
more involved with state affiliated
councils. Our strategy, therefore, is to
continue to build on the work of energizing the state councils initiated by
Lane Powell, President of the
Association of Councils. (See Lane's
column on page 16.) As a staff, we are
committed to strengthening our relationship between the national omce
and state affiliates. This commitment is
translated into our active participation
and attendance in state council conferences in order to increase our awareness of the needs within the local councils, to better understand their mission
and determine how we as N CFR staff
can provide assistance to state affiliates
in accomplishing their goals. Listed
below are examples of NCFR staff
involvement with three state affiliated
council conferences in Minnesota,
Texas and California, respectively.
Our efforts began this past
December, when 1 attended the
Minnesota Council on Family Relations
Annual Conference with its theme
"Families: Past, Present, and Future."
N CFR member Arlene Slwlnick of the
University of California, Berkeley and
New York University was the keynote
speaker and gave an excellent presenta-
I
tion on "looking back, noting current
trends, and peeking into the next century at issues affecting family life." Dr.
Skolnick's presentation fit very nicely
\vith our new project "Ametican
Families: Past, Present and Future" and
she has since joined the Advisory
Committee for the project. Regarding
the project, NCFR will publish a document that will identify significant family changes and areas of stability for
North American families in the past
century. The target audiences for the
project are policymakers, foundation
leaders and media personnel-going
from local efforts to the national scene!
ln early April, John Pepper,
NCFR's Finance Director, attended the
Texas Council on Family Relations
(TCFR) Annual Conference in Fort
Worth, Texas. The conference theme
, III.~-_tJ~~fi-~f~sue:oJ:tli·e·R_cport; a_tt_~n~~-~:_wiltbe
;:. Jocuse~- ?'t-ouT_s,econd objcc.tivc: for.2000:
ht~redsi_J~g_ NGf~,S~-- vi§ib_ilfty _l}~t_i D~tillY aitd
; fnten~~!ionally tp better impa~tfatnily life.
was "Fathering: Its Place in the New
Century" and during this conference
NCFR was able to interact with state
members on a-one to one-basis. The
Texas Council had a number of very
impressive sessions and a public "Town
Hall Meeting" which included a live television broadcast and a panel of experts
in the field of fathering answering audience questions. As a result of the success of the town hall meeting, NCFR
will be exploring the possibility of a
town meeting at the national conference for this year in Minneapolis. This
successful TCFR conference was very
informative and john was very
impressed by the passion and commitment of the TCFR board to meet the
needs of its members at the conference.
Many attendees were interested in parent education certification and Certified
Family Life Education and the role
NCFR will be playing in the future of
these two programmatic efforts. Again
NCFR Rqmrl I June 2000
6
from the local to the national: N CFR is
considering an aggressive national marketing strategy in the certification
arena!
At the end of April, I participated
in the First Annual Conference of the
California Council on Family Relations
(CCFR). The theme was "Families and
Public Policy." Shulamit Ritblatt,
CCFR president, and her program committee put together an exciting program. What l found most fascinating
were the number of undergraduate and
graduate students (about 125 students)
attending the conference and the student essay award contest named after
long time California NCFR member Dr.
Nona Cannon. Students are the lifelines
of NCFR's future and essay contests like
the Nona Cannon Student Award have
the potential of creating a different
national voice for our students.
Our efforts to make N CFR more
visible internationally have begun in
the Pacific Rim. In March, Mary jo
Czaplewski, former NCFR Executive
Director, traveled to Taiwan and Korea.
She represented N CFR at the
International Family Life Education
Conference in Taiwan, presented a session at the Duksung Women's
University, and met with representatives
of the Korean Association of Family
Relations. Mary Jo's article appears on
page 3.
As a staff, we are committed to
working with the affiliated councils to
strengthen their role at the local level
and with our members on the international front as well. Finally, l echo Lane
Powell's comment: "Let's maximize our
resources and our influence!" By doing
so, we will be making tremendous
progress in meeting our objective of
increasing NCFR's visibility nationally
and internationally to better impact
family life.
Michael L. Benjamin, M.P.H.
Executive Director
E-mail: mbcnjamin@ncfr.org
�Updates from Washington
TEACHING READING
Margaret Feldman, NCFR Washington Policy
Representative, met with Senator Paul
Wcllstonc at tiJc reception honoring Sen.
Wcllstonc dwing the NCFR Public Policy
Conference in Washington, D.C.
RESEARCH INTO GUN VIOLENCE
I have reported the formation of a
National Reading Panel to report on the
best way lo teach reading. On April
13th the final report was released. The
Panel found that children must be
taught a combination of thingsincluding phonemic awareness skills,
phonics skills, guided oral reading, and
reading comprehension strategies in
order to become good readers. This
report was based on many years of
research, including recent research at
NICHD using brain scans to assess the
areas of the brain involved in reading.
To view a copy of the report, see
www.nationalreadingpanel.com or
NICHD's website at www.nichd.nih.gov.
Gun control is shaping up to be one of
the main issues that separates the
Republicans from the Democrats for the
election. What does research show
about effective policy options to reduce
gun violence l The May lst COSSA
WASHINGTON UPDATE carried a
report of a talk given at the National
Institute of Justice's April 5th
Perspectives on Crime and justice lecture series. The speaker concluded that
"there were only two policies that effectively focused on the high risks of gun
violence: uniformed police patrol of
gun crime hot spots and background
checks before gun sales. Other policies
were either labeled "promising" or
"doesn't work." The speaker argued
that a policy of a combination of "more
laws and more enforcement" rather
than one or the other is best. He said
that neither side "readily employs
research into the debate" and when
they do they use results selectively to
support their point.
Former Congressman Michael D.
Barnes, the new CEO of Handgun
Control and the Center to Prevent
Handgun Violence, spoke recently in
support of gun controls and the importance of the election in determining the
future course of any further controls.
Mr. Barnes' group sponsored the
Million Mom March on May 14th.
FAMILY FRIENDLY WORKPLACE
or many years the women's
movement and NCFR have valued
a family friendly workplace. We
should all cheer the findings of a recent
survey conducted in january and
February by Harris Interactive for the
Radcliffe Public Policy Center in
Cambridge, and recently reported by
the Washington Post. The survey found
that "about 70% of men in their twenties and 71% in their thirties said they
would be willing to give up some of
their pay in exchange for more time
with their families. Only 26 percent of
men over 65 said they would trade pay
for more family time." These figures
may represent some of the economic
good times we are experiencing and the
different life stage of the older men,
but still, these figures were very like
those of young women. A corporation
recruiter was quoted as saying, "They
say 'Work is important to me, and I
want to do well, but I want to have a
life."' Employers are finding that
nexible work hours and family friendly
policies pay off in their recruiting.
At the same time we are finding
this change of attitudes, there is
mumbling among the workers with no
children asking why they should take
up the slack in the business. It seems
clear that work and family will continue to be an important policy issue.
F
INTERNATIONAL NEWS ABOUT
THE FAMILY
I still get mailings from the NGO
Committee on the Family in Vienna as
a follow-up to the International Year of
the Family. The first story in the
January 2000 bulletin concerned the
worldwide AIDS and HIV epidemic as a
threat to families. Never before has the
UN Security Council focused on a
health issue. And now the epidemic has
been cited by President Clinton as a
security issue for the United States.
This new recognition of the health and
well-being of people as being as vital to
a broader concept of human
development and human security as
military threats should be very encouraging to our field. Contact them by email: famcom.vienna@utanet.at.
Two international resources from
Vienna may interest some NCFR members: "A Framework for Future
Research in Pre-Marriage Education" is
available from the Australian Institute
of Family Studies (e-mail: publications@aifs.org.au); and SOS Papa, a
magazine in French on rights and
responsibilities of fathers, is available
by writing to: 34, rue du President
Wilson, B.P. 49, F-7823lle Pecq
Cedex, France.
NCFR
Report I June 2000
7
ELECTION
This election is shaping up to be
perhaps the most important in many
years. At the same time there is a great
deal of apathy. Now is the time to
choose up sides and get out the voters.
Many family issues are at stake.
Margaret Feldman, Ph.D.
NCFR Policy Representative
E-mail: mefcldman@aol.com
�Defining the Market for Certified CFLE Program
Family life Educators
Draws Members
ast December I attended the
Identify-This concept relates to
that Stay
National Organization for
how well you know your customers,
L
Competency Assurance (NOCA)
conference. This conference brought
together representatives of certification
and licensing programs from throughout the country. It was an excellent
opponunity to network with other certification professionals and learn more
about the current issues facing certification programs.
I attended a number of sessions
dealing with marketing. 1 was very
impressed with the presentations made
by a woman named Georgia Patrick
Georgia is president of The
Communicators, an organization that
focuses on marketing strategies for
associations. When she stated that she
"grows" certification programs, I was
immediately interested.
The secret behind the success of
any certification program is markeling.
To that end we invited Georgia to come
to Minneapolis in May to meet wilh a
small task force of NCFR and CFLE
members. This task force included
NCFR Past-president Bill Doherty,
CFLE, N CFR President-elect Carol
Darling, CFLE, Certification Review
Committee member Suzanne Begin,
CFLE, NCFR Executive Director
Michael Benjamin, N CFR staff member
Abbey Showaller-Loch, and myself. We
met for a full day to discuss the history
and future of the CFLE program as well
as the potential for parenting education
within NCFR
Georgia shared a new one-to-one
marketing paradigm. Rather than casting your net out to try to cover as large
an area as possible, one-to-one marketing focuses on working more closely
with fewer customers. This model
includes the following concepts:
Identify, Differentiate, Interact, and
Customize. The task force considered
how N CFR and the CFLE program
have addressed each concept in its marketing efforts to date.
ranging from not knowing them at all
to knowing their preferences. Do we
know what kind of settings CFLEs
work in? Where is our best market for
potential CFLEs? Do we know how to
find them?
Differentiate-How well have we
differentiated the CFLE designation
from other related certification programs? What makes CFLE special?
What does a CFLE have that a non-certified person doesn't? What do CFLEs
value? What do they need? How can
we best meet these needs?
Interact-How do we communicate with our customers? Do we talk at
our customers or do we listen and react
accordingly? Does a feedback loop exist
to enhance communication?
Customize-Historically the CFLE
department has sent the same brochure
out to several different mailing lists.
Would we have a better response if we
customized the brochure and/or included a letter tailored to the specific person? Rather than mass marketing a single product to a large and varied group,
mass customization involves tai1oring a
product or products to meet the specific needs of a defined group.
In considering these concepts we
realized that there was a lot we were
doing correctly but certainly a lot of
things that we could be doing better. A
specific plan for identifying and reaching the CFLE and parenting education
market will be presented to the N CFR
Board in june. Our hope is to develop a
plan that will provide us with the information needed for the CFLE program
to reach its full potential.
Dawn Cassidy, M.Ed., CFLE
CFLE Certification Director
E-mail: cassidyd@ncfwrg
NCFR Rqmrt I June 2000
8
n pulling together information on
the current status of the Certified
Family Life Educator program for
the N CFR Board, we discovered a few
facts that speak to the value and
strength of the CFLE program and its
contribution to NCFR.
• Since 1994 the CFLE program has
been responsible for bringing in at
least 355 new members into the
organization. That represents an
average of 7% of all new members
each year.
• NCFR members that join through
the CFLE program tend to stay
members of NCFR longer than members brought in through other
sources. The retention rate for NCFR
members who joined through CFLE
and are still NCFR members after
five years is 11% higher than members brought in through other
sources.
• The retention rate for the CFLE program is very high. Overall, 73% of
all applicants approved as Certified
Family Life Educators have maintained their designation. 75% of the
applicants approved in 1986 are ~'
still active CFLEs!
1~1
I
NCFR em: Experience
Recognition Process
Now Available
Tlte Experience Recognition application
process was developed to provide cqierienced family life eclucationprofes- .
siona!s the oppo•·tunity to applyforthe
CFLE desig~wtion through a streamlined application process. Tnfonnation
on.the·Expelience Recog~titi~n·proc~~~.c
can be found, on the NCFR website af .·, ·
www.ncfr.org. All' the fopns and dh'ecc
tions needed to apply can bep1-inted
out directly jimn the site.
�Certified Family Life Educators
Nov. 10-13, :!000
(Conftrtnce)
Following is a list of Certified Family Life Educators designated since Febmary 15,2000. A
list of all current CFLEs is now included in the cert!fication section of the NCFR web page at
WWllmcfr.org.
[*Provisional]
California
Cameron Lee
Conm:cticut
Stephen A. Anderson·
jean Egan
Georgia
Debm K. Anderson
Dorlald W. Bower
Brinn Ljory
Michael D. Wright
Idaho
Melissa A. Vogel
Illinois
Connyj. Ley
Anne.M. Wight
Indirinn
Melissa A. Griffith
William Elliott Phillips "'
Tamara S. Roslc.1inp ,_
Susan Totok *
Minnesota
William]. Doherty
Debhxl<ay_ ~eterson
Mississippi
Mudei-R.- Ai:ria
Ariti r.· Blackwell
~f~SOJrt
r..ee Ann Deem
t.i~biUt_~JOl:;.:-· _ : __ ._ --- -_-,;;_.:,
Shirl.t!y, o; Itci!hcli·Kissinger·:-
N~~l~· Cd~~itn:~
~lreli:oenoiil
Lorrairie CBiadmian
61~lo'
town
Michele Hafer*
l{rjstY_ Kn}"Jones--·
Kansas·
Sarah Weilml "'
Keittucky
Angle j. O'Malley
Mlchi&nn
Marsha T. Carolan
Ellen Br}tCe Dlcltey
i j6dy Johnston. PnwCJ
dieg~~-- \
l\i.iren·K.:Griffin
o:Onni~J~iltiit-IOCmcr *
Elaine Denise· KuyltemiUll- ~
Peimsylvanin
Dixie- Dowling
Tenn-essee
Colleen Nichols *
*
Works imps)
t'>linneapolis, ~IN
Hilton & Towers
Progmm Chair: Elaine Anderson, U. of l\laryland
Plenary Speakers
Stephanie
Coontz
T~=
RObcrtj. McCoy_
Edward}. O'Brien
Karen S. Tellman
Dian·c L: Thielemann
Elizabeth B. ThomPSon
Utah
Shimnn L Anderson
HoUf_Noel Choate*
Nittalie C. Goddard
ASia_LCigh Hail-~
Alarij._Hawkins
Tamara Talbot
Misty Wise
:Virginia'
: Mitry' C. Danielson "'
*
{l'rc-confL'<cocc
Rebecca Marie Crozier "'
Barry G. Ginsberg
Rachel A. Neely *
··unda.R. Cote
Tr~r A; Fhdd(~
Nov. 8-IJ, ::!000
WISCOnsin
~l{~thleen:McKinncy
~~n--niioba. canada
Carol D. Hafvey
l·:n·<~:rn·n Stat~:
U.. , { llympi;~, W,\
hid~j', Nol'.
Alejandro
Partes
l'nn,ct<JU Umv .
Satun.h)', Nov II
Mary Pipher
l'rwatc l'ncticc,
l.mcnln,NE
Sunday, Nov. I::?.
10
Highlights
Researdt Updates for
Practitioners
• Fund Raiser for John
McAdoo Award- an tvening at
the Penumbra Theater
• Presidential Reception at the
Minnesota History Center.
\'i~ir Fami/irr and _;ifni-an Amtril'ant in
Minnmld ExhibiTE
• Intensive Pre-conference
Workshops
• Numerous Special Sessions
Sponsored by Sections
• Public Policy Seminars
Check the NCFR
\X-'ebsir~: WW\1.~ncfr.org
for up-to-date
informatimt.
Graduate Study in Family and Life Course
Department of Sociology- Georgia State University
Graduate Degrees Offered
M.A., and Ph.D. in Sociology.
Family and Life Course Specialization*
The Family and Life Course specialization includes required courses in Family Sociology and Life Course Sociology, and
elective courses in: Family Studies; Families in Cross-Cultural Perspective; Family Diversity; Sexual and Intimate Violence;
Birth and Parenthood; Children and Childhood; Sexuality and Society; Sociology of Gender; The Field of Aging; Aging Policy
and Services; Social Psychology; Adult Socialization; Sociology of Aging; Aging, Health and Disability; Aging and Long-Term
Care; Death, Dying and Loss; and Sociology of Education.
Sociology Graduate Faculty (FLC Graduate Faculty in italics)
James Ainsworth-Darnel!, Dawn Baunach, Elisabeth Burgess, Cecilia Cantrell, Phillip Davis, Denise Donnelly, Behrooz Ghamari,
Paula Dressel, Kirk Elifson, Charles Gallagher, Charles Jaret, Toshi Kii, Jung HaKim, Ralph LaRossa, Lesley Reid, Donald Reitzes,
Wendy Simonds, Eric Stewart, Frank Whittington, and Jenny Zhan.
Graduate Assistantships
Research and teaching assistantships are available for qualified students. These awards provide a stipend and a waiver of
matriculation fees and tuition costs.
For More Information
Director of Graduate Studies
Department of Sociology
Georgia State University
Atlanta, GA 30303-3083
*
phone: 404-651-2285
ewmai/; socinfo@gsu.edu
web page: http://www.gsu.edu/-wwwsoc
The department also offers specializations in Gender and Sexuality; and Race and Urban.
NCfR Ilqn1rl I June 2000
9
�New Features at the 2000 ConferenceOffering Something for Everyone
e, along with the Program
Committee, are excited to
highlight for you some of the
latest developments for the 2000 NCFR
Annual Conference, Nov. 8-13, at the
Minneapolis Hilton & Towers Hotel,
Minneapolis, MN.
This year we have developed several New formats we want to describe to
you that will be implemented at the
Conference. Our goal with these different strategies is to increase the possibilities for each Conference altendee to
• Sample a greater variety of sessions
Increase potential interaction
between Conference attendees
and presenters
• Have a stimulating and fun time at
the meeting
All of these sessions follow our
Conference theme this year which
draws on our extant knowledge to
think ahead about the cutting edge
issues for families during the new
Millennium (see below). We believe
many of these sessions will better prepare us to live and work with families
in the next Century.
pants to think in
broad terms about
the many familial
experiences of
males across the
lifespan, in addition to addressing
the definition of
masculinity in the
Elaine Anderson,
21st Century See
Ph.D.
an additional article about this workshop on page 14.
The third New workshop is
Marketing and Positioning Family
Professionals in the Fields of
Gerontology and Geriatrics Summit.
Through a collaborative effort with the
Geriatric Education Centers from Texas
and Minnesota and the Minnesota Area
Agencies on Aging this summit will
examine the importance of bringing a
family systems and family strengths
perspective to the care of family members requiring long-term care and their
family member caretakers. The summit
will examine both the impact and the
contextual nature of long-term care and
how family resilience can be supported.
(See article on page 13.)
NEW INTENSIVE SESSIONS
During the pre-conference, on
Wednesday, November 8, and Thursday,
November 9, we will have 3 New
Workshops.
First is a workshop for those particularly interested in the interface
between work and family, on
Wednesday, November 8- Work/Life
Summit. The goal of these sessions is
to identify issues and develop strategies
for addressing the concerns of the business community relating to work/life
issues. Invited presenters will include
many from the business community.
See additional information about the
Summit on page 4.
Second is one on Thursday,
November 9, focusing on Diverse
Experiences of Males in Families. The
goal is to enable presenters and partici-
NEW FORMATS
One Stop Shopping for Professional
Development. In the past we have had
several "how to" sessions such as "How
to Submit Proposals for the Annual
Conference," "How to Write for NCFR
journals," "How to Review NCFR
Journals." The goal of the session this
year is to enable Conference attendees
to participate, in one setting, in an
exchange of information about many of
the issues facing professionals in the
family field. Participants will be able to
visit two round table discussions. Some
of the sessions will be of interest to
those ready for graduate school, others
will be geared to those well into their
graduate program, and finally some sessions will be of most importance to the
recent graduate and new professional.
NCFR Ikport I June 2000
10
Topics might include: • How to
Evaluate a Graduate Program • How to
Present at NCFR • Submitting Articles
to Journals • Finding Research Funding
or Grants for Students • Looking for
Teaching Methods and • How to Get
Involved in NCFR.
Poster/Symposia: Short, timed presentations, followed by brief analysis
and conversation. These will be sessions
grouped around a common theme or
issue. Each of the poster authors (4-5
posters) will have approximately 5 minutes to highlight his or her poster, followed by a brief analysis of the major
themes and issues in the posters by a
moderator. Subsequent to this 25minute presentation will be the opportunity to have a one-on-one conversation with any individual authors as well.
NEW FRIDAY EVENING ACTMTIES
Some of our evening activities 'vill take
on a New format this year. Friday
evening will offer us several unique
opportunities.
Fund Raiser for the John Me Adoo
Scholarship Fund at the Penumbra
Theatre. Attendees may choose to
attend the famed Penumbra Theatre for
a special artistic presentation regarding
the interest of families. Lou Bellamy,
one of our plenary speakers last year, is
the Founder and Artistic Director of
this famed African American Theater
Company. The theater is housed in a
unique neighborhood in St. Paul. You
can enjoy a night at the theater and
help support the John McAdoo
Scholarship Fund at the same time. See
the article on page 11 regarding this
special event. You need to sign up early
because there are a limited number of
tickets available.
President's Reception Hosted by
Steve Jorgensen, 1999-2001 NCFR
President, at the Minnesota history
Center. This museum holds several
exhibits of interest to our members that
we can enjoy during the Reception. See
Features continued on page 11
�A Time of Transition: Sustainable
Families in the New Global Economy
by Arlene 5/wlnich, Ph.D., Consultant, Families and Worh Institute
t the beginning of a new century, we
seem to be passing through one of
those periods that historians will
look back on as a watershed era-a time of
major shifts in the basic economic, political
and social foundations of society. According
to the business press
and other commentators, we have already
moved into a postindustrial, globalized,
information age.
Remarkably little
discussion of the new
economy deals with the
Arlene Sholnicll, PI!. D. social impact of these
transformations. What
does this new landscape of nonstop change,
temporary advantage and "nothing fixed in
time or space"mean for society as a whole?
What kind of ecology is it creating for children, families and communities? And how
will these changes in the small world of
household and family life affect the economic future and the well-being of society l
Obviously, there is no shortage of worried talk about the drastic and unforeseen
transformation of family life and in
women's roles over the past few decades.
Public discourse across the political spectrum is based on the "breakdown of the
family" as established social fact. And talk
about family change is almost totally disconnected from the discussion of technological and economic shifts, new modes of
organization, and globalization.
It's true that we have witnessed a
remarkably rapid collapse of old certainties
concerning domestic arrangemenlS, sexual
A
morality and the proper place of women.
Whether these shifts mean that today's families are functioning less well than in the
past is a different issue. Some researchers
have attacked the "myth of family decline."
They cite evidence showing that family life
is changing, not declining, that family values remain strong, and that new family
forms reflect a healthy diversity.
MISSING THE POINT
But this debate misses the point. Neither
side offers an adequate understanding of
the recent upheavals of family life. There is
no consensus about why the family
changed, whether there is a family "crisis,"
or whether, if such a crisis exists, it is rooted in economics or moral values. And both
sides tend to assume that the upheaval
dates from the 1960s.
In this essay, I want to reframe the
debate by putting it into a broader historical perspective. I believe that today's families are in the midst of a difficult and still
incomplete transition,
Th-e- unSe'ttli!d. SiaiC· in response to the same
forces that are moving
•of dontes t.ic
i~ ·•
the world into the
•.. tlte.latesto[".•
! series o[~y~ssfu[ •.. post-industrial, infor1 trail_~i~~~ns_ tl_t(l_t:::,:_:< - mation age. The cur; -\Yc,~t~_ffl/al_~i.I_ies · rent state of family life
_·_h~v_~:t\ic_~-th_Cr5 ~_:_.._
may not be the end
;--' oVert1tC-PaSt_-_tW_~
point of change, but
·centUrieS:'
rather just a troubled
-····
middle stage of the
family's passage into the emerging postindustrial, global era.
1 also believe that the current unsettled
state of domestic life is only the latest of a
Iife
�"Visions for Families: Continuity and Change Across Cohorts and Generations"
TRANSITION
continued from page Fl
series of stressful transitions that
Western families have weathered over
the past two centuries. While we can't
use the history of earlier domestic revolutions to predict the future, we can gain
insight from examining the way earlier
generations reconstructed family, work
and community arrangements in the
wake of major societal transformations.
In 1950, the sociologist William
Ogburn coined the phrase "cultural
lag" to describe the gap between the
onset of major technological change
and corresponding shifts in a society's
cultural, social and political arrangements. He pointed to women's roles as
an example of culLurallag: increasing
numbers of women were entering the
workplace but the notion that "a
woman's place is in the home" still prevailed. Ironically, Ogburn's observation
came at the start of the decade that was
to symbolize the heyday of the "traditional family."
Since Ogburn's time, we have
learned a great deal about cultural
change in response to the industrial
revolution and other eras of transformation. These transitional periods are
like cultural earthquakes or "great disruptions," as Francis Fukayama has
recently described them. Family life is
always profoundly implicated in a society's adaptation to economic and social
change, a process that unfolds through
a series of stages.
The second stage is a period of cultural and political struggle. Private
troubles become public issues.
Religious leaders, journalists, politicians and others offer competing interpretations of the problem. Some call for
a return to traditional ways; some call
for adaptation to the new realities. Still
others want to push change into radical
new directions. Political and social
movements spring up-moral crusades
or attempts to pass new laws.
Finally, renewal and restabilization
occur. A new cultural blueprint for
family life emerges, one that reconciles
older values with new realities. Younger
generations grow up taking the new
family patterns for granted. The earlier
family model becomes an increasingly
distant memory. New institutions and
social arrangements are developed to
deal with the problems created by
change. A new "cultural common
sense" takes hold, and people wonder
how things could have been otherwise.
THREE STAGES
The first stage is a period of individual
and family stress. Old ways of thinking
and behaving-what Clifford Geertz
called "blueprints for experience" in
the 1970s-become unsettled long
before new ones take their place. As
everyday family life departs from the
existing cultural blueprints, some people feel liberated; others, uneasy.
Without new cultural scripts for family
roles, there is no right way to behave.
Increasing numbers of individuals show
signs of psychological stress-personality disturbances, drinking and drug
problems.
Young people in particular become
a troubled and troublesome part of the
population. Generation gaps open up as
young people grow up and enter a
FROM AGRICULTURE TO WAGEBASED ECONOMY
The early 19th century witnessed such a
cultural revolution in the American
family. Before the industrial revolution,
households were economic enterprises.
Whether the work was farming-the
most common occupation-baking or
shoemaking, the labor of women and
children, and often apprentices and
hired hands, was essential for family
survival. A father was not only the head
of household, but the owner and manager of the family business. Authority
and obedience, not affection, were the
guiding principles of family relations,
and childhood as we think of it in modern times did not exist. Further, in premodem times the boundary between
family and community was not well
world that no longer fits their parents'
experience. In periods of large and
rapid socioeconomic change, parents
become what Margaret Mead called
"immigrants in time."
The ecOnomic chaitges of rcCCnt decades
have ddivercdihefi.nal blows to_ a family
pattem whose time was alrCady passing in
the 1950s.
Fnmily Focus I June 2000
defined; the family was something of a
public institution, watched over and
open to intervention by neighbors and
local authorities.
The early decades of the 19th century
were a turbulent period of stress, cultural
dislocation, political unrest and religious
ferment. With the growth of industry,
commerce and cities, old work and family patterns were disrupted. As the household economy gave way to a wage-based
economic order, fathers as well as older
sons and daughters went out to work
Mothers were in daily charge of younger
children, and the household itself lost its
central function. Young people gained a
new-and for adults, troubling-degree
of independence.
By the middle of the century, a new
vision of family life emerged which
legitimated the new structural realities.
In this first "Victorian" version of the
modern family men and women were
thought to belong to "separate
spheres." Men were now the family
providers, forced to adapt to a harsh
and morally dangerous world outside
the home. Women were now defined as
virtuous domestic beings who created a
"haven in a heartless world." This was
the era when the seemingly timeless
principles of "woman's place is in the
home," and "home sweet home"
became inscribed in Western culture.
Children's roles changed as well.
Across the century, children were transformed from economically useful members of the household to "economically
useless" but "emotionally priceless
beings." New institutions were created
to deal with the education and welfare
of children, most notably, the first public schools. By the end of the 19th century, children were schooled until the
age of 12 or older. Since that time, the
numbers of years children spend in
school has increased, and this has
helped redefine both the tasks of parenthood and the stages of life course.
SEPARATE SPHERES, SHARP
BOUNDARIES
The doctrine of separate spheres sharpened older notions of gender difference.
It both reflected and shaped further
changes in the nature of work and of
family. It drew sharp boundaries
Transition continued on p!lgc fJ
�"Visions for Families: Continuity and Change Across Cohorts and Generations"
TRANSITION
continued from page F2
between horne and work, male and
unfinished transition and the fear that
female, child and adult, public and private. Although this imagery of the family was a middle-class creation, both law
and public institutions made it the offi-
children are not getting the care they
need, there is a widespread feeling that
if only women would go home again,
we wouldn't have all these problems.
cial version. At the same time, a persist-
ent gap between the "official"or "public
family" and real family life created a
persistent sense of anxiety about the
institution.
A second era of domestic upheaval
and cultural ferment occurred between
the 1880s and the 1920s, a period sometimes called "the second industrial revolution." The automobile, the movies,
the telephone and electric light became
staples of modem life. It was also a
time of new ideas-Freud, Einstein, the
beginnings of modernism in art and lit-
ciple. A challenge to patriarchal rule in
the family has always been implicit in
the egalitarian assumptions of democratic citizenship. Now shifts in women's
status are challenging family systems in
all parts of the world. As Anthony
Giddens puts it, "There has never before
been a society, so far as we know, in
which women have even been approximately equal to men. This is truly a
But the move to a more symmetrical
family is basically irreversible, because
it is based on deeper and more longterm social trends.
Although feminism is often blamed
or credited for the gender revolution of
global revolution in everyday life."
The implications of these changes
are enormous. Not only must families
change in practice to cope with the new
economic realities, but cultural norms,
public policy, the legal system and
recent decades, changes in women's
other institutions must also rearrange
lives across the 20th century helped to
set the stage for the feminist revival of
themselves to adapt to the new family
patterns. Today's policymakers face two
erature, the first wave of feminism. In
the 1960s and 70s.
central dilemmas:
the 1920s, the first sexual revolution of
the twentieth century erupted.
• Women have been entering the paid
workforce in steadily increasing
numbers for over a century.
Twentieth-century revolutions in
Eventually, the Victorian version of
separate spheres was modified: marriage
was now ideally based on companionship and sexual bonds. More women
entered the workplace, and the issue of
how to reconcile work and family
became a topic of public concern. But
the Great Depression and World War II
derailed that discussion and reinforced
traditional notions of gender. In many
ways, "the 60s" were a resumption of
trends that had started in the 1920s.
First of all, they must reconcile the
needs of families and communities for
longevity and fertility have reshaped
security and stability with a global
economy that demands flexibility and
efficiency. Secondly, they must reconcile
women's lives as much as the workplace. We now experience life stages
and family structures unknown to previous generations: the empty nest period of marriage, the four generation
"vertical"or "beanpole" family and mass
enduring human needs for care and
nurturance with the passing of castelike gender distinctions.
In sum, the new economy faces a
paradox: it undermines the conditions
that sustain families, but it has not
longevity, with more elderly in need of
reduced the psychological and social
functions of the family that used to be
care. Most of the years of a long mar-
women's special task. To produce a
workforce for a new economy that values brains and interpersonal skills over
How does this model of change apply to
riage are spent without children in the
home; most of the parent-child relationship occurs when both are adults.
Psychological and cultural changes
our own time? We seem to be stalled in
have also reshaped expectations
of emotion, attention, time and money
Stage Two-in the midst of another
about family life. In the last half-cen-
in their children. And in a fast-paced
stressful and disorienting transition. The
separate-spheres system of gender roles
has been eroding across the 20th century; the economic changes of recent
tury, large numbers of ordinary citizens have gained access to education,
travel and other cultural advantages
and uncertain post-industrial world, the
intimacy and connectedness of home
and family become even more precious
once enjoyed only by the upper class-
decades have delivered the final blows to
es. The result is a process of "psychological gentrification"-a more
informed, cosmopolitan, more psy-
to adults. Whether or not families conform to the standard cultural model,
A STALLED REVOLUTION
a family pattern whose time, as Ogburn
noted, was already passing in the 1950s.
We are moving to a more symmet-
rical version of the family and gender
roles, but the meaning of equality-or
equity-within marriage remains an
open question. The changing realities
of everyday family life have outpaced
cultural images, public policy and the
established arrangements of other institutions-most significantly, the work-
place and the schools.
Because of the stresses of this
chologically minded population,
more concerned, for example, with
warmth and intimacy in family relationships-and more prone lD distress when these are not achieved.
brawn, parents must invest high levels
the functions of the family remain a
vital necessity.
We need to put aside the polarized,
culture war debates that dominated
public discourse about the family in the
1990s. Instead, we need a new pro-family politics aimed at sustaining families
in the new realities of a globalized,
COPING WITH CHANGE
Finally, legal and political trends in
modem democracies have undermined
the legitimacy of gender and other castelike forms of inequality, at least in prinFamily Focus I June 2000
post-industrial economy, as well as the
irreversible shift in gender relations.
Thomas Friedman has recently called
for a "politics of sustainable globalization." Like a number of other thinkers,
TJ·ansition continued on page F4
�"Visions for Families: Continuity and Change Across Cohorts and Generations"
The Future of Family Studies in Academe
by Graham Spanic1; Ph.D., President, The Pennsylvania State University, and Professor of Human Development and Family Studies,
Sociology, Demography, and Family and Cmnmunity Medicine
W
hat is the future of the discipline of family studies and
convinced that "family" is truly the
organizing theme of our organization.
what can current scholars do
to influence that future? I worry about
these questions for two reasons. First,
Having said all this, let me be perfectly clear: I am not among those who
while as individual scholars most of us
have developed an identity that defines
us professionally, I don't think that we
have yet determined collectively
these questions. I happen to think that
believe that we must somehow resolve
I ant trUly oj?tilitistic aboui-tJJe_potent{al for
the c01itinued viability of family sii1dks.
how to keep everyone happy. How l
\vish that we could more fully invest
our energies in being brave enough to
chart our own future. I often worry that
those of us who have served in leader-
ship positions in NCFR have been
"fiddling while Rome burns."
Having now stirred up trouble,
I conclude with a touch of confusion.
I am tntly optimistic about the poten-
who we are, what
Graham Spanier, Ph.D.
it would be futile to attempt to meet
we do, what the
such a challenge. Personally, I have no
tial not only for the continued viability
of family studies but for our discipline
defining characteristics of our discipline are or indeed
whether we even
need to answer
such questions.
trouble reconciling that I am a sociologist who has chosen to specialize in
place among the most valued of the
marriage and the family, that I am also
a marriage and family therapist, that
university's disciplines. I justify this
optimism in part because of the com-
Second, I worry
about the occasional call I receive,
because I am a university president,
from colleagues in the discipline and
from administrators at other universities, asking for advice about eliminat-
ing, cutting back, merging or changing
the identity of departments that house
to thrive, grow in respect and take its
my principal tenure home is in Human
pelling societal need for a higher level
Development and Family Studies or
that I have other joint appointments
(sociology, demography, and family and
of learning, discovery and engagement
in our area of expertise.
Yet at the same time I worry that
any one of a number of weaknesses
community medicine). It makes sense
to me personally and I feel no compelling need to straighten it out. Yet I
do worry a bit about what this all
means for the future of family studies.
could derail us: internal disciplinary
politics, sloppy science, a slowdown in
the pipeline of the most exemplary
scholars, the politicization of federal and
foundation funding, shortsighted senior
A DISCIPLINE WITH NO LABEL
Of course, there is no one label or defining characteristic for our discipline.
Physicists, philosophers and lawyers are
easily defined by virtue of their having
received degrees in physics, philosophy or
law. Nice and neat, even if one specializes
in high-energy physics, analytical philosophy or criminal law. We, on the other
hand, are scholars who study the family,
even though our primary identification
might be as sociologists, psychologists,
CHARTING THE FUTURE
university administrators who do not
NCFR as an organization has struggled
valued professional colleagues of mine.
fully appreciate the value of multidisciplinary work, public relations guffaws on
with such questions since I first joined
the board of directors as a young professional representative nearly 30 years
ago. Over the years we have spent a lot
of time-too much time, in fact-doing
long-range planning, discussing our
future, changing the constitution, altering the dues structure and figuring out
TRANSITION
our own part, and ample opportunities
to shoot ourselves in the foot.
Let us be vigilant. And let us prove
that optimism is justified.
For more infonnation, contact
gspanicr@psu. cdu.
continued from page FJ
nurses, social workers, physicians, anthro-
pologists or educators. And this list doesn't even reflect the plurality of us whose
Friedman argues that growing inequali-
degrees are in human development, family
studies, home economics, child develop-
new economy; unless those currently
ment, human ecology and related fields
going by a host of different names.
adapt, their discontent
Moreover, what constitutes the
ty may be the "Achille's heel" of the
part of the economic system. They create, nurture and sustain society's pres-
the conditions needed for the global
ent and future "human capital." We do
not yet have a blueprint for public and
private policies that are friendly to children and families (whatever their form)
economy to prosper.
and that are, at the same time, equitable
left out or left behind are helped to
will undermine
study of marriage and the family is hard
But a politics of sustainable global-
to nail down, as evidenced by recent
discussions about changing the name of
our premier journal. And an "outsider"
taking a casual look at one of our annual meeting programs might need to be
ization must give equal attention to the
for both men and women. We will be
grappling with these issues well into
fate of the old "second sphere"-to
the new century.
family and care issues. In fact, families
should be seen not only as a humanitarian concern, but also as an intrinsic
Ajslw@aol.com.
Family focus l June 2000
For more infonnation, contact
(h1
�"Visions for Families: Continuity and Change Across Cohorts and Generations"
Transference of Values of African American
Families and Children
by Hanicttc Pipes McAdoo, PIJ.D., Midtigan State University
he values that are deemed important for families and their children
are based on the economic and
ecological dimensions of reality for
African American families. All of these
economic and social factors relate to
the realities that Black families face.
There are
three concerns of
values that are
present in this
reality: l) Growing
awareness of the
role that culture
plays within family
life; 2) Growing
Haniettc Pipes
diversity within
McAdoo, Ph.D.
our country; and
3) Changes in
marital and family structures among
African Americans.
We need to look at African
Americans within the context of major
demographic changes. We need to
examine the implications of change
that apply to our entire society, and
view the values that are fostered by the
family dimension of African Americans
as being supportive of the development
of children to become functioning
African American adults.
T
CULTURAL DIMENSION OF FAMILIES
As we look at the situations of all families, especially those of color, it
becomes increasingly apparent that politics play a great part in the lives of
families. Certainly, the realities of the
political positions of cultures reinforce
this notion that family income, welfare,
and resources are, for the most part,
politically determined-especially for
those of color. Perhaps, for example, we
should examine some of the stereotypes
regarding children and pregnancy.
Because there are proportionately
more Black adolescents who have
babies, we tend to think that all babies
born out of wedlock are born to adolescents. This is not true. Even though
teen pregnancies are the most problematic, only one-third of babies are born
to teens, according to the Children's
Defense Fund, while two-thirds of
Black babies are born to women over
age 19. The majority of babies are not
born to never-married women, but to
previously married women, who are
now divorced or separated. (Separation
is often called the poor women's
divorce.) Finally, most poor women are
not on welfare, even before the changes
in the welfare rules. The majority of
poor women are working every day, but
they are paid too low to manage a family, because of gender and racial differentiation.
As we work with families and children, it is often easy to forget the political realities that are being played out
within the lives of families. As family
professionals, we will have to develop a
greater sensitivity and respect for the
values of other cultural groups who are
right here in our own country. There
are many persons of different cultures,
and there will be even more in the
future. We must be vigilant to refute
stereotypes about our Black families.
GROWING DIVERSITY IN OUR
OWN COUNTRY
We are experiencing growing cultural
differences of families. In fact, we
should not look upon culturally diverse
families as minorities, per se, but as
groups who collectively are fast becoming the dominant group in America. I
no longer use the term "minority" in
my own writing. I think we should
refrain from using "minority" to refer to
culturally different groups since when
taken as a total group, families of color
will very soon be more than 50 percent
of the American population.
As a country, we are moving
toward a complex level of multiculturalism. Few other countries have the
proportion of ethnic families that we
will soon have. We will need to become
more pluralistic in our orientation. We
will have to reflect the colors, the diversities, and the languages of different
groups. We will therefore need to work
for family policies, values, and practices
that are supportive of the new reality in
our communities.
CHANGES IN FAMILY STRUCTURES:
INCREASES IN FAMILIES OF COLOR
We have all heard that, based on the
U.S. Census predictions, persons who
were of African descent and from the
I no !ongCr use- the tefnf'~minorit)i"- ih m,.Y
own wliting.
Caribbean had increased by 36 percent.
Additionally, there are increasing numbers of interracial and intercultural
marriages that have occurred across all
groups. The life experiences of children
from these groups will differ from both
cultural groups of their parents.
Many people feel that the American
dream has been threatened and that the
old order is changing. We need to be
aware of certain orientations that we, as
family practitioners, tend to use. We
must be aware that families of color
come from a variety of socioeconomic
levels. Not all are poor. They are
becoming more diverse and may not fit
into our monolithic views of them.
We need to look at the cultural
patterns and values that are found in
these diverse families. We sometimes
forget that families come with a variety
of resources for dealing with their own
problems. Children are taught values
that reinforce these resources: independence, self-sufficiency, and cultural
elements of family. But when families
become overwhelmed by the reality of
their situations, their values become
modified through experiences. One
finds strong similarities in their family
patterns. We find that these similarities
cut across specific religious beliefs,
across pigments, and across ethnicities.
Family researchers and practitioners have found growing evidence of
families' identification with their
descent groups from all over the world.
These patterns have been attributed to
African American continued on page F7
�"Visions for Families: Continuity and Change Across Cohorts and Generations"
Stepfamilies Doing Well Despite Challenges
by KaJ' Pasley, Ed.D., Professor of Human Development and Family StHdics, University of North Carolina, Greensboro; editor-elect of Family Relations
ost children born today will
have some connection to a step-
torical context. His attempts may also
fail because his role of stepparent is
typically not seen as legitimate by
family through changes in their
own family or their extended family. Of
biological father abdicates his role and
tions, they were usually created by
leaves the care and discipline or his
remarriage after the death of a spouse.
children to his new wife and the stepmother to his children. But then, perhaps out of guilt, he may undermine
her efforts, giving the children the idea
that "she can't tell us what to do."
,,""
stepchildren. ("He's not my real dad.")
course, stepfamilies have always existed.
The difference is that in past genera-
:,,
,::'····._."_':~
:: SO pc1ient o/dii'!di-·t.~i in ·stepja,-;tilies arc
~: _d(JingJ~~ciL
·
Since 1960, however, the number of
remarriages following divorces has
A similar situation results when the
greatly exceeded
half years.
Imagine a child who is a preschooler at the time his biological parents
divorce seven years into their first mar-
riage. Most likely he will live with his
mother who will be a single parent for
a few years. Perhaps she will have more
than one partner during this time. Then
comes a second marriage, which even-
the number of
remarriages follow-
Kay Pasley, Ed.D.
ALWAYS BEHIND
tually breaks up after four or five years,
Stepfamilies, unlike first families, don't
about the time the child is entering
ing death.
In 1990, it was
estimated that 21
percent of children
have years to get to know one another.
As one new stepparent said, "1L takes
five years to learn how to parent a Hve-
adolescence. For the child, each divorce
under age 18 living in two-parent
households were actually living in stepfamilies. But this statistic doesn't take
into account the number of children liv-
ing with their biological mother or
father and whose other parent has
remarried. Also ignored are households
where two unmarried adults of the same
or opposite sex live with the children of
one or both partners. Nor does it count
"mature stepchildren" who have estab-
lished their own households. In fact, we
really don't know how much this statistic underestimates the number of stepfamilies-we only know that it does.
year-old. I just got one yesterday. I'll
always be five years behind."
This lack of time means that ambiguity in roles and rules exists even
when parents and stepparents agree
about most things. Here's an example:
can also mean a change of home,
school, church, friends and routines.
Such multiple transitions are associated
with increased negative outcomes for
children.
THE GOOD NEWS
the parent and stepparent establish a
But that's the worst case scenario.
There's also a lot of good news to report
rule that the children can come into
about stepfamilies. The best news of all
their bedroom after 9 p.m. only in an
is that, according to the research, 80
percent or the children in these families
emergency. That sounds easy enough,
but what happens when an "emergency" for one parent means that a
are doing well. Children in stable stepfamilies look very much like those
child needs the next day's lunch money,
raised in stable first families.
while for the other it means serious illness or injury?
Stepfamilies can be torn by loyalty
Most of the children in the other
20 percent were already at risk, and
their academic, emotional or behavioral
conflicts and competing needs. Parents
ROLE AMBIGUITY
Adults and children living in stepfamilies must deal with role ambiguity
because the stepfamily differs from the
first family whose members share a
common history. In a stepfamily, it is
problems were usually exacerbated by a
may feel caught between the needs of
their spouse and those of their children. Children in stepfamilies may play
their parents off against each other,
contentious divorce. These are the chil-
dren who appear to be engaging in
delinquent behavior or earlier sexual
activity. But once again, it's important
to emphasize that they are not the
the biological parent and children who
sometimes to the detriment of the new
marriage. They may also leave the nest
earlier, going to live with their other
have a common history while the stepparent is the "outsider."
biological parent. Children in first-
children their first chance to see how
marriage families don't have two
adults live out a loving relationship free
of abuse, chemical dependency and
hostile conflict. The stepparent may
A stepdad, for example, may wonder what to do when his stepchildren
talk back to their mom or treat her in a
way that seems disrespectful. Because
he has no history with the children, he
is unable to know whether this is real
"misbehavior" or whether his wife and
her children have always interacted this
way. This means that his attempts at
discipline may fail because he Jacks his-
homes (Mom's house, Dad's house)
to choose from.
majority.
Life in a stepfamily offers many
become a new and positive role model.
MULTIPLE TRANSITIONS
When stepfamilies end through divorce,
this usually happens more quickly than
it does with first families. Fifty percent
of first marriages end within about
seven years, while 50 percent of
remarriages end in about four and one-
..
Family Focus I June 2000
Stepfamily life also promotes creative problem solving. A stepfamily
may decide that it's quite all right to
celebrate Christmas or another major
holiday in three different ways, with
three different relatives. It may not be
how their neighbors or friends do it,
Stcpfamilics continued on page F7
�"Visions for Families: Continuity and Change Across Cohorts and Generations"
STEPFAMIUES
continued from page F6
but it works for them. E~\:periences like
this teach children flexibility and tolerance, important qualities in today's
world.
NEW POLICIES NEEDED
Changes in educational and public policies would make stepfamily life easier
for both children and adults. Current
educational policy often discriminates
against stepparenlS who may not be
permitted to review a child's permanent
records. The school curriculum sometimes has a "first family bias," which is
upsetting to children who may find, for
example, that the assigned family tree
has no place for steprelatives.
Stepparents may also be unable to
sign medical releases for children in the
family or take on other "official"
parental roles. England addressed this
issue by creating a special kind of
guardianship that allows stepparents to
assume some legal responsibility for
stepchildren.
Our society hasn't even begun to
consider the ramifications-both legal
and personal-of stepfamily relationships. The reality is that like first-marriage families, even stable stepfamilies
AFRICA~ AMERICA~
•.••st~pfatiJili~~ ai~ rl~t~lenCI~cli: •
• Jh~[]1<;diase~ms to ~aye a loyea~iryyith
i th"desig~atiop"blimded.family.:········•·.····••··• ·
"Bieng~d"
is lik<;. hearing <:ha~ ~cre~ch on
~-chalkboard.~tepfa~ilies.aw.notbl?nd- •
• ~dL~e:althy on~rec?~~ize.tl]~t chil?re.n
f. frmn pri9rre.lationshipshave[W.o fa[l'\il.ies
•.a~d do n8tp.lmd solelyi~to on~ fa[]1ily; •··•
· St~PfarT)ilieS thattry to ignore this re~lity . .••
are tYpically doom~dt() ei~~r-~ilure or> ·
c,ons!g~rabl.e.unh~~pjn~bnth~p~~2f
s<cV~ra,l or, allof the step~mily m~rnP~rs· x•
•. ·w_e aresso~piped fiJ')Jili~' ~~8d~d ~')Ji-;
•·•. ties;exiJ:~~d~d.farni.ties.;~l.n1os,fa)'lyt~ins/•. •
•. is pet!~rlf1an. ~l.~nged a~;a. g«,si~n~tio nl•·····•····.
•
TI!~Stepfamiry,4.ss6ctatio'il~J; ..
"'-;,-::Ant~r(ccF :':<t(__::-_,;,t;~lfzt:!,:t(} ~:,1,~>: 1ifi,~:~~}~--':--:
can end, and steprelatives can find
themselves with no visitation rights
even though they have fulfilled the role
of (step)parent or (step)grandparent for
years. Child support is also an issue,
especially when the now divorced stepparent has been the primary provider
for a spouseS children over time.
On the other hand, stepparents are
sometimes considered responsible for
providing financial support when they,
in fact, do not. The most common
example of this is the requirement that
a stepparent's income be included when
colleges calculate a student's financial
aid package. This rule does not take
into consideration that a stepparent
may be paying college tuition for his or
her own biological children, and not
contributing to the stepchild's education. This is especially problematic
when the stepchild also receives no
financial support from a nonresident
biological parent. When the stepparent's
income is included, the student can
receive less aid.
In the 21st century, stepfamilies are
a fact of life. And the truth is that for
many adults and children-despite the
existence of negative stereotypes-the
experience of stepfamily life is positive.
But public and education policies are
"out of sync" with the practical realities
of the stepfamily experience.
For more iJ-ifonnation, contact
lwy_paslcy®ttncg.cdu. Another good
source is the Stcpfamily Association of
America, which offers educational
resources and training opportunities
fr.r.
(wwlv.stepfam.OJg).
1111
continued from page F5
most people of color. These cultural
patterns are:
• Familism;
• Extensive use of extended family
helping arrangements:
• Supportive social networks; and
• Flexible relationships and roles
within the family units.
Most groups across the world have
similarities to these patterns. But people of color are more likely to have a
greater concentration of these patterns.
Values passed on by parents will tend
to reinforce these traditional beliefs.
These patterns rely more on the collective action of families, rather than on
the more individualistic emphases that
are found in many mainstream families.
However, many of these patlems that
have existed for hundreds of years are
now being eroded, because of financial
t;i:::_We:_;--~_;iiF6~~a~t~f~~;-~~:;~;:~~~ti0e--.\?::l_~/~-:;-/~}:~-. _~:-
_:-.!
;_ :_ ec_o·j~giCetfr~-,~1-~~--oi-hs_, ~.::~yC-I~~-i(_~:t:- ·-:'.t:<:_::. ··
;_: t1t_c~Cfq_~_Hi~s_:-.--~ ~-:.ar4 jo :_avpJd ._tl~e·_ uSe,oj-~
; -_S~e'-eatYP_e~:'~- ·
··>''>};:"L·:~~:-_-/:;:>:::~~(\
-----:
",.,
---¥•--"·~-:..·._.,,_,.,
..
difficulties.
Multicultural democracy means
that our country will have to reflect the
colors, the diversities, and the multilanguages of different groups and not get
caught up in stereotypes.
RESEARCH
It is very easy to fall into the pit of only
emphasizing African Americans who
are the most destitute, the poorest, or
those who live in the worst conditions.
I know that these groups are easier to
get to because they are the ones who
..
Family Focus I June 2000
must go to public clinics, hospitals, and
social service agencies.
Lawrence Bobo of Harvard states
that we know that studies have shown
the steady improvement in the racial
attitudes of whites, especially in their
attitudes toward African Americans.
Yet, he states that on the other hand,
there is persistent negative stereotyping. He also states that there is evidence
of deepening feelings of alienation
among Black Americans.
I am at Harvard for part of this
summer, using my research data files
that are in the Archives at Radcliffe's
Murray Research Center. The coping
strategies of this group of women have
seldom been in the literature. Some have
only a high school degree, and are service workers; others have advanced
degrees and are lawyers and doctors.
African American continued on page FB
�Family FoC:I.Isoll.i.
"Visions for Families: Continuity and Change Across Cohorts and Generations"
Grandparents as Parents:
What They Need to Be Successful
by Laura Landr)'-lVIcyc1; PILD., Research Associate, GranURivcrsidc Hospital Foundation, Eli:::abctll Tishler fund, Columbus, Ohio
ithin the last five years, the
voices and concerns of grandparents raising grandchildren
have started to receive attention from
researchers, human service practitioners and policyrnakers. ll is estimated
that in five to lO percent of all households with children grandparents are
taking on the parental role.
Increasingly, grandparents are becoming
their grandchildren's primary caregivers
when their adult child is perceived as
an unfit parent. "Whether it's drugs,
alcohol or mental illness, it's basically
the same," says one grandparenl. "This
child of yours is not capable of looking
after their child."
When their adult children cannot
fulfill the parent role, grandparents take
on that role because of cultural and
personal value systems. In the words of
one grandmother, "children should be
with a family member." For many
grandparents, assuming the caregiving
role is an automatic decision in order to
ensure continuity wilhin familial relationships. "For me there wasn't a
choice," a grandmother says. "You
know, it was either [stay with my unfit
daughter] or let [my granddaughter] go
to foster care."
AFRICAN AMERICAN
A CHANGE IN TIMING
Taking on the role of parental surrogate
to a grandchild changes the timing of
one's own life cycle events. A grandparent's social clock becomes disrupted
and financial resources are redirected
toward caregiving. Many grandparents
find that their une"']Jected parental role
is a major source of fatigue and stress.
The cstablislmt.ent ~fa leggllyrecognized
relationship_ between: a grandparent and
gl·Ctndchild_iS n'Ccded so 'the:_giiuidRare!_it :ccm
act in t11e best intfFres(of the chilcL
Grandparent caregivers often fall
through the cracks of social services.
Since the average age of grandparent
caregivers ranges from 53 to 59, many
are too young to apply for senior services and feel too old to be parenting
again. This sense of not "fitting in" is
reflected in this grandfather's explanation of being off time with his same-age
peers: "We are in a totally different age
group. If people [our age] are sharing
anything it's grandkids for a couple of
days or something like that. We can't.
We got people, like in church .. .in a
totally different world than we are ... we
conUnucdfrom page F7
The values that these women are passing
on to their children are: independence;
do not wait around for a man to come to
you; be involved with your extended
family and friend support network; and
think for yourself and your children.
These women were under great
stress; and many of them had many of
the same problems, in spite of being
employed or their social class. l feel that
if we want to find out how to pass on
values that promote coping successfully
with a family, in spite of the structure of
the family, we will need to use more sensitive ecological frameworks as we look
at these families. It is necessary to take a
realistic view of these diverse families,
and to avoid the use of stereotypes.
We are approaching a period when
families will be composed of a greater
array of mixes of family structures, gender roles, lifestyles, and traditional family cultural forms. The move toward a
multicultural society is approaching
more rapidly than many of us realize or
might be willing to accept.
In conclusion, we who are family
practitioners, researchers, therapists,
and educators must be sure that we are
not learning how to manage and contain the new populations. We need to
be careful that we are working to assist
families to function more effectively
in the 21st century.
1111
r."
.
l'amily Focus I June 2000
are kinda like in limbo or almost in a
self-defined island, you know? Our
friends are changing."
Raising a child places a burden on
family income. In 1992, the median
income of grandparent caregiver households was $18,000. On average, grandparent caregivers provide care to two
grandchildren (the majority of whom
are under the age of six) for about six
years with 18 percent providing most of
the care for more than ll years, often
without a legal custodial relationship.
This means that many grandparent
caregivers have had to give up their
retirement goals. "I spent 21 years in
the workforce, nine more till retirement," a grandmother says. "Better
believe I'm counting till
retirement... [but] I won't be retiring. I'll
get full retirement, but I'll have to get
another job instead of actually retiring.
That's okay. I'll be wearing a paper hat,
'would you like fries with that?' I'm
practicing."
THREE AREAS OF CONCERN
Grandparent caregivers are diverse, yet
their concerns and needs can be broadly categorized into three areas: financial, legal and social support.
It is estimated that over 90 percent
of grandparent caregivers do not receive
child support nor social security for a
grandchild and close to 86 percent do
not receive public assistance. Financial
assistance provided under child-only
grants with Temporary Assistance to
Needy Families (TANF), equitable
financial reimbursement comparable to
foster non-kinship caregivers and child
support orders should be established as
well as subsidized child care to assist
grandparents and other kinship caregivers. Cash assistance or tangible assistance, such as clothing allowances, and
subsidy of court- or agency-ordered
physical and mental health evaluations
can relieve the financial pressures many
grandparent caregivers face.
The vast majority of grandparents
raising grandchildren have an informal
Grandparents continued 011 page F9
�~rn·······.nY'.Fe>C:~s ql'lt··
F.
",,
'"•'
'
"Visions for Families: Continuity and Change Across Cohorts and Generations"
-------·------------
The Impact of Acculturation on lntergenerational
Relationships in Mexican American Families
by Mcnil Silverstein, Ph.D., An elms Gerontology Ccntc1; University of Sout1Icm Califomia
he term "acculturation" has been
used to describe the process by
which immigrant groups assimilate
into a dominant or host culture, and
lose their traditional values, language
and practices. Younger generations are
more likely than their elders to adopt
the values and behavior of the dominant
culture, and this creates the potential for
intergenerational conflict with their
more traditional relatives.
One of the most important consequences of cultural assimilation far intergenerational family relations is language
acculturation-the progressive weakening through the generations of the ability
to speak and understand the native language. Younger family members tend to
become assimilated more quickly than
their elders. This may be responsible for
emotional distress among older Mexican
T
Americans because it increases their isolation from English-speaking family and
community members.
AT A LOSS FOR WORDS
Lmguage incompatibility between grandparents and grandchildren, for instance,
has been found to weaken intergenerational cohesion by inhibiting the amount
of contact between them. They literally
don't speak the same language.
Acculturation also weakens the
otherwise strong obligation that family
members feel toward each other.
Research demonstrates that the more
acculturated mostly younger, members
of Mexican American families display
weaker norms of familism than foreignborn and older family members.
Studies of grandparenting suggest
that social distance between grandpar-
ents and their adult grandchildren may
widen as the grandchild grows up and
each generation becomes increasingly
removed from the other's world.
Grandparents and adult grandchildren
often have dissimilar cultural tastes (for
example, music, books and films) and
share few frames of reference outside
the family. At the extreme, these differences can lead to remoteness in the
relationship. The generation gap may
widen even further in immigrant families when accompanied by the erosion
of traditional cultural values, practices
and language among younger relatives.
ECONOMIC MOBILITY WIDENS
THE GAP
Occupational mobility may be another
factor that explains how acculturation
leaves its imprint on intergenerational
Mc.xican Ame1ican continued Oil page Fl a
GRANDPARENTS
continued fmm page FB
custodial arrangement. The lack of legal
custody makes it hard for grandparents
to fulfill the parental role. Without legal
custody, grandparents cannot enroll a
grandchild in school or have their
grandchild immunized. The establishment of a legally recognized relationship between a grandparent and grandchild is needed in order for the grandparent to act in the best interest of the
child. A notarized affidavit stating that
the grandparent is the grandchild:S fulltime caregiver is one way to provide
legal standing. Another possibility is
the enactment of kinship adoption
laws. Grandparents might also benefit
from free services that provide information and referral regarding legal issues.
Social support networks change
when grandparents enact the parental
surrogate role. Many grandparents lack
support from peers and family members. This suggests the need for other
support systems, such as respite care.
In a recent survey of grandparents raising grandchildren in Ohio, the number
one identified service need was recreational and social activities. The
exchange of babysitting and car pooling
among on-time parents often excludes
grandparent caregivers, and interaction
with younger parents often does not
provide the type of support grandparent
caregivers need. lntergenerational activities that encourage grandparentgrandchild activities has the potential
to strengthen all family structures.
COLLABORATIVE EFFORTS ARE
NEEDED
Tangible, cross-system collaborative
efforts, such as those between human
services, education and mental health,
hold the key to assisting grandparent
caregivers. Programs should offer a
menu of supportive services (e.g., subsidized child care, respite care, training
about the care of children with special
needs, legal services, kinship caregiver
resources and referral). Such programs
can help reduce stress and provide the
practical help grandparents need to be
Learn more about grandparent
>
·.. · ·•.
..
•.
caregivers
MRP GI1Jndparenting Survey is online
• http://research.aarp.org/general/ ·
srilndpsurv.pdf .. . .····
• u.s. Cens~sB~reau report:
http:/Mvv;\i.census,gov/du:d/MAB/
wp23l,pdf . ·... ·... ·
• Generations United: tittp://W\W{.gu.org
at
better parents to their grandchildren.
The need for these types of services has
been documented. Research serves to
inform policy. Policy dictates practice.
Grandparent caregivers offer
continuity to grandchildren in terms
of family and cultural values. But to
support grandparent caregivers, policymal<ers need to expand their definition
of "family," to include them and the
children they are raising.
For more infonnation, contact
land•y@ohiou.cdu.
�"Visions for Families: Continuity and Change Across Cohorts and Generations"
MEXICAN AMERICAN
continued from page F9
relations in Mexican American families.
Upward economic mobility in successive
generations of immigrant families exposes
younger family members to mainstream
values and modes of behavior-particularly those reflecting individualism and
egalitarianism-which may further widen
generational cleavages based on differences in cultural beliefs and practices.
For instance, adult children who
leave family farming may become less
involved with their parents and grandparents because their lifestyles, values and
frames of reference diverge from those of
Adoptive Families: Dramatic
Changes Across Generations
by Gordon E. Finlt-y, Ph.D., Department of Psychology, Flmida lntcmationai University
oday, virtually all adoption reviews
begin \vith a sentence like: "The
landscape of adoption has changed
radically over the past several decades."
And this certainly is true. Depending on
the historical starting point, one finds
both linear and curvilinear trends over
time. As one approaches the present,
however, what one finds are many
divergent adoption realities. Writing
T
older generations. Upwardly mobile adult
children also tend to live farther away
from their parents and grandparents, further reducing contact with them.
FAMILIAL OBLIGATION REMAINS
IMPORTANT
On the other hand, these disruptive influences should not be overstated. Studies
consistently show stronger familial obligation toward elders in Mexican American
families than in Anglo families, as well as
more frequent social interaction, higher
volume of support exchanged and a
greater likelihood of sharing a household
with older family members.
Mexican American elders also occu-
py important cultural roles \vithin the
family because they reinforce traditional
values in younger generations and stave
off the influence of the dominant culture. Indeed, parents and grandparents
in Mexican American families have been
considered conduits through which common values, beliefs, language and customs of the culture are communicated to
children and grandchildren.
In summary, social and economic
forces implicit in the process of acculturation have likely created tensions
within Mexican American families.
However, the strong solidarity between
generations in such families insures that
ethnic culture will be reproduced in the
next generation, albeit in a modified
form. This pattern is consistent with the
drama of generational succession "of
change and continuity" found in all
multigenerational families.
For more infomwtion, contact
meiTils®ttsc.cdu.
briefiy, broadly and covering roughly
the last half of the 20th century, five
major changes will be outlined, five
continuing issues will be listed and
future trends will be considered.
MAJOR CHANGES IN ADOPTION
PRACTICE AND ADOPTIVE FAMILIES
Adoption Placement: From Calling to
Business. At mid-century, those
involved in adoption placement tended
to be social workers in primarily public,
non-profit or religiously affiliated agencies who tended to view all members of
the adoption triad (birth parents, adoptive parents and adoptees) as "the
clients." They also tended to view
adoption as a social intervention into
the lives of children whose biological
parents could or would not raise them
and as a social service which met the
needs of all members of the adoption
triad.
Today, social workers and the public, non-profit or religiously affiliated
agencies deal primarily with specialneeds adoption (children in foster care,
older children, minority children, siblings, children with developmental difficulties or children who have experienced neglect or abuse). By contrast,
the more lucrative placement of healthy,
Caucasian infants-along with international adoptions-has come to be dominated by adoption attorneys in frequent business partnerships with pri-
vate adoption agencies. Although
prospective adoptive parents continue
to pay the bills, private attorneys and
agencies tend to view only the birth
mather as "the client" since, without
birth mothers, there is no business.
It is noteworthy that concern about
adoption ethics has risen to prominence
as the twentieth century has come to a
close. The widespread availability of
adoption "information" and the advertising of prospective adoptees on the
Internet also has contributed to the current concern with adoption ethics.
Adoptive Families: From Relative
Homogeneity to Stlihing Heterogeneity.
Mid-century, one confidently could
write about adoption secure in the
knowledge that there was a great deal
of similarity among adoptive families
and adoptees. The modal adoptive family consisted of intact, Caucasian, middle class adoptive parents under age 40
with adoptees drawn from the pool of
healthy, genetically sound, Caucasian
infants in traditional closed adoptions.
Today, such adoptions continue to
exist. Two opposing supply and
demand factors have, however, dramatically changed the range of adoptive
families found today. An increasing
demand for adoptees was spawned by
increasing rates of infertility which, in
turn, were spawned by the social, sexual, and ideological revolutions of the
1960s and 1970s. This increased
demand was accompanied by a sharply
decreasing supply of available domestic
Caucasian infants spawned by the selfsame revolutions. Changes also
occurred in our attitudes toward, and
social policies regarding, children in
foster care.
The response to all this was to
expand our notions of what constituted
acceptable adoptees, adoptive families
and adoptive parents. To the earlier
modal adoptive family, this expansion
has added transracial, international, and
special-needs children and families as
well as older, single, black, Hispanic,
Adoptive Families continued on page Fl2
�"Visions for Families: Continuity and Change Across Cohorts and Generations"
lntergenerational Transmission of Success on
Indian Reservations
by Ann.Mmia RousL), PI1.D., and Elich Longic, M.S., President, Canhdcslw Cilwna Community College, Sphit Lalzc Reservation, Fort Totten, ND
hen "intergenerational transmission" and "Indian reservations" are mentioned in the
same sentence, these phrases are gener-
ally followed by some mention of substance abuse, diabetes or other negative
outcomes. In fact, on all of the reservations where we have lived and worked,
there are certain families who show evidence of intergenerational transmission
of success. On reservations with college
graduation rates of five percent, these
families of eight or ten children will see
half or more of their offspring graduate
from college. They produce teachers,
nurses, college presidents, deans,
judges and tribal officials. These families include single parents and two parent families, middle class and poverty
level homes, alcoholic parents and
abstinent ones.
ing or unable to be extensively involved
with the educational system, their
alcohol abuse in
adolescence and
strong belief that their children have a
early adulthood.
future for themselves seems to have a
substantial effect in promoting
resilience.
Yet, somehow, the
BELIEF IN A FUTURE = RESILIENCE
Interestingly, at a recent conference on
alcohol abuse by minority youth, this
concept of a meaningful future was
identified as a crucial factor in the
resilience of African American youth. If
a child does not believe that he or she
has the possibility of a productive
future, as a contributing member of
belief that they
were destined to
be "more than
another reservation Indian on
welfare" manifest-
AnnMaria Rousey, Ph.D.
ed itself years later. The mean age of
tribal college students is 26 years; our
student population at tribal colleges is
comprised of a large proportion of students who are pursuing that meaning-
ful future.
society and a good parent, then many
at-risk behaviors make sense. Why not
VALUING ETHNICITY
abuse alcohol, drop out of school or
become pregnant, if the future holds no
Americans who are several generations
removed from their original immigrant
ancestors may not consider themselves
promise?
At first glance, urban African
American youth and the adolescents
who live on the Spirit Lake Reservation
might appear to have little in common.
vation families accept and value this
groups face significant obstacles in their
environments. Yet some parents are
future. One mother, for example, used
ty for over 500 years-since Columbus
landed. Children from successful reser-
But adversity is adversity, and both
What all of these families share is
that they have transmitted to their children the concept of a meaningful
Scandinavian, English or German. But
ethnic identity:
able to instill in their children and
grandchildren a belief in their own
capabilities to overcome these obstacles.
to say to each of her ten children, "You
are not going to be just another reservation Indian living on welfare. You are
going to make something of yourself."
The second characteristic of many
of these families is interest and involvement in their children's educational
progress. This may not manifest itself
in the same way as the mainstream cul-
ture. The support may be shown in the
child's own home, as questions about
the child's schoolwork, assistance with
school projects. While these Indian parents may be less comfortable in the
public sphere, at PTA meetings and in
displaying other overt support for their
child's educational achievement, they
are transmitting the value of education.
Yet even when parents are unwill-
A "SLEEPER EFFECT"
A firm belief in one's own future is no
panacea, however, and it would be
inaccurate to portray these "successful"
families as problem-free. One aspect,
which may be unique to reservations, is
the common occurrence of a "sleeper
effect," whereby children from these
high-achieving families do experience a
period of high-risk behavior.
Unfortunately, while many articles
we Indians have maintained our identi-
Of course, it is true that many of
the first Native Americans to receive
college degrees were very assimilated.
They had often not grown up on reservations, and some had even been
adopted into white families as infants.
On the other hand, many of the first
Indian college graduates from the Spirit
Lake Reservation were steeped in and
proud of their identity as Indian people. What both groups have in common
is their rdusal to accept victimization
within the mainstream culture. Both
refuse to allow someone else to control
their destiny or that of their children.
But there's also an important-
in social science journals have noted
though subtle-difference between
these groups. The assimilated Native
the high prevalence of alcoholics on
American graduates came from families
reservations, the high prevalence of former alcoholics has not received equal
that taught them they could be successful people. The graduates who grew up
attention. Many of the high-achieving
adults on the Spirit Lake Reservation,
on the reservation had families who
for example, underwent periods of
transmitted to them the belief that they
could be successful Indian people.
Indian Reservations continued on page Fl2
Family Focus I June 2000
�"Visions for Families: Continuity and Change Across Cohorts and Generations"
ADOPTIVE FAMiliES
continued from page no
lower socioeconomic status, gay and
lesbian adoptive parents. Thus, the collage of adoptive family forms found
today only remotely resembles the
modal adoptive family portrait of midcentury
The Ideology of Adoptive Kinship:
From Confidentiality to Diversity. The
earlier ideology of adoptive kinship dictated that the best interests of all members of the triad were best served by the
erection of impenetrable barriers
between the birth and the adoptive
families and between the genetic and
psychological heritages of the adoptee.
Current adoptive kinship ideology
either embraces the notion that: (a)
some level of openness (either face to
face or agency mediated contact among
triad members) is optimal; or (b) that a
complete range of openness arrangements (anchored by closed on one end
and fully disclosed on the other) ought
to be available to permit all members of
the adoptive family kinship network to
select what they view as optimal for
themselves at any given point in their
respective developmental trajectories.
Adoption as an Institution: From
Stigmatized to Generally Accepted. The
social, sexual and ideological revolu-
INDIAN RESERVATIONS
continued from page Fll
On every reservation, at every tribal college, there are clusters of students
from the same extended families, families that have transmitted a great value
to the next generation. It is the mission
of tribal colleges to remember and
value our past, while preparing students for the future. For some students,
that preparation is made much easier
by the beliefs and values that family
members have instilled in them. These
are the students who come to the tribal
colleges expecting success. That expectation is a precious, unsung part of
their family heritage.
For infonnation, contact
DrAnnMmia®aol.c0111.
tions noted earlier also transformed the
institution of the American family.
Among the many family forms spawned
by these revolutions (never-married,
divorced, single, step, blended, gay and
lesbian) the adoptive family no longer
stands out so starkly against the backdrop of the former modal intact, biological family. Although attitudes regarding adoption as the "second best" route
to parenthood linger, today one only
rarely encounters the stigmatizing
vocabulary formerly linked to adoption:
illegitimacy, sexual pwity and bastmrl.
or great current interest is how both
adoptees and adoptive families fare in
comparison to children and adults in
all the different family forms found
today.
Infertility Solutiom: From Adoption
Alone to Adoption and the New
Reproductive Technologies. In earlier
times, infertile couples who wished to
remain together faced two major choices, adoption or involuntary childlessness. Today, the many advances in
reproductive technologies have expanded the range of choices well beyond
adoption. Unfortunately, however, we
as a society lag in our understanding of
the psychological, social and ethical
issues involved in such technologies.
Currently it is recognized that children of the reproductive technologies
and adoptees share many issues in
common. Foremost among them is:
"Whose child am !?" The permutations
and combinations of the unholy trinity
of sperm, egg and host-compounded
by post-natal environmental experiences and questions regarding the
"openness" of sperm, egg and hostresonate well with many of the
genealogical and identity issues faced
by adoptees. Complex interfamilial relationships are another factor. The adoption literature may well be able to contribute to our understanding of this
newly created group of children.
CONTINUITY IN ADOPTION
ISSUES
While much change has been noted,
there also has been substantial continuity in the issues that have engaged both
practitioners and researchers. Brieily
Family Focus I June 2000
listed, a few are:
• the intermediary task of "matching" adoptee, prospective adoptive
parents and-most recently-birth
parents;
• the adoptive parent's task of
"telling" their adoptee of his/her
adoption;
• the reality ofloss as experienced
differently by different members of
the adoptive triad and the possibility of bonding on the basis of
"shared fate";
adoption as a premier paradigm for
studying the interactions of nature,
nurture and the life-long development of the adoptee; and
• adoptee adjustment (now viewed
in a life-span perspective) and
more recently, an interest in the
adjustment of birth mothers, birth
fathers, adoptive mothers and
adoptive fathers.
FUTURE TRENDS
It perhaps can be taken as axiomatic
that the only constant in adoption is
change. Considered in this light, it may
be worthwhile to view recent changes as
uncontrolled, natural experiments, or as
a series of interventions driven by forces
other than scientific research. Given that
so many changes have occurred in such
a brief time frame, perhaps the most certain near-term prediction is that the
adoption field will undergo a period of
evaluation in which the fruits of all
these changes will be researched to
determine which have turned out to be
sweet and which, bitter.
Only with this kind of research will
the adoption field be in a position to
evaluate what kinds of adoptive family
forms work best for which members of
the adoptive triad and under what circumstances. The complexity of this
task is both daunting and challenging
but also extraordinarily exciting. One
place to follow this excitement is the
journal Adoption Qumtcrly.
Gonion E. Finley is editor of Adoption
Quarterly and can bc contacted for
more infonnation at: finlcy®fiu.edu.
�"Visions for Families: Continuity and Change Across Cohorts and Generations"
Ideology of "Family" Shapes Perceptions of
Immigrant Children
by Karen Pyhc, Plt.D., Assistant ProfcssDJ; Department of Sociology, University of Flmicla
"I always felt lilzc maybe we arc not so
nonnal. Lihc in the real Amc1ica, lihc
Brady Bunch nonnal.... I ahvays felt lilzc
there was something iiTcgular about me."
-Thomas, 20-year-old Korean
family life, as well
as that of Asians
and Asian
Americans in general, as deficient.
In their
American who immigrated at age 8.
From '"The Normal American
Family' as an Interpretive Structure
of Family Life Among Grown
Children of Korean and Vietnamese
Immigrants" by Karen Pyke,
]oumal of Maniagc and the Family,
62 (February 2000): 240-245.
Karen Pylzc, PI1.D.
descriptions, these
second generation
respondents
employed
Americanized definitions of love that
stress expressive aspects, such as the
display of affection, sentimentality, and
close communication. They down-
played their parents' instrumental style
cholars have debated for decades
S
of love which is emphasized in Asian
cultures. Examples of instrumental love
imagery of the "Normal American
Family" is harmful to those living in
include parents' support of children
well into adulthood, and-in the case
families that don't conform. A current
of many Korean parents-their decision
to immigrate in search of a better life
whether the narrow cultural
proposal to change the name of the
]oumal of MmTiagc and the Family
reflects concern about the monolithic
imagery invoked by the ideology of
"the family." In addition to prescribing
the structure of family life, this ideology contains notions about the appropriate values, norms and beliefs for family
and education for their children. But
because immigrant parents did not conform to Americanized notions of love,
their children typically described them
as distant, unloving, uncaring and not
normal.
ideals of the heterosexual white middle
THE BRADY BUNCH AS CULTURAL
IDEAL
class.
The values of racial-ethnic, immi-
Dat, 22, who left Vietnam at age 5,
referred to images of normal family life
grant, and gay and lesbian families are
largely excluded from this narrow ideal.
in America as seen on television and
among friends as the basis for his desire
for more affection and closeness with
life. These values reflect the normative
Some scholars argue that the ethnocentrism and narrowly prescriptive nature
of the family ideology denigrates families whose structure or cultural practices do not comply, and that it can
contribute to negative self-images
among members of such families. My
analysis of interview data from 73
grown children of Korean and
Vietnamese immigrants suggests that
such concern is warranted.
These young adults repeatedly
his father. "Sometimes when I had
problems in school, all I wanted was
my dad to listen to me, of all people,"
he said. "I guess that's the American
way and 1 was raised American .... That's
what I see on TV and in my friends'
family. And I expected him to be that
way too. But it didn't happen."
Similarly, Paul, a 21-year-old born
ing Mike Brady would be a wonderful
dad to have. He was always so supportive .... Basically I used what I saw on TV
as a picture of what a typical family
should be like in the United States. I
only \vished that my family could be
like that."
Hoa, 23, who immigrated from
Vietnam at age 2, also dreamed about
the perfect family. "We aren't as close as
I would like," he said. "We aren't as
close as the dream family, you know,
what you see on TY. Kind of like ....
Leave It to Bcavc>: Stuff I grew up on."
The widespread promulgation of
the dominant family ideology found in
the discourse of politicians, social commentators, and moral leaders, in the
talk of everyday interactions, and in the
media establishes the white middle
class family ideal as the norm and the
superior standard to which all should
subscribe. The message is if you are
white, you're right, and if you aren't,
you ought to try to be.
-"We aren{Cls ciOS~ ~ t1!-c dnia~tfitmiiy · 7 ~,
lilze Leave Itt() Beaver..1'·.--,:...ffoa, age _23 .
PRESSURE TO ASSIMILIATE
This ideology exerts immense assimilative pressure on children of immigrants
who in tum denigrate their ethnic fami-
ly practices as deficient and fail to
develop an appreciation for the diversi-
ty of family forms, including their own.
Respondents view mainstream non-
Asian Americans (particularly whites)
as invariably enjoying a "normal" family life that entails warm, close and harmonious relations. They see Asian
immigrant families as living outside of
this normality. Rather than resisting
in the U .5. to Korean immigrant par-
and challenging the ethnocentric family
ents had similar feelings. "As a child I
imagery of the white-dominated mainstream, these immigrant children reaf-
referred to fixed cultural images of normal family life as an interpretive frame
for their own family experiences. When
they contrasted behavior in their immigrant families with mainstream images
watching other friends' fathers," he
said. "All the relationships seemed so
much different from me and my father's
was always watching television and
of normalcy, they interpreted their own
ing The Brady Bunch reruns and think-
relationship .... I can remember watchFamily Focus I June 2000
firm the family ideology in their
descriptions of their own families.
As Robert, 24, who immigrated
from Korea at age 7, explained, "I still
find myself envying white American
Immigrant Children continued on page Fl4
�"Visions for Families: Continuity and Change Across Cohorts and Generations"
Canadian Family Policy Moves into the 21st Century
by Carol Matusichy, Ph.D., Executive Dirccto1; British Columbia Cmmcil for Families
f you asked Canadians what they
Vanier Institute of
considered the most important part
Family don't define
"family." We take it
I
of their life, the majority would
reply, "My family." This answer reflects
what both research and lived experi-
as a given. We're
more concerned
We also expect more from relationships now. We demand more from our
partners, we want to be more involved
\vith our children's lives, and both men
and women C..'--pect to be breadwinners.
about what hap-
ence have shown:
• There is no better institution than
pens within that
structure that peo-
the family for the care, upbringing
and socialization of children and
the care of other individuals.
• The effect of family on life-long
development-for both good and
bad-is profound.
• Historically, the family is the most
Carol Matusichy,
Ph.D.
ple call their family: the relationships, the quality
of the give-and-take among members
and the supports they have or need.
FROM KINSHIP TO INDIVIDUAL
AUTONOMY
resilient institution that we have.
More than the economy, the state,
educational or religious institu-
tions, the family responds to
In the past, Canadians tended to value
their family lineage or kinship. The
changing times.
equity in the family name was of great
importance. But during the last 50
WHAT IS A FAMILY?
In Canada, there is broad acceptance of
a variety of family forms. For example,
legislation that requires employers to
provide benefits for an employee's
same-sex domestic partner recognizes,
in effect, that such couples are "families." We also have an emerging grand-
years, we've begun to place more value
on individual accomplishments, such as
financial or professional success.
Individual autonomy has become paramount. While it is true that kinship
was often oppressive for individuals,
we've paid a price for this new freedom
because many of us are now more iso-
BALANCING WORK AND FAMILY
In fact, dual-income families are now
the statistical and social norm in
Canada. They're also a financial neces-
sity. Since the 1970s, income has eroded, and the average two-parent
Canadian family must now work a
combined 77 weeks a year to make
ends meet. For lone-parent families
with only one wage earner, the situa-
Ca'nlididns a_re-:in_Ov~11¥;_tmvti_i.~- ~ ·_dejlniti?JI
off~1.11ilybas~d on can:giving, rather than
tics of blood.
·
tion is even more difficult.
For Canadians, the question of
how to balance work and family
responsibilities is one of today's key
challenges. As parents work more, fam-
ily lime gets squeezed. Many people
feel their families are getting the "left-
parent's rights movement, which underscores the importance of that relation-
lated.
ship. These are signs that Canadians are
moving toward a definition of family
tended to unfold according to the predictable scripts provided by parental or
Changing demographics also pose
another challenge. Our population is
based on caregiving, rather than ties of
religious expectations. For young peo-
blood. Statistics Canada, in fact, defines
"family" as a "household."
Organizations like the British
Columbia Council for Families and the
ple today, life is less scripted and, thus,
more unpredictable. The generation gap
aging, and more of us have caregiving
responsibility for senior members of the
In previous generations, our lives
happens faster now and often seems
wider.
overs" of their time and energy.
family as well as for our children.
Canada has not had a general "family policy." We have some policies that
Canadian continued on page F15
IMMIGRANT CHILDREN
families and wishing that my family
was perfect like theirs. So basically I
find myself suckered into this ideal
image of the American family. And l
realize, sadly, that my family is not the
American family and never will be.
God, you know, this really upsets me
when I keep striving for this intangible
thing because then I never really feel
happiness or satisfaction."
The widespread promulgation of
continued from page F13
the family ideology is a subtle mechanism by which children of immigrants
makers need to be more sensitive to the
internalize a negative view of their own
ideological harm that family imagery
family life and notions of the superiority of white families. This is particularly
poses to those living on the cultural
important, given that immigrant chilgrants are the fastest growing segment
class mainstream. We also need to take
active steps to enlarge our notion of
what constitutes "normal" family life.
of the U.S. child population, accounting
for nearly 20 percent of all American
children. These findings suggest that
For more infonnation, please contact
Karen Pylzc at pylzc@soc.ufl.cdu.
dren and U.S.-born children of immi-
Family Focus I June 2000
family practitioners, scholars and policy
and racial margins of the white middle
•
ffll
�"Visions for Families: Continuity and Change Across Cohorts and Generations"
CANADIAN
continued from page Fl4
support families and others-like the
tax system-that are not very supportive of people with family responsibilities. We do pride ourselves on having a
universal, accessible health care system
and a good safety net, but the rising
cost of health care and the needs of an
aging population are becoming an
increasing concern.
In fact, Canada is spending billions
of dollars to maintain the health system. Many Canadians believe that more
resources should be put into support
programs that build health: income
maintenance, education, housing and
social supports. Such a shift would
strengthen families-and we know that
stronger families mean better health for
the entire population.
INVESTING IN THE EARLY YEARS
Canadian public policy is beginning to
address the needs of young children.
We've always agreed that the early years
of a child's life are important, but we
haven't been very intentional. Now
Canadians as a society have decided to
invest more in these early years, and we
are working toward policies that are
more universal and systematic,
although the debate continues between
those who want an expanded social
agenda and those who prefer tax reductions.
,.
:··
commitment to the healthy development of children, the federal and
.·.·,,,
Canadian .families on the Web
The British Columbia. Council for
F~ll1;rie.s ~~ a.n•:m-profi.t nongovernrT1~rtal
age~cy, focusirs. qn farT1iiY.I.if<:.th[p~S~9ut
its wf1ol.e cqntinu~m.This sit" has i~f()ITila
ticJn ·on work.and family, ·parerting.teens,
suiside educati()n,•andothertopics.
www.bccf.bc.ca
. < }he chilcl~a;~ Restiu;~~ ~~Ci .
R~"~r~h .Unitjs.partofthe.C:entref()r
provincial governments need to move
toward more comprehensive policies
that will support child development in
the early years. These could include
family resource programs and work-
place policies that recognize people's
caregiving responsibilities.
Maternity leave is also important.
Recent federal legislation, which goes
into effect on December 31, 2000,
Urban·a~d CommunityStudi~, Univ~r;;ity
ensures that parents will have 50 weeks
of combined parental leave and mater-
ofToront().ltfocuses on .eprlychildhoo~
care and egu~ation res~rch .and poli;.v•
•. Tr!is site C()nt~insalist ()f li~kspertaining
• totheN~tio~aiShilcjren·~ 1\Senda. /
W'iV'.V·~hild~~r~c~n~da,.o~g <·••.· .•·...·.•.•·••••••
/
nity leave. This will provide significant
support to families and young children.
NATIONAL CHILDREN'S BUDGET
AND AGENDA
•
···Tri~Yanier.lllstit~te l)f .the.Fal!liiY ·
is a national;.charitable organization <
• dedicated to promoting the \Veil7beiQS ·.
•. ()fCan~diar familii',S·Jhi~ sit{<l0cludes
i sanacji~nf~!TiiiY FAQs, ",Ssays on . .
· ccmtemporary.~m.i.lytrends;a.sedion
pnwp[k?nd family, and more, . . .
W'iV'.V.vifamily,ca..
·
ln the last few years, a movement has
existed to create a "Children's Budget,"
that is, a national budget focused on
the needs of Canadian children. In
addition, a federal policy initiative, the
National Children's Agenda, aims to
improve the health and well-being of
Canadian children, through a partnership between the federal government
and provinces. Before this initiative can
up with the policy and there are more
children than daycare spaces.
British Columbia has just allocated
go forward, though, the provincial governments have to come to an agreement
about the framework of this partner-
significant funding for the creation of
is a first step toward a more accessible
before-and-after-school childcare. This
ship.
The National Children's Agenda
The province of Quebec leads the
way with a strong family policy, including universal daycare for $5 a day per
child. Unfortunately, this system is
and affordable childcare system. But
British Columbia advocates of childcare
represents a window of opportunity.
What we need now is a ground swell of
can expect major opposition from those
support that will convince federal and
who feel that an expanded childcare
provincial governments that children-
under enormous pressure because the
infrastructure hasn't been able to keep
system will be too expensive.
While daycare is a cornerstone of a
and the families that nurture them-
h
deserve national support.
1h1
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"~YI co'!'pa~ed t~ tile~~·~~
~~~nd~~ ~~cl s~ep·f~~ili~?
blen~ed farnilles"';D~re tt;fchilcjr~nlntt;e
....... ·.
<
. ; ••·· . ······••
A r!lere·3?years. BS();·,onlyabou.t sine-third
we•kn()t.tl]·t~ree,q~a~e~.of cana~iah.. ••..•••
of,col!ple:. ~ere·.d~al.earn"rs·T()d•»• most
. ~~ilclr~nagea O.to 11 .• 11\•e,irt. "\ntactfarnili",S"...
'r!l•!fied and comrnpn71a"(•c?upl~~?~t
. ·· thatis;''hor!le"r!leans·.?()thpar:n¥ ........ •.·····.···.•·
Se\'en outpf te~re du~l·~mer;;, -"ffcl ~~·. • (bi9!pgi~1Jl pr adopti~e), and anysibling~'·············.
~.m t~esarnerelati<?nship. ~;>ther15.7 ]i
ab\'ut hil lfpf !~?se dual-~~rf}e(c~uple:, •.
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. for .t!'e ·~.n\ire)~r..C'.)~IY,.iry•.()Q~ ()U:t ?f five •· .·••. pareflt~rrii li",S.·.USU1JIIyhea<]ed. by;~~·
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•.
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clearlY arninofltY;lJlllthe•percenta~eof••·•·· .
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·· ·.• · •·•· •··~ •• ····
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...
> •."Y
__
Family Focus
J
June 2000
p! 1
•• •:•·.···
•.. X~·~;~i~·i·.••.•·
r•··~~i?~mg!~~~~~R:1~~~G£d~:~~n···· ~i~~~ffi~~~~~fts~~~ic~Wgn~~~~s'•· <\~)' •• ;::~,;·; t.•·d,l'
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1
t•••· •i<u<,;<•
• ·~
�"Visions for Families: Continuity and Change Across Cohorts and Generations"
Change and Continuity in the Japanese Family
by Masalw Isliii-Kuntz, Ph.D., Associate Profcssm; Department of Sociology, University of Califomia
esterners usually view the
W
Japanese family as traditional
and patriarchal. According to
this stereotypical view, Japanese fathers
are the main economic providers, while
mothers stay home and function as the
family's main care providers. japanese
families are also seen as multigenera-
strong and authoritarian. Scholars, policymakers and practitioners, such as
daycare providers and teachers in afterschool programs, have also entered into
this debate.
grams to educate their employees about
the care of the elderly.
Nursing homes exist, and the care
they offer is improving, but in general
the japanese do not view them favor-
ably. Nevertheless, it is becoming
encouraged women to have larger fami-
'vill increase.
parents, parents
and children living
lies, and Japan had its own baby boom
in the 1950s. But today the birthrate is
are living longer, many are taking up
together in peace
declining because more women are
new hobbies and enjoying travel oppor-
and harmony.
But, like families everywhere in
working, and they are older-typically
in their late 20s or early 30s-when
their first child is born. More single
packaged trips created especially for
older individuals. This means that in
the industrialized
world, Japanese
Ph.D.
apparent that, in the coming years, the
tional, with grand-
Masa/w Ishii-Kuntz,
A DECLINING BIRTHRATE
Sixty years ago, society strongly
working women, many of whom are
involved in common-law relationships
many families, the grandparents can no
families are chang-
with the father of their child, are having babies and-whatever their age-
care for their working daughters, and
that, in turn, means that there is an
have fewer children. This arrangement
allows them to keep their own name
even greater need for good-quality, subsidized daycare.
since Japanese family law prohibits husbands and wives from carrying different
CONCERNS ABOUT YOUTH
ing. First of all,
more women today
participate in the labor force, and as in
the United States, this means that fami-
lies are faced with the issue of childcare. Of course, there have always been
working women in japan, especially in
agricultural settings. Today's career-oriented woman often does what japanese
women have traditionally done when
they needed childcare: she asks her
mother for help.
family names.
Liliefani'ilies, ~erylVhere iii-~hti _ind~striat~
ized worl4t_J~panese faJnilies are c1Iang!~tg.
need for high-quality nursing homes
On the other hand, because people
tunities, including "Silver Moons," or
longer be counted on to provide child-
In the last three to four years, there has
been an increase in juvenile delinquen-
cy and the rate of youth suicide. Some
families report that their children are
refusing to go to school because other
students bully them. The general pubThe japanese government considers the decline in the birth rate a serious problem because it means that the
county is not reproducing the workers
needed for a strong economy. Some pol-
Japanese families and schools?"
Conservative critics believe that
men and women to take paid leave after
icymakers have proposed tax deductions for dependent children. The more
of a mother's love," because women are
the birth of a child. But like their
liberal political parties are encouraging
American counterparts, many japanese
fathers to take the paid paternity leave
guaranteed by law. And last February, a
multimillion dollar campaign financed
by the Japanese government proclaimed
that "Real men take care of kids."
AN EXPANDED ROLE FOR FATHERS
Fathers have also become more
involved in childcare, and since 1992,
Japan has had a law that allows both
fathers worry about taking this time off.
On a day-to-day basis, they also worry
that too much emphasis on family will
stall their careers.
Fathers who responded to a recent
lic, the government and families are
reevaluating children's lives and asking
the question, "What's wrong with
these problems are caused by the "lack
too busy working to pay proper attention to their children. In 1996, a serious outbreak of food poisoning in
Japanese schools was blamed partly on
mothers who no longer made school
lunches for their children.
Some observers also note that
survey said they feared that their colleagues would become nasty, that they
would miss the opportunity for promotion, that they might be forced to take a
salary cut, or that they would be trans-
AN AGING SOCIETY
Japan is the fastest aging society in the
world. Traditionally, care for elderly has
been family-centered, and the Japanese
Japanese schools seem to be collapsing
and point to a breakdown of discipline
government encourages this tradition.
ferred overseas and thus be separated
A special program called the "Silver
dents.
This is not a totally new develop-
from their family.
Plan" allows the government to subsidize companies who must hire temporary workers to replace employees who
Under the current administration
headed by the Liberal Democratic Party,
there has been a backlash from conser-
must take care of elderly family mem-
vatives, who feel that fathers should be
bers. Many companies also have proFamily Focus I June 2000
in elementary schools. Teachers, they
say, can no longer handle their stu-
ment, however. There has always been
some delinquency among Japanese children, but in the past they were shielded
by both their families and the media,
which meant that the general public
japanese Family continued on page F17
�"Visions for Families: Continuity and Change Across Cohorts and Generations"
Social Security:
Out of Step with the Modern Family
by Roc1Jcllc Stanfield with Cminna Nico/aott (produced for tiJc Retirement Project, a multiyear research effort begun in1997 by tltc Urban Institute)
ver the past six decades, Social
Security has played a crucial
role in lifting many elderly out
of poverty. But it has the capacity to do
more. Current benefit payments are
more than sufficient to almost erase
poverty among the 10.8 percent of
retirees who now are poor. However,
unless the program is adjusted to reflect
the reality of today's families, important
segments of the aging population-particularly widows, divorcees, other
unmarried women, and minoritiesface an increasingly uncertain future.
Ironically, certain Social Security
rules may lead to rising levels of elderly
poverty. Set in 1939, they have not kept
pace with the dramatic changes in family structure. Refonns that focus solely
on the program's financial structure, as
most current reform proposals do, overlook some of Social Security's most critical failings. Indeed, such limited
change is akin to adding gas to a 1939
Ford without modernizing its engine
and brakes or installing seatbelts and
airbags.
A typical couple retiring today can
expect lifetime benefits of more than
$250,000, and some individuals receive
windfalls of additional family benefits
often unrelated to their needs or the
contributions they have made. But the
percentage of people, especially
JAPANESE FAMILY
continued from page Fl6
didn't hear about it.
Blaming families is nothing new
either. In Japan, families have always
been blamed or criticized when one of
their members misbehaved. Fear of criticism is one reason why families tend to
be private and protect their boundaries.
This need for privacy is one of the
biggest challenges for anyone who tries
to study families in japan.
For more infonnation, contact
Masa11oUC@aol.com.
women, who will qualify under these
old rules will fall significantly. More
elderly women may face relative or
even absolute poverty in the future.
The political debate about reforming Social Security has all but ignored
questions about protecting the most
vulnerable seniors. Instead, talk has
focused on the merits of private saving
versus the current program structure
Social Security$ benefit stmcture reflects
tlte family stn1cture of 1935.
and on issues of the Social Security
Fund's solvency.
THE TREATMENT OF MARRIED
COUPLES
Since its inception in 1935, Social
Security has provided both benefits to
workers based on earnings and auxiliary benefits to spouses. The benefit
structure reflects that era's idealized
family structure-the husband as sole
earner with a dependent wife who
remains at home to raise children.
When the earner reaches retirement
age, the household receives Social
Security benefits totaling the earner's
allotment plus half that amount for the
spouse. If the earner dies, the surviving
spouse gets the full earner's share.
These provisions have not generally been updated to take into account
two-earner households. As long as both
spouses are alive, the second earner (or
earner with lower lifetime earningsusually the wife) receives either a benefit based on her own earnings or half of
the spouse's worker benefits, whichever
is larger. As two-earner households
become the norm and the "typical"
family becomes harder to define, the
failure of the Social Security system to
adapt results in glaring inequities.
DcnwgrazJhic, economic and social
changes. Today fewer people marry,
more women participate in the labor
force, and domestic relationships, in
general, are more fluid. Marriage rates
Family Focus I June 2000
are down in all segments of the population, but especially among minorities.
More people never marry, many never
remarry, and marriages do not last as
long.
The shape of the American workforce has changed even more dramatically than the makeup of the typical
household. Women's wholesale
entrance into the labor force after
World War II transformed family economics in ways unimaginable to the
1939 designers of Social Security rules.
The proportion of women as workers "has gone through the roof." The
biggest increases came in the 1970s and
1980s. By the 1990s, the proportion of
women in the workforce stabilized at
record highs. In 1948, only 32.7 percent of women were in the labor force;
by 1996, that proportion had nearly
doubled to 59.3 percent. Meanwhile,
between 1948 and 1996, the percentage
of men in the labor force had declined
from 86.6 percent to 74.9 percent.
As women spent more time in the
labor farce, their earnings went up both
in absolute terms and as a proportion
of household income. But, for the most
part, their earnings have remained less
than those of men. In 1980, women on
average contributed 22 percent of a
couple's earnings. By 1996, the proportion was 31 percent. In 1980, only 16
percent of wives provided at least half
the couple's earnings; 23 percent did so
by 1996.
In general, the higher the husband's earnings, the smaller the proportion of earnings brought home by the
wife. For example, wives ages 45 to 54
years (the prime earning years) whose
husbands earned in the lowest 10 percent contributed on average 60 percent
of the family's income. Wives in that
age group whose husbands' earnings
were above the 90 percent mark provided a mere 12 percent on average of the
household income. Because they grow
along with the primary earner's wages,
spousal benefits-initially designed to
help women avoid poverty in later
Social Security continuecl on page FlB
�"Visions for Families: Continuity and Change Across Cohorts and Generations"
SOCIAL SECURITY continued from!Jagc Fl7
years-grant significant benefits to the
rich.
Changes in social norms accompanied the demographic and economic
shifts in American households during
the latter decades of the 20th century.
The age of first marriage rose for both
men and women. It became common
for healthy, married women to work
outside the home regardless of their
child-raising responsibilities. And
domestic relationships became increasingly varied-single-parent families,
serial marriages, domestic partner relationships, and multigenerational families proliferated.
"Shifts in social norms invite modifications in established policy," Francis
G. Caro, director of the Gerontology
Institute at the University of
Massachusetts-Boston, warns. "tf a
major government program is to retain
public support, it must continue to
reflect prevailing social norms." Social
Security rules do not.
Resulting inequities. Since 1939,
while American household demographics, economics and social norms were
undergoing a huge metamorphosis,
Social Security rules remained basically
the same. As a result, inequities, anomalies, and a variety of unintended consequences crept into the system.
Accompanying the trend toward
two-earner households has been the
increasingly even split between earnings of husband and wife. But couples
whose earnings are more evenly divided
(say, one spouse earns $30,000 and the
other $20,000) almost always fare
worse than those whose earnings are
more lopsided ($40,000 versus
$10,000, for example). This inequity is
especially severe when it comes to survivor benefits for the working spouse
who makes slightly less than the primary earner.
The spouse who earns less than the
primary earner receives little or no
additional benefit for his or her work,
which can be a disincentive to work.
This disincentive applies both to socalled secondary workers who earn
much less than the primary worker and
to those who make almost the same
amount of money.
In two-earner households with lop-
sided incomes, the low-earning spouse
often gets nothing at retirement beyond
the spousal benefit that would have
been forthcoming regardless of whether
he or she worked. At the other end of
the spectrum, even the spouse who
earns almost as much as the primary
worker receives retired worker benefits
that are only slightly higher than
spousal benefits. And this is only while
the primary worker is still alive,
because survivor's benefits would then
exceed the secondary worker's retirement benefits.
Spousal benefits might appear to be
a fair way to compensate parents for
raising children, but a closer glance
quickly dispels this illusion. Since
spousal benefits are greater for those
married to higher earners, higherincome households in general get more
for raising their children than lowerincome households-producing the
perplexing result that child-raising in
high-income households is more valued
by society, at least from a benefit perspective.
Spousal and survivor benefits have
evolved to bear little relation to need or
equity. This especially short shrifts single mothers who work outside the
home.
THE TREATMENT OF DIVORCED
COUPLES
Social Security rules regarding divorce
have evolved over the decades, but like
spousal benefits, they still lag far
behind reality. The original 1939 legislation paid little attention to how the
breakup of a marriage would affect
spousal and survivor benefits. If a
divorced spouse who had spent little or
no time working lost eligibility to
spousal benefits at the end of a marriage, he or she could be left destitute
at an old age.
As the incidence of divorce grew,
this shortcoming could no longer be
overlooked. ln 1965, policymakers
Family Focus I June 2000
included a provision allowing the lower
earner of a married couple to keep his
or her benefits upon divorce, provided
the marriage had lasted at least 20
years. But divorce grew more commonplace, the duration of marriages shortened, and eventually this provision left
too many people unprotected. Spousal
and survivor benefits were extended to
those with at least 10 years of marriage
in 1977. If the primary worker remarries, the divorced spouse still gets the
benefits. If the divorced spouse remarries, however, any claim to benefits
ceases.
Demographic changes. Today, more
people get divorced after shorter marriages. And fewer divorced people are
getting remarried. In 1970, divorcees
who hadn't remarried totaled 4.3 million people-three percent of adults. By
1996, that number had quadrupled to
18.3 million and the proportion had
more than tripled to 10 percent. Of
every 10 couples who wed during the
1980s, the Census Bureau predicted
that four eventually would divorce.
According to Urban Institute calculations, while only six percent of retirees
were divorced in the early 1990s, 17
percent would be divorced in 2020.
In 1990, marriages that ended in
divorce averaged only seven years. Half
the marriages of divorced women ages
25 to 29 lasted less than 3.4 years.
Generally, the older the woman, the
longer her marriage. Thus, among
divorced women ages 60 to 69, less
than one-fifth had been married for
under 10 years. So, the 10-year rule
may affect only a small portion of current retirees, but it will probably disqualify far more people from receiving
spousal or survivor benefits in decades
to come as today's divorced twentysomethings reach retirement age.
Resulting inequities. Social
Security's 10-year rule for receiving
benefits after divorce, along with the
treatment of those who remarry, results
in bizarre anomalies and unequal
treatment. The dramatic increase in
divorce over the past 60 years will
only intensify these unintended
consequences as divorced individuals
enter retirement age.
Social Security continued an page Fl9
�Family Focus On•••
"Visions for Families: Continuity and Change Across Cohorts and Generations"
SOCIAl SECURITY
continued from page FlB
POVERTY AND THE CHANGING
FAMILY
Over the decades, Social Security
played a vital role in lifting the elderly
out of poverty. Thus, poverty rates
among seniors dropped from 35.2 percent in 1959 to 10.8 percent today. So,
the biggest irony in the mismatch
between new family structures and old
Social Security rules is the likelihood
that Social Security may actually bear
some responsibility for greater poverty
among more of the elderly. Already,
there is a division between men and
women. In 1997, the poverty rate for
women age 65 and older was l3 percent; for men that age it was only seven
percent. Because minority women are
both disproportionately unmarried and
in lower-paying jobs that offer less
chance for advancement, they are even
more likely to be poor.
The problem is more a result of
omission than commission: a growing proportion of the elderly are not
eligible for the auxiliary Social
Security benefits initially adopted to
help prevent poverty for women in old
age.
That's because proportion of
dependents and survivors is declining
as the percentage of retired workers
rises. This decline partly reflects the
increased labor force participation of
women. A growing proportion of working women are single heads of households whose earning power is limited
by their child-raising responsibilities.
The retired-worker benefits they will
receive on the basis of their contributions are likely to be relatively less than
the spousal or survivor benefits they
might have expected in an earlier eraeven after paying no taxes at all. These
statistics also reflect the decrease in the
proportion of women who qualify as
dependents and survivors because they
never married or they divorced before
they reached the 10-year cutoff for eligibility. Together, these and other projections foretell an increase in income
inequality among the elderly.
Income is becoming increasingly
unevenly distributed-the rich are getting richer and the poor are getting
poorer. Elderly poverty rates may
increase dramatically for the less educated and those who never married.
By 2020, the never-marrieds are
expected to account for 29.4 percent of
retirees below the poverty level, according to an Urban Institute projection.
As the new century progresses, the
country is growing older: the elderly
compose an ever-increasing portion of
the population. With the growth in
never-married and divorced elderly,
single seniors are expected to
make up a
Working
wives raised family
income by 150% over
50 years
An increase in the number of
married women in the work force
contributed to a.150 percent increase in
the real median income of married-couple
families between 1947 and 1997.
Since 1951, the proportion of married
women in the labor force has almost
tripled," said Arthur Jones, co-author with.
Shirley Smith of the anniversary chart book,
Income 1947 to 1997, published by the
U.S..Census Bureau.
According to Jones, this was a major
factor contributing to the gr?'Mhin.the.···
real median income of all married;c()~ple
families during. the. 50-y7ar period fr()m ·. .
59lin1997.Fop
$20,620in1947to $511
families with 'Yives in the paid lapor.
force, .the gain amounted tq 1S4p~r
c~~t from .$23,901 in 1949 to $60,669
in1997.
greater percentage of the
poor population in the fuLUre.
The bottom line is that overall
poverty rates among the elderly may
rise in both absolute and relative terms
because the proportion of aging
women-many of them minoritieswho will be disqualified from receiving
spousal and survivor benefits will
increase. Meanwhile, Social Security
benefits in general are rising and some
seniors are realizing windfall benefit
payments simply for being married.
Family Focus I June: 2000
THE NEED FOR REFORM
Social Security mles designed mainly
for one-earner, married-couple families
are out of place in today's world of twoearner families, single-parent households, short-lived marriages and
domestic relationships that don't
involve marriage at all. This mismatch
deters real benefit increases and may
even increase poverty among the elderly-the exact opposite of what Social
Security was designed to achieve.
Fortuitously, Social Security reform
is a priority on many agendas.
Unfortunately, debate on how to
approach saving and how to ensure the
fund's solvency has squeezed out other
issues. Still, some current proposals
widen the discussion by seeking to
amend the benefit fonnula or the marriage mles to bring Social Security in
line \vith today:S family.
One such proposal offers greater
protection to the low-income elderly
by establishing a minimum benefit. No
matter how low one's retired-worker
benefit or spousaVsurvivor allotment,
the elderly who work the required
number of years (and their spouses
or survivors) would be entitled to a
minimum payment-usually pegged
at some relative poverty threshold.
Another proposal looks at ways
to implement earnings or benefit
sharing, combining a couple's earnings and dividing the credits
between them. If they divorce,
each half of the shared earnings or
benefit is portable, so many of the
inequities faced by two-earner
couples are removed along with
the arbitrary 10-year rule. More thorough analysis of these and other alternatives is required.
Copy1ight © Febmmy 2000. The Urban
Institute. All1ights reserved. RqJiintcd
with pcnnission. The views expressed arc
those of the authors and should not be
alllibutccl to the Urban Institute, its
tmstecs or its funclcrs. To read the entire
article (complete with tables and case
studies), sec www.urbaninstitutc.org/
reti rem en Ureports/aut_a _step. html.
J
�"Visions for Families: Continuity and Change Across Cohorts and Generations"
Promoting lntergenerational Wellness Through
the 3C Model
by Maxine Hammonds-Smith, Ph.D., CFLE, Associate Professor in Family and Coll5umcr Sciences and Director for the Center on Aging and Hmi:;;:ons
Intcrgcncrational Wdlncss, Tc..xas Southcm University
ost large cities have populations of medically underserved
individuals and families who
live in depressed areas with little affordable housing and few businesses-such
as grocery stores-that serve residents.
In these neighborhoods, there are also
few health care and social service
providers, and they may be dirficult to
access due to language barriers and the
providers' lack of cultural sensitivity.
In Greater Houston, we have successfully used the 3C model to promote
wellness among these hard-to-serve
populations in seven "priority areas" of
the city. The program addresses wellness needs across the life span "from
womb to tomb."
M
THREE COMPONENTS
The Campus provides the necessary
leadership development, research and
technical assistance. Its staff identifies
resources in the community and serves
as the catalyst for creating coalitions
that include l) faith-based organizations, 2) health care, 3) social services,
4) volunteers and 5) community leadership.
The Church is the focal point of
the 3C model. We began by asking
ministers from over 200 churches in
the priority areas to identify grass-roots
leaders in their congregations. One-half
of the ministers also participated in
community outreach. They organized
and trained church groups in coalition
building and helped set-up an infrastructure for linkages with other
churches to promote wellness ministries to their communities.
The other half
of the ministers
were involved in
developing a consortium of churches that serve as
advisors for the
Center on Aging
and Horizons
Maxine Hammond.slntergenerational
Smitli, Ph.D., CFLE
Wellness ( CoA
HIW) at Texas Southern University.
The Community at large provides
leadership, health care services, social
services outreach, as well as contributing volunteer time and resources
through institutions, lay people, and
for-profit and non-profit agencies. The
community component functions at
various levels and at various times,
depending on the need. A Community
Leadership Model, which includes a
strategic plan for carrying out the wellness projects, guides this component.
Participating health care providers
include hospitals, health departments,
mobile units and health professionals in
private practice. They work with the
CoA HIW staff in identifying, planning
and implementing wellness programs
and in providing health care services.
Home health care agencies are recruited
to assist the CoA HIW staff to serve the
needs of homebound persons.
The health care providers collaborate with churches, community centers
and other agencies to staff well ness
clinics at various locations in the community. The CoA HIW staff serves as
an outreach arm for the health care
team and disseminates information
about wellness, healthy living and services available in the priority areas.
TRAINING LEADERS
We use a 12-step process to train
grass-root leaders, concentrating on 12
major areas of total wellness: spiritual,
emotional, physical, recreational, relational, social and cultural, intellectual,
financial, vocational, communal, civic
and environmental health. Twelve related affirmations are used in the training
process as well.
So far we have trained 72 volunteer
community volunteer leaders in the
building of community coalitions.
These leaders returned to their communities and identified 10 more volunteers
whom they trained using the same
process.
Using the 3C model, we have
mobilized the efforts of campus,
church, and community to identify and
link existing resources to promote well-
ness among people with few resources.
We believe continuous coalition-building by trained, grass-roots volunteers
will result in community-based and
culturally sensitive health care and
social services managed by neighborhood residents. And this in turn will
mean better health for individuals and
families throughout the life span.
For nwrc infonnation, contact
maxi nc hs@w orl dn ct. at t. net.
�Features
continued from page 10
the article by Mary ]o Czaplewski on
this page about this marvelous venue.
As you can see, we have numerous
exciting New Features for our 2000
Conference. These examples are just a
Penumbra Theatre Performance
s part of the Males in Families
which should appeal to the NCFR audi-
Pre-conference, a special per-
ence that should be aware of the power
sample. All of this in addition to the
long-standing items of NCFR that make
I
formance of a new play will be
offered at the Penumbra Theatre in St.
Paul, MN. The play is "The Trial of
One Short-Sighted Black Woman vs.
people return year after year-presentations in varied formats featuring topquality new research and application
of research to practice.
simply, "The Trial" for short. It is written by Marcia L. Leslie and directed by
Paul Carter Harrison. The play presents
We look forward in the next NCFR
Report to highlighting the more than 15
additional Special sessions we have
prepared for the 2000 Conference in
Minneapolis.
Mammy Louise and Safreeta Mae" or
us with a provocative, post-modern
The November lOth, Friday
evening performance is for N CFR
members only and is part of a tribute to
the late John McAdoo. Proceeds from
the box office will go to build the
endowment fund being set up in Prof.
McAdoo's name. There are a limited
comedy that honors the strength, digni-
number of seats available at the
ty, fortitude, and extraordinary achievements of African American women in
in the United States in 1995, the story
Penumbra Theatre so be sure to purchase your ticket early. More details
on this performance will be available
soon, but for now plan on spending an
entertaining evening at the Penumbra
draws heavily on historical images that
are subsequently put on trial as the
protagonist seeks a personal sense of
good cause.
For additional information please
spiritual development. "The Trial"
clearly has a broader message though
call William Allen (612) 822-3813 orr._,
e-mail william.d.allen-l@tc.umn.edu.lll'
defiance of slavery and its modern legacy of racism, sexism and classism. Set
Elaine Anderson, Ph.D.
2000 Almual Conference Program Chair
E-mail: caS@mnail.mnd.cdlt
Cindy Wintc1; C.M.P.
Conference Coordinator
E-mail: wintcrsc@ncjl:org
of cultural images to shape familial
experiences.
on Friday, Nov. lOth, and helping a
Gala Presidential Reception at MN History Center
he Minnesota History Center in
T
the shadows of the Minnesota
State Capitol in St. Paul is co-hosting N CFR:S Presidential Reception on
Friday, November 10, 2000 from 7:00
p.m. to 11:00 p.m. Brian Horrigan,
Exhibits Curator of the Center will lead
a tour of the Families Exhibits and
speak about them.
Attending this event promises to be
a personally unforgettable experience
for all of you, so mark it on your con-
ference schedule as a MUST! Why?
Family-a universal human experience,
evokes immediate and sometimes
intense emotions in all of us. So each of
a gourmet restaurant.
includes an exhibit on African American
The focal point of NCFR's tour and
families. Themes such as families-public
and private, families and individuals
reception is the Families Exhibit which
is unique in the United States for its con-
within them, relationships, and diversity
ceptual approach to the complex experience of family and what all families DO
related materials as you browse through
regardless of time, place, or social condi-
the thoughtfully constructed displays.
tions. Namely, families coming together,
This exceptional exhibit has something for everyone. It was well researched
using consulting teams from Anthro-
coming apart, taking care of members,
finding a place in the world, balancing
individual and collective needs, working
of family forms are evident in all of the
pology, Family Social Science, History
and Family Therapy. In-depth audience
and getting along, and making memories.
The materials, images, and stories in
research and focus groups were also con-
the display are from Minnesota families,
sulted. NCFR supported the initial plan-
and include some special social, econom-
ning and assisted in obtaining a grant
from the National Endowment for the
Humanities to mount the exhibit in 1994.
of emotions and memories. There you
ic, political, and demographic conditions
from Minnesota history that have shaped
family life. But the exhibit allows you to
will see yourself and your family while
placing this reflected image in the
framework of history.
Founded in 1849, before Minnesota
actually enter and interact with the various settings in which family drama
occurs. For example, the front porch,
attic, kitchen, family auto, bedroom. It
arrangements committee will be assisting
with logistics once you anive. If you are
gained statehood, the Minnesota
Historical Society moved into this mag-
also provides some powerful 3-dimensional story telling that shows how
nificent new building in 1992. Within
the spacious 427,000 square foot edifice, you will find numerous exhibits,
objects accrue meaning in families, how
collecting is done by families, how messages about gender, age, ethnicity, race,
class values and beliefs, conflict and car-
us brings to this exhibit a different set
central and genealogical research facilities, outreach and educational program-
ming, two wonderful gift shops (exclusively open to NCFR that evening), and
ing are conveyed through material family
culture. You will also see themes emerg-
ing throughout your tour, which also
NCFR RcrJ{)rl
I
11
June 2000
Buses \vill transport you from the
Hilton Hotel to the museum and the local
attending the play at the Penumbra
Theatre to raise money for the john
McAdoo Fund, buses will take you
immediately after the play to the reception. We look forward to sharing a very
special evening with you all.
Mwy ]o Czaplewsl~i. CFLE
Co-dwil; Local AJTangernmls
E~mail: cz.aplewshiny@juno.comp
�International Section
he purpose of the International
Section is to unite members within N CFR who arc concerned with
intcmational family outreach and
research scholarship; teaching about
cross cultural family and human development; research that deals with (international) comparative family science;
international family policy and
research; multinational and international family programs (e.g., related to parenting, family health, family life education and enrichment, mate selection,
intergenerational relations, marriage,
divorce, family stress, etc.); cross-cultural family strengths and supports;
sharing information about effective
methods, materials, programs, and
processes related to cross cultural family issues; assist with coordinating or
collaborating international research,
education, practice experiences; developing strategies for the development of
international family programs or evaluation of such programs; planning or
sponsoring pertinent program elements
and topics for the annual NCFR meeting; promoting interchange among section members. If you are interested in
these topics-you should be a member
of the International Section.
There is an excellent program
being prepared for the 2000 NCFR
meeting in Minneapolis. The
International Section will support two
symposia, one of which will be cosponsored with the Family Science
Section, two paper sessions (featuring
seven papers), three round tables, and
fourteen posters. The abstracts were of
high quality and the program promises
to be very exciting. We will try to post
more details about the International
Section program in a summer or early
autumn Ncwslctta
T
JAN TROST AWARD
Last year the International Section initiated the jan Trost Award for
Outstanding Contributions to
Comparative Family Studies (the first
award was given to jan Trost). The
purpose of the award is to honor an
individual for significant contributions
to the understanding of family in crosscultural contexts. It is neither a 'lifetime achievement' award nor one for the
best research article of the last year.
Rather the goal is to highlight someone,
who over the course of a number of
years, has advanced the field through
some combination of research publications and presentations, textbooks, and
service to organizations and journals
that deal with comparative family issues.
OTHER ~EWS
l have just returned from the N CFR
Program Planning Committee, the
N CFR Policy Committee, and the
Inaugural Public Policy and Education
Conference. It was a full but energizing
3-1/2 days. The Policy Committee will
mostly carry out its work via e-mail and
will begin to formalize the proposals
that develop between now and
November at the annual meeting. The
Inaugural Public Policy and Education
Conference was a very fine foundation
for future work. And, the Program
Planning meeting was gratifying for me
because so many of you did the hard
work of developing fine proposals,
reviewing abstracts, and making recommendations. The International Section
had excellent proposals and few snags.
Thank you all for your efforts and contributions.
On another, but unrelated, note, I
am sharing my news with colleagues in
the International Section membership
that my proposal to Fulbright was
accepted. Thus, I am planning a sabbatical year with my family at Kenyatta
University in Nairobi, Kenya where I
will be conducting research and teaching with colleagues in the Department
of Family and Consumer Studies. While
I will remain as involved as I can be via
e-mail, Raeann Hamon (Vice Chair)
will perform all functions that I cannot
carry out from Africa.
Stcp11an M. \.Yilson
Chail; Intcmational Section
Plwnc: 859-257-8900
E-muil: swilson@pop.uhy.cclu
Education & Enrichment Section
he 2000 NCFR Annual
Conference will be terrific! I will
not resist the temptation to say it
will be an educational and enriching
experience for those who attend. Dr.
Pat Nelson, CFLE, Chair-elect of
Education &: Enrichment, has put
together an excellent program from the
100 proposals submitted to the
Education & Enrichment section
(thanks to all of you who reviewed proposals and got your feedback to Pat on
time). Also, E &: E is co-sponsoring
with the Ethnic Minorities, Feminism
and Family Studies, Family and Health,
and Religion and Family Life Sections a
pre-conference summit on Marheting
and Positioning Family Professionals in
the Fields of Gerontology and Geliatlics.
Dr. Maxine Hammonds-Smith, CFLE is
T
NCFR Rqmrt I June 2000
12
coordinating the planning effort for this
summit-see the article on (page 13) of
this issue of the Report.
We are experimenting with a new
format this falL Some sessions will combine thematically linked papers and
workshops. Our hope is the papers will
establish a good perspective or starting
point for the workshop experience.
Sessions sponsored by Education &
Enrichment will cover a variety of topics. A session on "Adolescents, Their
Families and Their Futures," will
address adolescent and parent perceptions, desires and experiences of their
family life. "Family Processes,
Leadership and Satisfaction" includes
papers that address parenting by teens
Education continued on page 13
�Summit: Marketing and
Positioning Family Professionals
in the Fields of Gerontology
and Geriatrics
n exciting pre-conference sum-
mit, sponsored by the Education
and Enrichment, Ethnic
Minorities, Family and Health,
Feminism and Family Studies, and
Religion and Family Life Sections, is
being planned for this fall's annual conference. Through a collaborative effort
with the Geriatric Education Centers
from Texas and Minnesota and the
Minnesota Area Agencies on Aging this
summit \vill examine the importance of
bringing a family systems and family
strengths perspective to the care of family members requiring long-tenn care
and their family member caretakers.
The summit will examine both the
impact and the contextual nature of
long-term care and how family
resilience can be supported. Historically
family professionals have had a limited
active voice and role in the delivery of
health care and associated geriatric
services to the aged and their family
members. Yet, family members are often
the ones that are providing support and
Education
co11tillucd from page 12
and their parents, adolescent sexual
experiences and multigenerational family directions. Other sessions address
diversity in parenting; the role of family
the cultural and educational obstacles
that have traditionally limited medical
in anger management in children and
youth; divorce education; marital cynicism and satisfaction; updates on parenting and parent education; a demonstration of a web-based research methods class; and ethical issues in parent
treatments. Pulling together practitioners and scholars from geriatric services,
and family studies, the summit will first
and family life education.
A final unrelated note: the first
NCFR Public Policy Conference was a
focus on the changing needs of aging
families from both a geriatric and family
clear success judging from the number
of congressional staff who were visited
centered perspective. Together a dia-
logue will develop through workshops
by NCFR members to introduce the
staff to the existence of N CFR and the
from these perspectives on how to best
resources we offer as family scientists
prepare the family professionals of
and practitioners. Clearly most of the
staff persons were not aware of NCFR
today and tomorrow to work with our
aged populations as well as \vith other
professionals serving them.
We expect this to be an exciting,
informative and interactive summit that
you \vill not want to miss! We look forward to seeing you in November.
Michael Fleming, CFLE
Summit Planning Committee
Education & Enliclimenl Section
Phone: 319-273-6301
E-mail: fleming@csbs.cshs. w1i.edu
and what we could offer to them.
Kudos to Michael Benjamin and his
staff for this initial conference!
Howard L Bames, CFLE
Clwil; Education & Emiclnnent Section
PIJone; 319-273-2358
E-mail: BamrsH@uni.edu or
Howard.Bamcs@uni.cdu
Section News continued on page .l4
assistance to older adults and disabled
family members. Bringing a family systems perspective to teams delivering
geriatric services and long-term care
services to families provides many benefits to the families. It infuses the care
planning process with opportunities to
What challenges and opportunities lie ahead for
families living in the 21" Century? How can
professionals who provide educational and
support services prepare to meet the needs of our
nations' children, youth and families? Help
answer these questions by responding to this call
for proposals. Submit your 500 word proposal
addressing one of the following tracks:
•:• Managing Resources
•!•Strengthening Families and Developing Youth
•!• Improving Health and Nutrition
•!• Developing Leadership and Volunteerism
empower family members, to help them
understand the context of the situation,
to identify and utilize resources, to support their efforts to maintain significant
relationships, and to help them manage
their transitions while remaining
grounded in their beliefs and traditions.
Furthermore, family professionals who
have been trained in the delivery of
educational, enrichment and early
intervention initiatives can serve as a
key member of the professional team
serving the aged.
Request details from:
University of Arkansas, Cooperative Extension
Service; P. 0. Box 391, Little Rock, AR 72203
Dr. Judith Urich: jurich@uaex.edu; (501) 6712066 or Dr. Swama Viegas: sviegas@uaex.edu
(501) 671-2295
Increasingly family professionals of
today, and those of tomorrow, will be
involved and impacted by the issues of
caring for our aging society. Family pro-
fessionals have the potential to help
health care systems overcome some of
NCFR Report I June 2000
13
�Section News
continued from page B
Family Therapy Section
CALL FOR STUDENT PAPERS
he Family Therapy Section has
established two awards each valued at $400 that will be given
T
annually to two students whose papers
are selected from a blind review process
as making a significant contribution to
research and scholarship in family therapy. Any student member in the Family
Therapy Section is eligible to submit a
paper for consideration. The work must
be original and may be the product of a
thesis, dissertation, or other independent work completed by the student. The
review process for papers submitted for
the awards is independent of the review
therapy theory, research, practice, or
training are encouraged. Papers will be
judged on the following criteria: presentation, originality, scientific merit, and
importance to the field of marital and
family therapy. A letter of support from
Four copies of the paper and a
cover letter stipulating the author's stu-
dent membership in the N CFR Family
Therapy Section, the name of the student's major advisor, and the names of
required. The letter should stipulate the
others involved in the project should be
submitted to: Dr. Stephen A. Anderson,
Family Therapy Section Member-at-
original contributions of the student to
the paper and elaborate on the contribution of others involved in the preparation of the manuscript or the research
team involved in the project.
School of Family Studies, Box 2058,
348 Mansfield Road, Storrs, CT 06269.
Submissions will be blind reviewed
by members of the Family Therapy
Papers should be double-spaced
and a maximum of 25 pages including
August l, 2000.
the student's major advisor is also
Large, University of Connecticut,
Section. The deadline for submission is
references. Style and reference format
for presentation at the annual conference, although students are encouraged
to participate in both.
should follow the Publication Manual
of the American Psychological
Association (4th edition). Additional
details about the guidelines to be fol-
Papers addressing the development
lowed appear in each January issue of
Stephen A. Anderson, Ph.D.
University of Connecticut
Scliool of Family Studies
U-58, 348 Mansfield Road
Stom, CT 06269
Family Relations.
Phone: 860-486-3865
that is conducted for papers submitted
or integration of marriage and family
Exciting Pre-Conference on Males and Families
he Males in Families Focus Group
and the Ethnic Minorities Section
nity to explore some of the less traveled
paths of male familial experience. These
of healthy masculinity, and shaping the
of NCFR are teaming up with the
include scholarship and practice with
definition of what it means to be a male
Minnesota Council on Family Relations
to present a pre-conference workshop
entitled "The Diverse E::\:periences of
boys and young men as they develop
family member in the 21st Century.
T
experiences are changing the boundaries
patterns of responsibility and intimacy.
Proposals for presentations are being
Other topics might include the signifi-
solicited now and through june 20,
Males in Families." This is an aU-day
event scheduled for Thursday,
November 9 at the Minneapolis Hilton
Hotel, the site of this year's Annual
cant work that older males do in
extended family and community settings such as being stepfathers, uncles,
grandfathers, and mentors.
2000. For more information about the
conference or to request a copy of the
Conference.
The workshop will be a success if
participants understand how all of these
The workshop is an opportunity for
Call for Proposals contact William Allen
at 612-822-3813 or ;villiam.d.allenl@tc.umn.edu, or Glen Palm at
320-255-2129.
researchers and practitioners to contin-
ue the dialogue on male familial experiences and has two major goals:
l) To highlight current fatherhood
research and trends in practice with
men and their families, and
2) To encourage further exploration of
other significant experiences males have
in families across the lifespan.
There will be several opportunities
for participation available including
paper sessions, round tables and work-
shops, and informational displays.
Three symposiums have also been
scheduled with distinguished panelists.
In addition to exploring the current
"state of the art" regarding fatherhood,
this event will also provide an opportu-
NCFRREpORT7.Family. Focl.ls·.on •••. call for Topic Papers
IsSUe
TopiC
Sept. 2000 · Irnpacfof ~heJ1lsti~e' s'Yitem on Families
· Dec. 2000
Children/Adolescent's Mental Health/Substa1lee
· i\?11se Treann.ent.·~ndl'revention
(topic to. be deteJ"IDined) ·
Mar. 2001
Deadline
Jtlly17·
· Oct.l6
']ail.l6>
We cmitint!O:tai.el~()meYo!lr ~u~~tions ar1d off~rst~. wr{t~ Orb; w)lliug(~ be •..
intervie>Vedby,ourj?t1J:nal~t, J:)r.)':lapcyGiguere;••·'•··· ofth~setql?:i~,o~lmo;vof.•.
.··· .·.·•················.••..••.• ·. •····; . \
I[ypu ha~e.da~, research?r.pr~.~tiCe artie!~ fm any
outst)ndipgpersons .who. ear1be,intervk\Ved or tapped r,le~~e call o; e,m~il ~iSh~el
Benjatl}inim;llediately. ~t. SBB-78 1;9331, (!J{t. 2I.or mber!ja~(ij)pefr.o:g·~~ • [ < "•c
Letus hearJI'orri yotl ab 0ut. dtllertopics that y9u would like to;,;ee.p!lbllshedin<>·
·
.
the Repo1't.
NCFR Itqwrt I June 2000
14
�Members
istic marital assumptions and expecta-
tions ("myths") and the realities ("wedded wisdom") understood by those who
his column features news of NCFR
promotions, awards, career changes
of interest to all members. \\'lite to
us (e-mail: harclandd@ncfwrg) and let us
1m ow what you arc doing.
David Knox, East Carolina
have carved out successful long-term
University, is the author of the new
Website: http://1stbooks.com.
T
marriages. The book may be used by
premarital or married couples as a communication tool; by pastors and others
who work with couples; and, as an
adjunct text for marriage courses.
revised book, The Divorced Dads
Survival Booh, published by Perseus
Books. The book reviews the importance of fathers to the emotional and
social development of their children
and suggesLS ways to minimize the negative impact of divorce. Specific chapters are also devoted to mediation, gay
dads and the new partner.
Cary E. Lantz, Liberty University,
has written Shifting Sands and
Foundation Stones: 101 MaiTiage Myths
and the Wisdom of the Wedded, distributed by 1st Books. This book is a tool
to aid in closing the gap between ideal-
In Memoriam
Donations
T
he following persons have contributed donations since December
1999. Their generosity aids NCFR
in continuing its programs and awards.
General Fund
Gretchen R. Batra-Brevard, N C
Ruth Jewson Student
Scholarship Fund
Mrs. H. Westlake-Wheaton, IL
Mary Jo Czaplewski Fellowship
].R. Eshleman-Detroit, MI
N
CFR recently received notices of
the deaths of the following
For more information on contributing
members:
to NCFR, contact:
Michael L. Benjamin,
Dr. Floyd M. Martinson, retired
Gustavus Adolphus College professor,
was known worldwide for his pioneer-
NCFR Executive Director
ing research on Child Sexuality. In
1996, he received a lifetime achieve-
3989 Central Ave. NE, Suite 550
Minneapolis, MN 554 21
Toll free: 888-781-9331 ext. 21 or
ment award from the International
mbenjamin@ncfr.org
Society for the Scientific Study of
Sexuality. Dr. Martinson had been a
member of NCFR since 1952, served
on the NCFR Board of Directors, was
active in the Research and Theory
Section and a frequent presenter at the
annual conference. He died April 23,
2000 at the age of 83 at his home in St.
Peter, Minnesota after a long illness.
Dr. Bernard Farber passed away
May 5, 2000. He was a professor with
the Department of Sociology, Arizona
State University. Dr. Farber joined
NCFR in 1955, served as an Associate
Editor ofjotmtal of Marriage and the
Family (1965-1969), and presented at
numerous NCFR annual conferences.
" ... He was truly one of the grand old
scholars of family sociology who made
fundamental contributions early in the
discipline's development that helped to
shape how we think about families,"
stated Gary Peterson, professor and
colleague, Arizona State Sociology
Dept.
Dawn S. Gruen, CFLE, was a selfemployed Family Therapist/Consultant
in Seattle, Washington. She had been
an N CFR member and CFLE since
1987.
NCFR Rcporl I June 2000
15
�~CFR
Active State Affiliates are Important
hy is it important
to have
active state affiliates of NCFR?
Two very important reasons
are to gain recognition for the profes-
sion and to influence public policy on
behalf of families. Right now, as the
wave of interest in mandated public
school classes in marriage education
and parent education is high, family
malting policymak-
nection happen: for our students and
ourselves.
lf you are interested in becoming
active in your state, check out the
ers aware of the
experience and
background that
Affiliates link on the N CFR website
and get in touch with the president of
your state or regional affiliate. If you
our professionals
possess. Not only
will this benefit our
graduates looking
for family-related
positions, but it
Lane H. Powell,
scientists have an unprecedented
opportunity to be recognized as trained
will also acquaint
professionals in the field.
policymakers with the great resources
But the recognition won't come
unless we mobilize-state by state-to
inform policymakers of who we are and
what we can do. Othenvise, those rec-
ognized as "qualified" teachers of these
courses will be limited to the familiar
disciplines: social workers, psychologists and (in the case of marriage education) ordained ministers. Our gradu-
ates will once again be left on the sidelines, as they frequently have been in
the past when other state-approved
social and family service jobs were
developed.
An active state affiliate can lobby
for the family science profession and
the family life educator certification by
Ph.D., CFLE
are interested in forming a state affiliate, contact me at:
powellb@LLANO.net, and I'll be glad
to confer with you. Let's maximize our
resources and our influence!
they have in their own state. Hopefully,
this will lead to more interface between
lawmakers and family scientists. Our
experience at the Public Policy
Conference in Washington, D.C. this
spring confirmed that few lawmakers
were even aware that we existedl All
seemed glad to see us and to learn
about NCFR and the resources we can
provide.
But it is important that we, and our
students, understand that policy happens at all levels of government and not
just at the federal level, which is often
overwhelming and hard to grasp. An
active state affiliate can provide the link
and the momentum to make that con-
Lane H. Powell, CFLE
President, Association of Councils
E-mail: powcllb@llano.nct
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Leadership Renewal: Leaving a Legacy
hat will you as the president of
your affiliate (or any other
board member) leave as a legacy after you have moved on from the
role as an affiliate leader? The
rent involvement? In what direction do
you want to channel your energy to help
make a difference in the long run?
This fun and challenging workshop
is a gift to all affiliate presidents from
Association of Councils pre-conference
the Association of Councils. The event
workshop at the NCFR Annual Meeting
in Minneapolis will address this perti-
includes dinner. If other members of
affiliate boards want to attend this
unique workshop, their fee will primarily be the cost of the buffet dinner.
Seldom are affiliate board members
nent topic. Dr. Bonnie Braun, University
of Maryland, College Park, will lead a
four-hour workshop on "Leaving a
Legacy." Bonnie, a member ofNCFR,
will take the participants through a
invited to these "presidents only"
process of looking back, looking around,
ence theme, the more persons who can
and looking ahead. What have you done
in the past that you are pleased about
your investment of time, energy and
gifts? What is it you want to do now
that can make a difference in your cur-
events, but in light of the NCFR confer-
Prior to the Legacy workshop, the
Presidents will meet for an orientation
session and to receive the handbook of
the Association of Councils. Plan to
attend these two pre-conference events.
To do so, you will need to get to the
hotel by 2:00p.m. on Thursday,
November 9, 2000. The Presidents' orientation goes from 2:00- 4:15p.m. The
buffet dinner begins at 4:30p.m. and
the workshop begins at 5:30 p.m. and
concludes at 9:30p.m. Plan to sign up
as soon as possible. Contact me if you
have any questions.
attend from an affiliate and take on the
mantle of a "legacy Ieaver," the more
exciting and rewarding the affiliate's
growth and influence upon the professionals in your arena.
NCFR RcJmrt I June 2000
16
Blitton Wood, CFLE
Program Chair, Association of Councils
E-mail: bJittoltw@swbcll.nct
�AOC Delegates Report from Washington
he inaugural NCFR Public Policy
Conference and a NCFR Public
Policy Committee workshop were
held in Washington, D.C. on Aprill3
and 14, 2000. Five representatives from
the Association of Councils, including
Thomas Chibucos, Walter Kawamoto,
Tom Rane, Briuon Wood, CFLE, and I,
attended. I recently interviewed Britton,
Walter, and Thomas about their ex-periences on Capitol Hill. By all accounts the
Public Policy Meeting was a success, and
we'd like lo thank Michael Benjamin for
recognizing and filling this need within
our organization. During the two days on
CapiLDI Hill, valuable lessons were
learned, important political contacts
forged, and discussions continued
regarding the role of NCFR in public policy. The conference began with a workshop for Public Policy Committee members, followed by issues briefings, and an
orientation on conducting dfective
CapiLDl Hill visits. Members also had the
opportunity to attend receptions organized by Senator Paul Wellstone (MN),
and District of Columbia Delegate
Eleanor Holmes Norton.
A lop priority of the public policy
committee is making our Senators and
Representatives aware of NCFR and
highlighting our potential contributions
lO public policy regarding families. One
way we set out to do this was by arranging "Hill visits" with key lawmakers and
their staffs. Walter mel with the staffs of
Patty Murray, Dianne Feinstein, and Bob
Matsui, and had a chance to talk with
Patsy Mink Britton met with the staffs
of Senators Tom Harkin and Kay Bailey
Hutchinson, Tom Chibucos visited with
Senator Paul Wellstone, and I mel with
some of Senator Max Cleland's staff.
While the folks we visited were very
interested in hearing from family scholars, most had never heard of NCFR.
Britton VVood summed it up in this way,
" ... neither [of the offices we visited]
knew who we were or what we were
about. Other organizations may have
better name recognition, but they may
not have the sources of research data
that we have. We need to become better
known. We need to embark on an
awareness track."
Our delegates agree that in addition
to name recognition, another important
goal of our committee is to represent our
organization as nonpartisan and working
T
in the best interests of families. VValter
feels that this can be done by "gelling
noted Republican and Democratic
national figures to be honorary members
of the committee and by specifically
meeting to highlight family supportive
agenda/policy ideas that ... both sides
can support." Thomas Chibucos suggests
that NCFR continue to ".. .fully engage
policy issues in a manner that does not
add to the cacophony of shrillness, personal attack, and the demonization of
persons who differ on this or that issue."
Both note that this is not an easy task.
Tom also reminds us that "engagement
in policy issues has to be undertaken
with a long view in mind. American policy development is ... an incremental
process. Rarely are there vast and quick
sea changes in policy."
When asked about what they gained
from their visits to Washington, delegates
mentioned the very existence of a public
policy conference as a highlight, and felt
that their visits to Capitol Hill were both
productive and memorable. Interacting
with other NCFR members interested in
public policy was a real plus, as was the
amount of interest in family issues shown
by lawmakers and their staffers. Our delegates would like to challenge and
encourage all NCFR members to become
more involved in public policy issues at
the local, stale and national levels.
Denise Do1mclly
5ccretalyl1im.sure~;
Association of Cowtcils
E-mail: DeJJiseDS@aol.com
~
1f1l
Indiana Council on Family Relations
"0
ne hundred years from now, it
will not matter what hind of
em- I drove, what hind of
house I lived in, how much was in my
banh account, nor what my clothes loohcd
lilze. But the world may be a little better
because I was important in the life of a
child." Hallmark Cards.
Two years from now, at the end of
my tenure as your president, I hope the
world is a little better because of the
important contributions made by the
Indiana Affiliate of the National Council
on Family Relations. You have elected a
board that is highly talented, commiued
to families, and a joy lo work with. My
role is to orchestrate their work.
Therefore, we have already begun to
organize around the lCFR Conference
2001 focus chosen by the previous
board: "Families in the age of high-tech
and information." That focus was crafted
under the leadership of Rebecca "Becky"
Adams, the immediate past president.
She led us in small group discussions around the functions of and hurdles facing families al the dawning of the
21st century The board concluded that
the functions of families, fundamentally,
are the same as in previous eras: providing for the economic, emotional, and
spiritual needs of family members across
the lifespan. However, it was clear that,
in this age, these traditional functions
were set in a global village that is already
NCFR Report I June 2000
17
well into the process of shifting to a
high-tech, information-based economy.
Consequently, families need new knowledge and skills to successfully surmount
the hurdles.
The current board and president are
poised now to make its contribution to
making the world a little better by providing critical knowledge to improve the
lives of children and their families. To
make that contribution, we will maintain
our sights on the NCFR mission:
"The National Council on Family
Relations (NCFR) provides a fonun for
family researchers, educators, and practitioners to share in t11c development and dissemination of 1mowlcdge about families
and family relationships, establishes professional standards, and worhs to promote
family well-being."
We especially invite practitioners to
share in the process of making the world
a little beuer for Hoosier families. Thanks
to Laura Cobb, Purdue doctoral student,
we will formalize a proposal to invite
practitioners around the state to become
an active part of this important work.
ll takes a village to make the world
better for families in this age of high-tech
and information. So, don't be shy, come
on along!
Lorraine C. Blaclmwn, CFLE President,
Indiana Council 011 Family Relations
E-mail: lblaclmu!@iupui.ccltt
Affiliate Connection continued on page 18
�Affiliate Connection
continued from page 17
Michigan Council
on Family Relations
he Michigan Council on Family
Relations is alive and weB! We are
currently doing a membership
drive so if you would like to be a member, now is a great time to join. Each
member will receive an extra journal
with their membership (while supplies
last). So hurry and join!
We are proud of our journal,
Michigan Family Review (MFR), and
suggest that if you are interested in the
focus that we are reviewing, the journal
will be an added resource for both you
and your classes. The purpose of the
journal is to publish articles and review
critical contemporary problems confronting families and practitioners who
provide service to them. Articles are
intended to be succinct statements of
issues, research findings, theoretical
ideas, po1icies, or program recommendations that will be useful in practice.
Each issue focuses on a single theme.
Readers and contributors include educators at many levels in several fields,
social service staff, researchers, auorneys, medical and health personnel,
clergy, and public policy makers, as
well as participants in community and
citizen-action groups, and family members. Views presented in articles will
not necessarily represent views of MFR
editors or advisory board or the MCFR
board or membership. Later additions
of the journals are as follows and some
are still available:
T
Living & Dying...Family DecisionsVolume 1, 1995
Congratulations
to New Affiliate P1oesidents!!
.
.
.: ..
..
California--Walter•r<awamoto
·Indiana . L()fraine Blad<Illan; CFLE
Oldahoma-~m:i Beasley
· Texa:PcLinda Ladd
· Utah'-I<aihyi'i~rcy
Taiwal1, ROC-,.
fi5iang,MingJustil1e Knng
Military Fa'}'ilies--Howard· Harshaw; CFLE
Attaching Violence C.. ., Prevention
Intcn'cntion-Volume 2, Issue 1,
Spring, 1996
From Welfare to Well Being: Families
Economics-Volume 2, Issue 2,
Winter, 1996-97
Fathers and Families in a Diverse and
Changing World-Volume 3, Issue 1,
Winter 1997- 1998
IntcJgenerational Relationships in TodayS
Families: Change ContinuityVolume 4, Issue 1, Summer 1999
Our newest journal, "Families in
the New Millennium," will be coming
out soon. We reviewed articles dealing
with changes, challenges and opportunities facing families that we can expect
in the next century. Topics such as gender roles and relationships, child bearing and rearing, implications of new
technologies and medical developments, changes in work, economic
issues, and moral and ethical dilemmas
facing families.
We hope to provide reviews on the
following topics in the future: Education
Reform, Health Care Reform, and
Feminism and Famil)~ These journals
are excellent resources for professionals
to keep you abreast of the current topics
and a great way to support your training
needs. Send for your copy today!
MFR-Current issue: $15.00 individual;
$30.00 libraries**
MFR-Past issues: $10.00 individuals;
$20.00 Libraries**
Or become a member and receive a
copy with your membership. For more
information please contact our office.
MCFR
Institute for Children, Families &:
Youth
Michigan State University
27 Kellogg Center
E. Lansing, Michigan 48822
'~* Quantity p1ice for 5 or more copies of
current issue $12.00 each; past issues
$8.00 each.
Renita Stultz, CFLE
President, Michigan Cow1cil on
Family Relations
E-mail: stultzr@msue.msu.eclu
California
Council Holds
1st Annual
Conference
he California Council on Family
Relations held its lst annual conference April 28-29, focusing on
"Families and Public Policy." The 180
attendees enjoyed the rich and mindprovoking presentations, the ethnic-cultural performance of Ballet Folklorico
Cristo Rey at the reception, and the
ample opportunities to network.
Highlights of the conference included
two keynote addresses given by Albert
Bandura, David Starr Jordan Professor
of Social Sciences in Psychology at
Stanford University, on "personal and
collective efficacy." and Dr. Robert
Ross, Director of San Diego County's
Health and Human Services Agency,
that delineated the California families
first initiative. Ms. Aurora Zepeda, the
Executive Officer for the Commission
on Children, Youth and Families, presented the current policy issues, and
California State Assemblywoman Susan
Davis infonned the audience about her
new legislative initiatives. A panel of
five members of the community told
their personal accounts of the impact of
public policy on their families. The
conference ended with the Nona
Cannon Award that was presented by
Dr. Nona Cannon to three students
who won the essay competition. The
1st prize winner was Laura Paciorck,
from the Department of Child and
Family Development, San Diego State
University, who wrote about "Substance
abuse while pregnant: Inconsistent policy and its effects on children." The
attendees learned a great deal about the
National Council on Family Relations
from Michael Benjamin, the Executive
Director of the NCFR, who came to our
conference.
T
Slntlamit Ritblatt
President (1998-May 2000), Califontia
Council on Family Relations
E-mail: ritblatt@mail.sdsu.edu
Affiliate Connection continued on page 19
NCFR Report
J
18
June 2000
�Call for Papers
FAMILY ROUTINES, RITUALS, &
TRADITIONS
special section of thejounwl of
Family Psychology will be dedicated to empirical papers focusing on the study of family routines, rituals, and traditions. Topics of study may
range from the organization of daily
routine practices such as mealtime to
elaborate family traditions and their
effects of family life. Studies that focus
on the potential for rituals to protect
families under high risk conditions,
developmental and generational aspects
of family rituals, cultural variations in
family routines, and the therapeutic use
of rituals are of particular interest.
Preferences will be given to empirical
studies although papers that are primarily theoretical or based on clinical practice will be considered.
Deadline for submission of papers for
this special section is july 31, 2000.
Dr. Barbara Fiese, Department of
Psychology, Syracuse University will
senre as guest editor for this topic.
Please send all manuscripts to Ross
D. Parke, Editor,jouma! of Family
Psychology, Department of
Affiliate Connection
Psychology, University of California,
Riverside, CA 92521.
Questions regarding suitability of
manuscripts may be addressed to Dr.
Ficse through e-mail,
bhfiese@psych.syr.edu.
SPECIAL ISSUE: JOURNAL OF
SOCIAL AND PERSONAL
RELATIONSHIPS
Special Issue of thejoumal of
Social and Personal Relationships
will be dedicated to research on
race/ethnicity and interpersonal relationships. The special issue will highlight
original research that examines interpersonal relationships within, between or
among various ethnidracial groups.
Authors must clearly address the issue of
race or ethnicity within their papers.
Preferences will be given to empirical
studies, although theoretical papers may
be considered. Manuscripts will be peer
reviewed, consistent with policies of the
Journal. Questions regarding the issue
may be directed to either of the special
editors, TerriL. Orbuch
(orbuch@umich.edu) or Mark Fine
(finem@missouri.edu). Please send all
papers to: Dr. Terri L. Orbuch,
Department of Sociology, Oakland
University, 519 Varner Hall, Rochester,
M1 48309. Submissions are due no
later than December 1, 2000.
Invitation ·to Present
':'
,,'
' ' '
,,',
Ninth Annual Conference on
Paren1:EduC:ation
Febrllary i6-17, 2001
Pre~-c-O~ferenc'e:--:·c~-~e.'_l(rimVIedge -~hci
Skills, February 15, 2001
·
... Deadline for proposals:
Postmarh byAugust4, 2000
Fot;:ru~-t_h~r-irirofl11~ti:6n.::Pi'Cas~--~-odtace
_Rd?ecca Edwards;
·:~:-,. cdi1.(ellf1:c_e_ c9onHnator.- b_r
: Dr. ;;Arrt).i[ltft ]~co_bson; --:CFLE; >,
confere1J,c.e_-cltair
,
cCDiei- fOr-Parent EdUcation
P.O,Bax31l337, UNT
Denton; .IX 76203~1337
Phone; 940,369.7246
Fax: 940-369,7955
E-:rnail;_ ·jacObSon@co~fs.:c_oe.unt.edu
or_ rcdwards@coefs;Coe.unt.edu
Website:-- wWw.Uht.Cdu!cpe
conunucc!Jrompagc 1s
Texas Council Annual Conference
athc1ing: Its Place in the New
F
Ccnlwy was the theme of the
2000 Texas Council on Family
Relations annual conference held on
April 6-8 in Fort Worth. Our conference started off with an evening Town
Hall meeting held by the WFAA
Channel 8 TV Family First program
which focused on the role of fathers in
their children's lives. This meeting
introduced individuals, groups and professionals to TCFR as well as provided
a forum for this important topic.
Neil Tift, Director of the National
Resource Center for the National
Fatherhood Initiative, was the keynote
speaker and spoke on the changing role
of fathers across the past 50 years.
Nearly 100 students and professionals
came together to hear talks on Men 5
Worh: Tlie Fathas Role in Teaching NonViolence to C1lildrcn, Parental Leave,
Fathers Teaching Character and Fal11crs'
Legacies to their Children. The speakers
and breakout sessions were great but
best of all, we had the opportunity to
network with students and other professionals.
Now we're looking ahead! NCFR
members in every state with a special
invitation to Oklahoma, New Mexico,
Louisiana and Arkansas are invited to
NCfR Rql(lrt I June 2000
19
attend the 2001 TCFR annual conference on April 5-7, 2001 in Dallas. Our
conference theme will be Marital
Relations under the able leadership of
Wileen Hogan, Karen Tellman, CFLE,
Dr. Brittan Wood, CFLE, and Dr.
Rosemarie Hoffman.
NFCR members or state affiliate
members who would like to submit an
abstract for presentation at this conference, please contact me.
Linda Ladd
President, Tc..:-.;as Cmmcil on
Fmnily Relations
E-mail: l-ladd@tamu.cdtt.
�on
Conference The Coalition for
Marriage, Family & Couples Education
and co-sponsored by NCFR, will be
held in Denver, CO. For registration
information visit the conference website at www.smartmarriages.com or call
202-362-3332.
It's All About Relationships, 58th
Annual Conference of the International
Council of Psychologists, will be held
at the University of Padua, Italy. Family
educators, researchers, therapists are
welcome. For additional information,
contact: Matti Gershenfeld, Presidentelect, Couples Learning Center, The
Colonade, 100 Old York Road, Suite
1201, Jenkintown, PA 19046; Phone:
215-884-4664; E-mail: matti@nni.com;
Website - conference information:
www.unipd.it/ammi/news/ICP.html.
Florence Crittenton Roundtable
Conference, Child Welfare League of
America (CWLA), Grand Hyatt Hotel, San
Francisco, CA. For conference brochures
and registration information, send e-mail
to register@cwla.org or call the CWLA
Conference Department, 202-942-0289.
Howard University, Washington, D.C.
This conference will take place the
day before the annual meeting of the
American Sociological Association
(ASA) and will bring together
researchers, policymakers, and
advocates involved in various domains
of carework for one day of meetings
and networking. For more information
about the conference, and to join
ongoing discussions at the cutting
edge of casework research and policy,
please subscribe to the carework listserv by contacting the list administrator
at careadmn@soc.umass.edu.
Reproductive Health 2000: A
Clinical Update on Women, Men,
and Families, Association of
Reproductive Health Professionals
(ARHP), Chicago, IL. For information
contact ARHP, 2401 Pennsylvania
Avenue, NW, Suite 350, Washington,
DC 20037-1718; Phone: 202-466-3824;
Fax: 202-466-3826; Website:
www.ARHP.org.
a
Diverse Society, 10th Annual Building
Strong Families Conference, co-sponsored by Penn State Cooperative
Extension, Building Strong Families
Committee, and PNDE Council on
Family Relations, Wildwood
Conference Center, Harrisburg Area
Community College, Harrisburg, PA.
Call 717-921-8803 for details.
Renaissance 2000: Traditions and
Transitions, 66th Annual Session of
the National Extension Association of
Family and Consumer Sciences
(NEAFCS), Omni Inner Harbor Hotel,
Baltimore, MD. For complete session
information, contact NEAFCS, 740 82 E.
Flynn Lane, Phoenix, AZ 85014; Phone:
602-212-0453.
Visions for Families: Continuity and
Change Across Cohorts and
Generations, NCFR's 32nd Annual
Conference, Minneapolis Hilton and
Towers Hotel, Minneapolis, MN. For
information, contact Cindy Winter, CMP,
at 888-781-9331, ext. 15 or visit the
NCFR website at www.ncfr.org.
NONPROFIT
ORG.
U.S. POSTAGE
PAID
LAWRENCE, KS
Permit No. 116
�
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June 2000
-
https://archive.ncfr.org/files/original/217a027089b4736631e5ffebc803c833.pdf
cd1220f1bcefae29e464ccba50fd0b20
PDF Text
Text
Exciting Opportunity in Washington
tt n
Iicy
1st
's
nf rene
Apri I 13.. 14, 2000
ake advantage of this great new opportunity to be a part of the action to effect
change in public policies that affect
family well-being as we move into the next
century. The National Council on Family
Relations' first annual Public Policy and
Educational Conference will be held April 1314, 2000 in Washington, DC.
On Thursday morning, April 13, NCFR's
newly-formed Policy Committee will meet in
Washington to begin formulating our positions
and priorities in the public policy arena. In the
afternoon, the educational conference begins
with keynote speaker Francine Kiefer, former
foreign and national editor of the San Jose
Mercury News and current White House correspondent for The Christian Science Monitor.
"The American family is front and center in
this year's elections, whether candidates are
talking about Medicare, education or school
violence," Kiefer says. "In fact, there's hardly
an issue that doesn't touch on the family."
Following Kiefer, Ron Haskins, Staff Director
of the U.S. House of Representatives Human
Resources Subcommittee on Ways and Means,
will engage Wendell Primus, former Staff
Director of that same subcommittee and currently Director at the Center on Budget and
Policy Priorities, on welfare reform issues. You
will have the opportunity to dialogue with
them and other outstanding speakers from
congressional offices, federal agencies, and
advocacy groups that afternoon and all day
Friday. In addition, you will have an opportunity to visit your Representative or Senator
in their office and attend evening receptions
on Thursday in the Capitol building and
Friday in the
Longworth
House Office
Building.
The conference
is being held at
the Holiday Inn
Capitol at
Smithsonian
which is reachable by Metro
from National
FRANCINE KIEFER
Airport and within walking distance of the Capitol and the Air
and Space Museum.
This event will focus on many interesting and
difficult challenges facing families in the new
millennium. The topics selected are representative of the most important topics being discussed right now. Although time is short, this
conference will be worth your time and
money in professional growth and interest.
See the pullout between pages 20 and
21 for more program details and a
registration form.
�Annual Conference Speakers
lanning for the NCFR 2000 annual
conference in Minneapolis, "Visions for Families: Continuity and
Change Across Cohorts and Generations"
is well underway. I am
excited to be
able to report
that many
stimulating
sessions have
already been
scheduled. We
have three
excellent
plenary speakers who promELAINE ANDERSON
ise to provide
us with new and challenging information
to be utilized in our work with families.
REPORT
of The National Council on
Family Relations
Mission Statement for the Report:
REPORT, the qum1erly newsletter of the
National Council on Family Relations,
strives to provide timely, useful information to help members succeed in their roles
as researchers, educators, and practitioners. Articles address family .field issues,
programs and trends, including association news.
President: Stephen R. Jorgensen
Editor: Michael L. Benjamin
Managing Editor: Doris A. Hareland
Topics Feature Writer: Nancy Giguere
NCFR Report is published quarterly by
the National Council on Family Relations,
3989 Central Ave. N.E., Suite 550,
Minneapolis, MN 55421.
Third class postage permit.
Report subscription rate: $20.00 per
year; $5.00 per copy. For bulk rates, call
888-781-9331, ext. 23. Annual membership dues include newsletter subscription.
$15.00 U.S. postage per year postpaid at
individual rate.
On Friday, November 10, noted historian
Stephanie Coontz, Evergreen State University, Olympia, Washington, will help us
to think about the way families were and
the way they could be. Her books The
Way We Never Were and The Way We
Really Are: Coming to Terms with
Americas Changing Families will be a
catalyst for exploring where families may
be headed.
The plenary speaker on Saturday, November 11, is Dr. Alejandro Portes, Professor
of Sociology, Princeton University. Dr.
Fortes's substantive contributions to the
field of international migration will be
shared with us as he discusses the children
of the recent influx of immigrants, a second generation. In his presentation, Dr.
Fortes will present information from his
latest book, which is the longitudinal 3year follow-up of the adolescents discussed in The New Second Generation.
This second generation reflects a diversity
of ethnicities from the world's developing
nations. Dr. Fortes will challenge us to
consider these new populations and their
needs in our work with families.
Finally, the third plenary speaker on Sun-
These three speakers are merely a sample
of the stellar program that is developing. I
am pleased to report we have a large number of submissions this year that will help
us to review our past and look to our future actions for families in the next millennium. Further, we will be able to learn
about the strengths, challenges, and needs
of the multiple cohorts represented among
our families. The section chairs are working hard also to develop exciting special
sessions and we look forward to reporting
to you in the next NCFR Report further
highlights of the program.
Elaine Anderson
Program Chair,
2000 Annual Conference
Access NCFR's website at: www.ncfr.org
To access Members Only:
user: legacy
password: burgess
To reach NCFR headquarters:
ncfr3989@ncfr.org
To reach specific staff members:
Michael Benjamin
mbenjamin @ncfr.org
Doris Hareland
harelandd @ncfr.org
John Pepper
pepperw@ncfr.org
Jeanne Ryberg
jryberg@ncfr.org
Abbey Showalter
abbey@ncfr.org
Lynda Bessey
ncfr3989@ncfr.org
Cindy Winter
wintersc@ncfr.org
Dawn Cassidy
cassidyd@ ncfr.org
NEWS DEADLINES: February 1 for
March issue; May 1 for June issue; August
1 for September issue; November 1 for
December issue.
NCFR REPORT
day, November 12, is Dr. Mary Pipher.
Internationally renowned psychologist and
author of Reviving Ophelia and The
Shadow of Each Other, Dr. Pipher will
focus her presentation on her latest book,
Another Countly: The Emotional Terrain
of Our Elders. Dr. Pipher will help us
explore the challenges two generations
face within families when trying to navigate and negotiate differing life experiences.
To reach NCFR President
Steve Jorgensen:
sjorgen@ comp.uark.edu
Nikki Cunningham
nikki@ncfr.org
2
MARCH 2000
�N ante Change Proposed for
Journal of Marriage and the F
F
ollowing the November annual
conference, the Feminism and
Family Studies Section of NCFR
proposed a name change to the Board of
Directors for the Journal of Marriage
and the Family (JMF). The proposal is to
change the name to the Journal of Marriages and Families. The rationale for this
change is included below.
As the Board deliberates this proposed
change, we are asking you for your general reaction to the idea of a name change,
input about the proposal, or another alternative to what is being proposed. As we
consider the proposal, other alternative
names have been suggested should we
decide to invoke a name change. This is
not a membership vote. The Board is
simply seeking input from the membership at this time about your preferences
and your rationale for them. Send us your
thoughts via e-mail to
ncfr3989@ncfr.org, by fax 763-7819348, or mail to NCFR, 3989 Central
Ave. NE, Suite #550, Minneapolis, MN
55421. A summary of the data will be
posted on the listserv. Here are the four
possibilities. Which do you prefer?
1.
Journal of Marriage and the Family
(current title)
2.
Journal of Marriages and Families
(change proposed by the Feminism
and Family Studies Section)
3.
Journal of Marriage and Family
4.
Journal of Marriage and Families
RATIONALE FOR CHANGE OF TITLE
TO JOURNAL OF MARRIAGES AND
FAMILIES, SUBMITTED BY THE FEMINISM AND FAMILY STUDIES SECTION
At the 1999 annual business meeting of
the Feminism and Family Studies Section,
the following recommendation was unanimously approved:
We recommend that the title of Journal of Marriage and the Family be
changed to Journal of Marriages and
Families.
NCFR REPORT
The rationale for this suggestion is that
the existing title does not accurately reflect the diversity that characterizes the
realities of people's experiences in intimate relationships. The use of the plural
for both "marriages" and "families" provides a more accurate depiction of that
diversity. The plural terms are more encompassing, recognizing such forms as
cohabiting couples with and without children, single-parent families,
grandparent(s)-grandchild families, gay
and lesbian families, remarriages, and
stepfamilies. For most people, tl1e term
"the family" evokes a monolithic and
ideological image of conventional nuclear
families. By the same token, the term
"marriage" implies a unidimensional
construction of marital types, roles, and
relationship patterns. In contrast, the use
of the plurals, "marriages" and "families",
is neutral and does not connote an ideological message, either in the social sciences or in public discourse. It is therefore
a title that is explicitly more welcoming to
a maximum number of NCFR members,
both current and potential.
The suggested change retains the acronym
"JMF", which is important in retaining
name recognition of the journal, with its
established history and reputation for
scientific rigor; it is politically realistic for
NCFR as a whole; and it calls attention to
the diversity within our subject matter by f.,
shifting to the plural nouns.
llll
Reach Farther: New Members
for a New Millennium
T
his month we begin the final phase
of the Reflect and Reach: New
Members for a New Millennium
3-year recruitment campaign. This year's
theme is Reach Farther: New Members
for a New Millennium. Since personal
recruitment is one of the most effective
strategies for recruiting and retaining new
members, the campaign focuses on current members recruiting new members.
A special flyer containing complete instructions for participating
and the NCFR Reach Farther
Membership Application form
are included with this issue of the
Report. (See center pullout). The
campaign runs through September
30,2000.
It's easy to participate: For each new
member you recruit to NCFR, you will
earn points (based on the membership
category selected by the new member).
Earn at least 4 points and you will be rewarded with your choice of a NCFR
sweatshirt or a NCFR golf shirt. Both
shirts are dark green and are embroidered
3
with the NCFR logo. These are the same
shirts worn by NCFR Board and staff
members at the "Pep Rally" during the
1999 annual conference in Irvine, CA.
By recruiting additional members, you
earn more points, which can be applied
toward an additional shirt for your own
wardrobe or to give as a gift to a colleague, student, friend, or family member.
It's a win-win-win situation:
NCFR wins by gaining new members; the colleagues you recruit
win access to NCFR membership
benefits and enhance their professionalism; and you win a great
NCFR shirt.
Also available as an optional recruiting
reward is a one quarter (3 month) extension to your NCFR membership.
If you have any questions or need additional copies of the special recruitment
campaign Membership Application form,
contact Doris at NCFR headquarters: Toll
free 888-781-9331, ext. 23 or at
harelandd@ncfr.org.
rm
MARCH 2000
�States Now Have the Flexibility to Expand
Services to Working Poor Families
by Sheri Steisel, Senior Director of the Human Services Committee, National Conference of State Legislatures
ew federal TANF (Temporary Assistance to Needy Families) regulations
issued in April 1999 clarified the broad
flexibility states have to design their own welfare programs. States now have an unprecedented opportunity to focus not only on getting recipients
ready for work,
but also on
providing
broader services
for working
poor families.
The stunning
drop in welfare
caseloads means
that almost
every state has
SHERI STEISEL
resources available for new or expanded programs. State
policymakers can continue their work-based
services to recipients who have not been able
to leave welfare. They can also think about new
programs to help poor families and children.
State and Federal Welfare Money
Under the TANF program, states have broad
flexibility. And they have money. Because of
caseload declines, states have resources several billion dollars - that would have been
spent on cash assistance. This money can now
be used in other ways to serve poor families.
States' welfare resources come from federal
and state funds. The federal block grant gives
states more than $16 billion a year. Each state's
share of the federal money is based on its welfare spending between FY 1992 through FY
1994, when caseloads and spending were high.
States are entitled to the full block grant amount
as long as they meet the "maintenance of effort"
or MOE requirement. To do this, they must
spend at least 80 percent of what they spent in
FY 1994 (or 7 5 percent if they meet the federal work participation requirements). States
have broad flexibility, but different regulations
NCFR REPORT
apply to the state and federal money, so it is
often useful to think separately about state
MOE and federal TANF funds.
TANF Dollars
States can use TANF block grant dollars in a
wide range of programs as long as the services
and assistance address the four purposes of
TANF:
1) to provide assistance to needy families so
that children may be cared for in their own
homes or in the homes of relatives;
2) to end the dependence of needy parents on
government benefits by promoting job
preparation, work and marriage;
3) to prevent and reduce the incidence of outof-wedlock pregnancies and establish
funded by TANF.
Spending for the third and fourth purposes is not
restricted by the "needy families" provision, so
federal TANF funds serving those purposes do
not have to be targeted to families based on
income eligibility. States can use federal TANF
money to offer teen pregnancy prevention
programs in their schools or in community
organizations without having to worry about
which teens are eligible. And TANF spending
for this purpose does not have to be limited to
abstinence-only programs.
The new regulations allow the states to provide
a wide range of services to families that have left
welfare for work without affecting these families' TANF time clocks. States can also provide
similar services to working poor families.
The regulations define "assistance" fairly narrowlyThe stunning drop in welfare caseloads
essentially provision of basic
means that almost every state has resources
needs such as cash assistance
and housing subsidies that go
available for new or expanded programs.
on for more than four
months. Only this kind of
annual numerical goals for preventing and
assistance triggers the time clock and inclusion
in the work participation rate calculation and
reducing the incidence of these pregnancies;
detailed data reporting requirements. But serand
vices such as child care and transportation
4) to encourage the formation and mainteassistance to an eligible family where a parent is
nance of two-parent families.
working do not count as assistance. In fact, a
Both federal and state spending must address broad range of services to eligible families does
not trigger time limits, even if a family is not
these purposes, which allow for a wide variety
of services and programs to help low-income working.
parents and their children. And federal officials
There are some restrictions on TANF dollars.
are encouraging states to interpret these purOnly 15 percent can be spent on administrative
poses broadly. States may use TANF (and
costs. States are prohibited from using TANF to
state MOE) money for services that strengthen
fund the Medicaid program. However, TANF
low-income families and help their children.
can be used for "non-medical" services for
welfare recipients such as screening for subSpending for the first two purposes must be
stance abuse or counseling for domestic viotargeted on "needy" families or parents. The
states define eligibility. They determine the
lence victims. (But MOE can be used for a
income level that qualifies as "needy" and they
range of medical services, including care by a
physician or payment of medical insurance
can choose to define different income levels for
particular services. States have the opportunity premiums.)
to set different eligibility for different services
States continued on next page
4
MARCH 2000
�STATES continued from page 4
Using FlexibilityTwo Sets of Choices
U
nderTANF, states have two basic sets
of choices to make. First of all, they
need to decide what services and
assistance they want to provide. The range of
available services is much broader than existed
under AFDC. Possible services include cash
assistance, job training, child care, transportation, job search, education, home visits, family
counseling, refundable earned income tax
credits, wage subsidies to employers that hire
former recipients, job coaching for recipients
who get jobs and whatever else states consider
important to assist needy families. States can
also establish programs to prevent teen pregnancy and support visitation arrangements for
non-custodial parents.
Secondly, they must decide which families they
want to serve. As state caseloads decline,
much of the population remaining on welfare
faces tough challenges- substance abuse,
depression, domestic violence and developmental disabilities. Working-poorfamilies, both
those who recently left welfare and those who
never were on welfare, need services to ensure
they remain in the workforce and advance in
the workplace. The federal law allows states to
spend federal and state money in the TANF
program on needy families- either to provide
assistance to "needy families" or to help "needy
parents" become economically independent.
States define who qualifies as a needy family.
They can use different income standards to
determine eligibility for different services. For
example, states can have one standard for cash
assistance, a different one for job training and
transportation assistance, a third for home visit
programs, and yet another for services to children at risk of abuse and neglect. States can
also define non-custodial parents as "needy
parents" if they want to provide employment
training and parenting skills.
State Maintenance of Effort
OE spending is not limited to
spending by the state TANF program. States must ensure that funds
are spent on eligible families- at least one child
living with a parent or other adult caretaker
relative (or a pregnant woman). Families are
financially eligible according to the state-determined standard for the service or benefit involved. Services and benefits must be reasonably calculated to accomplish at least one of the
purposes ofTANF. In addition, spending qualifies as MOE if it would have been counted as a
matching payment under AFDC or a related
program.
There are two key restrictions on whether state
spending can count as MOE. First, spending
outside the TANF program must meet the "new
spending test." The new federal regulations
specify that if the program existed in 1995, the
state can count only additional spending as
MOE. For example, if a home visit program
was budgeted for $2 million in 1995, then the
state could count any spending above $2 million
dollars on TANF eligible families for its MOE.
The 1995 spending base is not limited to those
families who would have been eligible for
TANF. It includes all spending for the program.
If the home visit program was new (did not exist
in 1995) or a different home visit program is
established, all spending in that program can
count toward the
MOE. The new
Gaps remain in
spending test
support services
does not apply
to TANF dollars.
such as childcare
and transportation.
MOE their
spending on public education programs that are
available generally. Federal officials will look
particularly hard at any MOE spending in K-12
education to determine if the programs are
limited to TANF families and are not generally
available to students. Many states, for example,
are using MOE dollars to expand Headstart
because this program is limited to disadvantaged children.
State MOE funds can be used in three different
ways:
•
Reauthorization Issues
Among the issues most likely to be discussed in 2002 are these:
e
whether the goals of welfare reform have been accomplished,
•
whether new goals are needed in light of the changing caseload,
•
what will happen during a recession when welfare caseloads swell,
•
whether the 5-year limit on welfare assistance will be kept or changed,
•
what impact various state programs have had on families and children, and
•
what are the "best practices" that can be replicated in programs across the nation.
Another controversial issue is the provision that allows states to exempt 20 percent of their
welfare caseload from the five-year time limit. Currently each state has the power to decide
whom it will exempt. But it is expected that various groups - for example, disability
organizations, farmers or supporters of women who have experienced domestic abuse will lobby to expand the 20 percent exemption or to make that exemption explicit for their
members.
- Sheri Steisel
State dollars commingled with federal
TANF dollars essentially count as federal
dollars and talce on the restrictions of federal
dollars- time limits, work participation rates
and the restriction on medical spending.
•
Questions of flexibility and funding will be revisited when Congress reauthorizes TANF
in2002.
Second, states
cannot count as
Segregated state money within the
TANF program does not trigger federal
limits. Segregating state money within a cash
assistance program gives states flexibility to
allow certain recipients to avoid time limits.
•
States can also set up separate state
programs. These programs are not subject
to the general TANF requirements-time
limits, child support cooperation, work
participation rates and data reporting.
Several states have established separate
programs for recipients going to college.
Some states have set up separate state
programs for two-parent families because of
the difficulty of meeting two-parent work
participation rates in the TANF program.
States cannot use TANF for medical services,
such as substance abuse treatment by a doctor,
but they can use state MOE for that. And they
can use state MOE only on income-eligible
families, so they could not use it to provide a
school-wide teen pregnancy prevention course,
but they could offer this course with TANF
States continued on next page
NCF'R REPORT
5
MARCH 2000
�STATES continuedfrompage 5
money. Someone in the state needs to know
these rules and be able to help structure programs so they comply with the rules. But the
flexibility is there.
Remaining Challenges in Welfare
Welfare caseloads have been drastically reduced because most recipients have gone to
work. But several key challenges remain:
e Gaps remain in support services such
as childcare and transportation. In many
areas, welfare recipients and other poor
parents do not have access to these services when and where they need it. Many
states need to expand nighttime and weekend childcare as well as sick child and infant
services. And public transit is not available
in many areas, so practical solutions to
transportation often involve vehicle purchase and leasing programs- but in some
cases, this raises a conflict with eligibility for
the food stamp program which only allows
participants to own a car with a value of
$4,660.
e Recipients who are still on welfare have
greater barriers to finding jobs, including
substance abuse, learning disabilities, domestic violence, limited work experience,
and mental and physical disabilities. Most
recipients who are work-ready have already left the welfare rolls. The five-year
federal time limit raises the stakes for creating effective programs for non-working
recipients.
e Former welfare recipients often need
help keeping their jobs or finding new
ones. Job coaches and hotline backup
services for childcare and transportation
show promise for helping new employees
keep jobs. And most fanner recipients have
jobs that pay only slightly above minimum
wage. They need education and training
programs to help them get better jobs so
tl1ey can support their families witl10ut cash
assistance.
e Welfare recipients looking for work in
many rural areas and city centers
struggle to find job openings. States
need to develop economic and community
development programs to create more
entry-leveljobs in these areas. And transportation options need to be developed to
increase the accessibility of existing jobs.
e Many recipients are leaving welfare
without a job or other means of supporting their families. Safety net programs
can identify families at risk and provide
services to protect the well-being of children in those families.
NCFR REPORT
e States need to prepare for an economic
downturn. States should designate areserve fund to pay for the additional benefits
and services that will come when the
economy declines and caseloads increase.
They should also detennine how to best
invest remaining funds in programs that will
reduce fue effects of fuat downturn by
increasing training and targeting jobs which
are less susceptible to a poor economy.
Available money - for now
proposal to cut TANF passed fue
House of Representatives as part of
the FY99 budget bill, but was defeated in fue Senate by strong state objections.
Last year proposed cuts were again defeated.
As the amount of unspent TANF funds grows,
the threat to the federal investment builds. And
Congress will have to revisit questions about
funding levels when fuey debate TANF reautl101ization in 2002. The more states do now,
the better their arguments when reauthorization
is considered.
Agency officials in many states have focused
almost exclusively on work- getting recipients
off welfare and getting current recipients into
work activities and meeting federal workparticipation rates. States fuat do not meet
federal work-participation rates risk financial
penalties. Because caseloads are declining,
states are finding it easier to meet fue workparticipation rates.
There is a myth that states cannot use TANF
for education, especially post-secondary education. The federal government does not count
education as work participation. But because
states get credit for the caseload decline in fue
work-participation rates, fuey can now take
advantage of alternative placements, such as
vocational training or post-secondary education.
States are also finding fuat post-secondary
education and further training are helpful for
advancement in the workplace. Arizona and
Michigan, for example, are providing funds for
post-secondary education for former TANF
recipients.
Using their flexibility under MOE, Maine and
Wyoming have created separate state programs
to provide bofu post-secondary education and
cash assistance. Participants in these programs
are not subject to time limits and are not
counted in fue federal work-participation rates.
Some states have invested fueir resources
aggressively in new services supporting work
and children's well-being in low-income families
and in programs designed to reduce teen pregnancy and support two-parent families. The
following are selected examples:
e Post Employment Services. Arkansas
and Tennessee provided intensive case
management services to former recipients to
make sure they can keep jobs once fuey get
fuem. They have developed mentoring
programs to provide bofu emotional support
and positive reinforcement for welfare
recipients who have recently entered fue
work force. Mentors provide guidance with
such issues as time management, balancing
commitments at work and home, financial
budgeting, professional relationships and
work ethics.
e Teenage pregnancy prevention. Georgia,
Iowa, Louisiana, Minnesota, Norfu Caro-
States continued on next page
TANF Work Participation Rates
Under TANF, states are required to meet certain work participation rates or face federal
financial sanctions. Each state has to have a certain percentage of its welfare population
engaged in work activity. The percentage is even higher for two-parent families.
This year, each state has to have 40 percent of all families working 30 hours per week. For
two-parent families, each state must have 90 percent engaged in work activities for 35 hours
a week (this means fue total work activity ofbofu parents). While states are given credit for
caseload decline, fuey have had difficulity meeting fue two-parent rate.
In August 1999, U. S. Department of Healfu and Human Services reported that all states
met fue over-all work participation for families. However, only 28 out of 41 states fuat were
subject to the two-parent rate met fue requirement. In response, some states have funded
fueir two-parent program using fueir state MOE dollars. This allows fuem to serve fuese
troubled families wifuout risking fiscal penalties from the federal government.
- Sheri Steisel
6
MARCH 2000
�utting Family
ack into
elfare Reform
by Dennis K. Orthner, Ph.D., Jordan Institute for Families, The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
T
recognize that household members have highly
interdependent economic relationships in which
the other members of the household influence
each person's capabilities. This failure has led
to sometimes quite different workforce development strategies being employed to assist
adult women and men, and their
children, in improving their ecoOne critical area of potential change
nomic capabilities and helping them
in welfare and employment services is a find and keep jobs. Since each
move away from the focus on individuals person in the household or economic unit is treated as context for
and toward a new focus on families ...
the others, this leads to policy and
intervention conflicts and ignores
the reality of household interdependence.
lapping and sometimes conflicting services that
often do not significantly address the needs of
At the present time in most communities and
families or conmmnities.
states, welfare and workforce development are
here is considerable rhetoric around the
use of the word "family" in human
services, but most service delivery
systems give only nodding attention to anyone
other than the target person for their agency or
program. This has led to a patchwork of over-
Most attempts to integrate services around
families have a particular target person in mind.
The family merely represents the context within
which this person resides or relates. This
method of treating family as context fails to
force preparation and access for individuals
who desire employment or for whom employment is mandated
as part of their
participation in
other welfarerelated support
services.
These individuals
are the target
group for the
service and tl1ey
are typically considered "clients" or
"consumers" by
the agencies that DENNIS K. ORTHNER Ph.D.
serve them. Rarely are the needs and interests
of other household members carefully reviewed
or taken into account in building an integrated
economic or workforce development plan for
the members of the family.
multi-faceted systems driven by diverse funding
streams. Programs serve different target populations with multiple accountability systems and
outcome measures. The common theme for
these diverse efforts is improving the labor
Putting Family continued on next page
STATES continued from page 6
The Adolescent
Experience-
!ina, and Oldal10ma are using welfare dollars to fund programs. Minnesota
and Oklahoma are also funding abstinence education initiatives.
e Tax credit for low-income families. Wisconsin provides a refundable
state eamed income tax credit for working families who qualify.
Thomas Gullotta, Gerald Adams,
and Carol Markstrom
e Substance abuse treatment. States can provide medical substance abuse
treatment for welfare recipients using MOE dollars. They can use TANF
for non-medical services, such as counseling by a social worker or screening and assessment. Oregon developed a substance abuse treatment program through local community colleges and has placed substance abuse
professionals in welfare offices to help identify clients with substance abuse
problems. North Carolina allows small businesses that hire welfare recipients to use tl1e state employee assistance professionals program. Welfare
recipients with substance abuse problems are confidentially referTed to
treatment programs so they can continue to work while receiving treatment.
e Domestic Violence Training for Caseworkers. California provides
funding to a university to develop a domestic violence training curriculum to
train staff serving welfare recipients.
e
Services for Low-Income Fathers- Programs to help low-income
fathers pay child support and reconnect with their children through job
training, employment counseling, life skills management and peer support.
Arizona, California, Florida, Iowa, North Carolina, Ohio, Wisconsin and
West Virginia have targeted welfare dollars on services for low-income
fathers.
Many states have TANF reserves, and the new federal regulations broaden
and clarify states' flexibility. This opportunity could be restricted with TANF
reauthorization in 2002. And the best way to maintain flexibility after 2002 f~~
is to use it assertively now.
1111
NCFR REPORT
7
Key Features
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ISBN: 0-12-305560-1
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MARCH 2000
�PUTTING FAMILY continuedfrompage 1
This results in bifurcated strategies that often pit
the interests of family members against each
other or treat each of the members as independent in their interests when it is clear that this is
not true. One example is the requirement that
women receiving TANF, who are also subject
to employment mandates, must indicate that
they do not receive economic support from a
male partner or the father of their child. In fact,
they may be receiving financial support or
cohabiting.
The family factor
C
urrent research clearly indicates that
this failure to account for the "family
factor" in workforce development is
counterproductive. First, it is clear that adults in
the family/household take each other's labormarket activities into account. Whether they are
married or not (and usually they are not if they
receive TANF), earnings among household
members are shared and used to jointly benefit
each other.
Studies indicate that substantial financial-help
patterns operate in the families of the poor and
that the economic factors associated with
welfare exits are similar for work and non-work
exits. This suggests that economic opportunities
may attract either the welfare parent or another
family member into the labor market with similar
consequences.lt also suggests that household
and community support systems are complex
but respond in a relatively coherent manner to
local economic forces and opportunities.
A second issue is the intergenerational one.
Poverty and welfare receipt are not the sole
prerogatives of the adults in the family/household. Children in these households are on their
own life course trajectories toward economic
opportunity and workforce development.
Unfortunately, current research indicates that
most of these children are doing poorly in
school: their dropout rates from high school
have been rising over the past decade. This
means that the children are not only progressing
unsatisfactorily in their academics, but also that
they are not being prepared adequately for the
labor market. The current system does not give
significant attention to the workforce development issues for these youth, leaving them vulnerable to the increased probability that they
will also live out their adult lives in poverty.
One family, multiple systems
One critical area of potential change in welfare
and employment services is a move away from
the focus on individuals and toward a new focus
on families, households and communi ties. This
more enlightened approach is ecological. It
NCFR REPORT
examines the context within which individuals are challenged and changing.
But the bottom line is still a focus on individuals and individual development. From a health or
mental-health perspective this has made some sense. From an economic development perspective,
this makes much less sense. Economic well-being is a much more collaborative product of household member contributions and, in the family, it is likely to be an intergenerational product.
The contrasting assumptions listed on the table below offer an example of the difference between a
client-centered model and a family- or household-centered service model. In the client-centered
model, the focus is on individuals. Family problems are solved by dealing with the issues and problems of each family member. This leads to multiple helpers representing multiple services supported
by multiple funding streams. This service model means that a single family may have numerous case
managers and helpers, each with a different agenda and focus.
A new service model
The family- or household-centered service model, in contrast, recognizes the natural interaction
between household members and focuses attention on solving problems across the collective unit.
This model has the advantage of clearly identifying issues between parents and children as well as
other persons who have an economic relationship to the household, such as absent parents, siblings
or friendship networks. But family-centered services face the challenge of integrating resources and
funding streams around issues facing families instead of forcing families to pull themselves apart to
match services constructed around categorical funding.
Differences in Assumptions
between Client- and Family-Centered Services
Client-Centered Service Model
Family-Centered Service Model
Focus on individual needs
Focus on family and household needs
Family is context for individual
Individual is context for family
Adversarial relationship with recipient
Trust developed across household members
Help focused around one program/intervention
Help not limited to any one program
Focus on an adult or a child
lntergenerational focus
Focus on men or women
Focus on men and women
Parents advised of ways to help
Parents involved in providing help
Problem oriented
Problem-avoidance oriented
Personal economic prosperity oriented
Community economic prosperity oriented
Helper incentives for individual change
Helper incentives for family change
Solves problems by taking family apart
Solves problems by bringing family together
Individuals follow after funding streams
Funding streams follow after families
Crisis response directed
Preventative services directed
Family narrowly defined
Family broadly defined
We clearly need a new set of strategies that would focus on the family or household as a whole and
integrate welfare services in a way that would more effectively lift people and communities out of
poverty. This workforce investment model would recognize the value-added contribution of partners and family members in and around the household. It would also promote for children and
youth new incentives for performing well in their economic development setting, namely their
schools.
Such a focus will require a new investment in structures and services to support economic development and asset building at the household level. It will also require commitment to longer-term
assistance for eligible families since this kind of help will promote more lasting changes on the part
of families and new models of support for those providing assistance.
For more information, contact Dennis K. Ortlmer at orthner@email.unc.edu.
8
MARCH 2000
�Welfare eform
and Two-Parent Family
Policies
by Mary Jo Bartl, MA, Sharon E. Powell, M.Ed., and Jean W. Bauer, Ph.D.,
Department of Family Social Science, University of Minnesota
ince 1997, researchers, policymakers,
and practitioners have been investigating how welfare reform is affecting
families. As a result, there have been numerous
articles and reports written. Research articles
and report topics have ranged from the decline
in caseloads to tracking the number of families
who have left welfare rolls. Yet many of these
studies have focused on families living in urban
areas, leaving out the affects that welfare
reform is having on other types of families,
such as those living in rural areas.
While urban and rural welfare families may
face similar barriers to finding work and
transitioning off assistance, some barriers may
Two-parent families face unique
that fall outside of current policy.
be unique. Recent interviews with rural welfare
families have begun to highlight some of these
barriers and how they interface with this
policy. One issue that has surfaced is the
struggle between low wage jobs and the goal
of raising a family's income high enough to
transition off welfare.
Minnesota, which has a 6 percent two-parent
case load, was one of the states that failed to
meet the required two-parent work participation rate during 1998. (See "TANF work
participation rates," page 6). Part of this
failure to meet the required rates may be due
to low wages in rural counties. For instance,
various rural areas in Minnesota have reported
that although two-parent families are gaining
employment and meeting the requirements of
Minnesota Family Investment Program
(MFIP), wages are not high enough to allow
them to transition off the welfare rolls.
The problem oflow wages faced by twoparent families is exemplified through a recent
interview with a mother of a two-parent family
with five children, ages 12, 6, 5, 3, and 5
months, living in rural Minnesota and currently
participating in MFIP. This family has had
some setbacks in the past few years that left
one parent unable to work and ineligible for
disability benefits. About a year ago, however,
NCFR RIEIPORT
the couple opened a franchised salon and are
in the process of opening another. Starting
these two small salons means that couple will
work more than the required work participation of 55 hours a week.
All Under One
Roof: Mixed-Status
Families in
an Era of Reform
by Michael Fix and Wendy
Zimmermann
1111
Despite the long hours, their combined wages
are not high enough to support this family of
seven ..Furthermore, their caseworker told
them they had three months to raise their
income high enough to get off cash assistance.
If they can't do it, they will be required to
look for employment that pays a higher wage.
This two-parent family must increase their
income high enough to allow them to transition
off welfare (120 percent of
poverty level or $30,192 for
dilemmas this family, according to the
1999 HHS Poverty Guidelines). The low wage situation
faced by this family illustrates
the disconnect between policy and reality for
two-parent families because the level needed
for this family represents a $9.85/hour job.
The issue of childcare illustrates disconnect
between policy and reality. For many families,
quality affordable and convenient childcare is
crucial to a family's survival. For instance, this
family has one child in full-time childcare and
three in school or other programs (Heads tart
and Early Childhood Special Education) either
half days or a few days a week.
Unsurprisingly, it is a challenge to find affordable and convenient childcare that coincides
with the schedules of the children, the parents,
and the provider. Even if this family transitions
off welfare, the cost of long-term childcare
may be an issue.
This scenario oflow wages may also apply to
immigrant families. Families such as these face
unique dilemmas that fall outside of current
policy. This example shows the need for
research in the area of policy for rural and
immigrant welfare families. Such research will
help policymakers to take a more informed
approach that will be supportive of these
families' needs.
For more information, contact
}bauer@ che2. che. umn. edu.
9
Seventy-five percent of children in
immigrant families (at least one parent
is a noncitizen) are citizens.
1111
One in ten U.S. families is of mixed
status.
1111
One in 10 children in the United
States lives in a mixed-status family
(at least one parent is a noncitizen and
one child is a citizen).
1111
11111
1111
1!111
1111
One-quarter offamilies in New York
City and nearly half of all children in
Los Angeles live in mixed families.
In New York City, mixed-status
families make up 30 percent of all
families with children living below 200
percent of the federal poverty level
(FPL). In Los Angeles, mixed-status
families are nearly 60 percent.
Twenty-one percent of all children
without health insurance nationwide
and over half of the uninsured children
in California live in mixed-status
families.
In New York, 70 percent of all undocumented households with children
include citizen children. (However,
undocumented-headed households
are less likely to include children than
other immigrant-headed households.)
One-third of mixed-status families
have incomes below 125 percent of
the poverty level, the cut-off under
new rules for sponsoring admission of
immediate relatives into the country.
These policy changes will make it
moredifticultforirnrnigrantfamiliesto
unite.
Fast Facts from the Urban Institute,
!999. Reprinted by pennission. The
entire report on mixed-status families is
available at www.urbaninstitute.org.
MARCH 2000
�amily r fessionals
espond to Welfare ef rm
by Bonnie Braun, Ph.D., CFCS, Extension Family Life Specialist, University of Maryland
I
n 1995, as the "Contract for America"
filled the hallways of Congress and the
airways of the nation, debate began on
changing public assistance, or "welfare-aswe've-known-it." In response, family life professionals from across the country spoke out in
testimony, conducted research and offered
relevant educational programming. This article
highlights some of those actions as a way of
recognizing the mobilized capacity of our profession.
Federal Public Policy
In 1995, the National Association of State
Universities and Land-Grant Colleges'
(NASULGC)
BoardofHuman Sciences'
(BOHS) legislative committee, chaired by
the author,
entered the
debate. We
created a
briefing paper,
"Welfare ReBONNIE BRAUN, Ph.D.,
form: Social
CFCS
Justicefor
Women and Children," and a set of eight principles fashioned after the Family Impact Seminars' tools of policy analysis. Working with
AESOP, Inc., a firm contracted by BOHS to
assist in legislative representation, and the
Extension Office ofNASULGC, we visited
with most members of Congress or their staffs.
Eventually, the Congressional women's caucus
adopted the principles and used them to modify
emerging legislation.
At the urging ofBOHS, NASULGC made
welfare reform one of its priorities. As a result,
sessions were held at the annual meeting, a
briefing paper was written and the President of
NASULGC wrote President Clinton. A coalition of higher education associations was also
formed to attend to welfare reform and the
development of human capital through postsecondary education. The Extension Assistant
Director, a family professional, was intimately
involved in this work.
Following passage of the 1996 federallegisla-·---
..,.~81"\DT
tion, the College of Family Consumer Sciences
at the University of Georgia hosted a think tank
of30 family professionals. They developed a
set of recommendations for action that focused
on the well-being of children and families. At
the request ofthe BOHS, and with funding
from the North Central State Extension Family
Consumer Science Leaders, the College of
Human Ecology and Extension Service at the
University of Minnesota produced a national
satellite broadcast to quickly update family
professionals and interested others on the
legislation and on potential impacts.
The BOHS charged a newly created Welfare
Refonn Task Force with hosting a national
conference in the spring ofl997. Joining BOHS
as sponsors were the USDA's Cooperative
State Research, Education & Extension Service
(CSREES) and Economic Research Service.
Over 220 family science professionals and
representatives of 20 associations and agencies
gathered at the National4-H Center. Out of
that conference came commitments to advance
a research, teaching and extension agenda.
CSREES developed a web site
(http://www.cyfernet.org/welfare.htrnl). The
University of Kentucky's College of Human
Environmental Sciences offered to host a
listserv, as a way of enhancing communications
and positioning our professionals as a source
for information and action. The listserv con tin-
ues to expand in content, use and participation.
Research
esearchers rallied around the call for
investigations. A 16-state, longitudinal
study of the impact of welfare reform
on the well-being of rural families was approved
by the North Central Region Agricultural Experiment Station Directors. Researchers from
multiple disciplines, with appointments in research, extension and instruction, are in phase
one of this five-year study. A team in Iowa
State's College of Family Consumer Sciences,
using the Urban Institute's methodology, reported on their findings in late 1999.
Instruction
In college classrooms across the country, family
scientists are teaching about welfare reform in a
variety of undergraduate and graduate classes.
At the University of Minnesota, a course on
public policy emphasized welfare reform as a
case study.
Extension and Outreach
Cooperative Extension responded to the call in
a variety of ways. The North Central Region
Center for Rural Development conducted a
survey to help the newly created National
Workforce Preparation Initiative, co-chaired by
a family professional, detennine the extent to
Professionals continued on next page
NCFR REPORT - Call for Topic Papers
Issue
Topic
Deadline for
Topic Section
June 2000
Visions for Families: Continuity and Change Across
Cohorts and Generations
Mayl
Sept. 2000
Children/Adolescent's Mental Health/Substance
Abuse Treatment and Prevention
Aug. I
Dec. 2000
Prevention Strategies Impacting the Juvenile Justice System Nov. 1
We continue to welcome your suggestions and offers to write or be willing to be interviewed
by our journalist, Dr. Nancy Giguere.
If you have data, research or practice articles for any of these topics, or know of outstanding
persons who can be interviewed or tapped please call or e-mail Michael Benjamin immediately at 888-781-9331, ext. 21 or mbenjamin@ncfr.org.
Let us hear from you about other topics that you would like to see published in the Report.
10
MARCH 201
�PROFESSIONALS
continued from page 10
which states were involved in building capacity
for work. With support from the Farm Foundation, a group of family professionals developed
"Copin County" a case study on life after
welfare reform. Two county family educators
conducted a survey to ascertain the extent of
county educators' involvement just after passage of the legislation.
Campus and county extension faculty began to
develop and deliver programming. VIrginia
Cooperative Extension was a pioneer in
mentming followed by Calvert County, Maryland and North Carolina State University. The
University of New Hampshire sought and
received funding for its family life-skills programs. The University ofldaho launched collaboration with agencies.
Curricula appropriate for this targeted audience
began to emerge. Examples include: The
University of California's "Gateway" curriculum; the University of Minnesota's "Dollar
Works"; Mississippi State's "Putting People
First"; and Texas A & M's "Moving Ahead
Through the Maze of Change."
Outreach efforts include numerous presentations made at national conferences to inform,
inspire and encourage engagement in public
policy education and/or education of people
moving off welfare into work. Many articles
were written by family professionals and published in a variety of professional publications.
A number of family professionals are consulting
with local, state and national agencies, associations, and legislatures as laws are implemented
and modified. Two served as consultants to the
St. Paul Pioneer Press's series, "Poverty
Among Us." And, work is beginning to extend
research-based knowledge as federal legislation comes up for reauthorization before 2002.
Outcome
s these examples indicate, family
professionals are extending their expertise through multiple means. As
they do so, they are engaging their institutions in
work important to people and communities
across America. The outcome of their efforts
will not be known for years. Hopefully, history
will record - to use the words of one Think
Tank participant -that they were "a group of
committed professionals who addressed an
emerging issue and created strategies for action
that made a positive difference in the lives of
limited resource families."
For more information, contact Bonnie
Braun, Bbraun927@aol.com.
NCFR REPORT
00
oung dults hink
now About Welfare
What
They
by Cathy Hockaday, Michael P. McClain, Ann M. Perkins, Iowa State University
survey of 619 undergraduate students
at a midwestern university shows that
while young adults have very strong
attitudes towards welfare recipients, their actual
knowledge on the subject is relatively low. We
asked students to complete a survey containing
both qualitative and quantitative information
about their
experiences with
the welfare
system, voting
information (e.g.
what political
party they identify with and
whether they
have ever
voted), and
knowledge and
attitudes of the
welfare system
CATHY HOCKADAY
and recipients.
The majority of the students were female (82
percent), Caucasian (94 percent), and 21 years
old or younger (94 percent). There was a fairly
even distribution of those reporting political
affiliations (29 percent Republican, 27 percent
Democratic, 17 percent Independent, and 27
percent none). Many times it is assumed that
young adults do not vote or get actively involved in the political process; however, 84
percent of the students surveyed were registered voters and 49 percent of those had
already voted in a city-wide, county-wide,
state-wide, or national election.
The Relationship Between
Experience and Attitudes
urprisingly, 41 percent of the students
had either personal or professional
experiences with the U.S. welfare system. The top four experiences were: a friend
was on welfare, a family member was on
welfare, they themselves had been on welfare
as children, or a parent was on welfare. When
asked where they learned about welfare programs, the top five responses were television,
newspapers, classes, friends and family.
Students with more positive views of the welfare recipients also had more positive views of
the welfare system. Those who expressed
11
positive views identified themselves with the
Democratic Party and indicated that they had
some experience with the welfare system.
These findings suggest that the experience of
receiving welfare or working for the system
leads a person to support more democratic
politicians.
In addition, those who have experience with the
system not only know more about welfare but
are also more likely to have voted in an election. Thus, experience seems to play an importantpartin the lives of these young voters in
terms of attitudes and behaviors.
Knowledge of Welfare and
the Recipients
Of the nine closed-ended knowledge questions,
the average number answered correctly was
five. Only 64 percent of those surveyed answered more than four questions correctly (14
percent of the 64 percent respondents were
correct on 7-8 questions; no one answered all
nine questions correctly).
The first open-ended question asked therespondent to "Name as many welfare programs
as you can." The top six programs named in
rank order were as follows: WIC (25 percent
of all responses), Food Stamps (24 percent),
Medicaid
(9 perSurprisingly, 41
cent), Title
percent of the students
had either personal
or professional
experiences with the
U.S. welfare system.
XIX (7
percent),
AFDC(6
percent),
and Medicare (6
percent).
Other
programs
were named but only by a few respondents
each. Many respondents were not able to name
any programs.
The second question asked the student to
"Name the two major public health insurance
programs in the United States." Medicaid was
correctly named by 140 of the students; 129
students correctly named Medicare. Those
respondents who perceived that they knew
more than others about welfare actually an-
Young Adults continued on next page
MARCH 2000
�w
I
f r
iii
Ifar
ff
Utah women lack resources;
live on edge of crisis
Cheryl Cheek, Department of Human Development and Family Studies, The Pennsylvania State University, Mont Alto; and
Kathleen W. Piercy, Department of Family
and Human Development, Utah State University, Logan
We interviewed 20 women in Utah, which has
a three-year lifetime limit on public assistance.
In that system, participants receive financial
assistance, training, and assistance with job
placement, day care, housing, and Medicaid.
Once employed, they may receive daycare,
housing and Medicaid assistance for two years.
Our research identified two overarching themes
Across the country, NCFR members
are interviewing those on the
frontlines of welfare reform - the
parents, usually women, who are
making the transition from welfare to
work. Here is what they learned.
sponsibilities as students, employees, and
mothers is difficult because they lack resources.
Secondly, their limited resources mean they live
perpetually on the edge of crisis.
Fatigue was a common problem. Several
women regularly rose at 4 or 5 a.m. to do
housework after working until nearly midnight.
Childcare responsibilities increased when
children became sick, and the roles of emEverything is Harder
ployee/mother or student/mother came into
Transporting children to daycare is a big probconflict. One woman said she came home to
lem for the women we talked to. Some face
study for a midterm and discovered that her
daughter's finger had swolFatigue was a common problem... and most len over a ring: "We had to
go up to the hospital, get the
women felt alone in their responsibilities.
ring cut off. On the way up
to the hospital we had a flat
long bus rides (for some, 3 to 6 hours per day)
tire .... And that's life when you're raising kids."
from home to daycare and from day care to
Finding quality daycare was a problem for
work or school. These women also described
nearly all respondents. One said, "I had a
the difficulties of taking the bus to the grocery
day care lady... .I didn't like her. But I didn't
store or laudromat with small children in tow.
in the women's lives. First, fulfilling theirre-
YOUNG ADULTS
continued from page 11
swered fewer knowledge questions correctly
than those who perceived they knew the same
or less than others. Furthermore, those who
believed they had more knowledge than others
had more negative views towards the welfare
system.
This lack of basic understanding exists despite
the national welfare reforms that occurred in
1996, replacing the Aid to Families with Dependent Children program with TANF.In addition,
Iowa had a forerunner to the TANF program,
the Family Investment Program (FIP) that
contained many of the provisions ofTANF and
was enacted in 1993.
After more than six years of welfare reform in
Iowa, many of the respondents were unaware
of the changes and the requirements placed on
welfare recipients. Researchers and politicians
alike should be concerned that although young
adults have very strong attitudes (analysis of the
qualitative questions reveal that attitudes are
very negative) toward welfare and the recipients, they do not have accurate knowledge of
the system. If politicians want to sway the voters
toward their political view, then they need to
make honest efforts at educating the people
about the welfare system and those it serves.
How Reform continued on next page
Danger Ahead!
Young adults have negative views of welfare recipients.
Our survey of student attitudes contained two qualitative, open-ended questions: "When you
hear the word 'welfare,' what thoughts come to mind?" and "Please list some of the positive
or negative interactions you have encountered with the welfare system."
This is how some respondents described welfare recipients:
o
"Moms with a lot of children not working, lazy, irresponsible."
o
"They have an outlook of give me, give me, give me."
o
"People use welfare because they are too lazy to get a job."
•
"All the illegal aliens and green card people use my tax dollars to waste away."
•
"White trash. Free loaders." "I think of people too lazy to get a job or a single mother
with 3 kids because she is not responsible enough to be stable before she has kids."
o
"Lazy irresponsible single mothers walking around in a run down apartment smoking and
drinking beer they bought with food stamps while their children run around without
diapers."
o
"Women with tons of kids, who won't go out and get a job or enroll in school to better
themselves or their family but instead allow for us to pay for them."
o
"Lazy dirt-bag thieves that can't get a job."
College students have typically been viewed as politically apathetic. The results of this
survey contradict this view. The students in this survey (mostly from human service fields)
may or may not be typical of other college students. They are, however, an active political
force with decidedly strong viewpoints. It should be of great concern that these individuals
base their views upon stereotypes and misinformation. Policymakers, program administrators and advocates for the poor must make a stronger effort to provide accurate information
to the public.
-Cathy Hockaday, Michael P. McClain and Ann M. Perkins
Young Adults continued on next page
NCIFR REPORT
12
MARCH 2000
�HOW REFORM
Tools for Community leaders
continued from page 12
have options .... So I took them there. And on
the third day, she called me and said, 'You
have to come and get these kids. The baby has
blood running out of her ear.' She had a broken ear drum .... So I took her to the doctor,
and I thought, 'I can't take them back there.'"
Children over 12 who could not qualify for
daycare became "latchkey" children. For their
mothers, this was frightening because many
families lived in areas with gang and drug
problems.
Some women were frustrated with their case
workers. One woman said, "[One case
worker] had never had any children. And she
expected so much of her clients that it was just
YOUNG ADULTS
continued from page 12
The North Carolina Cooperative Extension Service Department of Family and Consumer
Sciences developed a community manual and a series of six Extension publications. The
manual was designed for community leaders working with families seeking self sufficiency.
The manual is online at: www.ces.ncsu.edu/depts/fcs/welfare/welftoc.htrnl
The publications include these titles: Easing Transitions: Balancing Work & Family;
Parenting Skills for Busy Parent of Preschoolers; Adjusting to Work: Getting Along
with Others; Decision Making: It's a Skill; Locating and Selecting Child Care; and
Personal Wellnessfor Top Pe1jormance. They are in Acrobat form at:
www.ces.ncsu.edu/depts/fcs/humandev/parenpub.htrnl#workfront.
unrealistic. It's snowing outside, a blizzard
outside, and [she said], 'You take your two
infants and you get on the bus. And you take
them to the day care.' ... She had no concept of
taking a child out into the weather. And she had
no concept of the bond of a mother with a
child. I don't want to endanger my child. My
child's sick. I'm not going to take my child out
into the snow."
Living on the Edge
The Future of Welfare
oung adults have grown up hearing
strong negative messages regarding
the welfare system and recipients who
are considered lazy, fraudulent, and undeserving. Students identifying themselves as Republican, Democratic, Independent, and no political
affiliation, hold these views.
These young people who participated in our
survey are politically active (49 percent having
voted in an election) and have some degree of
knowledge on the basics of welfare, although
they appear to be una ware of the sweeping
changes already made to welfare programs
and recipients. Now that states are given much
more authority in running welfare programs
(through the use of block grants and mandates
to reduce the number of recipients on the
welfare roles), we anticipate that even more
restrictive and hostile attitudes and practices
against welfare and welfare recipients will
ensue.
ost women had little extended
family support. Although some
received emotional support, others
said their families had many problems and were
able to provide neither emotional nor financial
support.
Few women received any child support. They
feared ending up on welfare again if they became seriously ill. Worse yet was the fear that
they would have no assistance left and would
become homeless. One woman said her exhusband and his wife had tried to take her
children because they made more money and
felt they could provide a better home. When
she was seriously ill, she was afraid to let
anyone know because she didn't want to lose
her children.
Several women were paying offlarge debts left
to them by their ex-husbands. For them, running out of food at the end of the month was
common. One woman said, "After I pay my
bills for the month, [I have] less than a hundred
dollars .... That' s for food, school supplies, gaseverything .... "
These findings suggest that to change attitudes,
the public will need to be educated about both
the system and the recipients. In this environment, there should be concern over the future
of welfare. Because the most influential source
of information for young adults is the mass
media, the accuracy of the information they
receive and the philosophical messages about
the purpose and consequences of welfare will
shape the future direction of welfare "reform."
All the women said that they felt better about
themselves once they were off welfare. They
felt more pride in providing for their children.
One told of how happy she was that her children could have new clothes like their friends
instead of thrift-store clothes.
For more information, contact Cathy
Hockaday,
hockaday@MAJL.FCS.JASTATE.EDU.
But most women felt alone in their responsibilities. They felt the burden of being both
nurturers and providers for their children. They
NCFR REPORT
00
Mixed feelings
13
worried that their children now spent little time
with their mothers. Their children miss seeing
them. In that sense, receiving welfare was
better than working. Although they had no
money, they could be with their children.
For more information, please contact
Che1yl Cheek at clc24@psu.edu.
Work-family needs and welfare
reform in North Carolina
Karen DeBord, North Carolina State University; Rebekah F. Came, University of
North Carolina at Greensboro; Jennifer L.
Ke1pelman, Auburn University; D. Wayne
Matthews, North Carolina State University
We applied the "work-family fit" approach to
help us understand the experiences of poor,
single mothers as they move from welfare to
work. This approach views work and family as
interconnected systems, where connections
between these two systems are conceived of
as the "fit" between the demands of work and
the family's abilities to meet those demands,
and the "fit" between the family's needs and the
supplies available from work to meet those
needs.
Families in poverty find that the workplace
frequently is unable to meet their multiple
needs. In order to explore the full experience
of families moving from welfare into work, we
extended the work-family fit model to include
community supplies and community demands.
To understand this fit more clearly, we conducted a telephone survey of 16 EuropeanAmerican women and 14 African-American
women during January and February of 1997.
All had been employed full time for three to six
months. Some were rural women, others lived
in urban settings. A copy of the questionnaire
and a table of respondent demographics are
available at: http://www.ces.ncsu.edu/depts/fcs/
humandev/.
How Reform continued on next page
MARCH 2000
�HOW REFORM
continuedfrompage 13
Working brings satisfaction
he women discussed their social,
emotional and financial needs; wonies
about job security, child care, and
transportation; and concerns with job demands.
In discussing her job, one woman said: "To be
independent, to carry your own load without
depending on anyone- it makes you feel real
good!" Said another: "I want to thank my
employer for giving me a chance and for thinking I could do a good job."
T
transition to work, were unable to visit potential
childcare sites due to lack of transportation,
and received little assistance with this search.
Programs for school-age children were particularly scarce. Some families interviewed did not
have transportation to work due to unreliable
cars, no access to a vehicle, or difficulties with
public transportation.
Interviewees emphasized the importance of
organizational, time management, and budgeting
skills. Time spent at work, scheduling of work
hours, job responsibilities, and lack of emWomen also said they wanted co-workers to
ployer flexibility placed significant workplace
be more "accepting, open, honest, and encourdemands on many of those interviewed.
aging" toward them. Several felt their hard
Women had very little time to spend with their
work and strengths were not being recognized
children or on household tasks. One mother
by supervisors. Others commented that superwas hurt when her children said things like
visors were "sometimes impatient" or "did not
"You're never here!" Another said, "Ifeel
guilty about not being able to help my
"Don't hold welfare against me." children with their homework."
take the time to get to know the abilities of
their employees."
They had this advise for their supervisors:
"Don't hold welfare against me," and "You
really need to look at them [Welfare recipients]
as people- offer them the support that you
would want, were it you."
To co-workers, participants gave advice such
as "Make us feel like we're part of the team,"
"Be patient, informative, communicate." Although the women sometimes received social
and emotional support through work, in many
cases the workplace did not meet these needs.
Many women discussed the importance of
getting support from relatives, friends, spirituality, and caseworkers.
Many feel overwhelmed
T
he abrupt termination of welfare benefits made them feel "overwhelmed"
with financial wonies. A few women
suggested that "They should wean people off
and cut back gradually instead of cold turkey,"
and "extend transition services to learn to
budget and build a little reserve." They also
said that having medical coverage would ease
their wonies and help them be more successful
at work. Workers also expressed concerns
about their futures within the workplace; some
wonied that their positions could be terminated
at any moment while others were concerned
that their jobs offered no room for advancement.
Dependable child care and reliable transportation were concerns of many parents. They
often had little time to find care during a quick
NCFR REPORT
Women occasionally had difficulty meeting production standards and learning how to
interact with others in the work culture. Participants also discussed concerns about employer
fleXibility in terms of child and family needs. In
most cases, workers were expected to keep
family needs from interfering with work. Leaving work to pick up sick children or to attend
parent-teacher conferences created difficulties
with their supervisors.
For more information, please contact Karen
DeBord at Karen_DeBord@ ncsu. edu.
Encouraging Signs In Rural
lousiana
Pamela A. Monroe, Vicky V. Tille1; and Lydia
B. Blalock, School of Human Ecology; Richarc! C. Bogren, Ag Center Communications,
Louisiana Agricultural Center
For many women moving from welfare to work
in rural Louisiana, the transition has been difficult, but early results of our research are encouraging. We have focused on the early
progress, barriers to success, and needs of
welfare-reliant families, with particular emphasis
on nontraditional mechanisms for how women
establish food security and make ends meet for
their families.
Through in-depth qualitative interviews, we
studied the circumstances of 54 rural Louisiana
women approximately 18 months after they had
moved off the welfare rolls and into the workforce. The women were originally interviewed
in their final year of welfare program participation, and will be followed over the next several
years as they adapt to the loss of welfare program supports.
14
For most of these women, some event in the
past dismpted their future plans and goals -loss
of transportation, illness of a child, or abandonment by a husband or partner, exhausting their
resources and pressing them into welfare.
For many, life is better
he majority grew up in families of
modest means but had not been on
welfare. And although they now live in
extreme poverty, they want to move on to fulltime work and improve their situations. Most of
the women in the study are now in their first
round of employment following welfare. In
many cases, the circumstances of the families
have improved through training and initial jobs.
However, the youngest women are most at
risk. They have no educational credentials or
work history to help them enter the labor force.
T
Many women have jobs that don't offer benefits. That is not critically important at this time
because the welfare-to-work program, while
stopping welfare payments, continues food
How Reform continued on next page
~~
NOW AVAILABLE!
"Hot Topics"
Audio Telecoufereuce Tapes &
Transcripts
Audio Tapes
Transcripts
October 1999
$20.00 each
$20.00 each
$40.00both
Family Policy Advocacy or
Education: Which
Approach?, Karen
Bogenschneider
November 1999 How Quarrels Over
Money (in the Federal
Budget) Affect American
Families, Janes Homey
January2000
Federal and State Child
Care and Early Education
Issues, Helen Blank
February 2000 Welfare Refonn, Joan
Entmacher
March2000
Health and Family Policy in
the New Millennium, Joy
Johnson Wilson
To order visit the
NCFR website at www.ncfr.org
or contact Nikki Cunningham at NCFR
Tol1Free:888-781-9331,ext.l4
Fax: 763-781-9348
E-mail: nikki @ncfr.org
MARCH 2000
�elfare ef rm,
verty
and amilies ith oung Children
by Kristi L. Hannan, Ph.D. and Thomas R. Chibucos, Ph.D.,
School of Family and Consumer Sciences, Bowling Green State University
hild care has been described as a
"perpetual emergency," plagued by
problems of availability, affordability,
instability and poor quality. These problems are
particularly acute in regard to care for children
under three and poor children of all ages.
Consider the following examples from earlier
research:
0
0
In 1997, only five percent of Ohio's spaces
in childcare centers were available for
infants, and only 12 percent for toddlers.
Working poor families spend a third of their
income on childcare, compared to only six
percent for middle-class families.
0
Nearly a third of infants have been in three
or more childcare arrangements by the time
they are a year old.
0
Approximately 41 percent of working poor
mothers work rotating schedules, and 33
percent work weekends, neither of which
coincide with the schedules of most childcare centers and family day care homes-
HOW REFORM
continued from page 14
stamps and medicaid, especially for children.
But many women are concerned about finding
adequate full-time employment and fear the
loss of medicaid and food stamps before that
happens. Many of the women have low-paying
transitional jobs, publicly supported through
grants to employers.
Good nutrition is a concern
Because they still receive food stamps, the
women didn't report experiences of food
insecurity. But some women may not be making the best food choices. For many, "balanced
meals" means variety or quantity, rather than
nutritional adequacy. When food is scarce,
mothers skip meals or feed the kids first. We
believe there is still a substantial opportunity to
address eating habits and food choices through
programs such as those promoted in many
state cooperative extension services.
The mothers do their best to get the children to
school and see they do their homework. Most
of these women are fiercely protective of their
NCFR REPORT
the types of child care most likely to be
regulated and monitored for quality, and to
provide high-quality care.
0
40 percent of infant/toddler classrooms
provide "less than minimal" quality of care,
compared to 12 percent of preschool
classrooms.
Poor childcare poses risks
The multi-site NICHD Study of Early Child
Care found that infants who experienced
unsupportive environments both at home and
child care were less likely to use their
caregivers as a "secure base" from which to
explore their environments, which is considered to be a risk factor for developmental
problems. Further, recent research on the
brain de'velopment of infants and toddlers
highlights the direct effect of insecure attachments and lack of stimulation on brain development during the first three years of life.
Earlier welfare policies, such as AFDC and
the Family Support Act, allowed mothers to
children and are very reluctant to surrender
daily care of their children to outside caregivers. Despite certain popular stereotypes,
these are good mothers, and we haven't seen
negative effects of welfare reform on children
at this time.
We encourage policymakers to extend benefits to women in similar situations as long as
possible and offer help with other barriers,
particularly transportation and child care.
Much of the credit for
,14
helping these rural
Tue youngest Louisiana women
women are
most at risk.
make progress should
be given to many
nonprofit organizations,
- - - - - - - - public agencies, and
volunteers- including former teachers and
nuns- who are helping the women get GEDs
or certification for new employment. For the
women interviewed for this study, the transition
from welfare reliance to wage-based self
sufficiency is just beginning.
f.,
For more infonnation, please contact Pam
Monroe at pmonroe@unixl.sncc.lsu.edu. 1111
15
stay home with their young children. Now, however, replacement of the AFDC program with
TANF means that poor parents must find care for
their infants and toddlers while they participate in
welfare-to-work programs. Given the current
condition of childcare for infants and toddlers, this
policy has potentially alarming implications for the
well-being of infants, toddlers and their families.
Low-wage jobs limit parents' ability to pay for
quality childcare, both because of the high cost of
infant/toddler care and the large portion of family
income that must go toward childcare expenses
when income is limited.
Problems with childcare often inhibit parents'
ability to begin and continue work, job training
and schooling. For example, single mothers who
worried about the availability, instability and
quality of their childcare arrangements were more
likely to drop out of California's welfare reform
program than mothers who were comfortable
with their children's care.
We analyzed data from the Census Bureau's
Survey of Income and Program Participation
(SIPP). The sample included over 2,800 families
with children under six, including more than 200
families who received AFDC in 1993.
Public policy should promote
children's well-being
prime motivating factor for this research
was the apparent gap between a major
public policy decision ("welfare reform,"
as instituted through the 1996 Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunities Reconciliation
Act), and the conceptualization of how to assess
the like! y impact of that decision. In particular,
the goal of getting people off welfare is the predominant theme, with relatively little attention to
assessing the effects on families and children,
particularly very young children.
The SIPP provided an opportunity to investigate
some assumptions and likely outcomes, by analyzing data on a sample of AFDC and nonAFDC families that have some similarities to
families now going through welfare reform. Our
results suggest a number of ways that state and
county officials can promote welfare recipients'
ability to work and obtain adequate childcare
arrangements, while protecting the well-being of
children and families.
Reform, Poverty continued on next page
MARCH 2000
�Child Care Providers Speak
ut
by Judy Bordin, Associate Professor, Child Development Program, California State University, Chico
When the federal government replaced Aid to
Families and Dependent Children (AFDC) with
Temporary Assistance to Needy Families
(TANF), one of the major issues that would
determine the success of this program was
childcare. Funding affordable and high quality
childcare is a significant challenge for all parents. When welfare reform mandated that
asked about policies and procedures that
encourage- or, in some cases, discourageparticipation in the subsidized program.
Participants and Survey
A group of providers, welfare agency employees and other community members formulated
the survey. Providers were asked to indicate
how strongly they agreed or
disagreed with statements about
Most providers had a sincere desire to
the policies and practices of the
help families affected by welfare reform. agencies managing the subsidy
programs. Their responses were
anonymous, and no names were used on the
welfare recipients enter the workforce, the
returned materials. The survey also asked for
need for additional childcare "slots" for their
information about enrollment and the number of
children became critical. To meet this need,
years that the facility had been licensed. Remany states instituted "capacity building" prospondents also had the opportunity to discuss
gran1s. They encouraged licensed childcare
other issues or suggest ways to remedy probproviders to enroll welfare-to-work families in
lems identified in the survey.
their programs. Providers received a subsidy
while the parents attended training or began
We mailed the survey to 283 licensed
employment.
caregivers listed by the local resource and
referral agency. The majority- 226 (79.8
To find out what motivated providers to participercent) were sent to family day care providpate in such a program, we surveyed licensed
ers. Fifty-seven surveys (20.1 percent) were
caregivers in one California county. We also
REFORM, POVERTY
continuedfrompage 15
high quality, affordable and stable childcare.
Childcare subsidies and tax credits can help
parents afford quality childcare. Stable care can
be ensured by ( 1) increasing the availability of
child care with evening and weekend hours, so
children can remain in one program throughout
the work week, and (2) coordinating
childcare policies so children can
Problems with childcare often inhibit
remain in the same program as their
parents' ability to begin and continue parents receive welfare, make the
transition from welfare to work and
work, job training and schooling.
continue employment. Work participation and children's well-being can also
marketable skills have the potential to make a
be enhanced through policies that promote
difference in families' lives. The current empharegulated childcare, such as extending state
sis on limited job training over education limits
regulations to currently non-regulated care and
parents' ability to obtain full-time jobs that
increasing subsidies for regulated care.
provide sufficient income to move families out
Finally, our research suggests that policies may
of poverty.
need to provide extra support to parents of
infants and toddlers and those who work
Second, parents in low-wage jobs need supirregular schedules if these groups are to be
ports, such as health coverage, childcare subsiable to find adequate childcare arrangements
dies and tax credits now more than ever, given
removal of the "safety net" previously available
and protect their children's well-being.
to poor children and their families.
First, policies that result in increased earnings
and work hours are likely to promote work
participation and enable parents to purchase
quality, stable childcare. For example, increases
in the minimum wage and job training/educational programs that provide parents with
Third, all parents, including those currently and
recently on welfare, must be ensured access to
NCFR REPORT
For more information, contact Kristi Hannan, khannan@bgnet.bgsu.edu, or Thomas f.,
Chibucos, tchibuc@bgnet.bgsu.edu.
lllJ
16
sent to childcare centers. Thirty-five childcare
and 109 family day care providers responded.
Findings
T
he 35 centers had been open for an
average number of seven and one half
years with the range of 1 to 4 7 years in
business. The 108 family day care homes had
been open for an average of five years and nine
months, with a range of 1 to 20 years in business. Eighty-two percent of the respondents
had recent or current direct experience with the
subsidy programs.
The majority of providers responded that they
had a sincere desire to help families affected by
welfare reform. One provider wrote, "It is great
to be able to provide services to a crosssection of our society." Another said that subsidized families "need child care to move forth
with their development."
Others appreciated that the subsidy program
allowed them to "serve all families no matter
what their needs" and "enable parents to have a
chance to better themselves." One provider
said that subsidies "improve the whole
economy."
Providers with experience serving these families
were impressed with the changes that some had
made. They discussed the higher rates of organization in the households such as, "children
with cleaner clothes," and "an improvement in
on time pick up and delivery." Providers also
mentioned that families appreciated them and
often asked questions about household management or child rearing. On the other hand,
providers worried about families who were
really struggling to deal with the demands of a
welfare agency that was not compassionate
about illness, transportation difficulties or other
family problems.
Policies and Procedures
The survey identified six issues deemed critical
to providers participating in the subsidy
program:
1. Timely payment. This issue was of greatest
concern to providers. Larger, for-profit centers
identified this as particularly important. They
said that their budgets were tight and late
payments were a hardship. Providers whose
reimbursement rates were lower than nonsubsidized family rates felt most strongly about
the need to be paid on time.
Providers Speak continued on next pag
MARCH 2001
�ealth Insurance Must Be
art f Meaningful Welfare
eform
by Karen Seccombe, Professor; Department of Sociology, Portland State University
"It's very easy up in Washington to sit on
their thrones and say, "Oh, they're lazy,"
and this and that. But it doesn't hit home
until you are in this situation. I think it
would do them good to go and visit these
people themselves and see what kind of
houses people are living in. It's about compassion ... " - Stephanie, mother on welfare,
with one daughter
From "So You Think I Drive a Cadillac":
Welfare Recipients' Perspectives on the
System and Its Reform, by Karen Seccombe, Allyn & Bacon Publishers, 1999
Policymakers often assume that it is easy to
make the transition out of poverty, given our
robust economy. However, although inflation
and unemployment are at their lowest in decades, the percentage of individuals, families,
and children living in poverty in 1998 was
nearly identical to that of 1980.
Between March 1994 and March 1999, national welfare caseloads fell by nearly 50 percent, declining from 5 million to 2.6 million
crease in the number of people receiving Medicaid. It's estimated that during the first year of
welfare reforms, 1.25 million people with incomes under 200 percent of the federal poverty
level lost their Medicaid coverage as a direct
result of welfare reform.
This decline in Medicaid coverage would be of
little concern if we could assume
The fear of being uninsured discouraged that former recipients and their
families are receiving health
recipients from seeking employment.
insurance from their new employers. But unfortunately the lowfamilies. But when families leave welfare, they
wage jobs that welfare recipients take (averaging about $6.50 per hour) usually do not promay lose the health insurance that was a critical
part of their welfare benefits. Preliminary data
vide health insurance as a fringe benefit. Only
indicate that the recent drop in welfare
30 to 40 percent of the working poor receive
caseloads has been accompanied by a de-
Health Insurance continued on next page
PROVIDERS SPEAK continuedfrompage 16
2. Paperwork. Providers were willing to
complete the extra paperwork that was needed
for these families, but they complained about
confusing or ambiguous questions. They said
that it was helpful to have agency workers help
them answer questions and teach them how to
complete the forms.
3. Parental Compliance with Program
Requirements. Parents in some programs
must submit all the paperwork to the welfare
agency in order for the provider to be paid.
Preliminary Questions for Providers
Before participating in a subsidized program, childcare providers should ask the welfare
agency the following questions:
1111
What paperwork needs to be submitted to receive payment?
1111
How long does it take to get a check issued?
1111
What kinds of paperwork are required each week? Month? Year? Who submits the
paperwork for payment?
1111
What role do parents play in this program? What do they have to do in order to comply
with program policies?
This caused anxiety, concern and a real problem for providers who depended on parents to
complete billing forms.
4. Communication with Welfare Agency.
Providers appreciated agency workers who
promptly returned phone calls or visited their
facility to talk with them and answer questions.
5. Consistent Policies. Welfare agencies with
written manuals were the most helpful. Providers felt confused by inconsistent responses to
their questions from different agency workers.
6. State Budget Delays. Providers cited past
experience with state budget delays that were
very difficult for them. They worried that participation in the program would make them
vulnerable to overdue payments.
A need for dialogue
1111
Who do I call ifl need help?
1111
What is the best way to communicate with your agency?
1111
Do you have a policy manual to govern this program? Are providers given a copy?
1111
What happens if the legislature delays the approval of the state budget?
1111
Does your agency meet regularly with childcare organizations?
1111
Do you anticipate any changes in your policies and procedures in the future? If so, what?
- Judy Bardin
NCFR REPORT
17
Welfare-to-work agencies, childcare providers
and others who assist them must work closely
together to insure the success of these programs for these families. Provider associations
should consider establishing a working relationship with the agencies that administer these
programs. If welfare reform is to flourish,
childcare providers must be included in a
meaningful dialogue that encourages their active
and enthusiastic participation.
For more information, contact
Judy Bardin, jbordin@csuchico.edu.
MARCH 2000
�HEALTH INSURANCE continued from page n
health insurance from an employer. With low
rates of pay, the rest cannot afford to purchase
it privately. Consequently they remain uninsured.
Uninsured get less care
dequate health insurance can make a
tremendous difference in the amount
and type of health care that people
receive. Uninsured adults and children use the
health care system less often, are less likely to
have a regular source of care, are more likely
to rely upon emergency rooms for their treatment, and often experience mmecessary pain,
suffe1ing, and even death. A recent study by
Kaiser/Commonwealth found that 55 percent
of people without insurance postponed getting
medical care, compared to only 14 percent of
people with insurance. Thirty percent of the
uninsured reported that they
didnotget
needed medical
care, compared
to only 7 percent
with insurance.
And 24 percent
of those uninsured reported
that they did not
fill a prescription,
compared to 6
percent of people
KAREN SECCOMBE, Ph.D. with insurance.
Being without insurance is extremely stressful to
many poor families. Concerns about health,
how to pay for health care, and getting the care
their families needed emerged frequently in the
in-depth interviews that I conducted with
welfare recipients in North Florida. Many
women expressed genuine fear that their future
jobs may not offer health insurance.
The fear of being uninsured actually discouraged welfare recipients from seeking or accepting employment. Many women admitted
that they had stayed on welfare longer than
necessary because they needed the medical
benefits and feared they would lose them by
accepting work.
"I'm a good mother. I'm all they got. I can't go
being irresponsible ... " one woman told me.
When I asked my respondents to rank the
importance of all the different types of aid they
received, Medicaid was most often at the top
of tl1is list- more important than food stamps or
the check itself.
Poor families are often sicker
T
heir concems are not unfounded. Poor
adults are more likely to suffer a wide
variety of chronic and acute ailments
tl1an their non-poor counterparts. For example,
welfare recipients are nearly three times as
likely as other women to report having poor or
only fair health. Approximately 10 percent
nationally report that they are limited to some
degree in the type or amount of work that they
can do because of a medical condition. Eight
percent report that they need help to perform
specific tasks of daily living, such as dressing,
e9-ting, bathing or walking up stairs.
Their children are also significantly more likely
to suffer a wide array of ailments, both chronic
and acute, than are more affluent children. For
example, poor children are three times more
likely to be iron deficient, 1.5 times more likely
to have frequent diarrhea or colitis, two times
more likely to have asthma, three times more
likely to have lead paint poisoning, 1.5 times
more likely to suffer from partial or complete
blindness or deafness, and tlrree times more
like!y to die in childhood.
The welfare reform bill generally allows for 12
months of transitional Medicaid assistance for
former welfare recipients and their families who
would otherwise lose eligibility because of their
earnings. But is this long enough to ensure that
former welfare recipients and their families can
find a replacement?
fom1er welfare recipients and their children
have health insurance after leaving TANF, and
whether they are getting the healtl1 care that
they need. There is no federal requirement that
states conduct studies of what happens to
former recipients, although many states and
research organizations have elected to track
them for a pe1iod of time. Generally, these
studies report that one-quarter to one-third of
adults, and 15 percent of children are completely uninsured after leaving welfare.
A 1998 survey of nearly 600 single-parent
fan1ilies in Washington state who left TANF is
typical. It found that over one-third of adult
fmmer recipients and 16 percent of their children were completely uninsured after leaving
welfare. Two-thirds of the respondents were
employed at the time of the telephone survey,
and yet only
21 percent of
Welfare recipients
these adults
are nearly three
reported that
they were
times as likely as
currently
other women to
covered by an
report having poor employersponsored
or only fair health. health plan. It
would appear
that welfare-to-work training programs are
successfully assisting recipients find employment of some sort, but tl1ey do little to secure
health insurance coverage.
Meaningful welfare reform and access to healtl1
care are critically linlced to one another. We
cannot truly reform our welfare system until we
attend to recipients' greater than average health
care needs. Most former recipients and their
children will join the ranlcs of the working poor
and become uninsured, even with transitional
Medicaid and the S-CHIP programs in place.
This will affect their access to health care
services and interfere with their ability to use
the health care system appropriately.
The Child Healfu Insurance Program (CHIP) is the largest single expansion ofhealfu insurance coverage for children in more than 30 years. Today, nearly 11 million American children
-one in seven- are uninsured. CHIP enables states to insure children from working families
wifu incomes too high to qualify for Medicaid, but too little to afford private coverage. The
initiative is a partnership, between the federal and state govemments, that will help provide
children with the health coverage they need to grow up healthy and strong.
These issues are becon1ing increasingly important as states witness the expiration of the oneyear transitional Medicaid benefits among the
first cohorts of welfare-to-work participants.
And there are other cohorts right behind them.
It is ironic that, in these econon1ically robust
times, we can consider the welfare system
reformed simply because people are encouraged or forced to leave it for work, without
thoroughly, systematically and thoughtfully
examining the subsequent health, safety and
well-being of these families.
For more infonnation, see www.insurekidsnow.gov, or calll-877-543-7663
at no charge.
For more information, please contact
,.,,
Karen Seccombe at seccombek@pdx.edu. U1J
Conversations with officials in several states
reveal that it is not altogether clear whether
Health Insurance for Children
NCFR REPORT
18
MARCH 2000
�ontrolling
ur Future ....
ath to Success
by Sharon P. Blase, CFCS, Family and Consumer Sciences Educator, Rutgers Cooperative Extension of Cumberland County
"Controlling Your Future ... APath to Success,"
an Extension financial management training
program has helped 159 Work First New
Jersey participants prepare for full-time employment. The 1998 training program was
designed to encourage welfare clients to develop decision-making skills and financial
competencies. Research has shown that people
frequently have employment difficulties due to
financial problems. The Cooperative Extension
program used financial management training to
facilitate a successful transition from welfare to
the workplace.
Rutgers Cooperative Extension's family and
consumer sciences program presented eight
workshops in cooperation with the Cumberland
County Office of Employment and Training.
The financial management training was included
in the required welfare reform training program.
Welfare clients were able to participate in the
training because it met agency requirements,
was held at the employment-training site and
transportation was provided. Class participants
included African American, Caucasian and
Hispanic adults ranging in age from 15 to 40,
who were receiving welfare, food stamp and
unemployment benefits.
Learning new skills
T
raining was provided in budgeting,
record keeping, selecting and managing
a personal checking account, developing a savings program, and credit management.
All class activities and materials were developed with consideration to current and future
financial situations as well as participants'
reading level and learning style. All participants
completed a pre-class survey of their financial
Helping Low-income
ouseholds Build Assets
T
he Assets for Independence Act
(AFIA), which was signed into law by
President Clinton in October 1998,
established a national Individual Development
Account (IDA) demonstration to determine
how effective IDAs and "asset-building" strategies are in helping low-income people save,
acquire productive assets, and achieve economic self-sufficiency. By setting up and helping
to fund approximately 50,000 IDAs, the bill
will also help meet the vast and rapidly growing
demand for IDAs in low-income communities.
Individual Development Accounts (IDAs) are
matched savings accounts, similar to 401 (k)s,
tlmt can be used by low-income households to
purchase homes, seek post-secondary education, or capitalize small businesses. Currently
more than 2,500 families in over 150 communities are saving in IDAs. Twenty-seven states
have passed laws to recognize IDAs. The
federal government, through the AFlA, has
authorized more than $125 million for IDAs.
IDAs reward the monthly savings of workingpoor families who are trying to buy their first
NCFR REPORT
home, pay for post-secondary education, or
start a small business. This reward or incentive
is provided through the use of matching funds
that typically come from a variety of private and
public sources. Similar to 40l(k)s, IDAs make
it easier for low-income families to build the
financial assets that they need to achieve the
American Dream. Accountholders also receive
valuable financial education and counseling to
help them to continue to prosper in the mainstream economy.
What's happening with IDAs
nationwide?
As of December 1999:
e IDA programs exist in about 200 communities, with another 100 in development.
Overall, at least 5,000 people are currently
saving in an IDA.
e
28 states have included IDAs in their state
TANF plans; 27 states have passed some
form of IDA legislation, and five states have
IDA legislation pending. Only six states
Build Assets continued on next page
19
management experiences and practices. This
information helped the instructor to design the
lessons and appropriate learning activities.
Comparison of the pre-course survey and
post-course survey results indicate that more
than 80 percent plan to secure a checking
account when they are employed, 75 percent
are interested in starting a savings account (i.e.
Christmas
"I have never been Club) when
they are emable to manage a
ployed, and 80
percent would
checking account
like to secure a
before, but I have
credit card
when they are
learned how to
employed.
manage one for
the first time."
Course evaluation and a
follow-up
evaluation one year later revealed that the
majority of participants valued and used the
record keeping system and training taught in the
course. Credit management training was second in importance.
Money management is the key
arrative comments from the evaluations reveal how the participants
valued the training: "Provided important and needed training for me"; "I have never
been able to manage a checking account before, but I have learned how to manage one for
the first time"; "This course showed me how I
can change my family's future"; "I have confidence that I can manage my finances after I am
employed ifl use what I have learned"; "I
would have avoided credit trouble ifl had this
before"; and "I love this course and feel good
about myself."
Evaluation results indicate that financial management skills and balancing work and family
may be the key answers and factors towards
achieving self-sufficiency. Employment alone
may not be the answer if individuals are not
able to pay their bills, save money and manage
consumer credit.
For more information on this program,
contact Sharon P. Blase, Phone: 856-4512800; Fax: 856-451-4206; or E-mail:
blase @aesop. rutgers. edu.
MARCH 2000
�Moving Fr m Welfare
to Work Is a Scary Trip
by Rosilee Trotta, LCSW, Urban Youth and Family Specialist, University of Missouri Outreach and Extension, St. Louis, MO
Marissa sat silent in the Work Ways classroom, afraid to state her own opinion
on any topic. As a child, she had been punished severely for "willful"
statements. As a student, she had been berated for her lack of success. In her
current abusive relationship, differing opinions could be dangerous.
Marissa had never finished high school, held a job, or driven a em: She had
rarely ventured more than afew miles from home. She had no plans for the future
beyond day-to-day survival. She felt unimportant and preferred to be unnoticed.
She was just too scared to say what she felt.
arissa is one of nearly 200 participants in a new program called
WorkWays™, whichlhavedirected since the fall of 1998. WorkWays was
created to help individuals move from welfare
to work and to stay employed while successfully coping with work and family issues. A
strong emphasis is placed on participants
achieving full potential.
As my staff and I began the WorkWays program, we anticipated the many difficulties we
would encounter and addressed them upfront.
We developed a curriculum (soon to be marketed) that is interactive, instructional, and fun.
It has been successful in tackling the tough skills
of attitude, responsibility, communication,
problem solving, and workforce preparation.
Our participants love it and learn from it.
In a recent qualitative study that included 52
randomly selected former WorkWays participants, 11 had started (or would start within two
weeks) in aGED program and six were en-
BUILD ASSETS continuedfrompage 19
have no known IDA policy activity.
e Several national foundations are supporting
the Downpayments on the American Dream,
or ADD, a 2,000-account IDA demonstration in 13 sites across the country.
e Through the federal Assets for Independence Act, IDAs are expected to reach an
additional30,000 to 40,000 working-poor
Americans by the year 2003.
e In July 1999, IDAs were included in the
Senate-passed tax bills, which proposed
nearly $1 billion in federal tax credits for
financial institutions to match IDAs.
An effective asset-building tool
Already, there is evidence from IDA programs
that poor people, with proper incentives and
supports, will save regularly and acquire productive assets. For example, 1,488low-income
families participating in ADD saved $429,593
as of June 30, 1999, and these savings leveraged another $7 61,712 in matching funds.
Monthly deposits most often range from $30$75 per month. Also, research summarized by
the Center for Social Development demonstrates many beneficial aspects of assets: they
NCFR REPORT
promote economic household stability and
educational attainment; decrease the risk of
intergenerational poverty transmission; increase
health and satisfaction among adults; and increase local civic involvement.
A good national investment
ignificant as current IDA efforts are, they
cannot meet the growing demand for
IDAs, nor will they reach very many of
the one-third of Americans (and two-thirds of
African Americans) who are asset-poor.Also,
up to one-fifth of American households are
"unbanked." Moreover, IDAs would be a good
national investment: the Corporation for Enterprise Development estimates that every federal
dollar invested in IDAs would yield over five
dollars of returns to the U.S. in theformofnew
businesses, additional earnings, new and rehabilitated homes, reduced welfare expenditures,
and more adults obtaining high school, vocational, and college degrees.
For more infonnation on how your organization can create an IDA program, contact the
Corporation for Enterprise Development:
Phone: 202-408-9788; Fax: 202-408-9793;'·'
www.cfed.org.
ttiJ
20
rolled in post-secondary education. Several
WorkWays participants have left abusive
relationships while in our program. We have
even had some success with drug and alcohol
issues. Recruitment is still a problem, but
increased marketing efforts are paying some
dividends.
While these tasks have not been easy, neither
have they been unexpected. We were prepared
for feelings of anger, low self-esteem, and
resistance to change that accompany most firstday clients. But what took us by surprise was
the pervasive fear that paralyzed so many of
our participants. That fear often looked like
withdrawal, aloofness, anger, hostility, bravado,
or wiliness.
Lisel, for example, wanted desperately to go
back to school. A high school graduate, Lisel
had done only
marginally well in
Many of our
math and felt her
participants
writing skills were
were paralyzed inadequate. Her
dream future reby fear.
quired higher education, but she was
afraid to enroll, lest she be considered "the
dumbest person in the classroom."
Tina wanted to be a truck driver, but was afraid
to try for a chauffeur's license. Jeremy, at 45,
was sure he could not handle the new technology required for any job. Lonnie was frightened
that her family and friends would "bring her
down" if she enrolled in higher education. Petra
was sure her temper would keep her from
doing well anywhere. So she stayed home.
Their fears are not much different than the fears
we all share. Most of us, however, have had
supporters who encouraged us when we faltered, cheered our successes, and mined our
potential. Most of us have had role models that
demonstrated hard work, responsibility and
commitment. Most of us learned early that our
attitude influences our chances in life and that
risk-taking often leads to opportunity.
Our clients, on the other hand, may not have
had these values demonstrated or consistently
reinforced. They may have been debased or
even punished for explorations that led to
Scary Trip continued on next page
MARCH 2000
�T
Several policy centers publish their analyses on the WIN website; in
particular, see reports by the Center on Law and Social Policy (also
available at www.Clasp.org) and the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities (www.cbpp.org). Unspent funds are a major issue. CBPP's state-by
state analysis of surplus state funds shows that most states have many
millions of dollars in unspent funds from their annual federal allocations,
due to the sharp decline in requests for welfare assistance.
he 1996 Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunities
Reconciliation Act (PRWORA) radically transformed welfare in
the U.S., in two key ways. First, assistance is contingent on
employment or job training, with a five-year limit over a lifetime. Second,
substantial authority has been transferred to individual states, through a
process known as devolution or the new federalism.
Welfare reform is the most studied social policy in the nation's history,
with documents and data readily available on the Internet. Here are
selected Internet resources for research and policy studies. They cover
specific topics like cash assistance, food security, health, childcare and
workforce development. Sites for state-level documents and advocacy
are also included.
Coverage of legal issues is available from the Welfare Law Center at
www.welfarelaw.org. For a welfare recipient's perspective, see the
Welfare Mom page at www.geocities.com/CapitolHill/l 064/.
Cash Assistance
F
or an excellent overview ofTANF and its funding possibilities, see
the homepage of the Office of Family Assistance (OFA) at
www.acf.dhhs.gov/programs/ofa/. (Other sites of the Department
of Health and Human Services are listed below under "State Resources.") The Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (www.doleta.gov) provides information for the Employment and
Training Community as well as information on Welfare to Work grants
and programs.
General Issues and Resources
The Welfare Information Network (WIN) has emerged as the central
clearinghouse for information on welfare refonn at www. welfareinfo.org.
SCARY TRIP continued from page 20
further questioning and discovery. They learned, instead, to fear
because it was the safe thing to do.
State-level data and Resources
Before anyone can conquer a fear, he or she must first recognize that the
fear exists, and then be able to confront it. But it's important that finger
pointing not become the focus. Too many of our clients already present
themselves as victims; reinforcing the victim mentality does nothing to
tap potential.
Instead, we take participants through a series of fun discussions and
exercises in which they explore who they are, how they feel about themselves, what people said or thought about them, and what the real truth
was - both then and now. We ask our clients to examine their fears and
confront them.
Next, we encourage individuals to recognize their strengths and teach
them a daily workout technique called "Building I-ceps," designed to
dispel fears by improving self-esteem. The remainder of the curriculum
continues to build on these skills.
The impact of our approach has been evident in behavior change. Lisel
enrolled in a community college, maintains a 4.0 average, and participates
in the work-study program. Tina has her chauffeur's license. Jeremy is
taking computer classes. Lonnie is taking two college courses and doing
quite well. Petra has established better relationships with her children
because she now "talks" instead of yells.
As for Marissa, she stopped shaking when she spoke in class and even
began to enjoy it. She learned to drive, left the abusive relationship she
was in, and is looking for work.
NCFR REPORT
More state-level information is available from the National Conference of
State Legislatures (www.ncsl.org) and the National Governor's Association (www.nga.org). A third group, the Council of State Governments
operates www.statesnews.org, which provides general state-level news
(including articles on welfare reform).
Research Resources
he Urban Institute's "Assessing the New Federalism" project is a
major source of research data (http://newfederalism.urban.org/).
The Research Forum on Children, Families and the New Federalism ( www.researchforum.org) provides e-mail updates through its WIN
E-mail Announcement Service. Child Trends is a nonprofit, nonpartisan
organization that studies children's issues (www.childtrends.org).
Policy and Advocacy Resources
Not all of our participants have made such progress; none has yet
reached his or her full potential. But many, like Marissa, are conquering
the fears that have defeated them in the past, recognizing that, truly, "there
is nothing to fear but fear itself."
Forfurther infonnation on "Tackling the Tough Skills" contact
Rosilee Trotta, TrottaR@missouri.edu.
Information on state funding allocations and plans is available at the
websites of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services
(www.dhhs.gov). For documents and links to research, see
www.acf.dhhs.gov/news/welfare/index.htrn. The Office ofPianning and
Evaluation has a site for Human Services Policy at http://
aspe.os.dhhs.gov/hsp/hspyoung.htm. State policies are tracked by the
State Policy Documentation Project ( www.spdp.org), and the Center for
Policy Alternatives analyses (www.stateline.org).
fM
Progressive policy analyses from many sources are available, organized
by topic, from the Electronic Policy Network (EPN) at www.epn.org.
The former Conservative Internet Forum is now Free Citizen
(www.freecitizen.com).BoththeHeritageFoundation
(www.heritage.org) and the Cato Institute (www.cato.org) offer occasional conservative or libertarian analyses of welfare policy. The National
Internet Resources continued on next page
21
MARCH 2000
�rkin
elfare-t
an ada
RESEARCH BEGINS ON IMPLICATIONS FOR PRE-SCHOOL
CHILDREN'S HEALTH AND DEVELOPMENT
by Deanna L. Williamson, Ph.D., Janet E. Fast, Ph.D., Jerrold L. Kachur, Ph.D.,
Nicole Letourneau, RN, Ph.D., Kim Raine-Travers, RD, Ph.D., University of Alberta, Edmonton, Canada
E
creasingly during the past five years, a
1ain goal of social policy reform across
anada is to move social assistance recipients into the workforce. A national inventory
done for the Canadian Council on Social Developmentinl998 showed that this welfare-towork trend is characterized by a range of
initiatives and programs. These commonly
include restricted eligibility for social assistance,
reduced benefit levels, life skills and job training, temporary employment opportunities,
earnings supplements, and childcare subsidies.
Such policy and program initiatives are not new
in Canada. Provincial social assistance programs have a history of offering services and
supports designed to facilitate the transition
from welfare to the labor market. What is new
is the increasingly mandatory nature of welfareto-work initiatives.
All Canadian provinces and territories except
Newfoundland require that most social assistance recipients participate in welfare-to-work
programs in exchange for financial and in-kind
benefits. Social assistance benefits are either
reduced or withheld if recipients do not actively
seek employment or participate in education or
job training programs.
All provincial social assistance programs concede that some members of society, such as
single parents with young children, should not
engage in welfare-to-work initiatives. The
definition of "young children," however, varies
considerably across provinces. British Columbia, for example, does not require single parents to engage in welfare-to-work initiatives
until their children are seven years old. Alberta
and Prince Edward Island, on the other hand,
require parents to start looking for work once
Canada continued on next page
INTERNET RESOURCES continuedfrompage 21
University hosts a research site on equality and health (http://
depts. washington.edu/eqhlth/). The new Children's Health Insurance
Program (CHIP) is covered extensively by the National Governor's
Association (www.nga.org).
Welfare Monitoring and Advocacy Project (www.nwmap.org) also
analyses welfare policy. For information on growing inequality in
America, see www.inequality.org, and check out Real Progress at
www.rprogress.org.
Child Care
Food Assistance and Food Security
For program information, consult the USDA site at www.fns.usda.gov/
fns/. For information on food security and hunger, see the Department of
Agriculture site at www.econ.ag.gov/briefing/foodasst/. The Center on
Hunger and Nutrition at Tufts University also provides important information, at www.tufts.edu/nutrition!centeronhunger/.
Health
Families, USA (www.farniliesusa.org) focuses its policy work on health
issues, including health issues related to welfare reform. The Bazelon
Center (www.bazelon.org) has published several reports on welfare
reform issues related to children with mental health needs. Washington
The Welfare Law Center's website (www.welfarelaw.org) contains a
reprint of an advocacy analysis from the Clearinghouse Review, "Child
Care in the Postwelfare Reform Era." The DHHS Child Care Bureau
(CCB) maintains information on CDF, including state-level data at
www.acf.dhlrs.gov/programs/ccb/.
Of special interest to childcare policy researchers is a new administrative
rule permitting 30 percent of surplus TANF funds to be transferred to
CDF. Learn more about this at http://www.acf.dhhs.gov/programs/ccb/
policy/#other. Also check the Child Care Information Center (CCIC) at
www.nccic.org. (A more extensive paper on resources for childcare
policy is available from the author, Bquoss@uwyo.edu).
Extension Resources
Extension professionals may want to browse "Poverty Atlssue,"
(outreach.missouri.edu/cfe/poverty) a website supported by the
University of Missouri Outreach and Extension Outreach Development Fund and the Human Environmental Sciences Extension
Development (HEED) Fund. The site contains aPowerPoint
presentation "Poverty At Issue: Making Ends Meet in Missouri,"
that can easily be adapted for use by other Extension professionals. Also available are discussion guides that may be photocopied
without special permission for non-profit use.
Workforce Development
B
y July 1, 2000, all states must implement "a single, unified plan"
covering education, training and employment programs, including
welfare training and employment programs. For more information, see http://usworkforce.org, particularly technical materials, as well
as the Assistant Secretary's White Paper. At www.doleta.org, see
information for the Employment and Training Community, as well as
fu
information on Welfare to Work (WtW) programs and funds.
- Brenda Procte1; Consumer and Family Economics
Specialist, University of Missouri
NCFR REPORT
PRWORAconsolidated separate federal childcare funds into the Child
Development Fund (CDF), summarized by the Child Care Bureau
(www.acf.dhlrs.gov/programs/ccb/programs/index.html). CLASP has
published its own summary, which may be accessed through
www.clasp.org/pubs/childcare/ (click on clkccp.htrnl), as well as "Child
Care After Leaving Welfare," which may be downloaded as a PDF file
from the same location.
22
MARCH 2000
�CANADA continuedfivm page 22
their children are six months of age.
Conflicting policies?
At the same time that mandatory welfare-towork initiatives are becoming increasingly
common across Canada, so too are policy
initiatives such as the National Children's
Agenda (www.children-enfants.org), which aim
to improve the health and well-being of Canadian children- particularly children living in
poverty. In recent years, federal and provincial
governments have initiated a variety of childfocused benefits and programs (child tax benefit; dental care and prescription medications;
childcare subsidies; early intervention) for
families and
children in poverty. The childfocused policy
trend aims to
enhance the
health and wellbeing of children
living in poverty,
while the goal of
the welfare-toDEANNAL.
work policy
WILLIAMSON, PH.D.
trend is to move
the parents of children whose families receive
social assistance into the workforce.
Researchers in Canada have only begun to
examine the consequences of welfare-to-work
for participants and their families. Available
evidence indicates that, at best, welfare-towork initiatives lead to short-term, low-skill
jobs that do not provide health and other inkind benefits. And only a small proportion of
these jobs result in incomes that are incrementally higher than social assistance incomes. After
incurring employment-related costs, such as
appropriate workplace clothing, transportation,
and childcare, disposable income may actually
be lower than social assistance benefits.
These findings provide some valuable information about the economic consequences of
welfare-to-work initiatives in Canada. Cun·ent
knowledge, however, is inadequate to determine whether the recent welfare-to-work trend
supports or conflicts with policy initiatives
intended to enhance the health and development
of Canadian children living in poverty.
Research evidence from the U.S. does suggest
that the health and development of children
living in families who participate in welfare-towork initiatives are influenced by the interrelations among welfare-to-work policies and
NCFR REPORT
programs, the economic and non-economic
(e.g., psychosocial and family functioning)
consequences of welfare-to-work for participating families, parental employment conditions,
and childcare arrangements.
The need for Canadian-based
research
T
he ability of U.S. findings to inform us
about the effects of welfare-to-work
initiatives in Canada is limited due to
differences between Canadian and U.S. social
and economic policies. To fill part of the
knowledge gap about the relationships between
the welfare-to-work trend in Canada and
children's health and development, we have just
begun to work with the Edmonton Social
Planning Council and Statistics Canada on a
three-year research project that will examine
poverty is particularly significant in light of the
fact that a greater proportion of Canadian
children currently live in poverty than at any
other time in the past twenty years. Recent
statistics from the National Council ofWelfare
(1999) indicate that one-fifth of Canadian
children live in poverty. This is one of the highest
child poverty rates in the developed world. The
importance of this research project is reinforced
by evidence about the negative influence that
poverty has on children's health and development, and the ever growing body of evidence
about the fundamental role that early childhood
(0- 6 years of age) health and development
play in life-long health and well-being.
We will use the findings to develop specific
policy and program recommendations to improve the health and development of pre-school
children living in poverty. These recommendations potentially could
inform both the work
Mandatory welfare-to-work initiatives are
of agencies that probecoming increasingly common across Canada. vide services and
supports to people in
poverty and the decisions made by
the effects of welfare-to-work initiatives on the
policymakers whose responsibilities relate to
health and development of pre-school children
living in poor families.
poverty, welfare-to-work, and children's health
and development (e.g., income assistance,
The project is funded by the Social Sciences
labour, employment, health, education,
and Humanities Research Council of Canada,
childcare, social services).
and it will comprise three main research activities: 1) an analysis of social and economic
To increase the likelihood that the recommendapolicies that relate to the welfare-to-work trend
tions are used we will employ a variety of stratin Canada; 2) a statistical analysis of data from
egies to educate the public, practitioners,
the Canadian National Longitudinal Survey of
policy-influencing organizations, and policyChildren and Youth; and 3) interviews with
makers about the linkages between welfare-tofamilies living in poverty and health and develwork initiatives and pre-school children's health
opment assessments of their pre-school chiland development. Some of these strategies
dren.
include: distribution offact sheets, media releases, workshops, and symposiums.
A high rate of child poverty
Understanding the influence that welfare-towork initiatives in Canada have on the health
and development of pre-school children in
For more information, contact
Deanna Williamson,
deanna. williamson@ ualberta.ca.
The National Council on Family Relations,
its Sections and Affiliate Councils
present several awards to
recognize excellence in the Family field.
For award categories, criteria, and
a Nomination Form,
check the NCFR website (www.ncfr.org)
or call888-781-9331.
23
MARCH 2000
�The New NCF : Platforms,
Priorities, and Progress
J
ust one year ago the
NCFR membership approved a major
by-laws change that transported us into
the world of board policy governance- a term
coined by John Carver to describe his model of
effective management of volunteer boards. It
was no longer "business as usual" at NCFR.
Terms such as "executive limitations," "ends
policies," and "board-CEO linkage policies"
went from being mere phrases to major building
blocks of a new system of board operation.
The board shrank from more than 20 members
representing specific interests within NCFR to
nine members representing the interests of all
members. Board meetings changed from a
series oflengthy reports and endless budget
minutiae to substantive discussions about what
difference NCFR will make in the world, for
whom, and at what cost to the NCFR membership. And perhaps the most challenging of
all- at least for this member - the term of office
for the president went from one to two years.
Like many of you, I was placed on a fast track
of learning the "Carver model" in a very short
period of time! Frankly, it was more of a
struggle than anticipated to get up to speed on
this paradigm and its key concepts! Thanks to
mentoring from past-presidents Greer Litton
Fox and William J. Doherty, a healthy dose
of immersion in Carver's writings and instructional videos, and even a two-day workshop
on the model delivered by Carver himself in
Atlanta last September, the pieces are falling
together for me. I am convinced that the NCFR
membership made the right decision in approving this new way of doing business. We were
fortunate to have the outstanding leadership of
Greer Fox and Bill Doherty as we worked our
way from the old model to the new. They
skillfully navigated the "Good Ship NCFR"
through some pretty rough waters. We owe
them our collective thanks for a job well done!
The New NCFR Board
The transition to our new way of acting, reacting and interacting as a board of directors is
now virtually complete. More than ever before,
board members in the new NCFR are accountable to you, the membership, for our
actions. Serving the new NCFR with me this
year are eight of the most hard working and
dedicated individuals one could hope to have
NCFR REPORT
on the Board at this critical period: Karen
Bogenschneider, Cheryl Buehler, David
Demo, and Leigh Leslie, members-at-large;
Lane Powell, Association of Councils President; Hilary Rose, Student/New Professional;
Carol Darling, President-elect; and Bill
Doherty, Past-President.
Our first face-to-face meeting was held at the
conclusion of the annual meeting in November.
We continue to meet monthly by conference
call. E-mail exchanges are quickly becoming a
(2) Research-based knowledge about families
must gain greater public recognition;
(3) Efforts must be expanded to market the
Certified Family Life Educator (CFLE)
program and make the CFLE credential
more meaningful for the applied professional;
(4) Member services, including affiliate relationships, must be expanded and marketed to
assure a stronger membership base; and
Our first priority in the new NCFR
is to make a difference -for families
and family members in society.
way of life for us. The NCFR Board of Directors now deliberates more frequently with an
agenda focused on substantive programming
and ways we can make a difference.
Platforms
CFR members must hold their Board
officers accountable for what they have
promised in their platform statements.
But do we really? How many of you have
actually gone back to see what NCFR Board
members' or Section officers' platform statements were after they were elected? Are we
good at keeping our promises and commitments?
As I reflect on the recent work of the new
Board and the course we have set, I felt compelled to review just what my election platform
statement included two years ago. For those of
you who might have misplaced it or who no
longer have the issue of the NCFR Report that
contained it, the platform included the following
statements:
( 1) NCFR must become a stronger presence in
the public policy arena;
(5) NCFR's high quality publication
program must continue to expand for
financial stability.
I made these commitments two years
ago. I stand by them today. I believe that
they are in concert with the dramatic
transformations undergone by NCFR in
the past year. You have the right to hold me
accountable for these statements, and I trust
that you will do so. I turn now to the work of
the Board- the priorities that we have set and
the progress we have made.
Priorities
Our first priority in the new NCFR is to make
a difference- for families and family members
in society. Professor Jetse Sprey of Case
Western University reminded me of this at the
annual conference this past November, when
he challenged us to make what we do as a
professional organization mean something to
relevant constituencies.
This is the "so what" ofNCFR as an association. We conduct research on and about families- so what? We develop and implement
prevention and intervention programs - so
what? We meet annually to discuss our wonderful research and applied family science- so
what? What difference do we make, and for
whom? As we develop programs and chart a
course in the new NCFR, the "so what" of our
New NCFR continued on next pal',
NOTICE! - NCFR Headquarters has a new area code.
Effective February 27, 2000, the area code for NCFR Headquarters office
changed from 612 to 763. To contact NCFR, phone 763-781-9331;
fax 763-781-9348. Our toll-free number (888-781-9331) remains the same.
24
MARCH 200
�NEW NCFR continued from page 24
actions and programs will guide our thinking
and planning. And the "so what" will be the
basis on which we evaluate progress and hold
ourselves accountable for what we do.
Open communication between the Board and
the membership is another priority. The NCFR
Board represents the moral ownership of the
organization- YOU. The new model governance provides the board with freedom to
chart a course for the future, in consultation
with you, the membership. The Board will
consult with you in many ways, including member communication at the annual meeting,
interaction with section chairs and members,
surveys and queries distributed via e-mail on
the NCFR member listserv, calls for responses
published in the NCFR Report, and specific
contacts with members who have expertise or
interest in a particular issue.
Open communication is a must now and in the
future if we are to capitalize on our strengths
and make a real difference in society. Today's
technology provides for
rapid and direct comStrength in
munication. We must
diversity is at talk to each other, and
we must listen to each
the forefront other. I invite any
of everything NCFR member, at any
time, to contact me
we do.
directly with questions,
problems, or concerns
relating to NCFR (see my e-mail address at the
end of this column). You can also reach the
entire board by contacting NCFR headquarters
at this e-mail address: ncfr3989@ncfr.org.
Diversity in NCFR membership, leadership,
and programming is yet another priority. Diversity is woven throughout our board governance policies guiding elections, membership,
and all aspects of NCFR functioning. But we
have not gone far enough in our collective
recognition and appreciation of diversity among
people and families in our world. Thus, we will
not stop seeking ways to make this dimension
ofNCFR even stronger. Strength in diversity is
at the forefront of everything we do.
Progress
date, we have established two global
objectives, referred to as Ends Policies (EPs) in policy governance vernacular. Each Ends Policy has a number of
sub-ends that further define its intent. These
statements describe what we, as an association, are about and what we strive to become.
They are not carved in stone; they may be
revised, and others may follow. These Ends
NCFR REPORT
Policies comprise the "so what" of our organization. Because NCFR exists, this is how the
world will be different! While they have been
published and distributed before, they bear
repeating here:
new NCFR has recently made progress toward
our Ends Policies:
o Economic Viability, Welfare Reform, and
Health Care: Assessing the Future for
Families and Communities, a public
policy conference planned for April in
Washington, DC. It will involve NCFR
members, political leaders, public decisionmakers, and others concerned about the
impact of legislation on families.
EP 1: NCFR members will have knowledge
and skills to study, teach about, and serve
families.
A. NCFR members are informed about
basic and applied methods for studying
families, are aware of critical issues for
families in society and personal life, and
are able to engage in research regarding
those issues.
B. NCFR members have the knowledge,
expertise, and educational skills to disseminate information about family life
to diverse audiences.
C. NCFR certified family life educators,
parent educators, and marriage and
couple educators are recognized as
qualified, effective and credentialed
professionals by the public and private
sectors.
•
o Initial discussions of expanding NCFR's
certification program to encompass couple
educators and parent educators. We're also
looking at strengthening the marketing and
impact of the existing Certified Family Life
Educator program.
e A change in the mission of one of our
scholarly journals, Family Relations, to
more clearly reflect its applied focus. The
management of both journals was shifted to
Allen Press to ensure a more profitable (to
NCFR) and efficient production process.
Beginning this year, the full text of both
Family Relations and the Joumal of
Marriage and the Family will be online.
D. NCFR members are informed about the
process of policymaking and the content
of major public policy issues affecting
families.
EP 2: Families, professionals and public
decision-makers will be better informed
about family well-being.
Monthly "Hot Topics" teleconferences
involving experts on family policy and
related family issues. The teleconferences
are announced through the NCFR listserv
and in NCFR Report.
e A greater emphasis at the annual conference on the interrelationship of family research and applied family studies.
A. Public decision-makers have access to
knowledge about family issues that helps
them identify the implications of decisions
for family well-being.
e The expansion of member services and
B. NCFR and its members are recognized
as objective, relevant, and valuable
sources of information and resources on
family issues.
e
A change in the format of NCFR Report.
This publication now addresses substantive
issues encompassed by our Ends Policies.
e
The development of a major publication American Families: The Centwy in
Review. This book will emphasize change
and continuity in American families during
the 20th Century. It will highlight research,
practice and policy implications. A national
press conference will be held in association
with its publication.
The NCFR Board is accountable to you for the
course that we chart via the Ends Policies.
Executive Director Michael Benjamin and the
outstanding NCFR staff are accountable to the
Board for helping us to get to its destination in a
legal, ethical and financially sound manner.
Under our new model of policy governance,
Michael and his staff are free to do whatever it
takes to accomplish these ends, within reasonable limitations established by the Board. This
means that positive actions can be taken and
progress made in reaching our goals without
lengthy delays caused by tie-ups in Board
deliberations.
Here are just some of the areas in which the
25
member outreach, using the NCFR website (www.ncfr.org) and expanded outreach
to sections and affiliated councils.
I am privileged to serve as your president at
this most exciting time in our history. We are
making progress. Together, we will make a
difference! We have embarked on an exciting
journey. Let's work hard and enjoy the voyage.
Stephen R. Jorgensen, President
sjorgen @comp.uark.edu
MARCH 2000
�it
the December issue of Report, three
major staff objectives for 2000 were identi[
Jed: (1) Establish NCFR as an effective
player in public policy; (2) Increase NCFR's
visibility nationally andintemationally to better
impact family life; and (3) Improve member
acquisition and retention. Over the next two
issues of the Report, attention will be focused
on the 2nd and 3rd objectives respectively; this
issue of Report will address NCFR's expanded
role in public policy.
At the November 1999 outgoing Board meeting, I presented a series of options regarding
how NCFR might approach more active involvement in the public policy arena and meet
one of the Board's goals that "Families, professionals, and public decision-makers will be
better informed about family well-being." After
considerable discussion by the Board, including
"HOT
TOPICS"
Teleconferences
Held on the first Friday
of each month
Topic is announced 2 weeks prior
to each teleconference.
MARK YOUR CALENDAR!
II
eli berate
addressing the principles articulated in our
Board Governance Policies, the Board gave
the Executive Director the authority to implement the necessary structures to carryout the
objective of increased involvement in public
policy.
Although we had already begun the planning
process for NCFR's inaugural Public Policy
Conference to be held in Washington, DC on
Aprill3-14, 2000, I had to move very quickly
at the annual conference to actualize the
mechanism for "developing a NCFR process to
identify issues, establish policy around those
issues and allocate resources" that would have
the broadest possible representation across the
NCFR membership. To facilitate NCFR in
meeting the above goal and NCFR's public
policy process, a decision was made to reconstitute the Public Policy Committee into a 22
representative body as follows:
1. One representative appointed from each of
NCFR's interest area sections as determined by each section's chair and respective executive committee ( 10 reps).
2. Five regional representatives drawn from
the Association of Councils as determined
by the AOC President and its Executive
Committee (5 reps).
3. Five at-large members appointed by the
Executive Director to balance perceived
race, sex, regional or research/practice
inequities (5 reps).
The next three teleconferences
will be held on:
4. NCFR's Washington representative to
serve as the Committee's chair (1 rep).
April?, 2000- 11:00 a.m. CDT
Insights from the
Census Bureau: Data 2001
5. Board of Directors' designee will serve as
ex -officio member of the committee (1 rep).
Speaker: (to be determined)
May 5, 2000 - 11:00 a.m. CDT
June 2, 2000- 11:00 a.m. CDT
•
For up-to-date Topics and registration
information, visit our Website at
www.ncfr.org or contact
Michae1L. Benjamin at
mbenjarnin @ncfr.org.
Deadline to register is 24 hours prior to
teleconference.
NCIFR REPORT
Each member of the Committee serves a oneyear term. NCFR's Executive Director will serve
as the chief staff person for the Committee.
With respect to roles and responsibilities,
Committee members will be responsible for
studying issues, recommending new policy
positions, and developing NCFR's Family
Policy Platform (NCFR's permanent policy
document). Committee members will identify
problems facing families and areas of concern,
and make suggestions for federal, state and
local involvement. They will help educate and
build support for recommended changes in
26
p e
'
Ill
federal legislation, rules and regulations on
those issues important for families and/or
NCFR members. They also will assist in building individual section and council participation
in policy formulation and implementation processes. In addition, committee members will
advise NCFR staff on priorities, strategies, and
tactics involving federal legislation, rules, and
regulations and participate in NCFR meetings
to advance the objectives ofNCFR.
C
ommittee appointees will meet at least
twice a year: the spring public policy
conference in Washington, DC and at
NCFR's annual meeting. Appointees are volunteers and should have a strong interest in family
public policy issues, and a willingness to network with public officials at the national, state
and local levels. As with any staff committee,
NCFR will not be responsible for travel, room
and board costs, and registration fees to the
public policy meetings. This non-compensation
policy has been in effect for the previous public
policy committee for many years. At the same
time, my intent was not to have the Sections
see this effort as an "unfunded mandate" but as
an opportunity to take advantage of the fact
that the Section Chairs were meeting in Washington, DC as the Annual Conference Program
Committee. To offset their travel expenses, the
Association of Councils President, Lane
Powell, has provided a small stipend ($200) to
each of the Affiliated Council representatives.
The first meeting of the Public Policy Committee will be held in conjunction with NCFR's
Public Policy Conference, Aprill3-14, 2000 in
Washington, DC. The Committee will convene
at 9:00a.m. onApril13, 2000 at The Holiday
Inn Capitol at Smithsonian, 550 C Street SW,
Washington, DC.
With regard to the Public Policy Conference
itself, the working committee (Margaret
Feldman, Catherine Chilman and Michael
Benjamin) has put together an exciting array of
congressional and administration staff who will
be speaking at the conference. Listed below
are confirmed speakers:
Ron Haskins, Staff Director, Human Resources Subcommittee of the House Committee on Ways and Means. He will be addressing
Deliberate Speed continued on next page
MARCH 2000
�e
Family and Women's Issues
s you listen to the presidential debates
and make up your mind how to vote,
note the many family issues that are
brought up. Minimum wages, health insurance
for children and families, the marriage tax, and
opportunities for poor families, are a few I have
heard, without mentioning the "A" word. A
major issue which will be decided by the party
in power will be the appointment of judges.
There has never been such a backlog of judges
awaiting Senate clearance as at present. And
the next administration will likely have an opportunity to appoint one or more Supreme
Court judges.
Assessing Welfare Reform
The Administration for Children and Families
rt fr m Washin t n
published proposed rules in the Federal Register for awarding bonuses to states for high
performance in welfare reform. NCFR submitted comments. The bonuses will be awarded,
beginning in 2002, to ten top-ranked states for
progress in work-related and non-work related
(family) goals. The three family measures proposed are designed to assist working families
care for children in their own homes: a measure
of family fonnation and family stability (percentage increase in all children below 200 percent
of poverty who live in married couple families);
second, an increase in those who participate in
the Food Stamp program; and third, participation in the Children's Health Insurance Program
(CHIP).
These measures were selected because data
existed. Other measures might have been
selected, but no good data were available.
NCFR submitted comments which essentially
supported a well-reasoned brief by the NOW
Legal Defense and Education Fund which
urged the inclusion of child care measures in
determining bonuses. We added a suggestion
for family life education as a way to improve
family stability (decline in divorce rate) and
called for more research. I later learned that
these ideas had been more elaborated by
comments submitted by Theodora Ooms, an
NCFR member fmmerly with the Family Impact Seminar and now with the Center for Law
and Social Policy (CLASP).
You may download a copy of the rules at
www.acf.dhhs.gov/news/welfare. The deadline
date for comments was February 4, 2000 but the
process of developing rules is most informative.
Teen Pregnancy
DELIBERATE SPEED
continued from page 26
welfare reform, fatherhood legislation and other
social services programs.
S. Anthony McCann, Staff Director, Labor,
Health and Human Services, Education, and
Related Agencies Subcommittee, House Committee on Appropriations. He will be addressing Department of Health and Human Services
funding, NIH funding and Department of Education funding issues.
Dr. H. Wesley Clark, Director, Center for
Substance Abuse Treatment, Substance Abuse
and Mental Health Services Administration. He
will address collaborative opportunities between researchers and practitioners, and updates germane to family researchers and practitioners.
Judy L. Wilson, Deputy Commissioner,
Legislative and Congressional Affairs, Social
Security Administration, Department of Health
and Human Services. She will speak on the
administration's position on welfare reform and
other family related activities.
Jeff Evans, Health Scientist Administrator,
National Institute of Child Health and Human
Development. He will speak on fatherhood
issues and a prospective vision ofNICHD.
Joy Johnson Wilson, Staff Director, Health
Committee, the National Conference of State
NCFR REPORT
Legislatures. She will address the health proposals before Congress and health issues
before state legislatures.
I must thank Margaret Feldman, Catherine
Chilman and the following organizations that
have been most helpful in facilitating our work
in the public policy arena including the conference: the American Psychological Association,
the American Association for Marriage and
Family Therapy, the Society for Research and
Child Development, and the Alliance for Children and Families. And I must thank the former
Public Policy Committee for establishing the
framework upon which we are building our
current public policy structure.
We are moving ahead with all deliberate speed
and welcome your input and your presence at
the Public Policy Conference. (See center
pullout for registration form.) In the meantime,
I hope that you will read the special section on
welfare reform that appears in this issue of
Report. I encourage all members ofNCFR
who work with families who are low-income or
on welfare to write their state and federal
legislators with their insights and suggestions
about which programs are working or which
could be improved.
Michael L. Benjamin, M.P.H.
Executive Director
E-mail: mbenjarnin @ncfr.org
27
O
ne of the goals of the Administration,
and the nation, is to reduce the number of teen pregnancies. Are you
aware of the National Campaign to Prevent
Teen Pregnancy? Visit their website
(www.teenpregnancy.org) to see how they are
working with the media to change cultural
values and to build a more coordinated
grassroots movement by working with states
and local governments. Their website includes
statistics and innovative programs, lists of
resources and new reports. Among other
institutions they are working with are churches,
particularly the black churches. And changes
are occurring. See below.
Child Trends Facts at a Glance
Child Trends has published their most recent
report on teen childbearing. The report documents declines in rates of pregnancy and abortion. They say the declines are not due to more
abortions but to a lower proportion of teens
having sex and greater use of contraception.
The decline has been largest among younger
teens, black teens and teens who have already
had a baby. They report that compared with
data from 1991, the 1998 rate of decline is
18% while the number of teen births shows a
decline of only 7%, due to the larger number of
teen age females in 1998. Visit the Child Trends
Policy continued on next page
MARCH 2000
�J b
P
erhaps the most important goal for
NCFR' s Certified Family Life Educator
(CFLE) program in the next few years
is the need to increase the relationship between
certification and job opportunities.
Certified Family Life Educators have found
their designation to be personally rewarding
and many times helpful in obtaining certain
positions. Awareness of the designation by
employers is increasing as more and more
CFLEs promote themselves. The growing
number ofNCFR-approved schools has
resulted in increased awareness as well. The
United States Air Force has identified the
Certified Family Life Educator designation as
the preferred certification for those working in
POLICY
pportunities
family support. But outside of the military, there
has been no systemic recognition of the CFLE
designation.
In order to increase job opportunities for those
with family-based education and training we
need to spread the word about the field of
fanuly life education, the value of prevention,
and the advantages of hiring someone with a
solid understanding of life span development,
family systems, and educational techniques.
Over the past year or so NCFR has been
monitoring legislation related to employment
opportunities in family life education. It is a
huge job. Throughout the country states are
recognizing the societal impact of family conflict
and dissolution. The argument that the government should not be involved in family and
personal matters is losing ground as local
communities and states tally the financial costs
to taxpayers for intervention and family support
programs, job absenteeism and reduced productivity.
There are countless bills in state legislation that
deal with parent education, marriage education,
curriculum content in junior and senior high
schools and more. Some are currently under
consideration; others have passed. This type of
legislation provides an excellent opportunity to
increase awareness of family life education as a
profession.
Opportunities continued on next page
continued from page 27
website and read the whole report and download this and other reports on welfare reform,
fatherhood, and working poor families with
children: www.childtrends.org.
Follow Up from Beijing
Beijing+ Five to be held in NYC in June
I
was one of the lucky ones who represented NCFR at the UN Conference on
Women at Beijing in 1995. Since then, the
U.S. President's Interagency Council on
Women has been conducting quarterly briefmgs
at the State Department to report to the NGO
community about progress called for in the
Platform for Action in the U.S., the UN, and
around the world. There are some issues that
have not changed but have gained visibility in
the world. Trafficking in women is one such
issue. For others, the progress has been most
gratifying. For example, at a briefing this week
attended by about 75 women based in DC, a
report from the Bureau of European Affair's
Commitment to Women told about the new
acceptance of women as participators in decision-making at the last meeting of the Bureau.
Unlike previous times when women's NGOs
could not speak or communicate their ideas,
this time they were allowed to select their own
spokesperson and present their ideas, which
were well considered. There is growing recognition that woman hold the family and society
NCIFR REPORT
together and without the full participation of
women in decision-making progress will be
slower corning. The U.S. State Department is
working in several regional meetings to forward
women's interests and reporting progress.
Although not directly related to women, we
were informed that there would be a meeting in
Poland this June of the Foreign Ministers of all
countries committed to pursuing a democratic
path with the goal of fortifying democratic
governance. The meeting is being called by a
group of 7 countries including the U.S. but
representing all continents. According to an
information sheet, the meeting will provide "an
unprecedented opportunity for exchanging
experiences, identifying best practices, and
formulating an agenda for international cooperation in order to realize democracy's full
potential."
CEDAW
initiative to help the EEOC pursue cases to get
pay equality for women and minorities. A
publication from the Women's Institute for a
Secure Retirement (Spring 1999) reports that
over 35 years, a woman's earnings have fallen
short by an average of $440,388 or nearly
$13,000 a year. (www.wiser.heinz.org)
Family Leave with Pay
he National Partnership for Women
and Farnilies has taken the lead to
engage policymakers and advocates in
a movement to make family leave more affordable. Since most low-income women cannot
afford to take off the necessary time to take
care of a newborn or an ill family member, the
Partnership is working with states to find ways
to use existing programs to provide paid care.
Ways found by states include extending unemployment insurance to employees on medical or
family leave, letting employees use some of
their sick time and one state is studying the idea
of extending the state's temporary disability
insurance program.
Women are working to support the Administration request that the Senate ratify the Convention to Eliminate Discrimination Against Women
by March 8, Women's Day. The Administration is also working to pass the Convention on
the Rights of the Child.
The National Partnership is calling attention to
the importance of judges at all levels in the
policy process.
A case in point: the January 24th Washington
Post carried a story that President Clinton will
propose spending $27 million for an Equal Pay
Margaret Feldman, Ph.D.
NCFR Policy Representative
E-mail: mefeldman@aol.com
28
MARCH 2000
�OPPORTUNITIES continued from page 2s
Here are a few examples of our findings:
Mandated Parent Education
A number of states including Minnesota, Texas,
and Florida have mandated parent education
for divorcing couples with children. The purpose of these courses is to educate the parents
about the impact of divorce upon their children.
Premarital Education
L
egislation providing a reduction in the
marriage license fee to those who
complete a premarital preparation
course has passed in a number of states including Oklahoma, South Dakota, Texas, and
Florida and is under consideration in many
more. Other states have passed or are considering the establishment of a voluntary "Covenant Marriage," one that includes premarital
education, is more difficult to dissolve, and may
include a two-year waiting period.
Requirements for
High School Graduation
The 1999 Florida Statutes include completion
of at least one-half credit in life management
skills among the general requirements for high
school graduation.
In many cases, these proposals and bills pro-
iar with CFLE, resulted in the addition of family
life educators and CFLEs to the list of suggested providers. His model is just that, but it
has the potential of influencing the language in
future premarital and divorce reform legislation.
vide little guidance as to who can provide such
education or the list of approved providers is
narrowly defined and limited. In the cases of
premarital education the list of approved providers is often limited to licensed or ordained
ministers or a person authorized to practice as
a marriage and family therapist. Very rarely is
the term "family life educator" identified. One of
our goals in monitoring this legislation is to
identify opportunities to educate policy decision-makers about the benefits of including
those with family life education training among
the list of approved providers.
We've only just begun to identify the plethora
of family life education related legislation. But it
promises to provide an excellent opportunity to
put family life education as a profession
squarely on the map. Please contact us if you
can provide any assistance in this effort. Notify
the NCFR office of pending legislation that
should include family life educators asapproved providers. Contact the authors of such
bills to suggest that they include CFLEs among
the providers. We will be happy to send you as
many CFLE and Hiring? brochures (explains
the benefits of certification to employers) as
needed.
John Crouch, an NCFR member, is the Executive Director of Americans for Divorce
Refonn. He has been actively involved in
proposing language for premarital education
provisions, eli vorce reform, covenant marriage
and premarital education bills. He has designed
a Model Premarital Education Act, which is
frequently referred to by state legislators considering and proposing such legislation.
Inclusion of Family life Education in
NEA 1999-2000 Resolutions
On a related note, the National Education
Association has included in its 1999-2000
Resolutions a resolution specifically titled
"Family Life Education." It includes recognition
of "the importance of education in the maintenance and promotion of stable, functional,
When we first reviewed the Model Premarital
Education Act, it included a more inclusive
listing of providers than is usually seen in most
legislation. But it still did not include family life
educators or CFLEs. A quick call to John,
who, as an NCFR member was already famil-
Opportunities continued on next page
Certified Family Life Educators
Tools for Ethical Thinking and
Practice in Family Life Eaucation
Following is a list of Certified Family Life Educators designated since December 1999. A list of all current CFLEs is now
included in the certification section of the NCFR web page at
www.ncft:org. [* -Provisional]
This booklet contains three valuable
resources for practicing family life educators:
Ethical Thinhing and Practice for Family Life
Educators; The Levels of Family Involvemmt
Model; and Competencies for Family Life
Educators.
Developed by the Minnesota Council on
Family Relations, Ethical Thinhing and Practice for
Life Educators provides ethical information and guidelines useful
when making family life education practice decisions. Includes a case
study format. Used as ethical guidelines for the Certified Family Life
Educator program.
The Levels of Family Involvemeni Modei by William]. Doherty, Ph.D. is
an excellent article that addresses the crucial issues of where to place
parent and family education in the spectrum of professional services
to families.
Competencies for Family Life Educators was developed by faculty at
Weber State University. It provides a listing of the knowledge, skills
and abilities needed for competent practice. Based upon the ten substance areas used to define the Certified Family Life Educator criteria.
Second Edition- 1999. ISBN: 0-916174-58-l. 25 pages.
CF9809
Single copy: CFLE/NCFR Member $10.95
Non-member
$12.95
ultiple discounts available. Call NCFR office.
Florida
Paula L. Chapman *
Indiana
Megan R. Crose *
New Mexico
James S. Simpson
Kentucky
Julie Pragar Simon
Ohio
Greta E. Garretson *
Wendy E. Giannantonio
Christine Welch Harrison
*
Michigan
Sarah A. Bailey *
Diane M. Fitzek *
Kari J. Gulvas *
Kimberly Ann Hughes
Rhonda Linseman *
Vicki Lynn Roush *
Verda L. Sherrod
Nancy Warn*
ational Council on Family Relations
89 Central Ave. N.E., Suite 550 • Minneapolis, MN 55421
II free: (888)781-9331• Phone: (612)781-9331• Fax: (612)781-9348
mail: ncfr3989@ncfr.org • Web: www.ncfr.org
NCIFR REPORT
New Jersey
Erin L. Devine *
*
Minnesota
Marina M. Kuznetsov
Jennifer L. Prehn Kerkuliet
29
Pennsylvania
Larry F. Forthun
Indigo M. Gregory
Heather Walke
*
*
South Carolina
Jim R. Rogers
Tennessee
Karey L. Mize *
*
Texas
Mary Jane Burson-Polston
MARCH 2000
�This column features news of NCFR promotions, awards, career changes of interest to all members. Write to us and let us know what you are doing.
ui C. Rosenblatt, University of Minnesota, is author of a new book, Parent
Grief' Narratives of Loss and Relationship, published by Brunner/Mazel. Based
on intensive interviews with 29 couples who
experienced the loss of a child, the book explores how the parents talk about the loss, their
grief, their continuing relationship with the child,
their marital relationship, their relationships with
others, their parenting of other children, religious matters connected to the death and their
grieving, and their narratives about how they
came to have the narratives they have.
Britton Wood, CFLE, and his wife, Bobbye
were honored at the Third International
Marriage Enrichment Conference in Kansas
City. They received the Mace Medal, given in
honor of Drs. David and Vera Mace, founders
of the Association for Couples in Marriage
Enrichment (A.C.M.E.). This award is granted
to a person or couple for distinguished service
to marriage enrichment at a national or intemationallevel. The Woods have served as president couple for A.C.M.E. for three two-year
terms and designed and coordinated both the
second and third international conferences.
Britton is a marriage and family consultant who
works with several non-profit organizations iu
and churches.
Ull
NCFR's Membership
Grant Portfolio
Last fall we asked NCFR members and
department chairs of graduate programs in
Marriage and Family Studies for information regarding grants and contracts that
they or faculty in their department have
received within the last three years. A
table of these grants and contracts and a
list of their funding sources are now available to NCFR members upon request.
Please contact Abbey Showalter at
abbey @ncfr.org if you would like to
receive a copy of these materials, or if you
would like to add your grant/contract
information to the list. In the near future,
this information will be posted on NCFR's
webpage (http://www.ncfr.org) under the
Special Projects section. We will notify
NCFR members when this addition to the
webpage is completed.
NCFR REPORT
Former Assistant Dean to Head College
Shirley Baugher, professor and chair of
Family and Consumer Sciences at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln and former assistant
dean to the College of Human Ecology, has
been named dean of the College of Human
Ecology at the University of Minnesota, Minneapolis. Pending approval by the university's
board of regents,
Baugher will
assume her
duties in July.
As Dean and the
college's chief
academic and
administrative
officer, Baugher
will be responsible for the
college's teaching, research,
and outreach
SHIRLEY BAUGHER, Ph.D. programs and for
providing overall leadership for educational
issues within the college and in partnerships
with state, national and international communities. The dean is also an associate director of
the Agricultural Experiment Station and administers the Minnesota Extension Service funds
allocated to the college.
Baugher has been active in the field of family
and consumer sciences for over 30 years,
focusing on the integrative and ecological
functions within multiple environments that
support families and communities. "I am deeply
committed to the integrative nature of the field
of human ecology," Baugher said.
"Dr. Baugher has the leadership skills and
experience needed to meet the challenges the
college and university face as we move into the
21st century," said Robert Bruininks, university
executive vice president and provost. "Her
knowledge of the challenges and complex
issues currently facing institutions of higher
education, her breadth of academic and administrative experiences and her scholarly work in
the area of cross-cultural family and community
issues will serve the college well."
A native of Missouri, Baugher received
bachelor's and masters degrees from Northeast
Missouri State University (now Truman University) and a doctorate in Education from the
University of Missouri-Columbia. Baugher
served as assistant dean and coordinator of
international programs in the College of Human
Ecology and as assistant dean of the Minnesota
Extension Service from 1983 to 1991. Since
1992 she has worked at the University of
Nebraska-Lincoln.
Baugher has additional experience as a deputy
administrator in the Extension Service of the
U.S. Department of Agriculture. Baugher has
received numerous professional honors and
awards, including a Fellow of theW. K.
Kellogg Foundation from 1987-1990, Leader
Award of the Nebraska Association of Family
and Consumer Sciences in 1997, and Adult
Educator of the Year in 1987 by the Missouri
Valley Adult Education Association. She presently serves as editor of the Journal of Family
and Consumer Sciences of the American
Association of Family and Consumer Sciences
and President of the Council of Administrators
of Family and Consumer Sciences. Baugher
has been a member of theNational Council
on Family Relations since 1983.
ftJ}
OPPORTUNITIES continued from page 29
healthy families and the emotional, physical, and
mental health of people within these families."
The NEA goes on to state that the Association
believes that programs should be established for
both students and parent/guardians/caregivers
to promote the development of self-esteem,
interpersonal communication skills, conflict
resolution, human growth and development,
positive parenting techniques, and an understanding of societal issues related to individuals
and family members.
30
Continued steps such as those listed above will
result in family life education being a widely
recognized and valued profession! Needless to
say, this is a huge job. When the Board meets in
April, they will be considering the allocation of
resources to further this effort. We welcome
your input as to how NCFR can best increase
the awareness and value of family life education.
Dawn Cassidy, M.Ed., CFLE
CFLE Certification Director
E-mail: cassidyd@ncfr.org
MARCH 2000
�Think NCFR When Planning Your
Professional Upgrading Experiences!
As professionals, we must
constantly be upgrading ourselves professionally to ensure that we are meeting the changing
needs of families in today's world. One of the
key methods of upgrading is through conferences. There are numerous educational opportunities being offered by many organizations
and you have limited time and funds. It is difficult choosing which one to attend. I encourage
you to Think NCFR when you plan for this
year. We can think of many reasons why you
should choose NCFR, but here are four:
EWAND
EXCITING FEATURES
1111 Practitioner and Research
Tracks are being Developed. NCFR conferences are known for producing top-quality
research which gives validity to methods used
in working with today's families. This year's
Conference continues to uphold that tradition,
but TRACKS will help identify sessions that
will be most beneficial to you. NCFR is a very
diverse organization, and the Conference offers
many CHOICES of topics in varied formats
to appeal to all needs. On Friday, November
10, we are highlighting practitioner sessions,
but that is also when special in-depth research sessions will be offered.
about these speakers.
1111 Action-Filled Pre-Conference Workshops.
The outstanding Theory Construction and
Research Methodology Workshop will be
held Wednesday, November 8 and Thursday,
November 9 (see article on page 35). On
Thursday, November 9, the Ethnic Minorities
Section and Men in Families Focus Group are
sponsoring a workshop concentrating on Men
in Families. The Education and Emichment
Section is featuring an in-depth, practical summit on Family Life Education in an Aging
Population.
1111 Practical Research Updates for Practitioners (RUPs). These popular sessions give
an overview of research on a relevant topic
with suggestions for implementing the research
into action. This year's topics include: Public
Policy, Grief and Dying, Young Children, and
Work/Overwork - all topics related to this
year's theme. More details will be shared in the
June and September issues of the Report and
special Conference mailings.
1111 Special Sessions Sponsored by Sections.
One of the sessions is "The Unexpected
Legacy of Divorce: Report From a 25 Year
Landmark Study," by Judith Wallerstein.
Other sessions will be announced later.
1111 First Work/Life Pre-Conference Summit
on Wednesday, November 8. With all the wonderful research NCFR members produce, we
want to partner with the business community as
it reaches to serve its employees. This year
NCFR is launching an annual one-day Work/
Life Summit, and working in conjunction with
the business communities of Minneapolis and
St. Paul. More details about this special activity
will be shared in the June Report, but save the
date.
1111 Silent Auction Helps Raise
Funds to Give Back to the Twin
Cities Communities. Last year under the
capable leadership of Dottie Verstaag, donated items were sold and over $500 was
raised for Human Options in Orange County,
CA. This year we are helping organizations that
focus on children.
1111 Phenomenal Plenaries. Elaine Anderson,
Program Chair, has selected three outstanding
speakers for this year: Stephanie Coontz,
Alejandro Portes, and Mary Pipher. Please
see Elaine's article (on page 2) for more details
1111 Share Your Talents with NCFR and
Donate Items for the Silent Auction. NCFR
staff are donating handmade items to begin the
pool: stained glass angel, cross-stitch item,
crocheted afghan, a "unique" doorstop, and
ALL TO ACTION
others. You can join in the fun and donate to a
worthy cause. Fill out the Silent Auction Donation form (page 33) and send to the NCFR
office by June 15. We will list these items in
the Printed Program.
UN AND FELLOWSHIP
1111 The NCFR Conference is Fun
as well as providing a wealth of
new material for you. NCFR Executive
Director Michael Benjamin introduced the
NCFR Team of Board and Staff members with
a "flair" at last year's conference, and motivated NCFR to great things. He has some new
tricks up his sleeve for this year. Last year
attendees were also treated to seeing candid
shots on the screen from the previous day's
activities as they came to the plenary sessions.
We'll develop it more this year- so who
knows, you might be on NCFR's Candid
Camera.
1111 NCFR provides phenomenal opportunities for networking. Can you envision carrying
on a conversation with some of the writers of
your favorite textbooks? This is a common
occurrence at NCFR conferences in Exhibits,
Receptions, and in the hallways and restaurants. Many people keep returning to NCFR
conferences because they feel like everyone
is "family."
1111 You can become more active in NCFR by
attending Section membership meetings.
NCFR's ten Sections provide greater opportunities for you to become active in your areas
of expertise. Section membership meetings
are open to everyone, and you will be able to
participate in-depth.
ELATE TO PAST,
PRESENT, AND FUTURE
GENERATIONS
1111 Honor one of NCFR's past leaders, the
late John McAdoo, and contribute to the
Think NCFR continued on next page
NATIONAL COUNCIL ON FAMILY RELATIONS 62ND ANNUAL CONFERENCE
NOVEMBER 10-13,2000
MINNEAPOLIS HILTON & TOWERS, MINNEAPOLIS, MINNESOTA
NCFR REPORT
31
MARCH 2000
�THINK NCFR
continued from page 31
scholarship fund which will carry on his
legacy. On Friday evening, November 10,
there will be a special symposium and drama
about "The Impact of Fathering Research."
There will be a panel discussion of these issues.
This entire session is a fund raiser for the John
McAdoo Scholarship Fund. The Ethnic
Minorities Section, under the direction of
William Allen and Francisco Villarruel, are
planning this event. More details will be shared
in the June issue of the Report.
II On Friday evening the President's Welcoming Reception will be held at the Minnesota History Center. The Minnesota History
Center provides a great setting for NCFR to
relate to the past. Attendees will have the
opportunity to visit two of the galleries: The
famed Family exhibit, and an outstanding African-American Families exhibit. The Family
exhibit has a unique concept in that items are
developed by life cycle stages rather than
strictly chronological order. Several NCFR
members in the Family Social Science Department at the University of Minnesota worked
with the History Center staff in developing the
exhibit
An Intergenerational Panel will be featured on Monday, November 13.
II
This is just a sample of what is in store for this
year. If you haven't been to an NCFR Conference before, I encourage you to try it- you will
like it. Minnesota is a great state, and we
welcome you!
Cindy Winter, CMP
Conference Coordinator
E-mail: wintersc@ncfr.org
One of the favorite activities at the Conference is a Silent Auction held in the
Hospitality Cafe. The Silent Auction is a
great opportunity for attendees to purchase some of the items for gifts. All
money from the sale will be donated to
organizations that focus ort children.
If you would like to donate an item,
please fill out this form and return to the
NCFR office byjnne 15, 2000. These
items will be listed in the Printed
Program so that people can plan ahead
to purchase some gifts. Your name will be
listed in the Program, as well as featured
on the bidding sheets in the auction.
Thank you for your generosity.
NCFR REPORT
Minnesota:
Great
Place to Visit!
T
he 2000 NCFR annual conference will
return to Minnesota this November.
For those who attended in 1994,
remember the 65-degree beautiful fall days?
But there are a lot of other reasons why Minnesota is a great place to come to. It is centrally
located in the United States with a hub airport
and is the home of the national NCFR headquarters. Here are some interesting facts about
Minnesota, which make it an increasingly
popular place:
s For the past 10 years Minnesota has consistently ranked at or near the top of most polls
as a great place to live, work and access
primary health care.
s According to the American Chamber of
Commerce Research Association, Cost of
Living Index, the Twin Cities metro area had
the 2nd highest standard of living among the
20 largest metro areas in the nation. In 1997
the median standard of living was $40,104.
s Minnesota had the nation's highest home
ownership rate in 1997 with 75.4% of its
total households owning their own homes.
s Minnesota is one of the nation's healthiest
states and has the 2nd largest life expectancy
rate in the nation at 77.8 years.
s Of the 351 metropolitan areas in the U.S.
and Canada evaluated by Places Rated
Almanac, Minneapolis/St. Paul ranks 13th in
arts and culture. For example, there are 2
symphony orchestras, an opera company,
many local and community theatres including
the Guthrie in Minneapolis, and the Ordway
in St. Paul. Many museums including the
Minnesota Museum of Art, and the
Frederich Weisman Art Museum.
s Family entertainment is abundant with the
Minnesota Zoological gardens, Como Zoo
and Conservatory, Bell Museum of Natural
History, The Children's Museum, Children's
Theatre Company, a brand new Science
Museum, Minnesota History Center,
Valleyfair and Camp Snoopy in the Mall of
America.
s Minnesota is also home to a variety of sports
teams including the Timberwolves (basketball), Twins (baseball), Vikings (football),
Wild (hockey) and the University of Minnesota Gophers.
s In education, Minnesota ranks 4th highest in
the nation for high school graduations at
84.2%. It values higher education as demonstrated in the 11 public 4-year university
campuses, 26 private liberal arts colleges, 17
private graduate schools, and 29 community
and technical colleges.
s Minnesota's unemployment rate in July of
1998 was at 2.3%, a full2.2 percentage
points lower than the national rate.
Great Place! continued on next page
Give Something Back to Families in Minnesota-
Name ___________________________________________________________
Address---------------------------------------------------City----------------------- State _ _ _ Z i p - - - - - - - - Phone----------------------- E-Mail _____________________________
I will donate the following item(s) for the Silent Auction. A r t i c l e - - - - - - - - - - - - -
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - M i n i m u m Bid _______
Mail to Cindy Winter, Conference Coordinator, NCFR, 3989 Central Ave. NE #550, Minneapolis, MN 55421 by June 15, 2000. For further information call Toll free: 888-781-9331;
Phone: 763-781-9331; Fax: 763-781-9348; E-mail: wintersc@ncfr.org; Website: www.ncfr.org.
32
MARCH 2000
�GREAT PLACE! continued from page 32
Call for Nominations and Applications
for the position of Editor
of Journal of Marriage and the Family
o Major industries in the state include computer programming, private
health care and medical business which employs over 216,000
workers; printing and publishing ranks 9th in the nation; finance,
insurance and real estate grew 6 times faster than the national
average in 1998.
o
The National Council on Family Relations is seeking nominations and applications for the position of Editor of Journal of
Marriage and the Family (JMF). The term of the current editor,
Dr. RobertM. Milardo (University of Maine-Orono) will be completed with the publication of the November 2001 issue.
The Twin Cities boasts 4large lakes right in the middle of its urban
centers, not to mention it has 12,000 other lakes statewide.
o In case Novemberisn't spring-like this year, both downtowns have
The four-year term of the new editor will begin with the publication
of the February 2002 issue. However, editorial responsibilities will
be transferred to the new editor beginning approximately in April
2001. The JMF Search Committee anticipates making the selection
of the new editor at the annual conference in November 2000 in
Minneapolis, Minnesota.
heated indoor walkways spanning a total of 26 miles. So you can
get anywhere in downtown Minneapolis from the great Hilton
Towers Hotel.
Come and see for yourselves. We are anxious to be your hosts.
Mary Jo Czaplewski, CFLE
Co-chair, Local Arrangements
A detailed description of the editor's responsibilities may be obtained from: Search Committee for Editor of Journal ofMarriage
and the Family, National Council on Family Relations, 3989
Central Ave. N.E., Suite 550, Minneapolis, MN, USA, 55421.
Telephone: 763-781-9331; FAX: 763-781-9348; E-mail:
ncfr3989@ncfr.org.
National Council on
Family Relations
62nd Annual Conference
Nominations and applications including a letter of application and a
curriculum vita should be sent to the above address by May 15,
2000. The new editor must be a member of the National Council
on Family Relations.
November 10-13,2000
Pre-conference Workshops: Nov: 8-9
Minneapolis Hilton & Towers
Minneapolis, MN
Program Chair: Elaine Anderson, Univ. of Maryland
Plenary Speakers
Stephanie Coontz, Prof. of History and Family Studies, Evergreen
State Univ:, Olympia, WA -Friday, Nov: 10
Alejandro Portes, Prof. of Sociology, Princeton Univ:- Saturday,
Nov: 11
Mary Pipher, Private Practice, Lincoln, NE- Sunday, Nov: 12
You just got lucky!
Highlights
Finally, a conference that meets your needs and
matches your interests.
Markman, Stanley, Doherty, Weiner-Davis, Waite, Love,
Olson, Guerney1 Miller).. Gordon, Christensen, McManus,
Pittman, Arp, V1sher, ;:,tosny, Doub, Carlson, Maddock,
Hargrave, Sotile, Larson, Hawkins, Ooms, Sen Bayh, Gov
& Mrs Keating - plus 200 marriage & relationship experts.
+Research Updates for Practitioners
Ill
Public Policy
111
Young Children
Grief and Dying
111 Work/ Overwork
Special symposium and drama about The Impact of Fathering
Research in memory of John L. McAdoo, held at the
Penumbra Theater. (Co-directors: William Allen and Francisco
Villar rueD
Presidential Reception at the famed Minnesota History
Center. Visit the Family and African-American Families exhibits.
Pre-conference Workshops: 111 Theory Construction/Research
Methodology Ill Work/Family Life Institute 111 Men in
Families 11 Education and Enrichment Section
Share the stories of families across generations
Discuss the hot topics of the new Millennium in a forum
Ill
+
+
+
+
+
Train and certify to teach prac~ical, practice-expanding
programs to mclude:
PREP, PAIRS, Couple Communication, Relationship Enhancement, Divorce Busting, IMAGO, Hot Monogamy,
PREPARE, Community Marriages Policies, FOCCUS, Becoming Parents, RELATE, Reconcilable Differences, Parenting Adolescents Wisely, Passionate Marriage, Life
Partners Stepping Together, Compassion Workshop, 7
Habits, Focused Medialion, Mentor Prep, Fathering Profiles, Couples Health Program & Going Corporate.
Full-day training Institutes, Networking Lunches,
Banquets, Exhibits. 57 hours CE. $285
The Coalition for Marriage, Family & Couples Education, LLC
www.smartmarriages.com • 202-362-3332
FREE on-line newsletter
fh; Contact: NCFR, 3989 Central Ave. NE, #550, Minneapolis,
lh1 MN 55421 +Toll free: 888-781-9331+ Fax: 763-781-9348
NCFFi +E-mail: ncfr3989@ncfr.org +Website: www.ncfr.org
NCFR REPORT
33
MARCH 2000
�Feminism & Family Studies Section
I
am very pleased to be writing my
first column as chair of the Feminism
and Family Studies Section. I want to
publicly express my appreciation of the
hard work and thoughtfulness of Donna
Sollie, my predecessor, and her executive
committee- our section is healthy and
vibrant as I begin my term.
The deadline for submitting proposals and
papers for the Jessie Bernard awards is
fast approaching. We are anxious to have a
large and high-quality pool of submissions
-be sure to contact Anisa Zvonkovic,
chair of the awards committee, if you have
questions (zvonkova@orst.edu).
Many NCFR members may be aware of
the proposal submitted by our section to
the Board of Directors to change the title
of the Journal of Marriage and the Fam-
NOW AVAILABLE!
Enrollment is open to all NCFR
members.
EducationEnrichment@cfapress.org
Ethnic Minorities website:
www.asn.csus.edu/em-ncfr
FamilyHealth @cfapress.org
FamilyPolicy@ cfapress.org
FamilyScience@ cfapress.org
FamilyTherapy@ cfapress.org
FeminismFamilyStudies@cfapress.org
International@ cfapress.org
ily. (See related article on page 3.) As all
of you know, NCFR has worked hard over
the years to acknowledge and embrace
many forms of diversity. Members of our
section have been concerned that the title
of the journal implies a monolithic family
form that is at odds with the healthy diversity in family forms and functions both in
the U.S. and around the world. As a result,
we proposed changing the name of the
journal to "Journal of Marriages and
Families" or "Journal of Marriage and
Families." In order to minimize the costs
of a name change, it is important to keep
the acronym of tl1e journal the same - this goal is
accomplished by both of
the proposed alternatives.
We look forward to hearing the response of other
NCFR sections to this proposal, and to its
final resolution by the Board of Directors.
Shelley M. MacDermid
Chair, Feminism & Family Studies
Section
E-mail: shelley@cfs.purdue.edu
Students/New Professionals
o you consider yourself a "policy
wonk"? Would you like to visit
Washington, DC during cherry
blossom season? Consider attending
NCFR's first ever public policy and education conference, Economic Viability, Welfare Reform, and Health Care:
Assessing the Future for Families and Communities.
D
This exciting inaugural conference will be
held April 13-14, 2000 at the Holiday Inn
Capitol at Smithsonian (a stone's throw
from the National Air and Space Museum),
and will include two receptions on Capitol
Hill as well as briefings on welfare refonn,
health care, and juvenile justice. Join us if
you can!
April 15th is the deadline for applications
for the annual NCFR Student Award. I
strongly encourage graduate students to
ask their advisors to nominate tl1em for this
$1,000 award. The
criteria: applicants
must be currently
enrolled in a graduate program and must show promise of a
significant contribution to family studies.
Applicants must also be NCFR members
of two year's standing.
In addition to completing the nomination
form, applicants must also provide t11ree
letters of support from faculty mentors, a
brief statement (1-2 pages) defining an
important problem in the field of family
studies, and a brief summary (1-2 pages)
of the student's program of research. Contact either NCFR (ncfr3989@ncfr.org) or
myself (hrose@mail.wsu.edu) if you have
any questions.
Hilary A. Rose
S/NP Representative
E-mail: hrose@mail.wsu.edu
ReligionFamilyLife@ cfapress.org
ResearchTheory@cfapress.org
Student@cfapress.org
'(Students/New Professionals)
To enroll, send your name, e-mail address,
and the listserv(s) you wish to join to:
John Pepper at 763-781-9331, ext. 16;
E-mail: pepperw@ncfr.org.
To sign up for the Ethnic Minorities
Section listserv, go directly to its website.
NCFR REPORT
Family Policy Section's lnternshipA;wcirc:l
'.·
.
. .. · .
The Family Policy Section is accepting applications fro~studeiitsa:ndnew professionals for a $500 internship award. The deadline is Apri114. fOQO (post~
marked). Questions concerning eligibility, sub111issiongt!id~li[l~~; aJJ.d9().J?.ditions
of the award should be directed to:
·
· ·
Steve Wisensale
...
.
U-Box 2058 ' School of Family Studies, University of' Connecticut
:
..·. - _.,_
Storrs, CT 06269-2058
Phone: 860-486-4576
34
MARCH 2000
�International Section
T
he officers of the International Section
have been using the Iistserv to encourage section, and non-section, members
to develop presentations for the 2000 NCFR
conference, to share section news, and to try to
stimulate more communication among section
members. We have also been using the listserv
to share current information and to discuss
section business as well as the broader business
ofNCFR. For example, there have been several thoughtful and scholarly postings related to
the proposal to change the name of the Journal
ofMarriage and the Family. Their postings
have reflected not only issues that prompted the
proposal (e.g., grammar, intentionality of inclu-
sian, and diversity) but have reflected some
concerns of our section membership related to
cross-cultural and international issues.
We would like to see the listserv used for a
wide array of scholarly communications and to
raise common issues before those who are
most identified with international family concerns. Toward this end, please use this forum to
post your own contributions and to solicit ideas
related to your scholarly concerns.
The spring International Section Newsletter
will be posted both on the international Iistserv
and on the NCFR International Section web
page. The section, through the listserv, and a
Research & Theory Section
TCRM 2000 Workshop
theory and research methodology have grown,
changed, stagnated, etc. in the last thirty
years or so, and papers suggesting what we
ought to be about in family theory andresearch methods in the next century. Proposals reflecting these issues are encouraged, but
proposals on any issue related to family
theory and/or research methodology are
welcomed. Papers are works-in-progress that
are duplicated and distributed to
The Promotion oJWellness in
all TCRM registrants. Session
time is spent on critique and disChildren and Adolescents
cussion rather than on formal
Edited by Dante Cicchetti, Julian
presentations of the papers themRappaport, Irwin Sandler, and
selves. A special plenary session
Roger Weissberg
entitled, "Thirty Years ofTCRM:
What can be done at the beginWhat Have We Done, Where Are
ning and throughout a child's
life to maximize the likelihood
We Going?" will feature a panel
that he or she will develop in a
of long-time TCRM participants
healthy way? This question
reflecting on the workshop's past
serves as the foundation for
and future. Look at the TCRM
this book. The contributers
2000 Newsletter for submission
strive to unify several subfields
dates and the registration form
of psychology, including community psychology, developonline at http://tcrrn.byu.edu. Join
mental psychopathology, and an ecological perspective on
us and participate in the excitechild development. Concepts central to the wellness perspecment of moving the field into the
tive, including preventing social disorders, creative uses of
future.
community resources, and the importance of resilient adaptation in the face of adversity, are examined and elaborated
Thomas B. Holman,
upon in this volume.
CFLE Chair, TCRM 2000
elebrate 30 years of TCRM in
beauti-ful Minneapolis, Minnesota!
You are invited to participate in the
30th Annual Theory Construction and Research Methodology Workshop. TCRM
meets annually as a pre-conference event at
the beginning of the National Council on
Family Relations' annual meeting. TCRM
will meet Nov. 8-9. Especially encouraged
are papers helping us think about how family
0-87868-791-2/ #7912GA ..... $28.9S
To Order
Call: 800-407-6273
Fax: 301-206-9789
Email: cwla@pmds.org
Online: www.cwla.org/pubs
NCFR REPORT
Workshop
Brigham Young University
380B SWKT
Provo, UT 84602-5309
Phone: 801-378-6704
E-mail:
thomas_holman@ byu.edu
35
broaderreadership, through
the web pages, will read the
International Section
Newsletter. We are always open to your news
and information for the International Section
Newsletter. If you have not already done so,
please do take a look at the first, Summer
1999, International Section NewsletteJ: (You
can look at it on the NCFR web page at: http://
www.ncfr.org/index.htrnl.) You may send
columns and information to our Section Secretary and Newsletter Editor, Colleen Murray,
at cimurray@ scs. unr.edu, Human Development
& Family Studies #140, University of NevadaReno, Reno, NV 89557 or phone: 702-7846490. You may want to forward your ideas for
future issues or columns for the newsletter to
Dr. Colleen Murray or to Dr. Raeann
Hamon, CFLE, Vice Chair, at
rhamon@ messiah.edu, Messiah College,
Grantham, PA 17027 or phone: 717-7662511, x2850.
Stephen M. Wilson
Chair, International Section
Phone:606-257-8900
E-mail: swilson@pop.uky.edu
Call for Papers
he North Texas Student Council
on Family Relations (NTSCFR) is
seeking proposals for their 7th
Annual State Conference to be held on
Saturday, October 28, 2000 in Denton,
TX. Topics related to the promotion and
support of family life education are welcomed. Presentations should be 20 to 40
minutes in length. Please include description of content, and how the topic will
benefit NTSCFR. Also, attach a 112 page
abstract of your professional vita and
include a self-addressed stamped envelope. Mail to: Sara Vardell, UNT,
NTSCFR, P.O. Box 305069, SAC Box 23
F, Denton, TX 76203. For more information contact Dr. Tommie Lawhon, CFLE,
UNT faculty advisor, 940-565-2576. The
deadline for submission is June 25,
2000, with notification by July 25, 2000.
NEXTNCFR
REPORT DEADLINE
IS MAY 1, 2000.
MARCH 2000
�President's Report
The Value f ffiliated
twas the early 80s, and I was an "old"
(relatively speaking) graduate student
trying to get a handle on a dissertation topic. Luckily, my department chair
was enthusiastic about TCFR (Texas
Council on Family Relations). She urged
me to go to the spring meeting in Abilene
and clinched the decision by telling me
that Dr. Mary Calderone, founder of
SIECUS-the Sex Information and Education Council of the U.S., would be the
main speaker. I went. It wasn't far away
and didn't cost a ton of money. And I was
so inspired by her presentation that I
returned to graduate studies with a dissertation topic and a fire in my bones.
This short testimony illustrates several
reasons why I believe state and regional
unci Is
affiliated councils are so advantageous to
our profession:
e They allow more participation by more
people, including professionals from
related fields of study.
•
They offer a forum to address local
and regional issues and public policy.
e They provide excellent mentoring and
collaborative opportunities for faculty
and graduate students to present new
research ideas and projects.
•
They inspire professional excitement
in students and new professionals like
myself.
Would I have gone to that conference if
my department chair had not promoted it
so strongly?
Probably not.
My plate was
pretty full. But
in many ways,
it charged my
professional
life and gave
me an excitement and a
focus I had lost
in the seemLANE H. POWELL, CFLE
ingly unending maze of classes and
course requirements. I want to give others
that opportunity-don't you?
Lane H. Powell, CFLE
President, Association of Councils
E-mail: powellb@llano.net
Pennsylvania/Delaware Council on Family Relations
T
hree exciting things are brewing
for Pennsylvania/Delaware Council on Family Relations. First, the
Association of Councils is proposing that
we "strengthen active state councils by
providing a larger potential membership
base and more potential conference attendees" by developing "regional divisions." Our PA/DE CFR Board thinks this
is a great idea and we are supporting this
move. With this change, we anticipate a
greater number of people with which to
network and to share the work of our
regional council. Hopefully more people
will be interested in being officers, serv-
ing on the board, and attending our conferences. In addition to Pennsylvania and
Delaware, states to be included in the
Northeastern Region would include:
Maine, Vermont, New Hampshire, Connecticut, Rhode Island, New Jersey, Maryland and the District of Columbia. I'll be
providing feedback to Lane Powell, AC
President, on this initiative prior to their
next Board meeting.
Second, we are looking for a few committed individuals to assume our four key
officer positions for 2000-2001. Given
the reconfiguration of our regional coun-
California Council Annual Meeting
The California Council on Family Relations (CCFR) invites you to come to the First
Annual Conference that will take place on April28-29, 2000 in San Diego focusing on
"Families and Public Policy." Our keynote speakers are Dr. Albert Bandura, Stanford
University, who will speak about "Personal and Collective Efficacy" and Dr. Robert
Ross who will address the "California Children and Families First Initiative." We are
planning a very informative conference with a lot of fun. If you need more information
about the conference and you are interested in presenting and/or attending, don't hesitate to contact Shulamit Ritblatt at ritblatt@mail.sdsu.edu, Phone: 619-594-6501.
fM
NCFR REPORT
36
cil, anyone from the aforementioned
states would be eligible to run. If you are
interested in being President, Vice-President, Secretary or Treasurer, please contact Stephen Brown at
sbrown@mnsfld.edu or 717-662-4623.
Please let Steve know if you're interested
in being a member of the board as well.
We'd love to have you get involved.
Third, you will want to reserve Wednesday, October 11, 2000 in order to attend
our annual conference. This year we are
joining forces with Penn State's Cooperative Extension's Building Strong Families
Conference to co-sponsor "Raising
Healthy Children in a Diverse Society."
The conference will be held at the Wildwood Conference Center, Harrisburg,
Pennsylvania. Dr. Stephen Jorgensen,
President of NCFR, will provide our keynote address entitled "Adolescent Pregnancy Prevention: Promises and Potential." Dr. Jorgensen will also offer an
hour-long post-conference workshop on
Pennsylvania/Delaware continued
on next page
MARCH 2000
�PENNSYLVANIA/
DELAWARE cont. from page 36
how to attain federal funding, particularly
from the U.S. Office of Adolescent Pregnancy Programs (O.A.P.P.), to deliver teen
pregnancy prevention interventions. Other
speakers will include Nathaniel and
Patricia Gadsden (Teaching Tolerance;
Living in Balance); Dr. Deborale
Richardson-Bouie, CFLE, (Violence in
Dating Relationships); Dr. Richard
Stevick (Amish Adolescents); and Fiona
Blieu and Dee Ditzler (Drug and Alcohol
Prevention). The day is becoming more
and more exciting as the program continues to take shape. I hope that you'll plan
to attend.
Raeann R. Hamon, Ph.D., CFLE
President, PA/DE Council on Family
Relations
E-mail: rhamon @messiah.edu
AOC TASK FORCE ON
STUDENT AFFILIATES
The Association of Councils has
created a task force to address the
status of student affiliate organizations. More specifically, the task
force plans to:
e Clarify the relationship between
NCFR, state/regional chapters,
and campus affiliates.
e Provide uniform guidelines for
the establishment and maintenance of affiliate status.
e Examine the ways in which undergraduate and graduate students
might more actively participate in
campus events as well as state/
regional/national conferences.
The task force plans to provide a full
report of recommendations to the
Association of Councils at the 62nd
Annual Conference in Minneapolis.
A C Reps Selected
for Public Policy Committee
he new NCFR Public Policy Committee will have five representatives from the Affiliated Councils.
Those selected come from different
regions of the country and have a wide
variety of public policy interests. Their
roles on the Committee will include
studying issues affecting families, recommending new policy positions, and developing NCFR's Family Policy Platform
(NCFR's permanent policy document).
They will also be expected to convey
information and education to the state and
regional affiliates regarding areas of
concern for families, and to make suggestions for federal, state, and local involvement. The following persons were chosen
to serve as the Association of Councils
representatives for the coming year:
Tom Chibucos, Ohio -A professor of
Human Development and Family Studies
at Bowling Green State University,
Chibucos has a strong and long-term
(over two decades) interest in public
policy issues concerning children and
families. He developed one of the first
university courses on child abuse and
neglect, and has worked both in and outside the academy to support child and
family programming and quality care. He
recently co-edited and published a book
with Kluwer Academic Publishers entitled, Sen1ing Children and Families
Through Community-University Partnerships: A Success Story.
Denise Donnelly, Georgia -An assistant professor of Sociology at Georgia
State University, Donnelly's research
focuses on sexual and intimate violence.
She recently investigated the impact of
welfare reform on battered women, and
just completed a project examining the
effects of client race, age, social class,
and sexual orientation on service provisions to battered women. In addition, she
is co-creator of two culturally sensitive
CFLEs Can Get CEU Credit for Affiliate Conferences
Affiliate program planners: Contact Dawn Cassidy at the national headquarters
for more information. Toll free: 888-781-9331, ext. 12; Phone: 763-781-9331,
ext. 12; E-mail: cassidyd@ncfr.org.
NCFR REPORT
37
batterer intervention programs, including
one for men who are incarcerated.
Donnelly serves on a number of local,
state, and national advisory boards dealing
with violence against women and children,
and frequently conducts evaluations of
public policies and programs.
Walter Kawamoto, California- An
assistant professor in the Family and Consumer Sciences Department at California
State University, Sacramento, Kawamoto
has a long record of political involvement.
His most recent efforts are directed towards social justice for ethnic minority
persons. Within NCFR, he has been a
strong voice advocating for more consistent attention to issues affecting ethnic
minority families and has facilitated several conference symposia on topics such
as the effects of anti-immigrant hysteria
on Asian and Latino immigrant families.
Kawamoto is incoming president of the
California Council.
Thomas Rane, Washington - An assistant
professor of Human Development at
Washington State University, Rane has a
keen interest in the intersection between
family science and public policy. In addition to teaching an upper division undergraduate course in public policy, his research on father involvement includes
attention to the formation of more informed and effective public policies in the
areas of custody and visitation, parental
leave, flex-time in the workplace, and
parental involvement in school contexts.
Rane advocates an "ecological model of
family policy development."
Britton Wood, CFLE, Texas- A family
programs consultant and CFLE in Ft.
Worth, Texas, Wood has engaged various
city and state level interest groups in dialogue and education about the political
process. His interest in the power of nonviolent demonstration stems from the
1960's when he was a campus minister and
negotiator with extreme groups on all
sides of the student movement spectrum.
Wood has worked with TCFR and NCFR to
influence the state to establish a "Week of
the Family" and has testified in numerous
public hearings on issues affecting families. He is currently the Association of
Councils Program Chair.
00
MARCH 2000
�SENIOR MANAGEMENT OPPORTUNITY
DIRECTOR OF CLINICAL SERVICES
CHILD AND FAMILY AGENCY
Tenured Track Position - Child, Family, and Consumer
Sciences
NEW LONDON COUNTY
California State University, Fresno
The Department of Child, Family and Consumer Sciences
invites application for a tenure track position in Child and
Family Sciences available Fall 2000. Responsibilities
include teaching courses in child development, family
relations, intimate interpersonal relations, parenting,
children, and families in crisis, human development. Doctorate degree or ABD required. Review of applications will
begin immediately and will continued until the position is
filled. Application materials, including vita, graduate
transcripts, three letters of reference, should be sent:
Nina J. Dilbeck, Chair
Child, Family and Consumer Sciences Dept.
California State University, Fresno
5300 N. Campus Drive M.S. #FFS12
Fresno, CA 93740-8019
Phone: 559-278-2283
E-mail: nina_dilbeck@csufresno.edu
Website: http://www.csufresno.edu/cfcs
Child and Family Agency of Southeastern Connecticut, Inc., one of
Connecticut's leading comprehensive children's agencies involved in schoolbased health centers, child guidance clinics, intensive family preservation
services, and early childhood programs, seeks a highly skilled clinical administrator. The Agency is very active in training professionals and publishing.
Applicants should be energetic, motivating, dedicated senior clinician with
strong administrative backgrounds and possess excellent writing skills.
The Director of Clinical Services supervises staff in both office and homebased clinical treatment services. Application review will begin immediately
and continue until the position is filled. Salary range: mid 50's to mid 60's.
Ph.D. and licensable as a psychologist in CT. required. Resume, writing
sample, three letters of reference and salary requirements should be sent to:
Personnel Assistant
Child and Family Agency
255 Hempstead Street
New London, CT 06320
Fax: 860-442-5909 E-mail: cfa@cfapress.org
EQUAL OPPORTUNITY EMPLOYER
SCHOOL OF CHILD AND YOUTH CARE
University of Victoria
TENURE-TRACK FACULTY POSITION
Assistant or Associate Professor
A tenure-track position is available at the Assistant or Associate Professor level effective January 1, 2001. The School of Child and Youth Care
(SCYC) provides an applied baccalaureate degree (BA) to on campus and distance education students, a distance cohort-based Master of Arts in
Child and Youth Care, a graduate degree in policy and practice (MA) through the Faculty of Human and Social Development multidisciplinary
graduate program, and Ph.D. degrees by special arrangement. Through its First Nations Partnership Programs, SCYC also offers a Diploma in
Child and Youth Care for students who successfully complete Aboriginal, Child and Youth Care community-based coursework.
The undergraduate degree prepares students to work with children, youth and their families in a wide range of practice settings (e.g. child welfare, child protection, early childhood care and education, residential care, infant development, family support, parent education, juvenile justice,
hospital-based child life, recreation, school-based child, youth and family counseling, community mental health). Graduate degrees provide students
with preparation to work as advanced practitioners and leaders in various organizations and community agencies, government departments and
ministries, and as researchers, trainers, administrators and educators. Diploma graduates work effectively in child day care settings and also apply
their skills and knowledge to a number of other child and youth care practice settings.
Applications are invited at either the Assistant or Associate level. The position is tenure-track, but applicants in mid-career may be considered for
tenure upon hiring. Preference will be given to candidates with expertise in child and youth care focused, clinical and/or applied human developmental practice. Expertise in early intervention will also be an asset. The successful candidate must also be committed to excellence in teaching at
both the graduate and undergraduate levels and to the development of an active program of research in the child and youth care field. A Ph.D. is
preferred.
In accordance with Canadian immigration requirements, this advertisement is directed to Canadian citizens and permanent residents; however,
others are invited and encouraged to apply and will become eligible if no appointment is made after a Canadian search is completed.
Applicants should send curriculum vitae and the name of three referees by April 30, 2000, to: Dr. Sibylle Artz, Director, School of Child and Youth
Care, University of Victoria, P.O. Box 1700, Victoria, BC, Canada V8W 2Y2; Ph: 250-721-6472; Fax: 250-721-7218; E-mail: sartz@uvic.ca;
Website: www.uvic.ca/cyc
The University of Victoria is an employment equity employer and encourages applications from women, persons with disabilities, visible minorities and aboriginal persons.
NCFR REPORT
38
MARCH 2000
�New Ph.D. in Family Studies Program
new Ph.D. program in Family Studies
at the University of Maryland, College
Park will be offered beginning Fall
2000. Application deadline is April15, 2000.
The Ph.D. in Family Studies is a researchoriented program exploring the dynamics within
families as well as the interactions between
families and community and social contexts.
The program focuses on family theory, research
methodology, family policy, family programs,
ethnic families, and major issues confronting
contemporary families. Students learn to de-
Head Start Conference
Head Start's 5th National Research Conference, Developmental and Contextual
Transitions of Children and Families: Implications for Research, Policy, and Practice, will be held June 28-July 1, 2000, at the Hyatt Regency Washington on Capitol
Hill, Washington, DC. The central theme of the conference focuses on the continuities
and transitions of early development and the contexts in which they occur. NCFR is a
Cooperative Organization in the planning of this conference.
For inquiries about program content contact: Dr. Faith Lamb-Parker, Project Director,
212-304-5251 or E-mail: flpl @columbia.edu. For information on registration contact:
Bethany Chirico, Ellsworth Associates, 703-821-3090; ext. 233; Fax: 703-356-0472;
E-mail: bchirico@eainet.com. Websites: http://cpmcnet.columbia.edu/dept/sph/
popfam!headstartconf.html or www.acf.dhhs.gov/programs/hsb.
sign, implement, and evaluate culturally-sensitive interventions addressing family needs and
to analyze the consequences of public/private
policies on family well-being.
The Ph.D. program requires 51 graduate
credits beyond the Mastors degree.
The Washington-Baltimore metropolitan area
offers rich opportunities for access to the
federal and state government, national associations, research on culturally and socioeconomically diverse families, and family policy.
Graduates are prepared for a number of
careers in the public, non-profit and private
sectors, including university teaching, research,
family policy analysis, and administrative
positions in human service programs. Graduate assistantships are available.
Contact: Graduate Director, Family Studies,
University of Maryland, College Park, Maryland 20742-7515, 301-405-4004,
rr38 @umail.umd.edu, www.inform.umd.edut
fmst.
Ull
CALL FOR PROPOSALS
Hartman National Conference on Children and Their Families Fifth Biennial Meeting
Theme:
Promoting Creativity Across the Life Course
The Child and Family Agency of Southeasten Connecticut will hold its fifth biennial national
Hartman Conference on the theme of PROMOTING CREATIVITY ACROSS THE LIFE COURSE.
Previous conferences have attracted speakers and attendees from across North America and Europe, who
have had the opportunity to grapple with some of the important primary prevention issues of our times.
Proposals from social scientists, practitioners, educators, and family life professionals for papers,
workshops, and roundtables that address this theme are sought. Held at the Mystic Inn, the conference will
take place May 23, 24, & 25, 2001 along Southeastern Connecticut's scenic coastline.
To obtain a proposal packet:
Judy Lovelace, Conference Coordinator
Hartman National Conference on Children & Their Families
255 Hempstead Street, New London, CT. 06320
Questions call: 860-443-2896 ext. 1403 or 860-442-5909 (fax) or e-mail
CHILDANDFAMILY@CFAPRESS.ORG
NCFR REPORT
39
MARCH 2000
�
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Annual onfer nee
es undin S ccess
he 1999 NCFR Annual Conference
was a wonderful experience, thanks
to everyone who planned, staffed,
volunteered, and attended. With beautiful
weather, a lovely hotel, and a terrific
theme, Borders, Boundaries, and Beacons:
Diverse Families in Dynamic Societies, we
demonstrated diversity throughout the conference in a plethora of distinguished lectures, plenaries, and teaching, research and
methodological updates, as well as symposia, workshops, and paper, poster, and
round table sessions. Thanks to all of you
for sharing your expertise and bringing
your good spirits with you. A special
thanks to the sages, students, staff, section
chairs, and speakers for ensuring that the
conference was a huge success.
The program committee, consisting of the
10 section chairs, representatives from the
Association of Councils and the
Student/New Professionals, the current and
incoming program chairs, along with excellent support from NCFR's Conference
Coordinator, Cindy Winter, planned an outstanding program. Keynotes by Mary
Catherine Bateson, Lou Bellamy, and
Marta Sotomayor, generated food for
thought and stimulating conversations,
especially during the fireside chats, helping
us bridge scholarly and artistic aspects of
family diversity. The teaching, research,
and methodological updates this year provided unique learning opportunities for all
of us, covering innovative techniques in
writing across the cmriculum, latent growth
models, working with refugee families, and
coping with unresolved grief.
The 1999 conference was also the occasion
to welcome our new Executive Director,
Michael Benjamin, whose rousing introduction of the NCFR team- the Board of
Directors and
NCFR staff- set
The teaching,
the tone for NCFR
in the 21st centuresearch, and
ry. Another highlight of the conmethodological
ference was Bill
Doherty's presiupdates this
dential address,
proposing an
year provided
agenda for comunique learning munity involvement, a perfect fit
opportunities
with the community spirit engenfor all of us.
dered in NCFR perhaps one of the
reasons we are such devotees of this organization.
Many thanks, as well, to the Local
Arrangements Committee, who did a fabulous job of welcoming attendees at the
Hospitality Cafe and providing updates
about local sites of interest.
Finally, a heartfelt thank you to the unsung
heroine of the conference, Cindy Winter.
Past program chairs assured me that
Cindy would make sure everything ran
smoothly, but I was still astounded by her
energetic expertise in handling all the
�CONFERENCE
continued fi·om page 1
inevitable details that arose before and
during the conference. A large part of
what makes NCFR a beloved organization
for so many of us is the success of the
annual conference, and Cindy Winter is
its guiding light. Thank you, Cindy, for
your dedicated work once again this year.
In the midst of so many changes, the
continuity you provide is welcomed and
appreciated!
I enjoyed my year as program chair, particularly because NCFR is so capable of
reinventing itself year after year. The
annual conference is a main occasion for
representing the diversity about which we
live, study, and teach. Thanks again to all
of you for bringing your good ideas and
open minds to the conference, and for
sharing your knowledge and commitment
to family diversity in our dynamic society.
The Distinguished Service to Families (DSF) Award was presented to the American Rejitgee Committee
(Worldwide). Tony Kozlowski, Executive Director of ARC (second fimn left) accepted the award fi'om Bill
Doherty, 1998-1999 NCFR President. At the right are Linda Dannison, CFLE, and Lane Powell, CFLE,
co-chairs of the DSF Award Committee.
Katherine Allen, CFLE
1999 Program Chair
REPORT
of The National Council on
Family Relations
Mission Statement for the Report:
REPORT, the quarterly newsletter of the
National Council on Family Relations,
strives to provide timely, useficl information
to help members succeed in their roles as
researchers, educators, and practitioners.
Articles address family field issues,
programs and trends, including association news.
President: Stephen R. Jorgensen
Editor: Michael L. Benjamin
Managing Editor: Doris A. Hareland
Topics Feature Writer: Nancy Giguere
Enjoying the Col!ference are: seated, Loretta Prater; standing, left to right: Norma Burgess, Dewan a
Thompson, Harriette McAdoo, Tammy Henderson, Velma McBride Muny, and Edie Lewis.
NCFR Repmi is published quarterly by
the National Council on Family Relations,
3989 Central Ave. N.E., Suite 550,
Minneapolis, MN 55421.
Third class postage permit.
Report subscription rate: $20.00 per
year; $5.00 per copy. For bulk rates, call
888-781-9331, ext 23. Annual membership dues include newsletter subscription.
$15.00 U.S. postage per year postpaid at
individual rate.
NEWS DEADLINES: February 1 for .
March issue; May 1 for June issue;
August 1 for September issue; November 1
for December issue.
Following her PlenWJ' on "Intergenerational Leaming in a Changing Society," Nlwy Catherine Bateson,.
(cente1) Professor ofAnthropology and English, Geo1;ge !Mason University, participated in a Fireside
Chat about the plenw:v with attendees.
------------------------------------------NCFR REPORT
2
-----------------------------------------------DECEMBER 1999
�thics, Family Science
and Family ractice
by William J. Doherty, Ph.D.
raditionally, a discipline or profession starts paying explicit attention
to ethics only when it loses its
innocence. After all, academic disciplines
and areas of practice generally are
founded by people of integrity whose
ideal is to better understand the world and
improve the human lot. Carving out a
place for the new field requires its adherents to trumpet
their unique
contributions
to knowledge
and practice, to
show that they
can be better
trusted with the
new field of
work than
already-established groups
of scholars and
WILLIAM DOHERTY, Ph.D. practitioners.
Only when the new field is safely beyond
its adolescence, with a sense of its own
strength, do its practitioners begin to
realize that they can do hann along with
good, that their special abilities can be
distorted by self-interest or applied in
damaging ways. That's when ethical discussions get serious.
It is not surprising, then, that family sci-
ence waited until the 1990s to address
ethics is a systematic way. In 1995 that
the Family Science Section of NCFR
published its Ethical Principles and
Guidelines for Family Scientists, and in
1997 the NCFR Board adopted this document for the association.
Generic guidelines
As much as I admire the work of those
. who developed NCFR's statement, I confess that virtually all ethics guidelines and
codes, including NCFR's, leave me unsatNCFR REPORT
isfied and wanting something more. Statements of ethical principles represent
unarguable ideals such as respect, responsibility and fairness, but they rarely discuss how these ideals address difficult
dilemmas.
Statements of specific ethical guidelines,
which represent a distillation of the
field's wisdom about best and worst practices, range in scope from the importance
of supporting the profession to admonitions about reading the entire manuscript
before writing a review of it for a journal.
And rarely do the ethics statements deal
Why should professions articulate their
values, vision and chief dilemmas? As we
all know, professions are supported by
society and given a fair amount of autonomy over their gate-keeping and internal practices, because they are viewed as
benefiting the society. New professions
are given entry to this privileged status
when they demonstrate that their expertise
and special area of focus are not served
well enough by the already-existing professions.
What about family science? What is our
unique contribution to the community that
supports us as teachers,
researchers, family life
Family scientists value the family as family educators, policy specialists,
therapists, and so forth? How
- and this may be our unique role and
can we make clear who we
contribution in contemporary social
are ethically as responsible
professionals? For starters,
science, public policy and applied work.
how can we reflect the fact
that we study, work with, and
very specifically with the unique nature of value families, not just individuals? What
a particular discipline; codes for psyspecial ethical dile1mnas follow from
chologists, social workers and family
such a focus? What personal qualities scientists all look pretty much alike. They what virtues - seem particularly imporarticulate generic principles that almost
tant for someone who would study, teach
any professional in a related field would
about or work with families?
subscribe to, along with generic boundValuing the family as family
ary-setting rules to protect students,
clients, and the public (do not discrimiI'd like to take a stab at answering these
nate, falsify, harass, exploit, etc.).
questions, at least for the purpose of
generating conversation. In our writing
Core values and vision
about ethics, I think that we should emut most professional ethics statephasize that we are a profession that valments, NCFR's included, do not
ues and honors family life in a society that
cmmnunicate the unique reasons
is increasingly individualistic. Not just one
why that discipline exists- its core valkind of family life, of course, because
ues and vision - and the special ethical
contemporary families come in many
dilemmas that its members face in their
shapes, but committed, long lasting, nurwork.
Ethics continued on next page
William J. Doherty, Ph.D., Professor of Family Social Science at the College of
Human Ecology, University ·of Minnesota, is immediate past president of NCFR.
3
DECEMBER 1999
�Weaving Ethnic Minorities
into the Fabric of NCFR
by Francisco A. Villarruel, Ph.D., Associate Professor,
Family and Child Ecology, Michigan State University, NCFR Ethnic Minorities Section Chair
s we enter a new century bringing
with it a dramatic demographic
shift in the U.S. population, we
must ask whether NCFR's membership and
publications reflect this shift. Within the
organization, the members of the Etlmic
Minorities section have played a key role
in mentoring upcoming scholars. Harriette
McAdoo, in patiicular, has encouraged
many younger members, and her groundbreaking work on the African American
family has allowed other researchers to do
ethnically focused research.
The Ethnic Minorities section has historically been driven by African American
scholars. There are still very few Asian,
Native American and Latino members of
ETHICS
continued from page 3
turing, and fair relationships in families.
(We will debate endlessly, of course,
about the meaning of each of these value
labels and its implications, but I believe
that we can still atiiculate a common, if
provisional, vision.)
Most other disciplines view the family as
an environment for the special populations they study. But family scientists, I
believe, also value the family as family and this may be our unique role and contribution in contempormy social science,
public policy and applied work.
Family versus individual well-being
aluing families, of course, does
not blind us to their shadow side.
We have a special obligation to
understand and to work toward changing
the ways in which families cause hann to
their members. It was NCFR members
such as Munay Straus, Richard Gelles
and Suzanne Steinmetz who pioneered the
study of family violence. Indeed, one of
the unique ethical dilemmas faced by
family practitioners is the balance between family well-being (for solidarity,
order) and individual well-being (for
autonomy and individuality).
Spanking is a case in point: most parents
NCFR REPORT
NCFR- certainly not enough to create a
critical mass. Commendable efforts have
been made by individuals to reach out to
minority scholars, but we need, as an organization, to work systemically to attract
and retain ethnic minmity members - to
weave them into the very fabric ofNCFR.
•
Establish
more awards
like the John
FRANCISCO A.
McAdoo
Dissertation
VILLARRUEL, Ph.D.
Award. These awards should be endowed by NCFR itself, rather than by
the Ethnic Minorities section.
•
Create a mechanism for mentming at
the national level. This might include
mentoring minmity faculty and students in policy areas so they can eventually assume leadership roles in NCFR.
Systemic changes
Here are a few ways we might do this:
• Hold our atmual conference in areas of
the country where large minority populations exist. These would include the
Southwest, the Deep South, patis of
California and Indian Reservations we could, for example, meet at a tribal
college.
spank and believe spanking is necessary
for managing children, while most family
scientists and educators have concluded
that it is a hannful practice. Our ethics
statements could speak to the cmmndrums that arise when we see parents as
autonomous agents in their own families,
wmihy of our support and respect, while
also believing they are misled about disciplinary practices.
Another example of ethical soul-searching for many family scientists is how to
uphold the egalitarian ideals that most of
us have for marriage in a society where
many couples either do not aspire to an
egalitarian maniage or find ways to rationalize not having one. When our values
and our research findings get translated
into family life education or therapy, what
ethical ground do we walk on when we
decide to influence a change in a particular couple's gender-based arrangements?
Or when we decide to not address a
couple's inequitable arrangements? How
do we deal with the competing values of
equality on the one hand and respect for
family autonomy on the other?
Our own values influence our work
On a broader level, how do we let our
values about family life appropriately
influence our research, teaching, and
4
• Partner with Hispanic-serving institutions, historic Black colleges and tribal
Weaving continued on next page
practice - and when do our values blind us
to either scientific findings or the lived
values of families themselves? At what
point are we promoting, through policy
initiatives, a type of family life that fits
our own values but not necessarily the
values of the families affected by those
policies?
I offer no easy or ce1iain answers to any
of these questions. I can't even make a
direct proposal for where NCFR should
go next with our ethics discussions. But I
am convinced that ethical deliberations
pay off because they force us to articulate
a bold vision of both the values underlying
family life in our time and of the family
professional's role in understanding and
enhancing family life.
So we continue to struggle to understand
the tough issues where principles clash,
where our best practices can look like our
worst, where our own values fail to intersect with the values of families, and
where we disagree vehemently with one
another. Sometimes the lights will go out
for a time, but we will stay with the
struggle, because the stakes are high and because we know that at the heart of
our maturing family discipline there is
rm
more illumination than darkness.
DECEMBER 1999
�WEAVING
continued ji-om page 4
colleges to foster research on ethnic
minority families.
• Work to ease the "bottleneck" that
keeps a dispropmiionate number of
minority students in two-year colleges. Four-year colleges are not
doing a good job of matriculating
these students and that means the
field of family studies is losing potential scholars and NCFR is losing potential members.
Scholarly perspectives
In the area of scholarship, we should
strive for editorial boards that reflect
ethnic diversity. We should also take a
look at some of our assumptions about
scholarship by and about etlmic minorities. These assumptions include:
• The notion that the nonnative group is
always white. For example, a study that
compares Latino, Asian and African
American families might be rejected
on the grounds that no white families
were included.
•
The belief that research about ethnic
minority families is always "deficit"
research, that is, research to discover
what's wrong with them and how they
can be fixed.
• The fallacy of pan-ethnicity, which
lumps together people of different
backgrounds and considers them alike.
Thus researchers might consider all
people from Southeast Asia as one
group, even though Cambodians, Vietnamese and Hmong all speak different
languages and have different cultures not to mention the differences of
social class and education that exist
within each group.
•
The view that a minority researcher is
somehow second-class. In other
words, an African American will do
research on African Americans because that's all he or she is capable of
doing.
New directions for research
uch of the work undertaken by
family scholars has looked at
the issue of acculturation or
adaptation to "American" values. Yet, as
we examine sociodemographic changes,
and even schools of choice, we will note
that there is an increased desire to
"return" to a cultural orientation.
NCFR REPORT
Local Councils can
ake an Impact
by Lane Powell, Ph.D., CFLE, Adjunct Professor of Human Development and Family
Studies, Texas Tech, Lubbock
s the incoming president of the
Association of Councils, my goal
is to have every NCFR member
attached to an active council in his or her
state or local region. I believe that NCFR's
regional, state and local councils have a
real opportunity to impact their local communities and, at the same time, collaborate
with other professionals in family-related
disciplines.
The affiliated councils can also provide
family professionals with an opportunity to
work on public policy issues. It can be
hard to make an impact on a national level,
but on the local level, we have the ear of
our legislators and other policymakers. The
councils can serve as a link between individuals concerned with family policies and
these policymakers.
Each council will find its own way of
doing this. Some councils, such as the
As a consequence, there is even greater
significance to the "heterogeneity" of the
ethnic minority experience in the U.S.
Some middle- and upper-class ethnic
minorities will, for example, choose to
live in an integrated community. Yet, when
it comes to the issue of spiritual development, they will choose to return to a cultural community to instill cultural values
in their children. These choices have
dramatic and significant impact not only
Northwest
Council and the
Minnesota
Council, hold
biannual or
annual meetings, which
bring together
family professionals and
others to explore issues
LANE H. POWELL, CFLE
impmiant to
their cmmnunities.
The Mississippi council, on the other
hand, is part of a consortium of associations that works on public policy issues.
The consortium recently created a
mentming program for college students
who study local and state issues and meet
An Impact continued on next page
decade. And unless family scholars take a
proactive role, we will not be able to
provide the educational opportunities that
are desired by our students of today and
tomorrow.
An important perspective for
everyone
It was heartening to see that the three
plenary sessions at this year's conference
all featured minority scholars- two African American and
We need, as an organization, to work systemically one Latino - who
represented diverse
to attract and retain ethnic minority members fields and perspectives. Katherine
to weave them into the very fabric ofNCFR.
Allen should be
cmmnended for her
on individual development, but also family dedication and effort to create an important perspective for all NCFR scholars.
interactions and family development.
NCFR must continue to insure that the
This choice to "retain" certain cultural
voices of minority scholarship are reguvalues as opposed to allowing for the
larly promoted at our annual meeting.
mixing of cultural values is an area that is
This year's plenary sessions should not be
not really well understood. Certainly, we
viewed as an anomaly, but rather as an
note that the demand from students for
impmiant and integral part of our
cultural studies has increased over the last annual meeting.
5
DECEMBER 1999
�Family Life ducati n:
n merg1ng rofession
Ill
by Dawn Cassidy, M.Ed., CFLE, Certification Director, NCFR
amily life education is an emerging
field and profession. There has
been a gradual appreciation of its
importance and role in strengthening society over the past decade. With this evolution has come recognition of the importance of the individual's role in effective
family life education programs and offerings, that is, a recognition of the value of
professionalism.
To describe what it means to be a professional family life educator, we must answer
the following quesJt is essential tions: What defines
a profession? What
for family life is involved in becoming a competent
educators to
professional? What
skills and knowldevelop a
edge are needed to
philosophical provide effective
family life education
basis for
experiences and to
develop quality
teaching about
materials? Are there
families.
certain personal
characteristics or
traits that make someone a more effective
family life educator? What ethical practices are necessary underpinnings of the
profession?
Defining the profession
Let's begin by looking at the concept of
professionalism. Many individuals and
AN IMPACT
One approach developed by East (1980)
contends that the development of a profession involves eight criteria. According to
East's framework, these criteria must be in
place in order for a field or occupation to
be considered a profession. These include:
•
The activity becomes a full-time paid
occupation.
•
Training schools and curricula are
established.
•
Those who are trained establish a
professional association.
•
A name, standards of admission, a core
body of knowledge and competencies
for practice are developed.
•
Intemal conflict within the group and
external conflict from other professions
with similar concems lead to a unique
role definition.
411
The public served expresses some
acceptance of the expertise of those
practicing the occupation.
•
Certification and licensure is the legal
sign that a group is sanctioned for a
particular service to society and that it
is self-regulated.
continued ji-om page 5
with state legislators to discuss upcoming
bills. One sh1dent in the program has even
served on a govemor's commission.
Another important function of the councils
is to nurture and mentor the new professionals who are the future ofNCFR. They
need opportunities to network with each
other and fonn ties with more established
scholars and practitioners within the national organization. Young professionals
should be encouraged to present papers at
local council meetings and to join with
colleagues who are working on public
NCFR REPORT
organizations have sh1died professionalism. Some identify certain attributes commonly acquired in the process of
professionalization, while others focus on
the political and sociological aspects of
identifying professions.
•
A code of
ethics is
developed to
eliminate
DAWN CASSIDY,
unethical
M.Ed., CFLE
practice and
to protect the public.
Family life education has indeed met
many of these criteria, and progress is
being made toward meeting others. The
heart of professionalism, however, lies in
the skills and qualities of those that practice or deliver services to the public.
Developing A Personal Philosophy
hile certain personal qualities
can enhance a family life
educator's effectiveness, it is
also essential to develop a philosophical
basis for teaching about families. Effective
educators have thoroughly considered
where their beliefs lie. They have grappled
with definitions of family and detennined
- for themselves - the purpose of family
life education. They are clear about the
benefits of family life education and the
most effective means of accomplishing it.
Dail ( 1984) identified four beliefs that
need to be addressed when constmcting a
philosophy of family life education. These
are:
•
beliefs about the family and the quality
and nah1re of family life,
• beliefs about the purpose of family life
education,
411
beliefs about the content of family life
education, and
•
beliefs about the process of learning
for families.
policy issues.
We also need to strengthen the role of our
sh1dent affiliates. The Association of
Councils' taskforce on smdent affiliates is
developing a handbook that would guide
members as they plan meetings and programs, elect officers and decide on service
activities. We are hoping to develop a less
expensive membership category for silldents in an effort to attract more sh1dent
members and increase the number of
affiliated groups on college campuses.
Constmcting a personal philosophy can
be a difficult process. It involves questioning, evaluating, and acceptance and
rejection of ideas. The educator's personal
philosophy continually evolves as he or
she grows and leams. The time and
effort spent in developing a personal
Family continued on next pag1
6
DECEMBER
199~
�FAM llY continued from page 6
philosophy of family life education will
be worthwhile. Family life educators who
have a solid understanding of their own
personal philosophy of family life education are equipped to help individuals and
families to lead more satisfying and productive lives.
The Levels of Family Involvement
Model
n important professional trait is
the recognition and acceptance of
one's own abilities and limitations. This issue has been referred to as
levels of involvement between the educator and the Ieamer (Doherty, 1995). A
fine line often exists between the roles
and responsibilities of family life educators and those involved in counseling and
therapy. Professionalism can often be
questioned when educators are perceived
as stepping over the line by participating
in activities beyond their level of knowledge and expertise.
Where does education end and therapy
begin? Dr. William Doherty developed the
Levels of Family Involvement Model to
help educators identify appropriate levels
of involvement for family life education.
An understanding of these levels and
one's own capabilities is another important component of professionalism. (See
sidebar.)
Ethical Guidelines
Because family life education often deals
with values and belief systems, it is imperative that professional family life
educators understand the role of ethics in
their professional lives. Family life educators need access to ethical guidelines
Levels of family involvement
Level1 - Minimal Emphasis on Family
Interactions with parents are institution centered, not family centered. Families
are not regarded as an important area of focus, but parents are dealt with for
practical or legal reasons.
Level 2- Information and Advice
Content infonnation about families, parenting, and child development.
Level 3 - Feelings and Support
Individual and family reactions to stress, and the emotional aspects of group
process.
Level 4- Brief Focused Intervention
Assessment and planned effort to help change a broader family interaction pattern or larger system problem.
Level 5- Family Therapy
This level is outside the scope and mission of parent and family education.
For a complete explanation of this model, see Doherty, W.J. (1995), Boundaries
between parent and family education and family therapy. The levels of family
involvement model. Family Relations, 44, 353-358.
consideration of relational ethics, principles, and virtues ethics in a case-study
process involving six steps. (See "Ethical
Thinking and Practice for Parent and Family Educators" on page 8 of this section).
ing attendance at meetings and professional activities. Membership in one or
more professional organizations can
provide numerous opportunities for
continued growth.
Importance of Ongoing Professional
Development
Family life education is increasingly
recognized as a profession with identified career opporiunities. Continued
discussion of issues such as the importance of developing a personal philosophy, identification of personal qualities
and traits needed for effective practices,
recognition of boundaries in practice and
the importance of understanding and
application of ethical guidelines will
contribute to this growing field.
Uil
Continuing education is an integral part of
professionalism. Qualified professionals
must stay current on research and developments within their field.
Family life professionals can accomplish
this in many ways, including attendance at
workshops, seminars and professional
conferences; review of current
research through professional
A fine line exists between family life
publications such as newsleteducation and counseling or therapy.
ters and joumals; presentation
of research at professional
for practice as well as the capability to
meetings; and networking with others in
consider and act upon these guidelines.
the field through membership in professional organizations and associations.
In 1995, the Family Science section of
NCFR introduced ethical guidelines for
Most certification and licensing programs
family scientists, the focus being on
require professionals to eam a minimum
ethics in academic teaching and research
number of continuing education units
(CEUs) or professional development units
issues. The Minnesota Council on Family
(PDUs) to maintain the designation or
Relations introduced "Ethical Thinking
and Practice for Parent and Family Educa- license. (National Certification Cormnission, 1998). Professionals need to actors" in 1998. It provides a case-study
tively seek continuing education opportuprocess for practitioners dealing with
nities and to maintain records documentethical issues. The guidelines include
NCFR REPORT
7
f.,
This article was adapted fimn a chapter in
the upcoming textbook, Family Life Education, to be published by Mayfield Publishing
Company. Anticipated publication date:
September 2000.
References
Dail, P.W. (1984). Constructing a philosophy
offamily life education: Educating the educators. Family Perspective, 18 (4), 145-149.
East, M. (1980). Home Economics: Past,
present, andfitture. Boston: Allyn & Bacon.
National Certification Cmmnission. May 1998
Newsletter. Chevy Chase, MD. Ed. Richard
C. Jaffeson: Washington, DC.
DECEMBER 1999
�Ethical Thinking and Practice
for Parent and Family Educators
by the Ethics Committee of the Minnesota Council on Family Relations
P
arent and family educators face
difficult ethical issues every day
regarding parenting practices that
may be hannful to children, respond to
parents' remarks about their partner, or
share infonnation about a family with a
professional in another agency. Some of
these situations may be resolved by reviewing general principles of good practice with a peer, while others may pose a
tme ethical dilemma.
caring relationship. The principles of
relational ethics form a basis for understanding specific ethical dilemmas. Above
all, they guide our practice toward the
development of a caring and respectful
relationship with all family members.
Here are the most important principles of
relational ethics:
1. Our relationship with individual family
members, peers and the community is
both the context and the point of conParent and family educators work with
tact for our ethical thinking and accomplex family systems, diverse belief
tions. This means that we will focus on
and value systems, and a variety of social
relationships in understanding ethical
--------------------------------------------------- issuesanddepend
upon the developParent and family educators must take major
ment of caring
responsibility for initiating healthy relationships. relationships to
guide us towards
institutions and agencies. Many parent and
ethical actions.
family educators face these issues in
2. As parent and family educators, we
relative isolation and with limited guidbear the primary responsibility to
ance from an emerging field. The Ethics
initiate a relationship built on tlust,
Committee of the Minnesota Council on
caring and understanding. All relationFamily Relations (MCFR) has been studyships are two-way interactions, and we
ing ethical thinking and behavior for parcannot assure that all our relationships
ent and family educators since 1992. Our
will be positive. However, parent and
work has led to the development of a
family educators will model accepmulti-perspective approach to ethics and a
tance, caring and understanding toward
concrete process for addressing difficult
family members and peers while purethical issues and dilemmas. We have
suing a mutually respectful and caring
blended a traditional approach based on
relationship.
ethical principles with relational and
virtues ethics to provide different - but
3. All relationships have predictable
stages of development. Parent and
compatible - lenses for understanding
family educators will adjust their
ethical practice.
practice to their understanding of the
Relational ethics
state and stage of a relationship.
The relational ethics approach views
4. Parent and family educators will bring
relationships as the starting place and
a knowledge base of general principles
context for making ethical decisions. This
about children, parenting, family and
perspective allows for careful examinacommunity systems to share with
tion of the multiple relationships that
family members. Parent and family
parent and family educators encounter.
educators will work in collaboration
This examination is the basis for the
with parents to understand how these
application of principles that will guide
principles apply to individual family
the action of the professional family
members and situations.
educator.
5. Parent and family educators will set
Relational ethics provides a clear underboundaries on their relationships with
standing of the immediate state of a relafamily members and be responsible
tionship as well as goals for establishing a
for potential negative influences of
NCFR REPORT
8
caretaking beyond these limits. The
intensity of a relationship will vmy, but
good parent and family educators will
be vigilant of their responsibility to
nurt11re interdependence between
family members and other community
systems.
In many ways, the caring and respectful
relationships that parent and family educators build with family members resemble healthy parent-child relationships.
Parent and family educators must take
major responsibility for initiating healthy
relationships and working to maintain
them. In many cases, relationships with
adults quickly assume a stance of mutual
respect and understanding. In other cases,
barriers may exist that make it difficult to
build egalitarian andreGood practice in
spectful relaparent and family tionships.
education is tied to
Parent and
family educainternal standards tors must
continue to
of excellence as
develop an
understanding
well as external
of the relabehaviors.
tionship process and how
best to facilitate healthy relationships
among family members, peers, and themselves.
Principles and virtues ethics
e have linked the ethical principles approach to relational
ethics by organizing principle~
or guidelines around the concept of relationships. This allows parent and family
educators to define important principles
that they can use to guide their everyday
decisions and actions as they work with
different populations.
A third approach to ethical thinking involves the more individual lens of virtue~
ethics. In our current way of defining
professional behavior, we tend to focus
more on ethical competence than on
Ethical Thinking continued on next pa1
DECEMBER 199
�F
dit rs
iscuss Ins
ublicati n
JEFF DWYER, Ph.D.
ROBERT MILARDO Ph.D.
Giguere: How does an author get published? What's the process?
Dwyer: Once an author has finished a
manuscript, he or she determines which
journal is most appropriate, given the
discipline and the topic, and submits it.
The editorial team then identifies several
reviewers -both NCFR journals use
three - and asks them to review the
manuscript according to certain guidelines. For example, reviewers may be
asked to consider the introduction, the
theory and concepts discussed in the
article, the results of the sh1dy and its
ETHICAL THINKING
Virhws can be defined on two different
levels. First of all, there are the core
virh1es, such as justice, tmthfulness or
courage, which every professional should
practice. Their implementation varies
over time and according to each profession. Secondly, there are virh1es more
specific to parent and family education,
which are essential for ethical practice in
the cmTent social context.
Contemporary virtues
Three important contemporary virtues for
parent and family educators have emerged
from the discussions of the MCFR Ethics
Committee over the last few years:
1. Caring: the disposition to enhance
the welfare of family members as
agents in their own lives;
2. Prudence or practical wisdom: the
ability to understand competing needs
NCFR REPORT
What happens to a manuscript once it's been submitted to a journal? And what
are the practical and ethical issues faced by editors, reviewers and the authors
themselves? Michael Benjamin, NCFR 's executive direct01; explores these and
other issues vvith Jeff Dwye1; editor q(Family Relations, and Robert Milardo,
editor of the Journal of Marriage and the Family. Report special section editor
Nancy Giguere also participated.
implications. Then based on what reviewers have said, we accept, reject or reh1rn
the manuscript to the author for revision.
Giguere: When you say "we," who do you
mean?
process is about a cmmnunity of scholars
working together.
Milardo: The only difference is that at
JMF, I have three deputy editors with
expertise in different fields who might
oversee the process for a given manuscript.
Dwyer: The editor ultimately makes the
decision, but it needs to be understood that
this whole editorial process is something
Dwyer: And I have an associate editor
in which - in the case of each of our
with expertise in child development who
journals - 500 people a year participate.
handles 10 to 12 percent of the manuThe editor doesn't make a final decision
scripts in the same fashion.
without taking into account the expert
Giguere: Do your reviewers know who
opinion of the reviewers. The editorial
has written the articles, or are they blind
reviewed?
continued.fi·om pages
moral character. But good practice in
parent and family education should be tied
to intemal standards of excellence as well
as extemal behaviors. Virtues are "dispositions to do the right thing for the right
reason."
uts of
and make decisions based on reflection
and consultation; and
3. Hope or optimism: a disposition to
look at the strengths of family members and other individuals and to see
positive potential in sihlations.
These dispositions provide parent and
family educators with the intemal strength
to think and behave in an ethical mmmer.
Together, these three approaches underlie
the MCFR ethical guidelines for parent
and family educators and the process for
applying them to common ethical dilemmas. The guidelines and process are proving to be powerful tools with parent and
family educators as they work together to
address ethical issues using the process
and arrive at solutions for action consistent with the principles.
The Ethics Committee of the Minnesota
Council on Family Relations includes Ada
Crane Alden, Ed.D., CFLE; Dawn Cassidy,
MEd., CFLE; Betty Cooke, Ph.D., CFLE;
Beth Gausman, B.S.; Glen Palm, Ph.D.;
Marietta Rice, M.A.; Joyce Schultenove1;
MA.; Anne Stokes, Ed.D.; Sue Stone1;MA.;
Kathy Bums Zanne1; B.S.
9
Milardo: In JMF's case, we take off the
cover page. That's all we do. But ifthe
authors somehow identify themselves for example, through a self-citation
that's their responsibility.
Dtvyer: We do the same thing, although
the reality of the sih1ation is that you have
some areas of research where you have
very experienced people who've been
writing for a number of years - it may
not be a particularly large area - and the
reviewers can figure it out. But technically, it's a blind process.
Giguere: What happens when a manuscript challenges the reviewer's own point
of view? Does that color a reviewer's
opinion?
Milardo: There's always the potential for
bias. That's why we assign a manuscript to
multiple reviewers with different perspectives. And if I do get a review back
that seems biased, I consult with one of
my deputy editors or ask for another
review from a different person. What's
important is that the process is penneable. An author whose work has been
rejected can call and dispute the decision.
Editors continued on next page
DECEMBER 1999
�EDITORS
continued from page 9
Dwyer: It's not unusual for good reviewers to lay out their biases. They say essentially, "These are my biases, and it's from
that perspective that I'm reviewing this
manuscript." That's enom1ously helpful to
an editor. And it's fair to an author because
it's a helpful review.
Benjamin: Is that done on a fairly regular
basis with both of our joumals?
Tips for prospective authors
How can writers maximize the possibility that their articles will be
·accepted for publication? Here are some suggestions from the
editors of NC;FR's two professional joumals:
•
Find a mentor who has published, preferably in the journal to which you are
submitting your manuscript.
•
Identify articles you can emulate as models of good scholarship and good writing- for example, articles that have received the Reuben Hill Award.
•
Dwyer: I would say that it happens about
20 percent of the time that a reviewer
identifies biases in some fonn.
Have your manuscript critiqued by your mentor and other colleagues before you
send it in. What you send in should be at least the third or fourth rewrite.
•
Milardo: Good reviewers will do that, or
if they feel they can't do a fair job, they'll
reh1m the manuscript- they won't review
it at all.
Know the ''house mles"- such as article length and publication style- of the
journal. Prepare the manuscript appropriately. Don't forget to check spelling,
punctuation and references.
•
Attend the sessions on how to publish and how to review at the annual NCFR
conference. While you're there, take the time to meet the editors and discuss
your ideas with them.
Dwyer: That's right. That happens fairly
often.
•
Check out the joumal's Website for more inforn1ation. Both JMF's and FR's
Websites can be accessed through the NCFR Website at www.ncfr.org.
Milardo: And there are other times when
the bias is clear, and I see it. It isn't hard to
identify. For example, if a reviewer says,
"These findings can't be generalized," that
may be an appropriate criteria on which to
judge the manuscript. But it may not. So
I'm always looking for that. JMF is a
multidisciplinary joumal. We don't publish simply sociological pieces or simply
psychological pieces - we publish a
variety of social science. That means the
editor has to be alert to disciplinary bias.
Usually that's not difficult to do.
Dwyer: It also happens that reviewers are
just dead wrong on a particular point. It
doesn't happen very often, but it does
happen. Then if the author is told to revise
and resubmit, the editor will say, "In review number three, pay attention only to
points one and seven."
Benjamin: What about a different kind of
bias? What happens in a sihmtion where a
respected author in the field sends in
shoddy work?
Milardo: You reject it and you wait for
the hit. But I'd also like to say that sometimes being a new or unknown writer can
work in an author's favor. Ifl can, I try to
give new writers extra feedback- even if
it's a rejection, I might put cmmnents all
over the manuscript and send it back. We
want to make sure their experience of the
review process is positive. But don't thin
for a minute that bias doesn't sometimes
creep in. But we try to stay alert to the
possibility, and the process should maximize the probability of faimess.
Benjamin: And when the editors take the
hit, well, you just have to be thickskinned. But I think there's also a role fo
the organization to play when this kind o
issue surfaces. It's a collaborative process. It's not just the editor who's out
there on a limb.
Giguere: What can the organization do t
help editors who are taking a hit because
Editors continued on next pa!
Principles for the Review and Publication Process
aterial presented for journal publication is
expected to be new infonnation. Multiple/simultaneous submissions of similar or substantially
overlapping material and/or fragmentation of reporting results shall be avoided. A clear, honest, accurate, and balanced
presentation of the material is expected, including the obligation to correct errors after publication. Appropriate credit
shall be given for the work including (where appropriate)
authorship, acknowledgment, and citation. Researchers are
obligated to follow appropriate Human Subjects standards.
Sensitivity to families and their diversity is expected. Published articles become the property of the National Council
on Family Relations (NCFR).
Editors are obligated to be fair, unbiased, and prompt at each
stage of the publication process including eliciting reviews,
providing feedback to authors, and determining the order of
NCFR REPORT
publication of accepted manuscripts. All aspects of the review process are intended to be confidential.
Reviewers shall carefully and thoroughly read each manuscript and provide a clear, balanced, thorough, and constructive evaluation of its strengths and weaknesses. Agreeing to
review a manuscript obligates the prompt retum of the review.
Reviewers shall maintain the confidentiality of the manuscript
and shall not use information without explicit pennission.
Reviewers shall inform the editor if they have previously
reviewed the manuscript. Authors and reviewers are welcome
to contact the editor or the Executive Director ofNCFR, if
they have any questions or concerns about the review and
publication process.
Approved by:
NCFR Board of Directors, November 1997
10
DECEMBER 19
�Practitioners Should Use a uti on
When Applying uantitative Research
by Alan Acock, Ph.D.
ritics of quantitative research
believe that it is positivistic and
detenninistic. But they are wrong.
The modern discipline of statistics is
based on probability theory - the complete antithesis of detenninism. In fact,
statistics was developed as a research tool
for a world view that is indeterministic.
This means that practitioners should be
EDITORS
very careful in how they interpret and use
quantitative research fmdings. They must
remember that empirical research can
give clues about the causes of a general
sih1ation or phenomenon, but it can never
substih1te for personal experience with an
individual case.
Consider, for example, this hypothetical
finding. The correlation between conflict
continued from page 10
they've rejected a poor article by a noted
professor - or for any other reason?
Milardo: I have had well-placed people
upset with me because I had rejected their
manuscript. I thought they were tough, but
I didn't think they were out ofline. I
understood that they were upset. A decision didn't go the way they wanted it to,
but there was respect on both sides in all
cases.
Dwyer: I've had the same experience. It's
almost always been handled with respect.
And there are occasions where very good
cases are made, and you reconsider the
manuscript. That's on a personal level.
But the role of the board is larger. I would
see its role as meeting regularly with the
editors to talk about the extent to which
the journal is continuing to meet its
stated mission and whether there are
things the editor needs in order to do this.
And likewise, the editor should have an
opportunity to say, "I'm thinking about
doing this or that. It'll be a bit of a deparhire. It might be a bit provocative. What
do you think?"
Benjamin: Another professional association recently had a major public relations
problem because of an article published
in one of its journals that, according to
some, had major flaws in the research.
Some researchers, conservative readers,
talk show hosts and others picked up on
this article and registered their disagreements and complaints. In fact this past
spring, there was a Congressional resolution being considered in the U.S. Congress condemning the article! How would
NCFR REPORT
a sihmtion like that affect the editor?
Dwyer: In a case like that, the editor usually takes the hit. But it's important that
everyone understand that many people
participate in the editorial process, even
though the editor certainly makes the final
decision. I don't know the details of that
case, but if it was faulty research, it was
probably reviewed by people who didn't
catch that it was faulty research. It was
more than just the editor.
between spouses and mother-child conflict is .5, p, .05. This is statistically significant and means that conflict between
spouses can explain 25 percent of the
variance in parent-child conflict. By professional standards this would be a very
strong result. But we often forget that this
result also means that we cannot explain
75 percent of the variance.
An idiographic explanation seeks to provide a complete explanation for a unique
result. Quantitative research, on the other
hand, offers a general explanation of what
is more likely for a class of results (nomothetic).
So if a counselor wants to understand why
Maria and her son argue, the quantitative
finding about
the effect of
If results are
conflict beinsignificant, we
tween spouses
is a clue- but
need to ask
only a clue. In
"Why?" If results fact, it's possible that the
are significant,
finding
doesn't acwe need to ask
count for this
particular
"So what?"
mother-child
conflict at all. Why? Because it cannot
explain 75 percent of the variance.
Benjamin: Given the quest for more and
more news sources, there's a good deal
more scmtiny by the popular media and by
organizations on the left and the right.
Infonnation is spread very quickly via the
Internet and talk shows, thus creating a
greater degree of exposure. Before you
acmally had to get the journal at the library
or you subscribed to it. Now you can get
full text online! Let me say that the board's The effect of small samples
position, and certainly my position, is to
second problem with quantitative
support the editors and the work they do.
research is that many smdies are
The editors are selected because of their
doomed to fail. Let's say Michael
competence, and the whole review process wants to increase the activity of disabled
is thoughtful and professional.
elderly individuals. He is able to enroll
only between I 0 and 20 participants in his
Milardo: Of course, the potential for
pilot smdy. Assuming his intervention has
controversy exists because in our journals
a moderate positive effect (effect size
we're always publishing something that
=.3), a power analysis shows that he will
someone has a strong feeling about. Some
obtain a statistically significant result
of our findings are always going to be
Practitioners continued on next page
objectionable to someone, because all our
issues are heavily politicized - at least
outside the realm of the journals. It's not
Alan Acock, Ph.D. is Professor and
neutral stuff. But in my experience, our
Chair of Human Development and
authors and reviewers are all forthright,
Family Sciences at Oregon State
and all points of view find a voice in
University at Corvallis.
our journals.
DECEMBER 1999
�PRACTITIONERS
continued Fom page 11
only about one time in eight - and this is
true even though his intervention has a
moderate-to-strong positive effect.
Michael will conclude that his intervention doesn't help. He will make a mistake.
Unfortunately, many studies have too few
participants to have a chance of success.
We can only wonder how many good
interventions have been rejected because
of inadequate power from the start.
without infonnation on the distributions of nary PC. This combination of access and
the variables - infonnation that is missing
computing power has great potential to
in some articles.
strengthen quantitative research, but alsc
produces statistical results of profound
Not surprisingly, authors are reluctant to
unimportance. The sample size alone
describe their predictors as substantively
makes these results statistically signifitrivial. So instead of describing them that
cant, and readers trained before we had
way, they call them "statistically signifithese datasets are blinded by this.
cant." Readers should not let authors get
away with this.
The need for caution
Trivial results from large samples
hen a treatment group does
better than a control group, w
Some statisticians talk about having too
are tempted to change our
large a sample. This is misleading, but it is
practice. Should we put girls in different
hen quantitative researchers
tme that a huge sample will show that
math classes because the average girl
reported simple tables or the
practically evety variable is statistically
scored lower
mean scores for two groups,
than the avera:
Empirical research can give clues about the causes
our jobs were easier. Readers could look
boy? What
at the numbers and assess the "substanwould this do
of a general situation, but it can never substitute
tive" significance of a result. For exfor the girls
ample, if the mean score for the group
for personal experience with an individual case.
who are gifted
that received an intervention was 70.l(sd
What about
= 20) and the mean for the control group
significant, even when its effect is trivial.
boys who are terrible at math? Should wt
was 70.0 (sd = 20), it would be easy to
Statistical significance means only that the
apply a new intervention that works for tl
understand that the intervention had no
effect is not precisely zero. The larger the
average participant? We need to recognii
important effect - even if the result was
sample, the more confident we can be that
the variability of the individual response.
"statistically significant."
a trivial effect is not precisely zero. When
And we need to recognize that some peo
a sample is large enough an r = .1 is statisWith the complex procedures used today,
ple may be hurt by the new intervention.
tically significant, but substantively trivial
readers often find it impossible to gauge
because 99 percent of the variance is not
How can we avoid this confusion betwee
substantive significance. Is a parameter
explained.
what is merely statistically significant an
estimate of 1.5 in a logistic regression
what may really be important? Here are a
Today, datasets with 10,000 to 100,000
model really big? Is that variable more
few suggestions:
important than a variable that has a param- cases are available at little or no charge.
eter estimate of .9? We simply can't lmow And this data can be analyzed by an ordie Practitioners should exercise greater
caution when applying general explan
tions to individuals. Remember: a
CALL FOR TOPIC PAPERS
probabilistic model does not determine the outcome for an individual.
Thank you for your excellent response to our call for topic papers or resources
Substantive versus statistical
significance
for subsequent topics in this publication. We continue to welcome your suggestions and offers to write or be willing to be interviewed by our journalist,
Dr. Nancy Giguere.
The special topic focus for the March issue of REPORT is Impact of
Welfare Reform on Families. The deadline for topic materials on
Welfare Reform and its impact on families is Febmary I. The June
2000 issue will focus on the 2000 NCFR Annual Conference
theme: Visions for Families: Continuity and Change Across
Cohorts and Generations. The deadline for topic materials is May
1. Children/Adolescent's Mental Health/Substance Abuse
Treatment and Prevention Issues will be the focus of the September 2000 issue. Topic materials deadline is August 1. Prevention
Strategies Impacting the Juvenile Justice System will be the focus
of the December 2000 issue. Deadline for topic materials is November 1.
If you have data, research or practice articles for any of these topics, or know of
outstanding persons who can be interviewed or tapped please e-mail or call
Michael Benjamin immediately at 888-781-9331 extension 21 or
mbenjamin@ncfr.org. Let us also hear from you about other topics that you
would like to see published in the REPORT.
NCFR REPORT
12
e Small sample researchers should
evaluate the power of the study befon
drawing negative conclusions. Statisti
cally insignificant results do not prov
an effect is unimportant.
e Researchers using large samples
should provide understandable information on the strength of the relation
ships. If the strength of effects is unclear, we should not change our practice or policy.
• Readers should be skeptical enough tc
read the sampling and data analysis
sections of articles.
o If results are insignificant, we need to
ask "Why?" If results are significant,
we need to ask "So what?" Researche1
should always report the practical il
consequences of their research.
u
DECEMBER 199
�Extension Programs
Face Traditional Issues
with a Modern Twist
by Ben Silliman, Ph.D., CFLE, Associate Professor/Family Life Specialist,
University ofWyoming, Laramie
he French have a saying, "The more
things change, the more they stay
the same." That could also apply to
extension. Many of the issues faced by
extension today are issues we've always
faced, with just a slightly different spin.
Here's my own take on the most imporiant
challenges that university extension programs in family science are cuuently
dealing with.
T
Prevention versus crisis intervention.
This is not a new issue, and extension is
not the only organization that addresses
prevention. But we do have a long tradition of education and prevention. Our
approach is holistic: we look at the community as well
as the individual
Funding for
and family. And
because there
extension is
are many ISshrinking on all
sues, we have to
levels, but we're decide where to
focus our efstill expected to
forts, given our
limited
do all that we've sources re- time
of
traditionally done, and money.
and address new
Our society is
crisis-oriented
issues as well.
and tends to
want quick fixes
and feel-good solutions. Prevention can
seem boring, and unfortunately, many
people don't attend to issues until they
reach the crisis point.
under stress can positively engage adults,
they do better. And kids attract positive
attention from adults when they're not
creating problems for tl1emselves. So we
need to invest in a long-tenn approach like 4-H - to help build those positive
interactive skills and overcome the cynicism of gang behavior, for instance.
But for much of the public, the media and
even many professionals, long-term prevention is only an issue during the six
months after a tragedy like Columbine. It's
difficult to keep the spotlight on deepimpact programming and long-tenn training that may affect a whole generation.
We pursue grant funding at all levels, and
some manage to maintain continuity in
programs through a variety of suppori. For
example, in the area of youth at risk, we
might have a gang prevention grant at one
point, a drug prevention grant at another
and maybe later on, a youth community
service grant. If our focus is working with a
pmiicular age and group of kids, we can
find a variety of funding sources to address
the same core issues.
The tough part is that although we have the
he need for higher levels of
ambition and encouragement to address
training. Most people working in
extension were trained as generalimporiant issues, there may not be enough
fimding to do it effectively.
ists. So if our people take on a project
dealing with at-risk youth, for example,
Consensus building across the commuthey can use some of their youth develop- nity. As society becomes more diverse,
ment experience from 4-H, but they need
to learn about alternative
-----------------------In a public agency, do you wait for a public
programming and approaches, new kinds of
consensus or do you innovate and create
evaluation and even new
content areas.
programs that you feel are important?
Unfortunately, they have
only limited time for training. Many extension people are still doing all the traditional things -plus dealing with new issues and programs. So even when the
training is available, it's tough to get busy
people into the pipeline.
I recently met with a group of agents who
will be working with me on a youth-at-risk
project. It's taken them about three years
to change priorities, get training and recruit support for this new project.
Take youth violence, for example. For
more than 60 years, our 4-H projects have
incorporated life skills, respectful behavior and teamwork. But these activities
receive little attention until something
like the Littleton massacre occurs, and
even then any interest seems limited to
the time it takes to examine and address
the problem.
Technology is, however, alleviating this
problem to some extent: extension
Internet networks- via CYFERNET.organd CYFAR training conferences are
rapidly helping to build capacity.
By contrast, the childhood resiliency
literature tells us that when kids who are
Funding. Extension is a tri-level organization that receives local, state and federal
NCFR REPORT
funding. Funding is shrinking on all three
levels, but we're still expected to do all
that we've traditionally done, and address
new issues as well.
13
this issue becomes more problematic. But
even in a homogenous society, consensus
would be inherently problematic. The pace
and complexity of life has increased so
much that we are hard pressed to keep up
with our priority issues, let alone pay attention to other community concerns.
For example, parents of teenagers might
not be interested in the childcare issues of
those with toddlers. They might think,
"When my kids were young, I went out and
got my own care. I don't have time to sit
down now and find out how things have
changed."
I don't want to overlook honest disagreements about ideas and agendas. Those are
major challenges in any community. But
even under the best circumstances, the
Extension continued on next page
DECEMBER 1999
�EXTENSION
continued fi"om page 13
pace of our life makes consensus building
very difficult.
Another important question is whether
our progrmmning reflects what the comImmity can agree upon - or whether it
reflects what we perceive to be community needs.
For example, we have one cmmnunity that
has a big problem with teen pregnancy.
They should be looking at prevention. But
nobody wants to address it. When an
agent told me that something needed to
be done, I had to ask, "How much does the
community want to do it, and how much
do you want to do it?" If the cmmnunity
doesn't see the need to address the root
issues, our effmis may not be enough or they may be counterproductive.
I've nm into the same thing with addressing marriage and couples' relationships.
Divorce and family violence rates are
high, with negative consequences for both
adults and kids. But the prevailing message seems to be "Let people live their
own lifestyles."
To what extent should a publicly funded
institution presume to tell the community
what issues it should address? For privately funded institutions, this question is
easier to answer.
nnovation. This is often related to
consensus. In a public agency, do you
wait for the public consensus to tell
you what the issues are - even when
something has been a crisis for 20 years?
Or do you innovate and create programs
that you feel are impmiant and necessmy
- without concem for consensus?
I
For example, we have a youth project in a
community where a conservative group is
very worried about the Intemet. And some
of their concems are well-placed. How
can we incorporate these people and help
their children deal with this complex and
open global market for ideas - without
dishonoring the values that have sustained
those families for years?
On the one hand, disempowennent may
come from a refusal to i1movate. We need
courage to model new approaches that
may not be popular. On the other hand,
when we impose im1ovation in the fonn
of technology or social engineering on
kids and families, disempowennent may
also result. Balance and progress result
when we model patience and compassion.
Performance and impact. How do we
NCFR REPORT
show that we're making a difference?
This is related to evaluation, but it's not
quite the same thing. You can evaluate a
program- that is, see how it's goingwithout necessarily checking on its longand short-term impacts. An evaluation
might determine whether a 4-H project is
a valuable experience for a particular
group of individuals. Impact goes deeper.
To measure impact, we would ask how
this project is affecting the cmmmmity
or the capacity of those individuals to go
on and do something else.
sented ourselves as having objective and
tmbiased information. Obviously, in agricul
tural extension, there has been a lot of
controversy about different fanning practices. Our cotmterparts in nutiition face th<
same diletmna with diet and wellness research. In tenns of family issues, it's even
harder to find objective tmth.
With many of our reliable conclusions
posted as sound bites, even solid generalizations create conti·oversy. A parent magazine pressed me once to say that sharing
mealtime once a week was an okay standan
for parenting. I don't want to make busy
parents feel guilty or underestimate the
value of even a once-a-week family dinner.
Yet the evidence for parent nurti1re and tim
together is so compelling. I had to ask, "If
you feed your children once a week, is that
better than not feeding them at all?"
Here's another example: In Wyoming, we
have one of the country's highest levels
of economic distress. To address these
issues will take years. At what point then
can we detennine that our efforts in the
area of workforce preparation or ecoThe general consensus might be that "We
nomic development are really making a
ought to invest more energy in and spend
difference? What kind of results should
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - more time with our kids." But if
We must deal with media culture and we're really going to have an
impact on a more profound
consumer culture - and these "pop"
level, we need to go beyond that
generalization. Exactly what
cultures are perhaps the most difficult. should we do? And how and why
should we do it? So much depends on the context, and as we work with
we expect from an individual or from an
more diverse audiences, the greater the
initiative? What is our time frame? Do
challenge becomes.
we even know how soon those results
should come about?
ultural differences also affect how
people perceive what we have to
Every organization faces similar chalsay. For example, issues related to
lenges. But we don't have the same kinds
of yardsticks or objectives as businesses spanking are viewed differently in many
ethnic and religious communities. Showing
do. Nor do we have the same control or
respect for persons while noting disagreeamounts of funding.
ment with their practices and sharing alterUntil recently our system hasn't been
native approaches reflects a wisdom about
fine-tuned enough to measure impact.
teaching and supporting families.
We haven't always carefully documented
Beyond etlmicity, we deal with media culthe results of our work because we were
ture and consumer culture, which are often
sure that we were "doing good" and we
detrimental to healthy child development,
didn't want to "over evaluate" our proand these "pop" cultures are perhaps the
grams. We've begun, however to gain a
most difficult. People view us through
deeper appreciation for the importance
these lenses and decide whether we're
of measuring impact and we're developcredible. That's not the standard we use in
ing the necessary skills to do it.
the lab or in our research joumals, but it's
bjectivity and research base.
the standard that we have to deal with. IsOur society is characterized by
sues of sexuality and violence are overly
competing claims for tiuth. In
publicized in the media. But it's harder to
family social science, we deal with istalk about issues related to consumer culsues that are complex and multifaceted.
ture because we're all absorbed in that
Scholars who study them from different
culture.
points of view differ on what it is they're
studying, what's really going on and what Our challenges as extension educators are
great, but they seem insignificant in compari·
conclusions to draw.
son to the challenges facing America's chilIn extension - both agricultural and 1mdren and families. They are the people
man development- we've always prewho inspire our compassion and constancy. ~
0
14
DECEMBER
199~
�Fa ily and ociallssues
L m Large for
eligi us Pr fessi nals
by Dale Hawley, Ph.D., Family Minister, Woodbury Church of Christ, Woodbury, Minnesota
he practice of spirituality includes
a social component. That's why
participation in a cmmnunity of
faith is often important for children and
families. Spirituality implies a way of
acting toward others with whom we are in
relationship. A healthy congregation is
one where people support one another and
try to live out
some important values
about how one
should treat
other people.
Families are a
cornerstone of
most congregations. But
families are
changing, and
religious orgaDALE HAWLEY, Ph.D.
nizations must
decide how to respond. Take, for example,
the role of marriage in society. Religious
institutions have a vested interest in marriage. Couples get married in faith communities, which often provide premarital
counseling, enrichment programs and
other services to help couples who are
experiencing difficulties or considering
divorce.
Will churches change or
take a stand?
When faced with a new definition of
family, congregations have to address the
issue of whether to redefine marriage or
to hold to a traditional definition. In other
words, faith cmmnunities may either
embrace or resist changes occurring with
families in society.
An example of this issue concerns sexual
orientation. Where do people with a gay,
lesbian, bisexual or transgender orientation fit within congregational structures?
This is clearly an emotionally laden issue
NCFR REPORT
for many faith cmmnunities. For some, the
answer is clear: people from a non-heterosexual orientation do not fit because their
orientation violates key doctrinal principles. But for other congregations, not
welcoming people with a GLBT orientation would violate their core beliefs. In
either case, faith cmmnunities must face
the issue and decide how they will respond
to societal change.
But for others, this presents a diletmna.
On the one hand, they believe that they
must be accepting of conununity members, but on the other hand, doctrinal
concems may make it difficult to accept
families from a nontraditional mold. So
although congregations recognize that
these individuals and families are hurting,
they may struggle with whether and how
to support them.
Similarly, changes in family structures
present congregations with opportunities
and challenges in tenns of serving their
entire cmmnunity. If a congregation sees
itself as primarily an institution of "traditional" families with nuclear families
being the nonn, it is likely to become less
able to minister to other groups such as
Social issues
Changes in family life bring with
nother professional issue concerns the response of faith comnunities to social issues, especially poverty. The gap between rich and
poor is widening here in the United
States. For the last 50 or 60 years, congregations have been largely off the hook
because helping the poor was seen
as the business of govemment
programs.
A
them new opportunities for ministry.
unmarried individuals single parents and
seniors. In my own congregation people in
some of these "hidden" groups have sometimes expressed concerns about where
they really fit in the larger group.
New opportunities bring confusion
eople often think of "organized
religion" as monolithic, but where
religious groups stand on any of
these issues depends not only on the denomination, but on the particular congregation and the local setting. Certainly,
changes in family life bring with them new
opportunities for ministry on both the
denominational and congregational level.
P
If a congregation is interested in reaching
out to its cmmnunity, it will find many
people who don't fit the traditional family
mold. Some faith communities, for example, have developed groups for single
parents and stepfamilies or programs that
provide divorce support.
15
But as these programs are cut
back, what will faith communities
do? Will older, inner city congregations
have the resources to do something in
their neighborhood? And will suburban
congregations, which are not living in the
midst of poverty, be willing to help? We
may also ask whether the poor individuals
and families will see faith cmmnunities
as places where they can go for help and
be treated with respect and acceptance.
Managed care also raises issues for faith
conununities. These days, individuals and
families have less choice when it comes
to selecting their physical and mental
health care providers. Some families are
concerned about seeing a provider who
doesn't respect their family and faith
values. Congregations may be able to help
by employing people with mental health
training, or perhaps in some cases, paying
for the services of a provider that the
family believes would support their
faith values.
DECEMBER 1999
�Applying for
cademic Jobs:
Jay Teachman
JAY TEACHMAN, Ph.D.
dvice fr
During his time as Chair of the Department of Human Development at Washington State University, Pull
man, Jay Teachman interviewed more than 20 job candidates and hired 10 faculty members. NCFR Student/New Professional Representative HilmJ' Rose asked Teach man what suggestions he had for academi
job candidates. (Teach man is now the Chair of Sociology at Western Washington University; Rose is in th
Department of Human Development at Washington State University, Pullman.)
HR: What is the biggest mistake you've
seen in cover letters or vitae?
JT: Applications from candidates who
don't fit the job description, or don't
explain how they fit the job description, if
that's not obvious from their vita. It's
difficult to hire someone who doesn't fit
the advertised job description.
HR: What do you think about the "shotgun approach" - sending out a generic
letter to fifty or sixty different departments?
JT: It doesn't work. And it doesn't endear
the candidate to the search conunittee.
The committee spends a lot of time and
effort in recruiting a candidate, and they
want to know that the candidate has done
some research about the department.
HR: Can you talk about the importance of
balance between research, teaching, and
service?
JT: That depends on the nature of the
position you're applying for. At land-grant
universities, you need a balance between
teaching and research. It would be unusual
to hire someone who didn't have teaching
experience. And it would be unusual to
hire someone who didn't have some research experience. Service is usually not a
big issue at the time of hiring - it becomes
impmiant later for tenure decisions.
HR: OK, say you get an interview on the
other side of the country and you're a
graduate student, who pays for the trip?
JT: In my experience, it is always the
department that's doing the recruiting.
candidate be familiar with who is on the
faculty and know a little bit about the
curriculum, whether there is a graduate
program, and the sorts of courses we
would expect this candidate to teach. Th:
information can usually be found on the
Internet.
HR: In other words, candidates need to '
their homework before they come.
JT: Of course. They need to sell themselves. Part of the job of the existing
faculty is to sell the department and the
tmiversity. But candidates need to convince us that they will be able to conduc
an independent line of research, that the:
will be able to teach their courses independently, that they will be able to act as
effective citizens of the department.
Don't sweat the little things. You have a long period of time to show
yourself. But be advised that it's the nature of the discipline to be critical:
if you get critical questions, it doesn't mean that things aren 't going well.
HR: Realistically, how many publications
does a candidate need to be competitive?
JT: I've seen competitive candidates with
no publications, and I've seen competitive
candidates with many publications. It's a
balance between publications, letters of
reference, and where candidates got their
degree.
HR: Where?
JT: Yes, where they got their degree.
Cmrunittees also look at what kinds of
teaching experience they have and whether
their research reflects an independent line
of inquiry. Overall, what you're looking
for is promise, and one of the indicators
of promise, of course, is successful publications. But that's only one indicator.
NCFR REPORT
IT
HR: How important is the jol
talk or the research presentation?
JT: That depends on the billing practices
of the university. Often the university
purchases the ticket and makes the hotel
reservations ahead of time. Some out-ofpocket expenses, such as meals en route,
are reimbursed after the fact.
JT: It's critical. The job talk 1
got to be prepared. And candi
dates need back-ups if they'n
going to do a Power Point presentation
and it fails. They should have it timed
appropriately. If it's a 50-minute talk, th1
should talk for 50 minutes. Don't talk fc
40 minutes and leave too much time for
questions; don't talk too long and leave 1
time for questions.
HR: What's the worst mistake a candidate
can make when she or he comes for an
interview?
HR: So, before they show up on your
campus, these folks have to have practiced?
JT: It's really a small accumulation of
things that indicate that the candidate is
ill-prepared. An ill-prepared person
doesn't have a good job talk ready to go, a
topic that is ill-fonned, data analysis that
isn't done properly, or who doesn't have a
good idea about what he or she can teach.
I would expect in today's market that the
JT: They should practice in front of a
hostile, critical audience at their home
base. Stand up, get in the clothes you're
going to be wearing, and make it as real
possible. It seems like a small thing but
can make a difference.
HR: Up front or after the fact?
16
HR: Do candidates have to teach a class
Advice continued on next pa
DECEMBER
19~
�ADVICE
continued from page 16
addition to giving a job talk?
JT: It's more cmmnon today than it was in
the past. In a department that doesn't have
a Ph.D. program I would anticipate that the
candidate would have to give a classroom
presentation. And again the lecture must
be well prepared, and given within time
limits. Candidates also need to show their
pedagogy.
HR: Define pedagogy for me.
JT: It's the ability to cmmmmicate information. Some people rely on technological devices and a lot of graphics, and if
their personality is - let's say a little more
dry - then maybe the teclmology will keep
students interested. Others have stronger
personalities and can convey the same
infonnation with less technology because
they relate to the students in a more personal way. What we're interested in is how
well a candidate gets the point across.
HR: When I was interviewing a few years
ago, nobody was using Power Point. Exactly one year later, when we had another
job search, all the candidates used Power
Point. How important is the new computer
technology in tenns of getting a job these
days?
JT: It's nice to let people know that you
can use this teclmology, but I would judge
it to be generally of minor importance.
Again, we're interested in your pedagogy,
how well you cmmnunicate infonnation.
HR: The bells and whistles aren't going to
save you if it's a poor presentation?
JT: No, they won't. If you're comfortable
with technology and it enhances how you
present your research or yourself, then by
all means use it. If you're using it to cover
a wealmess, it probably won't work for
you.
HR: Job interviews can often go for two
or more days. Does the candidate ever get
to relax on a job interview?
JT: Usually not until the exit interview is
complete. I would caution people not to
expect a pleasant, relaxing experience.
HR: Let me put it another way - is it fair
to say that the candidate is being judged
the entire time?
JT: Oh, yes. We all judge and evaluate
others constantly. But we try to be as
objective as possible, so that when you're
out at dinner, don't let something that
NCFR REPORT
goes wrong with the dinner affect you. But
candidates can make comments that do
have an effect. So job candidates arealways on call, right down to dress, speech,
how they deal with people. We would like
to hire people who can represent the university in an appropriate fashion.
HR: Is it appropriate, if you are having
dinner with a group of faculty members, to
have an alcoholic drink?
JT: I think so, yes. But that's a matter of
one's own personal taste. I do lmow some
candidates who prefer not to have a drink
during the interview in order to keep their
wits about them. And others are perfectly
comfortable having a glass of wine.
HR: Who exactly decides which candidate
gets the job? Who has input? Grad students, undergrads, the Dean, the Chair,
faculty, staff?
should be dealt with the departmental
administrator.
Inappropriate questions are interpersonal
in nature. It's okay for candidates to ask
about schools for their children and things
like that. But it's inappropriate to say,
"Everyone here is married and I'm single
so I couldn't have a social life." That's a
very difficult question for the department
to answer and it's not relevant.
HR: Is there much room for negotiating
salary?
JT: That depends. In most cases at the very
junior level, no. Now there are exceptions,
because certain universities have more
latitude in salaries than others. But the
department chair may not have a lot of
latih1de. It's often not the chair's decision;
salaries may be set at a higher level.
HR: Describe "start-up money."
JT: It depends on the university. At this
university, all of the above.
JT: These are funds that are for your own
professional development - to get you
HR: But, only the faculty would have
launched. Start-up funds can include a
ballots?
course off from the nonnal teaching load
during the first
year or two, a
If you're comfortable with technology and it
month of
enhances how you present your research or yourself, smmner salary
support so you
then by all means use it. If you're using it to cover
can conduct
a weakness, it probably won't work for you.
research, or
monies to buy
JT: Correct. Graduate students are not
specialized software programs or cover
given ballots. They are, of course, allowed other research needs.
to express their opinions, and they can
HR: What is spousal relocation?
make written statements if they so wish
and submit them to the Chair of the search JT: A lot of universities have programs to
assist recmitment by providing the
committee.
candidate's spouse assistance in finding a
HR: What questions should the candidate
job. This applies more to senior hires than
ask? Because it's a two-way street - the
it does to junior hires, partly because of
candidate is also interviewing the faculty.
the nature of the market and also because
JT: Let me preface this by saying candiit's more difficult to move senior persons
dates can expect to have the same conver- who are at a different stage of their life.
sation over again at each interview. QuesHR: Would this only work if the spouse
tions we are most likely to see are those
were also in academia?
related to the academic enterprises of the
JT: No, not necessarily, because there are
university like "How well do the people
collaborate?" "What are the sh1dents like?" positions on campus that are not academic
in nah1re. It could be a computer programor "What kinds of resources are there?"
ming job, or it could be an administrative
Those are appropriate questions.
position. But it's generally an on-campus
There are some other questions that are
job.
more appropriate to an exit interview:
HR: Who typically pays for moving exsalary and teaching expectations - which
penses?
courses, at what point, what times of day
and that sort of thing. Those "mechanics"
Advice continued on next page
17
DECEMBER 1999
�ADVICE
continued from page 17
JT: I've seen it both ways. For state uni-
versities, it generally depends on what the
state policy is. In Washington, there's a
relocation fund that defrays at least some
of the cost.
HR: In your experience, does seniority
play a role in getting moving expenses?
JT: At other universities, yes. I have
worked for state universities where there
was no relocation policy, but if the Dean's
office has money that can be used for
relocation expenses, it will be given to
senior faculty. Again, because the senior
faculty are harder to recruit, you need to
put together a more attractive package.
HR: Once you get an offer, how much
time do you have to make up your mind?
JT: Again, that depends upon the depart-
ment, the nature of the position, the time
of the year and so on. In my experience,
we want to get our candidate hired as soon
as possible and we don't want to lose our
candidate to another university. If we
make you an offer, we'll say, "Here's your
job offer, and you've got 72 hours to get
back to us." If you don't accept, we'll
move right to the next candidate with the
same job offer. It has been longer; sometimes it can go for a week. And at the
senior level it can go months or years.
HR: Seriously? You'll wait for somebody
for a year?
JT: Yes, it happens.
HR: Well, what if you get an offer, but
you're waiting to hear from some other
place? What do you do?
JT: I would recommend that the candidate
call the other university. I've had candidates who want to know their status because they've received other job offers. In
that case, then I might tell them: "Well,
you might as well take the other job." Or
"Quite honestly, I think you're an excellent candidate, but I have two other candidates that I'm locked into interviewing,
and I can't get back to you for another two
weeks." Then the candidate has to make a
very difficult decision.
HR: Can you describe how a candidate
should best present her or himself in
order to maximize chances of getting an
offer?
JT: Be open, and reasonably well dressed.
JT: Well, I understand it can be expensive
to dress well, and there are differences in
taste, but look like you're making an effort. You'll probably be working with these
people for a long time, and you want to
impress them. Do as good a job as you can
without being obnoxious. Be friendly and
open.
HR: What would be considered obnoxious
behavior at a job interview?
JT: The "!-know-everything" attitude. The
candidate who cannot let a conversation go
without stepping in and saying something.
And this next one is always difficult to
judge, but gossiping. Sometimes in
academia - because it's a small world people tend to gossip about other people's
research, private life or whatever.
HR: So about people in general, not necessarily just people on faculty.
JT: Or people on faculty. It's a small
world, and I have heard job candidates
engage in gossip about their major professors while on job interviews. If a faculty
member inappropriately tries to engage
you in gossip, be as polite as possible and
say, "I have no infonnation about that." Of
course, there's a fine line, like if they ask,
"How are John's kids?"
HR: Don't say, "Well, one of them is
coming up on that drug dealing charge."
JT: Or, "Has John stopped drinking yet?"
That's not the sort of question I would
anticipate asking a job candidate, and it's
also not the sort of thing I would anticipate a job candidate discussing.
HR: Can you think of anything else?
JT: Don't sweat the little things. So you
spill a glass of water at the dirmer table, c
you trip - that is nothing to be worried
about - everyone does these sorts of
things. If you say the wrong word, coiTec
yourself and move on. Don't get flustere<
- you have a long period of time to show
yourself. But be advised that it's the natu1
of the discipline to be critical: if you get
critical questions, it doesn't mean that
things aren't going well.
HR: Let me ask you this, because I'm
convinced that at my job talk you said
things to rattle my cage a little bit. I mear
is there a possibility... ?
JT: There's more than a possibility.
There's a likelihood that people will say
things to you just to see how you react an
to test your ability to think on your feet.
So, I might say, "Well, I disagree with thi:
Advice continued on next pag
Watch your e-mail!
NCFR is beginning an exciting new
project entitled Century in Review,
and we want your input!
The Centwy in Review project will invite NCFR members to
identify the major areas of continuity and change in family life
over the past century, as well as to provide a prospective vision of
family life and policy implications into the next century. The
findings from this research will be compiled in a publication
authored by NCFR members. This document will be distributed to
decision-makers, professionals in the field, community organizations, and the media. Furthennore, findings from this project will
be used to educate policymakers and the cmmnunity-at-large about
how and in what way family researchers and NCFR members, in
part, continue to shape and contribute to the growing body of
knowledge about families. We will be contacting members by
e-mail in January, and hope to hear from you.
More information about the Centwy in Review project can be
found on NCFR's website at http://www.ncfr.org.
HR: Reasonably?
NCFR REPORT
18
DECEMBER 199
�Future of ertification, ertificates,
egrees, and Licensure
by Jan Hogan, Ph.D.
ne of the issues facing administrators in higher education concems the type of credentials that
professionals need to be successful. Administrators, faculty, almm1i, and students
have a stake in planning the future of the
family science field and this includes
questions about certificates, accreditation, and licensure. Does certification add
to the value of a
bachelor degree?
What is the value
added with the
master's degree?
Does certification prepare
students for state
licensure? Do
graduates of the
family programs
qualify for the
certificates and
licensure?
JAN HOGAN, Ph.D.
O
These questions have been on the NCFR
agenda in different ways for a number of
years. Increasingly, they are on the agenda
of administrators of higher education. The
expanding interest in these questions is
directly related to competition among
collegiate programs for graduate and
undergraduate student enrollment in majors/programs. Family science faculty
want their graduates to be competitive for
satisfying jobs. The proliferation of cer-
ADVICE
continued from page 18
statistical approach that you're using.
Could you think of some altematives?"
Fair question, but some people would get
rattled.
HR: Right.
JT: And it's appropriate at that point, if
you're not a methodologist and you've
had to rely on help to say, "I simply don't
know at this point, and I need some time
to think about it. But I would be more
than willing to get back to you on it." Of
course, it would be ideal if you could
rattle off three altematives and pros and
cons for each.
NCFR REPORT
tificates, accreditation, and licensure
requirements challenges administrators to
sort through the options with faculty,
almnni, and shidents to determine the best
fuh1re path.
There are a number of professional organizations with certification programs that
focus on families. Of course, the National
Council on Family Relations (NCFR)
established the Certified Family Life
Educator (CFLE) program in 1985. NCFR
members are cmmnitted to having family
life education recognized and valued as a
profession by employers. The American
Association of Family and Consumer
programs and settling licensure requirements. Such professional organizations,
composed primarily of faculty and practitioners, form a partnership with colleges
and universities to facilitate the certification of shidents. As new options emerge,
we need to evaluate the benefits and costs
of additional credentials. Equally important is our role in helping students access
these professional credentials.
any universities offer credit
and noncredit certificate programs that are independent of
professional organizations. These programs are offered to enhance the employability of stuThe proliferation of certificates, accreditation, and dents, to meet
licensure relicensure requirements challenges administrators quirements, and
to provide conto sort through the options with faculty, alumni,
tinuing education
and students to determine the best future path.
for specific
needs in various
Science sponsors the Certified Family
professions. For example, in our college
and Consumer Science (CFCS) program.
we have a certificate in alcohol and dmg
The Association for Financial Counseling
counseling and another in child abuse
and Plam1ing Education (AFCPE) adminprevention. In addition, we collaborate
isters examinations for a certificate in
with another college who administers a
financial counseling. The American Asso- program to prepare for licensure as a
ciation for Marriage and Family Therapy
parent educator. (Minnesota may be the
(AAMFT) detennines which graduate
only state that has a licensure requirement
programs are accredited. In addition,
in parent education.) Should NCFR supsocial work has been one of the most
port legislation in states to license family
successful professions in accrediting
life educators, marriage educators, parent
educators, or family service professionals? Should CFLE lead to licensure in
states? The questions about which certifiHR: But that might not happen if you're
cates are appropriate to supplement the
not a methodologist. As I recall, you told
degree programs and which certificates
me my analysis would never nm. Not only should lead to state licensure are imporwould I not find support for my hypothtant. From a university perspective, certiesis, the analysis would never mn, period.
fication impacts student enrollment,
program vitality, and the employment
JT: I didn't say it wouldn't mn; I said I
options for graduates. Ultimately, the
didn't understand how it would mn.
answers to these challenging questions
HR: And I can't remember what I said, but
impact NCFR's membership, program ,.,~
I must have done okay because you ofvitality, and professional services.
1111
fered me the job!
JT: Yes, you thought well on your feet.
And a sense of humor is also a good thing
to have. It's not essential, but it
,.~,
certainly goes a long way.
1111
19
Jan Hogan, Ph.D., is Professor and
Head of the Family Social Science
Department, University of Minnesota.
DECEMBER 1999
�Promoting Family ell-Being,
Internally and Externally
efore I outline our
plans for the coming year, let me
congratulate NCFR members and
staff alike on the success of the 6I st
Almual Conference held in Irvine, California, last month. It was a stimulating
and enjoyable experience in every way.
B
Our conference speakers made it quite
clear that the new millem1iwn will bring a
rapidly changing world marked by amazing
technological breakthroughs, increased
"i1mnigrant stock," new consumer and
economic trends, health care advances,
worldwide realignments and upcoming
political battles. We must be prepared to
expect the unexpected.
Coming in midway through the conference planning process was indeed a challenge for me, but the strong suppmi of
As an organization, NCFR is also undergothe section chairs and the outstanding
leadership team of Katherine Allen,
ing dramatic changes, particularly with
Program Chair, and Cindy Winter, Conregard to the stmcture of the board of
ference Coordinator, made my work a lot
directors and the way it will govern the
easier. Moreover, the conference activiorganization. Other changes are occurring
ties provided excellent opportunities for
in executive staff leadership. In this colme to get better acquainted with NCFR
umn, I will be cmmnenting on how NCFR
staff members are addressing transition
members.
. . . . - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - . and change within the
organization and how
NCFR STATEMENTS OF ACTIVITIES &
we intend to advance
CHANGES IN NET ASSETS FOR THE YEARS
the work ofNCFR in
ENDED MAY31, 1999AND 1998
promoting family well(As reported by thejirm of Carpenter/Evert, CPA,
being - both internally
Minneapolis, MN. July 16, 1999)
and externally.
Support & Revenue
Contributions:
Unrestricted
Temporarily Restricted
Dues
Fees and Subscriptions
Registration and Exhibits
Investment Income:
Interest and Dividends
Realized Gain
Unrealized Gain
Miscellaneous
Total Support/Revenue
1999
$
51,975
38,919
113,749
11 786
1,272,140
137,454
521,829
268 534
927,817
238.138
1221262
Change in Net Assets
248 792
1 176 609
28,857
$
95,531
930 024
Net Assets - Beginning of Year
834 493
958,881
$
(A complete audit is available from headquarters.)
NCFR REPORT
2,264
182,690
685,855
184,902
154,983
579,634
248 507
983,124
Support Services:
Management and General
Total Expense
End of Year
$
43,026
8,186
158,286
9 116
1,250,119
Expense
Program Services:
Membership
Information Dissemination
Education Activities
Total Program Services
Net Assets
1,094
5,000
182,041
695,793
147,577
1998
930,024
In September, the
NCFR staff began a
strategic plam1ing
process by further
looking at how each
staff member could
help NCFR fulfill its
mission. From my
perspective, the strategic plan is a "living"
document, which sets
in motion the
organization's agenda
for the year ahead.
Based on the Board's
directive (see September I999 REPORT,
p.27) and in collaboration with staff, we have
developed three major
objectives with strategies for 2000:
OBJECTIVE 1:
Establish NCFR as an
influential player in
20
public policy
STRATEGIES
I. Develop an NCFR process to identify
issues, establish policy around those
issues and allocate resources.
2. Create mechanisms to futiher educate
members on public policy issues and
to share infonnation.
3. Infonn public decision-makers and
media of the critical role NCFR plays
in shaping the knowledge about
families.
NCFR is undergoing dramatic
changes, particularly with
regard to the structure of the
board of directors and the way
it will govern the organization.
4. Provide grantmaking organizations
with an understanding of the role family researchers and practitioners play
in social science research and practice
OBJECTIVE II: Increase NCFR's
visibility nationally and internationally
to better impact family life
STRATEGIES
I. Increase awareness and value of family
life education as a profession.
2. Provide practical resources and services to enhance the practice of family
life education.
• Update NCFR's website to
attract family members.
• Create opportunities for journal
authors to be more interactive
with our readership.
3. Establish an affiliated Pacific Rim
NCFR family life education certification program.
4. Increase media awareness of the NCFF
conferences.
Promoting continued on next page
DECEMBER 199!3
�Report fr m Washington
BEIJING + FIVE
ive years ago the UN Fourth World
Conference on Women was held in
Beijing. Preparations are now
going forward for Beijing+ Five. This will
be an opportunity to assess and celebrate
progress made toward implementing the
1995 Platfonn for Action adopted in
Beijing, and begin the first year of the
millennium with a reaffirmation and recommitment to policies that advance the
lives of women and girls. World Regional
Conferences will be held this fall and
early spring, culminating in a Febmary 28March 17, 2000 conference in New York
City and a June 5-9, 2000 New York City
Special Session of the General Assembly
for Beijing Plus Five: "Women 2000:
Gender Equality, Development and Peace
for the 21st Century."
All are invited to attend remaining regional meetings in the U.S. Locations and
e-mail addresses for infonnation are
listed below:
Boston, Febmary 5, 2000
judyhickey@aol.com;
Seattle, Febmary 5, 2000
furia-karen@dol.gov;
San Francisco, Febmary 26, 2000
win@win-cawa.org; and
Denver, Date to be detennined
wkbeeks@compuserve.com.
shootings. Dr. Dewey Comell, Professor
of Psychology at the University of Virginia, discussing these shootings, said,
"motive could be feelings of anger, alienation and depression, while the method
can be leamed through the television,
video games, music and the Intemet. The
means is readily available fireanns."
Comell said "motive could be addressed
by education training for students and
parents. Methods could be controlled by
giving parents infonnation and tools to
supervise their children's exposure to
violent entertainment. Means can be addressed by parents denying children unsupervised access to guns." Other strategies
recommended by Comell are mentoring,
supervised recreation programs, family-
PROMOTING
A smmnary statement from a Youth Crime
Alert in its June issue points out that
punitive measures have not worked. A
comprehensive policy that addresses
motives, methods and means is needed to
reduce youth violence and prevent school
OBJECTIVE III: Improve member acquisition and retention
STRATEGIES
1. Expanded Outreach to sections and
affiliated councils (regional, state and
collegiate).
2. Expand recmitment to allied professional organizations.
3. Provide active follow-up to first-year
members.
4. Develop interactive online database
NEXT IN THE SERIES OF
NCFR REPORT
Child Care and
Family Issues
Featuring: Helen Blank,
Children 's.Defense Fund
JANUARY7, 2000
11 :00 a.m. CST
•
For registration infonnation, visit our
Website atwww.ncfr.org
or contact Michael L. Benjamin at
mbenjamin@ncfr.org.
21
The importance of families in all of these
suggestions is clear. Are we doing
enough in this field?
FAMILIES AND WORK
etty Friedan is continuing her
series of New Paradigm Symposia
on Families and Work here in
Washington. She is now a Distinguished
Professor at Comell's School of Industrial and Labor Relations in its Institute
for Women and Work.
B
At an October symposium, the subject
was child care and the family. Several
speakers spoke of the time pressure on
Washington continued on next page
continued ji-om page 20
YOUTH VIOLENCE
ith society's concem with
youth violence in general or
specifically in schools, an
Action Kit, "What Communities Can Do
To Reduce Violence At Schools" has been
produced by Join Together Online,
www.jointogether.org.
focus strategies, school-based programs
and violence prevention counseling.
and organizational listserv.
5. Encourage members and potential
members to use the NCFR website by
offering more online member services.
6. Conduct research with existing member base to better understand member
needs.
At NCFR we believe in continuous improvement. Each staff person is accountable for specific tasks in the context of
NCFR's mission and the three objectives
outlined above. Individual staff members
are developing tactics to implement the
strategic plan. Some tasks are underway
and others are still in the pla1ming phase.
Our desired outcomes are to have continued cmmnitment to group objectives,
optimum productivity from programmatic
elements and continued development of
staff who find intrinsic reward in their
work. At the same time, we need to continue the growth, awareness and expansion
of our services. Focusing on the three
objectives will get us there!
We welcome membership feedback on our
plans. Stay tune for updates on NCFR's
website!
Michael L. Benjamin, M.P.H.
Executive Director
DECEMBER 1999
�embers Overwhelmingly Support
CFLE Grandfathering Option
ust before the NCFR
conference I sent a message out on
the NCFR listserv. I wanted to get
member input on the proposed criteria for
a CFLE grandparenting process. The
response was very encouraging. We received 144 responses, the most to any
listserv question to date. Here is a brief
summary of the responses.
J
Of the 144 members who responded, 132
said that they supported NCFR offering a
limited-time grandparenting application
process for the Certified Family Life
WASHINGTON
Overall, 86% suppmied the proposed
criteria which included a minimum of a
Master's degree or Ph.D. and varying
years of experience depending upon if the
degree was family specific or not. The
proposed criteria also included submission
of a two-page application form, a vitae or
extended resume, a letter of support from a
colleague or supervisor (CFLE-prefelTed),
sample syllabi or abstracts, evidence of
continuing education activity over the past
continued from page 21
families with children and one speaker
said our current work force was the most
time pressured in history. Union activities
have brought about many changes in social policy regarding working families,
most notably the recent Family and Medical Leave Act. The new push is for paid
family leave. There is more flextime
being offered. And there are many examples of high level people who retire or
quit in order to be "with their families."
At the symposium, Ms. Friedan pointed
out that many workers are looking for
shmier work hours and suggested that it is
too bad that there is not a focused demand
for a shorter work week. She warned that
any change from the male model of work
makes people nervous.
What happened to those predictions of a
few years ago that we would all have more
leisure? Phyllis Moen, Professor from
Cornell, suggested that the present leisure
being enjoyed by the aging population
should be spread out over the life span.
CHILD CARE
The Child Care Coalition here in Washington has continued its efforts to get
more child care funding for those who are
forced into the labor force. It is clear that
a minimum wage job does not provide
sufficient income to pay for the quality
care which is essential to provide a good
start for our children, the future workers.
NCFR REPORT
Educator designation; 12 were opposed.
As of this writing, the latest word from the
Children's Defense Fund, which spearheads the child care advocacy effort, is
that the President and Congress have
agreed to appropriate an increase in Head
Start of $600 million, making the total
$5.2 billion. The after school program
was increased from $200 million to $450
million. However, the final House-Senate
conference agreement contains no increase in the Child Care and Development
Block Grant (CCDBG). Fmihennore, if
there is a percentage cut across the board,
there will be even less money next year
than this year.
Ms. Friedan
warned that any
change from the
male model of
work makes
people nervous.
Senator Arlen
Specter, Chair of
the Senate Labor,
Health and Human Services, and
Education Committee has promised to increase
theCCDBGby
$818 million in
next year's Senate appropriations bill.
Let's hope he keeps his promise.
NIH RESEARCH TRAINING IN THE
HEALTH-RELATED BEHAVIORAL
AND SOCIAL SCIENCES
Any department interested in getting
grants for training in the field of the effect
of behavior on health should get the new
22
five years (if not included on the vitae or
resume), and a brief paper addressing hov
the applicant's preparation and experienc<
addressed each of the ten substance areas
74% supported an option for those with a
non-family degree but extensive experience in family life education. 71% of the
respondents said that they would apply fo
certification if a grandparenting option
were offered. 19% of the respondents
were already CFLEs.
Grandfathering continued on next pag
publication from the Center for the Advancement of Health, "Cultivating Capacity: Advancing NIH Research Training in
the Health Related Behavioral and Social
Sciences." NCFR researchers will be
interested in this source of funds. Family
factors are not often studied in the context of their effect on health but probably
should be. Check out the web site:
www.cfah.org, or phone 202-387-2829
for a copy of the report.
RESEARCH MISCONDUCT
T
he COS SA WASHINGTON UPDATE has alerted the social science research community about ar
opportunity to cmrunent on a new proposed policy regarding research misconduct. The proposed policy consists of a
definition of research misconduct which
will apply to all federally-funded researcb
regardless of where the research is
funded or by whom. The proposed policy
defines research misconduct as: "fabrication, falsification or plagiarism in proposing, performing, or reviewing research, or in reporting research results."
Look at the October 14, 1999 issue of
the Federal Register (pp. 55722-55725)
and at www.whitehouse.gov/OSTP. Contact Sybil Francis, Office of Science. and
Technology Policy at 202-456-6040;
sfrancis@ostp.eop.gov for further information.
Margaret Feldman, Ph.D.
NCFR Policy Representative
DECEMBER 199!l
�GRANDFATHERING
continued from page 22
Following is a list of Certified Family Life Educators designated since
September 1999. A list of all current CFLEs is now included in the certification section of the NCFR web page at www.ncfi:m:g.
[* - Provisional]
hile most supported the proposed criteria overall, many
were opposed to specific aspects, especially the brief paper and submission of sample syllabi. One member
proposed simplifying the process even
further to truly represent a grandparenting
process that recognizes established and
experienced professionals by having applicants simply submit an extended vitae.
Another member's cmmnent provided an
excellent smmnary of the issue. "It is
important that every CFLE meets a common set of minimum standards. It is not
important that a unifonn set of documents
be submitted beyond the curriculum vitae/
resume in order to demonstrate that the
standards are met."
Arizona
Tami Conover*
Kentucky
Robin Mason
Mississippi
Stacy Jo Schuler*
California
Stephanie Holladay*
Sharon Nguyen*
Maryland
Mary Bartlett
Michael Stunn, Jr.*
New York
Jennifer Hartsig
Canada
Pauline Francis
Michigan
Karen Blaisure
Robert Cook, Jr.
Kristin Fitzek*
Karen Maniner*
Maria Miller*
Jacqueline Price*
Verda;Sherrod*
Jack Stewart*
Linda Williams*
Cathy Yates*
Illinois
Melanie Golden*
Indiana
Lisa Hafliger*
Marlene Poe-Greskamp
Kansas
Pamela Comwell
Cara Knutson*
Karen Leisner*
Reaction from those on the NCFR
listserv, as well as the Family Science
Network where the message was circulated, supported this approach. Most
agreed to the necessity of having all
CFLEs meet the same minimum standards
but recognized that it was not necessary
for all applicants to provide information
in exactly the same way. This same mem-
CF9809
NCFR
Single copy: CFLE/NCFR Member $10.95
Non-member
$12.95
Multiple discounts available. Call NCFR office.
National Council on Family Relations
3989 Central Ave. N.E., Suite 550 • Minneapolis, MN 55421
Toll free: (888)781-9331• Phone: (612)781-9331• Fax: (612)781-9348
Email: ncfr3989@ncfr.org • Web: www.ncfr.org
NCIFR REPORT
TheCFLE
Grandparenting Review Cmmnittee (we
may call this the Experience Recognition
process since that is in
effect what it is) will
be made up of current
CFLEs who have previously served on the
CFLE Review Com23
Texas
Brettany Boozer*
Sara Garrett
Utah
Nathan Cobb*
Stephanie Finch*
Eve Petersen*
West Virginia
Rosalind Chapman
Minnesota
Janet Erickson
Eric Hansen
Margaret Lind!of
ber suggested that we do a two-step process. Applicants would first submit a
vitae or extended resume. In many cases,
this document will provide adequate infonnation for the review conm1ittee to
detennine if they have met the CFLE
criteria. If additional infonnation is
needed it can be requested. The reviewers
can be specific as to
what additional inforTools for Ethical Thinking and
mation is needed (as is
Practice in Family Life Eaucation
done under the current
This booklet contains three valuable
review process) so
resources for practicing family life educators:
applicants can be
Ethical Thinhing and Practice fo,- Family Life
Educators; The Levels of Family Involvement
focused on what addiModel; and Competencies fo,. Family Life
tional infonnation to
Educators.
submit. This process
Developed by the Minnesota Council on
would allow for assurFamily Relations, Ethical Thinhing and Practice for
ance that applicants
Life Educato,-s provides ethical infonnation and guidelines useful
when making family life education practice decisions. Includes a case
have met the standards
study format. Used as ethical guidelines for the Certified Family Life
without requiring
Educator program.
everyone to jump
The Levels of Family Involvement Model by William]. Doherty, Ph.D. is
through the same
an excellent article that addresses the crucial issues of where to place
parent and family education in the spectrum of professional services
hoops in the same
to families.
order.
Competencies for Family Life Educatol"s was developed by faculty at
Weber State University. It provides a listing of the knowledge, skills
and abilities needed for competent practice. Based upon the ten substance areas used to define the Certified Family Life Educator criteria.
Second Edition- 1999. ISBN: 0-916174-58-l. 25 pages.
Pennsylvania
Katherine Bisset*
mittee. They will have a working knowledge of what current CFLEs submitted in
order to be approved. They will have
personally met the CFLE standards. They
will have a vested interest in maintaining
the integrity and value of the CFLE designation. They will not rubber-stamp applications.
e still have a few details to
work out before the final criteria will be announced. We
discussed this issue at the CFLE Focus
Group and came up with more questions
and considerations including the possibility of allowing those with a baccalaureate
degree and extensive experience to apply
under this process as well. Through that
discussion our target audience and goal
was clarified. The Grandparenting/Experience Recognition option is not intended
to be marketed to family life educators at
large. The majority of our target audiences are NCFR members and those
familiar with NCFR, who know about the
CFLE designation, have ordered the application packet in the past, and have supported the concept of CFLE, but for various reasons have never gotten around to
applying. Our goal is to increase the mnnber of qualified CFLEs so that we are
better able to market family life education as a profession throughout the country and the world.
W
We will share infon11ation on the new
CFLE Grandparenting/Experience Recog-
Grandfathering continued on next page
DECEMBER 1999
�This column features news ofNCFR promotions, awards, career changes of interest to all members. Wi·ite to us and let us !mow what you are doing.
ijole Benokraitis has edited a
new publication, Feuds About
Families: Conservative, Centrist,
Liberal, and Feminist Perspectives,
published by Prentice Hall. The anthology
provides two original, theoretical chapters
that characterize the "family wars" and
articles on 16 important and controversial
topics: family values; women's and men's
family roles; love and courtship; sex and
cohabitation; marTiage; single-parent
families; raising children; gay and lesbian
families; work and family life; racial and
ethnic diversity; the impact of social
class; family violence; divorce; remarriages and stepfamilies; and family policies. For more infonnation, see
www.prenhall.com/divisions/hss/
catalog.html.
Thomas Gullotta, Gerald Adams, and
Carol Markstrom are co-authors of The
Adolescent Experience, Fourth Edition,
published by Academic Press. The textbook has taken a practical applied approach to understanding the adolescent
years with a solid research focus. In this
latest, completely rewritten and updated
Fourth Edition, the authors share with
students the rich social and histmical information available on this life state. For more
infonnation, contact Academic Press at
800-321-5068; e-mail: ap@acad.com;
website: www.academicpress.com.
William L. Smith, Georgia Southem
University, is the author of the recently
released book Families and Communes:
An Examination of Nontraditional
Lifestyles published by Sage Publications,
Inc. As the only contemporary exploration of conununal families, this book
investigates the assumptions that scholars
and others have made regarding the status
of the family within communes, and debunks current myths about communes and
cormnunal families. Families and Communes provides students and researchers
with an intriguing study of a unique social
group that is often overlooked. Additional
infonnation is available at
www.sagepub.com.
Marilyn Swierk, CFCS, CFLE, a national consultant, author, and speaker has
written a booklet, Nurturing Early Brain
Development, published by Glencoe/
McGraw-Hill. The booklet is designed to
translate teclmical neuroscience findings
on early brain development and their
implications into language that is useful
for the lay person and classroom teacher.
Additional information is available at
msirmovate@aol.com.
~
ss A. Thompson, and Paul R.
Amato are editors of a new publi
ation, The Postdivoirce Family:
Children, Parenting and Society, now
available from Sage Publications, Inc. The
Postdivorce Family examines the stressors that divorce can create; adjustment
problems among children of divorce; the
issue of resilience for children; and individual differences in the psychological
adjustment to divorce. This book integrates the empirical research and policy
perspectives of several scholars in various
disciplines including psychology, sociology, human development, law, and social
work. Additional information is available
atwww.sagepub.com.
fbi
Donations
The following persons have contributed donations since August 1999. Their generosity aids
NCFR in continuing its programs and awards.
Association of Councils
Connie Steele - Knoxville, TN
General Fund
Young J. Yoo- Seoul, South Korea
Janice Hogan- St. Paul, MN
Conference Travel for
Foreign Scholars
Margaret M. Bubolz- East Lansing, MI
Bron Ingoldsby, CFLE- Rexburg, ID
GRANDFATHERING
continued from page 23
Lane Powell, CFLE- Lubbock, TX
nition process as soon as the criteria have been finalized. Watch for a post card announcing its availability. And thank you all for your valuable input!
NEW FAMILY LIFE EDUCATION RESOURCES
NCFR has recently published two new resources for family life educators.
1111
LESSON PLANS FOR FAMILY LIFE EDUCATION
Jacqueline Haessly, CFLE Milwaukee, WI
Public Policy
Kay Michael Troost- Raleigh, NC
Student Awards
Based upon NCFR's popular "teachers kit" this collection of 30 NEW lesson plans
features a new design with separate file folders for each of the ten substance areas. The
majority of the plans are designed for high school, undergraduate and graduate levels as
well as adult education. Many lesson plans include overhead and handout masters. The
Lesson Plans are available for $34.95 members/$39.95 non-members. The 1994
Supplement is available at a special discount price of $12.95 if ordered in conjunction
with the new Lesson Plans.
1111
Peace Focus Group
ETHICAL THINKING AND PRACTICE IN FAMILY LIFE EDUCATION
See our ad on page 23 for information on this exciting new publication. All cmTent
Certified Family Life Educators will receive a copy in the mail, but non-CFLEs can
order copies as well.
Georgia L. Stevens - Lincoln, NE
Mary Jo Czaplewski Fellowship
Mary Jo Czaplewski, CFLESt.Paul,MN
William J. Doherty- St. Paul, MN
Jane F. Gil gun- Minneapolis, MN
For more information on contributing to
' NCFR, contact: Michael L. Benjamin, NCFR
Executive Director, 3989 Central Ave. NE,
Suite 550, Minneapolis, MN 55421. Toll free:
888-781-933l,ext.2l or
mbenjamin@ncfr.org.
Dawn Cassidy, CFLE Certification Director
NCFR REPORT
24
DECEMBER 1999
�MARGARET ARCUS, CFLE
ROSEMARY BLIESZNER
PAULINE G. BOSS
HAMILTON McCUBBIN,
CFLE
JOSEPH H. PLECK
Seven Selected for
Fellow Status
T
he 1999 Fellowship Conunittee
selected seven nominees for Fellow status within the National
Council on Family Relations during the
Annual Meeting in Irvine.
The fellows were nominated by peers and
selected for their histmy of outstanding
contributions to the field of family sh1dies
in such areas as published scholarship,
i1movative and influential teaching presentations, development and implementation
of significant intervention of programs
designed to promote healthy family relations, development and implementation of
i1movative curricula for training professionals in family srudies, social policy
support for family issues, and a consistent
record of superior contributions to NCFR
over time.
The new NCFR Fellows are:
Margaret Arcus, CFLE, Professor,
School of Family and Nuh·itional Sciences, University of British Columbia. Dr.
Arcus is recognized as an intemational
leader in family life education and has
given leadership to this area in NCFR
through several elected or appointed positions and extensive committee service.
In Memoriam
NCFR recently received word that Dr.
George W. Wise, 63, died suddenly of
a heart attack on his way to work in
April 1999. He had been Department
Head for the Consumer and Family
Srudies Department since 1986 at
Southwest Missouri State University,
Springfield, MO. Dr. Wise joined
NCFR in 1967.
NCFR REPORT
She has been refeiTed to as an
"exemplary teacher-scholar." Dr.
Arcus has won numerous teaching
awards from her university as
well as the NCFR Osbome Teaching Award. Dr. Arcus's scholarship has focused on values and
moral education with attention to
SHARON J. PRICE
MICHAELJ.
the role of ethics. Her leadership
SPORAKOWSKI, CFLE
in the field of family life education is reflected in her service as senior
starus in both the American Psychological
editor of the Handbook ofFamily Life
Association and the American Association
ofMaiTiage and Family Therapists. Dr.
Education.
Boss' scholarship in the areas of relational
Rosemary Blieszner, Professor, Departstress and coping and ambiguous loss has
ment of Human Development, Virginia
resulted in an extensive publication record.
Polyteclmic Instih1te and State University.
Dr. Boss' contributions to NCFR are exDr. Bliesz1ier has established herself as a
well-funded and well-published researcher traordinmy, including President, Program
Vice-President, and Chair of the Research
in the area of families and aging and has
and Themy Section. She also has served as
made a particular contribution through her
President of the Groves Conference on
research on older women's support netMmTiage and the Family and was a memworks. The excellence of her work has
ber of the White House Conference on
been recognized by other professional
Families.
associations; she holds Fellowship stahJs in
both the American Psychological Association and the Association for Gerontology.
Dr. Blieszner has been the recipient of
several teaching awards, and she has a
strong record of participation in NCFR.
She served an instnunental role in the
creation of the Feminism and Family Srudies section and has been an active leader in
that section since its early days.
Pauline G. Boss, Professor, Department of
Family Social Science, University of Minnesota. Dr. Boss has a stellar record of
contributions and impact on the field that
spans the areas of research, teaching, professional service, and outreach. She has
been the recipient of numerous professional awards, including election to fellow
25
Hamilton McCubbin, CFLE, Dean and
Professor, School of Human Ecology,
University of Wisconsin-Madison. Dr.
McCubbin's contribution to the field of
family srudies is remarkable. He has
authored or co-authored over 100 joumal
articles and several books, and has been
the recipient of millions of dollars in external funding, while serving as an administrator for much of his career. Dr.
McCubbin has played a major role in
moving the family stress and coping field
fmward; in addition to empirical and theoretical contributions, he also has development several copyrighted instmments. Dr.
Fellows continued on next page
DECEMBER 1999
�Call for Nominations and Applications for the position of Editor
of Journal ofMarriage and the Family
The. ~ational ~ouncil on Family Relations is seeking nominations and applications for the
position ofEd1to: of Joum.al of_Marriag_e and the Family (JMF). The term of the current editor,
Dr. Robert M. M~lardo (Umvers1ty ofMame- Orono) will be completed with the publication of the
November 2001 1ssue.
The four-ye~r te:m of the new editor will begin with the publication of the February 7002 ·
ed1tonal responsibilities w.ill be
to the new editor beginning
Apnl 2001. The Jk!F Search Comm1ttee anticipates making the selection of the new editor at the
annual conference m November 2000 in Minneapolis, Minnesota.
A ~etailed description oftl~e editor's responsibilities may be obtained from: Search Conunittee for
Editor of Journal ofA;farnage ~nd the Family, National Council on Family Relations, 3989
Central Ave. N.E., Su.Jte 550, Minneapolis, MN, USA, 55421. Telephone: 612-781-9331· FAX
612-781-9348; E-mml: ncfr3989@ncfr.org.
'
·
Ho~ever,
tra.n~ferred
appr~xim~:;~ein
Nominations and applications including a letter of application and a curriculum vita should be sent
to the ~bove addr~ss by M~y 15, 2000. The new editor must be a member of the National
Council on Family Relations.
FELLOWS continued from page 25
McCubbin has served in numerous leadership roles within NCFR, including President and associate editor of both the
Journal of Marriage and the Family and
Family Relations.
Joseph H. Pleck, Professor, Department
of ~uman and Community Development,
Umversity of Illinois, has been a pioneer
and primary leader in the research on
fatherho.od, men's roles and masculinity,
and the mteiface between work and family. He has published numerous books and
articles on these subjects and has an extensive record of external funding. Dr.
Pleck's work also has been noted for its
impli.c~tions for social policy and family
practitiOners. Dr. Pleck's nomination also
focused on his extensive involvement with
graduate students, especially in a
mentoring role. Dr. Pleck has been a
member of NCFR for over 25 years and
has served in a variety of capacities, including helping to start the "Men in Fami~ies" focus group and co-editing a special
Issue of Family Relations.
baron J. Price, Professor, Department of Child and Family Development, University of Georgia. Dr.
Price has been referred to as the consummate member of NCFR because of her
many notable contributions to NCFR
including President, Program Chair, ~sso
ciate editor of Journal of Marriage and
the Family and Family Relations, and
service on numerous committees over the
past 30 years. Dr. Price's nomination
included many references to her outstanding teaching and mentoring of graduate
students and new professionals. Dr. Price
has been the recipient of the Osborne
T~aching Award as well as her university's
highest honor, the Meigs Professorship
NCFR REPORT
for Excellence in Teaching, and several
other teaching awards. Dr. Price's extensive and noteworthy record of scholarship
has focused on a several important
women's issues, including dual-work
families, postdivorce adjustlnent, and
most recently, rural widows.
ichael J. Sporakowski,
CFLE, Professor and Head,
Department of Human Development, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and
State University. Dr. Sporakowski has an
impressive record of service within
NCFR, including President, Vice President for Publications, and Editor of Family Relations. He also has been honored
with the Distinguished Service to Families
Award because of his national, regional,
and local service on behalf of families.
Dr. Sporakowski's involvement with students has been described as "legendary and
profound" for his ability to go far beyond
the nonnal boundaries of the role on
behalf of student development. Dr. Sporakowski also has an impressive record of
scholarship; his work on long-tei111 marriages, maiTiage and family therapy, and
assessment strategies remain pivotal
works in the field.
Nominations for next year's class of
NCFR Fellows are now open. The 2000
Fellowship Committee members are
Patrick McKenry, Chair, Vern Bengtson, Peggye Dilworth-Anderson, and
Gary Lee. The cmmnittee urges nominations of outstanding candidates in service
and practitioner fields such as Extension
Therapy, Family Life Education, Health '
Sciences, and community services.
For detailed information on how to nominate a fellow, call NCFR at 1-888-7819331 or e-mail NCFR3989@ncfr.org. fM
26
New FR Editor
~ay Pasley was selected by the Family Relations Search Committee as the next editor of
Family Relations. The appointment is for four
years, beginning with the production of the
January 2001 issue and ending with the October 2004 issue. She will begin accepting manu·
scripts March 1, 2000.
Dr. Pasley is full professor in the Department
of Human Development and Family Srudies at
The University ofNorth Carolina at Greensboro. Her graduate degrees are in Child Development and
Family Life and
Early Childhood
Education from
h1diana University.
Her research interests include families
of divorce and
remarriage with a
focus on the marital
relationship, men's
roles in the family
especially fathering,
KAY PASLEY, Ph.D.
and prevention and
inte~ention ~~ograms for families experiencing
manta! transitions. Prior to her appointlnent at
The University ofNorth Carolina at Greensboro, she was Professor of Human Development and Family Studies at Colorado State
University.
She is currently on tl1e editorial board of the
Journal ofMarriage and the Family and has
served on the editorial boards of Family
Relations (1984-1986, 1989-1994), Journal
of Family Issues (1989-1999), and Family
Science Review (1987-1997). She is involved
in lead~rship roles for NCFR, currently serving
as Chair of the Smmner Workshop Cmmnittee.
and she has served in nmnerous other leader- .
ship roles since becoming a member ofNCFR
in 1971, including Vice President for Program
(1994-1995). In addition to her work with
NCFR, she is actively involved in leadership
roles for the Stepfamily Association of
America, serving as the Co-Director of the
SAA Training Institute and Chair of theResearch Cmrunittee. She has published articles
in the Journal ofMarriage and the Family
and Family Relations, and in more than 15
other scholarly joumals.
Dr. Pasley has been either principal or coprincipal investigator on numerous research
grants. She has consistently presented papers
at professional meetings including NCFR.
Final arrangements are tmderway for sigrling a
memorandum of agreement with NCFR.
Congrarulations to Dr. Pasley and sincere
thanks to the other excellent candidates for
the position.
fhi
DECEMBER 1999
�We're looking for a few good candidates
by Velma McBride Murry, Ph.D., Family and Consumer Science, University of Georgia, NCFR Election Council Committee Chair
s part of our operational procedures, the NCFR Election Council
Committee has developed various
methods to encourage members to become involved in leadership positions of
our organization. There are several avenues to become involved in NCFR and
your involvement can begin by becoming
active in various sections, including the
Student and New Professionals Section.
We have just completed the nomination
slate for tenus (ballots will be mailed to
members in spring 2000) that will be
filled at the end of the national meeting in
Mim1eapolis, November 2000. The nominees are:
Our charge from the Board was to develop
a slate that reflects the selection criteria
in the revised NCFR By-laws.
Here are the Selection Criteria (Source:
NCFR By-Laws, January 1999, Article IX,
Section 2, B 3) to help you identify potential candidates for upcoming elections:
e knowledge and/or experience in areas
reflecting broad trends in Family Science in the United States and internationally
e knowledge and/or experience with
policy governance and the development
of ENDS policies
Board Member-At-Large: (3 Positions)
Joe Pittman
Stephen Marks
William Allen
Roberto Reyes
Masoka Ishii-Kuntz Marilyn Flick
e knowledge and/or experience in leadership roles through Sections, Association of Councils, Elections Council,
Conference Platming, publishing, public policy or other cmmnittee work.
Elections Council: (2 Positions)
Michael Jolmson
Ben Silliman
Cathy Solheim
Edith Lewis
• diversity in race, etlmicity, culture,
sexual orientation, gender, age, physical
ability or religion.
Program Chair Elect: (1 Position)
David Wright
Alan Booth
• diversity of geographic location
Fellowship Committee: (2 Positions)
Sam Vuchinich
Ralph LaRossa
Kathryn Rettig
Dena Targ
Board Student/New Professional:
(1 Position)
Tammy Henderson Curtis Fox
• diversity in employment and/or professional settings; and
• specific characteristics identified by
the Board of Directors and charged to
the Elections Council before the call
for nominations is developed and circulated.
JMF Reviewer-in-training Program
ongratulations are due to the
fourth graduating class of the JMF
Reviewer-in-Training Program.
This program is designed to provide advanced graduate students and new professionals the opportunity to participate in
1
the peer revie w of manuscripts submitted
to the Journal and receive training in the
review process.
C
Having completed several reviews of
quality and well within the allocated deadlines, the following new professionals are
to be congratulated: Ann Beutel, Shawn
Christiansen, Elizabeth Thompson
Gershoff, Joan Gilbreth, Leslie Gordon, Joseph Grzywacz, Kristen C.
Jacobson, Ramona Faith Oswald, and
Corinna Jenkins Tucker. My personal
NCFR REPORT
thanks to each of you for your obvious
dedication and hard work.
Advanced graduate students and new professionals who would like to participate
in our Reviewer-in-Training program
should contact the journal for guidelines
and application materials, including a very
useful document on "How to review a
journal article" by Professors Vern
Bengtson and Shelley MacDennid. To
date, 60 new professionals have participated in this program.
Robert M. Milardo, Editor
Jounzal of Marriage and the Family
17 Merrill Hall
Univ. ofMaine
Orono, ME 04469
E-mail: Milardo@Maine.Edu
27
Keeping these criteria in mind, we invite
self-nominations or nominations of others
for the following positions for the next
slate to be elected in the spring of 2001.
The tenns for these positions will begin
November 2001 at the end of the annual
conference in Rochester, NY.
President-elect- 2001-2003
(President 2003-2005)
The President-elect shall assist the President and in the event of the President's
absence, incapacitation, resignation or
death, the President's duties (general management of the business of the NCFR
Board) shall devolve upon the Presidentelect.
Two Board Members-At-Large2001-2003
NCFR Board Members are responsible for
the overall governance of the organization
on behalf of all NCFR members. They
attend three face-to-face Board meetings
per year, along with regular conference
calls and e-mail exchanges. They take
responsibility for maintaining contact with
the membership and to reflecting the
needs of all NCFR members.
Association of Councils President
(Serving on the Board) - 2001-2003
Shall serve on the NCFR Board and represent concerns of the members of the Association of Councils. Preside at all meetings of the Association of Councils and
the AC Executive Board. Provide leadership for the Association of Councils.
Two Elections Council Committee
Members - 2001-2003
It is the responsibility of the Elections
Council to prepare a slate of nominees for
officers and members of the Board of
Directors and the Elections Council positions, and to ensure that the policies regarding recruitment as provided by the
By-laws, and the Elections Policies and
Procedures are followed.
Three Fellowship Members - 2001-2003
The Fellowship Cormnittee shall review
the applications from nominees for fellowship status. During the NCFR Ammal
Conference, discuss and vote on which
Candidates continued on next page
DECEMBER 1999
�nfer nee
Highlights
• The speakers, Mary Catherine Bateson, Lou Bellamy, and Marta Sotomayor,
set the tone for an outstanding conference.
e Fireside Chats with the plenary speakers
gave attendees a chance to gather more
insights from these marvelous leaders.
• Updates for Practitioner sessions by
Alexis Walker and her team from Oregon State Univ.; Alan Acock; Dan
Detzner and Blong Xiong; and Pauline
Boss were well-received. Among the comments from attendees: "excellent teachers, " "gave good insights as to how to
apply the research, " and "it was man;elous to learn fi·om a great masta "
mments
sale of these items and donations from the
Brigham Young University Ice Cream
Social was sent to Human Options, a
women's shelter
in the Orange
Cmmty area.
• Andmany
more exciting
events!
Walk in Registrants: 91
Students: 328
First Timers: 270
Ifyou weren't
10 Year Comparisons:
able to come to
1999-1,160
the Conference
1998-1,117
this year, we
1997-1,450
missed you. We
1996-1,245
1995-1,239
invite you to
1994-1,211
give us a try
1993-1,080
next year in
1992- 1,173
e Special sessions sponsored by the SecMinneapolis,
1991-1,025
tions, and Public Policy Committee
MN, November
1990- 996
brought in top-notch researchers with their 8-13, 2000. You
latest studies, and included ways to use this are encouraged to submit a proposal. The
research, causing attendees to "move to
Call for Abstracts is included in this Reaction" on issues relating to family wellport.
being.
Thank you!
• We brought "fun" into the Conference
The Program was outstanding! Many of
with photos of attendees during the anyou may not be aware of the number of
nouncement times before the plenaries.
people it takes to make up the team that
And NCFR Executive Director Michael L.
puts together a Conference. It was because
Benjamin brought a new twist to the Conof the efforts of MANY people spending
ference when he introduced the "NCFR
numerous hours planning the program,
Team" of Board members and staff arrayed
executing logistical details, and seeing to
in great NCFR sweatshirts.
attendees needs that the Conference ran
• The Counsel of Sages shared wisdom
smoothly. THANKS to the following for
about mentoring.
their contributions:
• Attendees purchased handmade gifts at
the Hospitality Cafe. Over $450 from the
CANDIDATES
+ Katherine Allen, CFLE, Program Chair
-our Commander-in-Chief- was in
continued ji-om page 27
applicants will be recommended to the
Board of Directors.
Student/Nevv Professional Program
Representative - 2001-2003
Conference Program Chair-elect - 20012002 (Program Chair for 2003)
Serves as a member of the A1mual Conference Program Cmmnittee. Screens
submissions that have been designated for
S!NP sessions and plans conference
sessions. Assists in networking students
and new professionals.
Serves one year as Conference Program
Chair-elect, proceeding to Program Chair
the following year and has primary responsibility for selecting the theme for
the Annual Conference and selecting
plenary and other special speakers.
NCFR REPORT
For additional infonnation, please
review our website, www.ncfr.org.
28
charge of the entire program. Her enthusiasm, dedication, and caring were
contagious. The program cmmnittee wa:
caught up in her quest for a top-quality
program, and it paid off. Katherine had
innovative ideas to bring to many creative sessions! She was supportive of
the NCFR staff and worked at their side
during the entire plmming process to
ensure that the Conference met the
needs of attendees.
+ Section Chairs - Howard Barnes,
CFLE; Francisco Villarruel; Vivian
Gedaly-Duff; Leslie Koepke; Mary
Ann Hollinger; James Harper; Donm
Sollie; Bron Ingoldsby, CFLE; Judy
Watson-Tiesel; and Paul Amato
planned excellent, ilmovative paper,
symposia, poster and round table sesstons.
+ Margaret Feldman and Catherine
Chilman organized and orchestrated tht
outstanding Public Policy Sessions.
+ The Local Arrangements Team:
Shulamit Ritblatt, Teresa Ganger,
Dottie Verstaag, Au dray Johnson,
Carolyn Balkwell, Fumiko Hosokawa
Denise Berg, and Marcia Lasswell and
their committees did a phenomenal job
of making attendees feel welcome and
brought handmade crafts for sale in the
Hospitality Cafe.
+ NCFR staff worked numerous hours
behind the scenes making sure that
everything ran smoothly. They also
attended meetings, provided infonnation, staffed the registration desk and
NCFR Exhibit booth, and met with the
press.
+ More than 40 Student Aides assisted in
f,.~
111!
registration, employment service, exhib
its, and general assistance. Their efforts
were a tremendous help.
Other people who were important to the
success of the conference:
• Coordinators of the Pre-Conference
Workshops. These sessions provided
"hands-on" tools based on the latest techComments continued on next pag
DECEMBER 199!
�1999 ANNUAL CONFERENCE PICTURES
Left to right: Outgoing Association of Councils' President, Norma Bond Burgess, is presented with an Appreciation Award by Lane Powell, CFLE, incoming
AC President; NCFR 1998-99 President Bill Doherty is presented with an Appreciation Award for his year as president fl-am Executive Director Michael L. Benjamin.
COMMENTS
continued from page 28
niques and research for family professionals.
e Carl Williams, our AV coordinator for more than 20 years, worked
many hours seeing to the specific needs of each of the program speakers.
This year NCFR did its own audio and video taping, and Carl had to oversee
the audio taping and do the video taping in addition to his regular duties.
Share ¥our Nhmvleage \Vith @olleagues!
Submit an A.ostract for the
2000 'A.nnual @onference!
Visions for Families: Continuity and Change
Across Cohorts and Generations
• Mary Jo Czaplewski, CFLE, our photographer, recorded the important
events for immediate publicity use, and for our archives. Use of digital
cameras allowed attendees to view the photos each day on the video
screen.
•
NCFR 62nd Annual Conference
November 8-13,2000
Minneapolis Hilton & Towers, Minneapolis, MN
Program presenters, discussants, presiders, recorders.
Program Chair:
• And most of all, to Conference attendees. Without you, the Conference would not take place.
Thanks to the friendly, efficient Hyatt Hotel staff who did a great job making quick turns of rooms in a short amount of time. We also acknowledge
their generous donation to the President's Welcoming Reception in honor
of Bill Doherty and Michael Benjamin.
There are many others who also worked behind the scenes. As you can see,
it requires a tremendous number of people to orchestrate a conference,
and each person and task is vital. Thank you one and all.
Cindy Winter, CMP
Conference Coordinator
Give Gifts to Colleagues
That Keep on Giving!
Elaine A. Anderson, Univ. of Maryland
Program Highlights!
+ Involve yourself and
+ Outstanding Plenary
-
- aeaatfrle &fo•U«gglications: ~
RostmariCeH
Tapes of major sessions may be purchased from NCFR. A list and
order fonn is enclosed in this newsletter. Please fill out the form and
return to NCFR.
NCFR REPORT
29
our youth in the advocacy for a civil society
+ Reflect on family diversity - visit the past,
present, and future
+ Discuss the hot topics
of the new Millennium
in a forum
+ Share in stories of families across generations
Speakers including
Stephanie Coontz,
Evergreen State Col.,
Olympia, WA; author
of The Wt!)' We Never
Were and The Wt!)' We
Reai!J Are: Comi11g to
Tert11s with Anmica}
Cha11gi11g Families
6~
lie6rual]¥ I ,
· :c ••
~000
fiL~ For an application form contact: NCFR, 3989 Central
lib
NcFA
Ave. NE, #550, Minneapolis, MN 55421
Toll free: 888-781-9331 + Fax: 612-781-9348
+ Website: www.ncfr.or
DECEMBER 1999
�Lc:fi: Punc/i.,·t.\· f'<ll'/h'IJI<Iting in the Pnhlic PolicT Sclllil'ur "Getting Tough on C'rilllc: E(!i'cts on Fu1nilics" li'Cl'C. !eli to rig/11: Snc Rca111S. a C'u!ijilmiu rcsidclll;
Doug/us 1\icsu, ullorncy: und James L_l'nch. fW(!kssor ut the Dcrunment (~(Justice. LUI\' and Socicf.\', .·lmcrican Unii'Cr.vity. Righr: Rt{/Ltd .-1/arcon. !/siting Prr?(cssm;
Unil·crsif_l' t?(Souihcrn Ca!(jiwniu. gun· u hist01:1· (!f'immigrutionJJO!i(l' in !he U.S. und discu.r.,·scd the illlpucr r~(t'lrrrcnt inunigr.ttioiiJW!icics on inullignnllj(unilics
during l1is ·'YIIIflOsium nn U.S. !nunigrurion Polic_1·.
Lc/i. CFLEs nclll'lll'k u11hc CFLE Rccc'jl/ioll. Ccnla: RuhJn Rw11huu1, Pmji·.,·sol; i\lichigun Swlc Unil'Cr.l·iiJ; prcscnl.\' his lcc/urc, "II 71d·c.,· u Fwnih· (.-Jnd u I i'/lugc).
Pal/ems o(Inc<•I!Wrulion .·llllong Children o(flllllligmnls." Rig/11: !ncollling Prcsidcnl Slcrln·n Jorgensen oullincs his jilunsjiw NC'FR during his IC!'lll <lillie .-/nnll<l•
Business i\lecling.
Lc/i: Dislinguishcd fl<lllclisls jl<lrliciJIUting in I he Counsel o(Sagcs session included. !eli 10 righl: J-:ulherine .·Illen, C'FLE, 11wdcrulrl/; I lurricllc P i\lc.-ldoo, Eslcllu
i\luninc. i\lichucl.!. Sjwruko11·ski. CFLE, Rohal Del Calllpo. Greer Lillon Fox, Dudfcl' ClwnnT. Rundall Dm·, Ul/{!llc·sfcl' R. Bun: Righi: Conji·rcnce ultcndecs lw
an opportunity w nctll·ork ut the Ncl\'comcr \ Rcccplhm.
TO SEE
PHOTOS FROM THE Ai'Ji,JUAL CONFEREI\!CE, VISIT OUR WEBSITE
30
V\IWW.illCFR.ORG
�Family Policy Section
s the sessions at the 1999 NCFR
conference indicate, family
policy issues continue to be at
center stage for those of us interested in
studying and understanding families.
Congratulations go to Leslie Koepke and
previous members of the Section board
for helping to make the 1999 conference
a success.
It is time now, however, to begin planning
for next year. Abstracts and symposium
recommendations are due February 1st
for next year's conference focusing on
family change across cohorts and generations. I would like to hear from the Section BEFORE that date so that we can
consider how best to meet the needs of
section members and NCFR patiicipants
as a whole. Any creative ideas you have
for the program should be submitted to
Dennis Orthner as early as possible so
the plans can be coordinated.
NOW AVAILABLE!
The role of Public Policy related to Fami- participate in this Seclies will be more visible in NCFR next
tion and NCFR. For
some of us, family
year. NCFR will be sponsoring a conferpolicy is an interest
ence in Washington DC April 13 and 14
area along with other interests we have in
(see ad on page 34) that is open to all
families. For others, family policy is the
members and persons involved in family
focus of their work. These latter persons
policy related work. We hope that members of the Family Policy Section will plan may be in local, state or national posion registering and coming to that meeting. tions and we may need to more actively
promote ways for them to participate and
The Section will also be undergoing some benefit from NCFR and the activities of
reorganization this year. We will be prethe Family Policy Section. If anyone has
paring a new set of bylaws and changing
ideas on how we can best do that, please
the election cycle to have a chair-elect
fmward your comments to me or send a
instead of a vice-chair for the Section. We message on the Family Policy listserv.
will also conduct some of our "meetings"
Thank you for your interest and support.
via the NCFR listserv this year and rely
less on the Section meeting at the confer- Dennis K. Orthner
Chair, Family Policy Section
ence for conveying impmiant Section
Jordan Institute for Families
information.
University of North Carolina
Finally, we need to consider how more
Chapel Hill, NC 27599-3550
persons in policy related positions can
orthner@email. unc. edu
Family Therapy Section
1999 Student Paper Award Winners
Enrollment is open to all NCFR
members.
EducationEnrichment@cfapress.org
Ethnic Minorities website:
www.asn.csus.edu/ em-ncfr
FamilyHealth@cfapress.org
FamilyPolicy@cfapress.org
FamilyScience@cfapress.org
FamilyTherapy@cfapress.org
FeminismFamilyStudies@cfapress.org
International@cfapress.org
ReligionFamilyLife@cfapress.org
Research Theory@cfapress.org
To enroll, send your name, e-mail address,
and the listserv(s)you wish to join to:
John Pepper at 888-781-9331, ext. 16;
E-mail: pepperw@ncfr.org. To sign up
for the Ethnic Minorities Section
listserv, go directly to its website.
NCFR REPORT
The two winners of the Family Therapy
Section Student Paper Awards are
Kristen Holm and Rose Suggett.
Kristen Holm's paper was entitled, "The
Association Between Emotion Work
Balance and Relationship Satisfaction of
Couples Seeking Therapy." She completed the paper while she was a master's
degree shtdent in matTiage and family
therapy at Colorado State University in
the Depmiment of Human Development
and Family Shtdies. Her major advisor
was Ronald Jay Werner-Wilson who is
now an assistant professor in the Depmiment of Human Development and Family
Studies, Iowa State University. Ms. Holm
is presently a doctoral shtdent in the
matTiage and family therapy program at
the University ofMim1esota.
Rose Suggett's paper, entitled "An Analysis of Gender in Supervisory Relationships," was completed while she was a
master's degree shtdent in matTiage and
family therapy at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln in the College of Human
31
Resources and Family
Sciences. Her major
advisor was Professor Jan Nealer. Ms.
Suggett is presently a doctoral student in
the same program.
The Family Therapy Section has established two awards each valued at $400 that
will be given annually to two shtdents
whose papers are selected from a blind
review process as making a significant
contribution to research and scholarship in
family therapy. Any shtdent member in the
Family Therapy Section is eligible to
submit a paper for consideration. The
work must be original and may be the
product of a thesis, dissertation, or other
independent work completed by the
shtdent.
Stephen A. Anderson
University of Connecticut
School of Family Shtdies
U-58, 348 Mansfield Road
Stons, CT 06269
Tel: 860-486-3865
E-mail: Anderss@uconnvm.uconn.edu
DECEMBER 1999
�EDITOR
WANTED:
International Section
FAMILY SCIENCE
REVIEW
he International Section was well
represented at the 1999 annual
conference. Fifty scholars participated in the program for the International
Section. Papers, rmmd tables, and poster
presentations at the conference this year
concerned families in eleven countries in
Asia, Africa, Europe, and North and South
America. The first International Section
Award was announced by Bron Ingoldsby, CFLE, outgoing Section Chair. This
award is for the Outstanding Contribution
to Comparative Family Sh1dies, and is
named in honor of Jan Trost who is one
of the founding members of the Section,
and was its second chair. It seems fitting
that the award named in honor of Jan
would first be given to him. Jan Trost is
the Director of the Family Research
Center at Uppsala University in Sweden,
and has published 32 books, 70 book
chapters and 106 articles.
Please contact Rebecca A. Adams,
Ball State University, 765-285-5924
or bada:ms@bsu.edu for additional
infon11ation.
Religion &
Family Life
Section
he RFL Section sponsored a number of presentations, paper sessions, and posters at the recent
conference in Irvine. One of the highlights
was a distinguished lechue on the effects
of anti-gay rhetmic on family values by
Mel White, a nationally recognized
spokesperson on this issue (co-sponsored
by the GLBT focus group). We also hosted
a panel featuring Alan Hawkins, Cathy
Paulson, Diana Garland, CFLE, and
Michael Benjamin on the role ofspirihlality in families. At our worship on Sunday morning, we were treated to a presentation on a Ghanian renaming ceremony
by Edith Lewis. This held special significance since Edith was slated to do this at
last year's conference but was prevented
due to an emergency medical problem. We
were delighted she was able to be with us
this year. Finally, we sponsored a presession workshop on family ministry by
Diana Garland that focused on assessing
family life in communities of faith.
Lance Erickson from BYU received the
outstanding paper award from the section.
The paper, co-authored by Brian Barber
and Suzanne Maughan, was entitled
"Religion and Adolescent Functioning: An
Analysis of Mediators." The section also
saw a transition of officers. Leaving after
two years of excellent service were Judy
Tiesel (Chair), Carla Dahl (Vice-chair),
John Conger (Sec.-treas.) and Curtis
Fox, CFLE (S/NP). New officers include
Dale Hawley (Chair), Thomas Roberts,
CFLE (Vice-chair), Becky Adams (Sec.treas.) and Tyler Horner, CFLE (S/NP).
Dale Hawley
Chair, Religion and Family Life Section
NCFR REPORT
T
In addition to building on the section
Newsletter (linked to the NCFR web
page), plans are already underway to develop a vital program for the 2000 conference. The Chair encouraged submission of ideas for the 2000 program, either
for section sponsorship
or co-sponsorship with
other sections. Sessions
are already being organized. For example,
one suggested symposium is an update on
family policy in other parts of the world.
Additional ideas and themes can be
circulated via the section web page and
the section listserv. The Chair, Stephan
Wilson, indicated that the newsletter is a
place for people to share their research
interests and projects. The newsletter
will be placed on both the listserv and the
web page.
This year, following the business meeting,
discussions about possible international
collaborations were pursued. Gary
Peterson discussed the "Adolescent
Social Competence" project that has been
collecting data from adolescents in a
range of countries, and reflecting various
socio-economic groups. The group working on this project also is cognizant of the
need to examine whether western-derived
concepts hold up in other countries.
Stephan M. Wilson
Chair, International Section
Phone: 606-257-8900
Research and Theory Section
Anselm Strauss Award for Qualitative Family Research
T
he Qualitative Family Research
Network, part of the Research and
Themy Section, National Council
on Family Relation, announces the 2000
Anselm Strauss Award. This award,
named in honour of Anselm Strauss, was
established in 1998 to recognize outstanding qualitative family research.
Nomination Process
Joumal articles and book chapters published during the previous calendar year
are eligible. The 2000 award will go to the
first author of a work published in 1999.
The focus must be on qualitative family
research, and the work can be data-based,
and/or methodological, and/or theoretical
in purpose. All types of qualitative research are welcome. No one type will have
an advantage over others.
Nominations of high merit are welcome
32
from now until April15,
2000. Both nominations by others and
self-nominations are encouraged. Submissions must be accompanied by a letter
outlining the reasons for nomination. Six
copies of the piece and of the letter should
be mailed to the Coordinator of the Award
Committee. The award will be presented
at the National Council on Family Relations 2000 conference.
Assessment Guidelines
• Each submission will be appraised in
ten11s of what it purports to be; if a
piece states that it is a phenomenological study, then it will be evaluated as
such and not be faulted for not having
developed a theory. A piece based on
grounded theory, by contrast, must
have theory as its product.
Research continued on next pag
DECEMBER 199
�President's Report
Pre-conference
he mood was definitely upbeat, as
representatives of the affiliated
councils met for the Pre-conference Officer Training session in Irvine.
Roundtable discussions on "Developing a
Successful Affiliate/Conference," "Developing a Strong Student Affiliate," and
"Influencing Public Policy" were led by
our members with experience in these
areas. My thanks to Britton Wood,
CFLE, Denise Donnelly, Deb Berke,
CFLE, Raeann Hamon, CFLE, Beckie
Adams, Arminta Jacobson, CFLE,
Norma Bond Burgess, Aaron Larson,
CFLE, Jackie Fitzpatrick, Anne Stanberry, CFLE, and Catherine Solheim
for their leadership in the Roundtables.
This was followed by a visionary presen-
T
fficer Training Session
tation on the possibilities of Video Teleconferencing by Aaron Larson, CFLE,
Larry McCallum, Kathleen Gilbert, and
Anne Stanberry, CFLE.
their region.
Cunently,
unless there is
a regional
council or a
The really good news is that ALL of our
state/local
affiliates will be able to benefit from this
council in a
pre-conference. A newsletter containing
member's
summaries of all the discussions and brief
locale, the
summaries of the Updates for Practitiomember is not
ners sessions will be sent to affiliate presi"attached" to
dents in December.
any group but
LANE H. POWELL, CFLE
Two other major foci, both of which come the national.
out of the recmmnendations of the 199 7
This severely limits NCFR members from
Task Force on the Association of Couninvolvement in professional and public
cils, will be addressed by the Association
policy activities at a local level. The AC
of Councils this year. One focus concems officers will be discussing ways to make
how to develop regional ties between all
this regional connection happen.
NCFR members and the local affiliates in
Pre-conference continued on next page
RESEARCH
continued from page 32
• "Grab" is an important consideration.
Is the material interesting? Compelling? Does it engage its audience? If
the piece is intended to influence
public policy, does the presentation of
the material persuade the audience that
this is an important policy issue?
•
lnfonnants' points of view should be
well represented, with the author(s)
taking ownership of their own views
and opinions. Thus, reflexive comments could well be appropriate.
• Descriptions of data collection and
analysis procedures should be represented in sufficient detail so that readers can understand how researchers
carried out these tasks and how excerpts were selected for presentation.
e Clarity of writing, overall organization, and originality are also important.
Send nominations to the Coordinator of
the Award Committee:
Carl Auerbach
Yeshiva University
1300 Morris Park Ave.
Bronx, NY I 046I
Tel: 7I8-430-3953
E-mail: carlauer@aol.com
NCFR REPORT
Northwest Council on Family Relations
The Northwest Council on Family Relations announces its biannual conference!
The conference will be held June I9-2I,
2000, in lovely Coeur D'Alene, Idaho.
We have planned an invigorating conference, with the theme "Northwest Families
in the New Millenium." We pmiicularly
encourage graduate students, as well as
undergraduate students, and professionals
involved in the practice of Family Studies
to attend. More infonnation about the
conference will be coming to NWCFR
members who are on the e-mail listserv.
To get on the listserv, e-mail Suzanne
Smith at smithsu@vancouver.wsu.edu.
Calls for tabletop and oral presentations
will be sent to the listserv. The deadline
to submit will be March 1, 2000.
fM
Students/New Professionals
n case you missed the conference in
Irvine, CAin November, the Development Fomm Panel on Steps to Getting Tenure was great! The S/NP Skills
Exchange was well attended and included
lively discussions on many topics related
to professional development. Thanks to
all presenters!
I
No time to rest on our laurels, however.
The deadline for NCFR's Y2K conference
is just around the comer. As always, as
S/NPs, we sponsor presentations that
focus on professional development for
teachers, researchers, and practitioners.
The deadline for proposals is Febmmy I,
33
2000 (proposals
must be postmarked
by this date). The
theme for the conference will focus on
continuity and change in families, and the
location will be Mi1meapolis, MN.
Minneapolis is the home ofNCFR's head
office as well as the site of the largest
mall in the United States: Mall of
America! So plan to join us in Mim1eapolis for NCFR's 62nd annual conference,
November 8-13, 2000. Please feel free to
contact me at: hrose@mail.wsu.edu.
Hilary A. Rose
S/NP Representative
DECEMBER 1999
�Texas Council on Family Relations
he Texas Cmmcil on Family Relations (T.C.F.R.) 2000 Almual Conference theme is "Fathering: Its
Place in the New Century." Neil Tift,
Director of the National Resource Center
at the National Fatherhood Initiative (NFI)
in Gaithersburg, Maryland, will be the
keynote speaker for the conference in
Fort Worth on Ap1il 6-7, 2000. He will
address the topic of fathering today and
into the future. During a research update
he will discuss his program and the resources available to fathers through NFL
The Post Conference, on Saturday, April
8, 2000, will feature the "Reaching out to
T
Fathers Workshop" co-sponsored by the
Texas Agricultural Extension Service.
Facilitators and trainers will be provided
with needed information to adapt and
design programs for all-male audiences.
Dr. Richard Sale, CFLE, (254) 9689726, Sale@tarleton.edu, is Program
Vice-President.
Anew student chapter ofT.C.F.R. is being
established in Lubbock, The Lubbock
Regional Chapter. Dr. Miriam Mulsow,
professor of Human Development and
Family Sh1dies at Texas Tech, is advisor to
the organization and a board member
~IC.F.~
~
The National Council on
Family Relations,
its Sections and Affiliate
Councils present
several awards to recognize
excellence in the
Family field.
Deadline for applications is
AprillS, 2000.
Michigan Council on Family Relations
he Michigan Council on Family
Relations held a very successful
annual meeting in Detroit on May
14. The meeting consisted of several
workshops focused on the theme,
"Strengthening Families: Entering the
21st Cenh1ry." Workshop leaders included practitioners from several agencies and organizations, including the legal
community, social services, churches, the
Urban League, Head Start, and other
educational programs. Renita Stultz,
CFLE, of the Macomb County Extension
Service is the incoming president.
The latest issue of Michigan Family
Review, "Intergenerational Relationships
in Today's Families: Changing and Continuity," is now available. It includes ar-
PRE-CONFERENCE
continued from page 33
The second major focus involves expanding, encouraging, and strengthening our
affiliates, and especially our student
affiliates. A Task Force on Student Affiliates, chaired by Jackie Fitzpatrick and
including several student representatives,
will be developing a set of reconunendations for the AC to consider <!dopting at
the 2000 conference. Nurturing our shldents in their professional development is
the lifeblood and the fuh1re ofNCFR. The
Association of Councils is the chmmel by
which we can do this.
Look for more infonnation later!
Lane H. Powell, CFLE
President, Association of Councils
NCFR REPORT
See slipsheet to this
REPORT for award
categories, criteria, and
a Nomination Form.
ticles that present principles, concepts,
values, frameworks, and program suggestions that can apply to various
kinds of family stmch1res.
Announcing •••
These include families where
young adults retum home and
NCFR's First Annual Public
where grandparents are raising
Policy Conference in
grandchildren, as well as more
traditional families. Authors,
Washington, DC
representing several universiApril13-14, 2000
ties around the country, include Tim Brubaker, CFLE,
Conference begins Noon, Thursday; ends 5:00 pm, Friday
Ellie Brubaker, Barbara
Holiday Inn Capitol at Smithsonian, Washington, DC
Ames, Elizabeth Seagull,
Linda Dannison, CFLE,
Focus on:
Andrea Smith, Tanuny
1
1
Vacha-Haase, Mary Jane Van
I+ Formulation of NCFR's Public Policy Issues
I
Meter, Barbara Hirshorn, and
I+ Convening the Public Policy Committee
I
Katia Goldfarb.
: + Role of NCFR Membership in the Public Policy
:
r-----------------,
Reduced prices are available
for quantity orders, as well as
for past issues. Past issues
focus on: Fathers and Families, From Welfare to Wellbeing, and Attacking Violence.
The joumal has been very
useful for classroom use. For
infonnation on prices contact
Dr. Anne Soderman, incoming co-editor at e-mail:
sodennan@pilot.msu.edu or
by mail at: Dept. of Family
and Child Ecology, Michigan
State University, East Lansing,
MI 48824. Dr. Libby Blume,
CFLE, of University of Detroit-Mercy is also co-editor.
Ann succeeds Margaret
Bubolz as co-editor.
~
34
I Arena
1• Plenary Sessions
1•
1•
I+
I+
1
1
1
1
I
I
Interactive Educational Workshops
Congressional and Administration Speakers
Reception on the Hill
Visits to Congressional Delegations
L--------
--~
Registration Fee: $150
Sleeping rooms at the Holiday Inn Capitol at
Smithsonian: $149
For registration and hotel forms contact NCFR, 3989
Central Ave. NE, #550, Minneapolis, MN 55421.
Toll free: 888-781-9331 +Fa:..:: 612-781-9348
E-mail: ncfr3989@ncfr.org + Website: www.ncfr.org
DECEMBER 199
�OWA STATE UNIVERSITY-THE
THE DEPARTMENT OF HUMAN
DEVELOPMENT AND FAMILY
STUDIES is seeking applicants for an assistant professor, tenure-h·ack position in Family
Studies to begin August 2000. Required:
doctorate in family studies, family sociology,
social work, or related field; research experience with emphasis on the interaction of family
and cmrununity dynamics; expertise in family
theory and family interaction dynamics. Highly
desirable: experience with community-based
programs for families; a record of publications/
exh·amural funding; competency in an area of
advanced research methodology; university
teaching experience; Certified Family Life
Educator (CFLE) or CFLE-eligible. Salary is
negotiable. Application deadline: January
14, 2000. Send ctment vita, samples of recent
publications, graduate transcript(s), application
letter addressing qualifications, and three
letters of recmrunendation to: Craig M. Allen,
Ph.D., Chair, Family Studies Search Cmrunittee, Deparhnent of Human Development and
I
Family Studies, 1086 LeBaron, Iowa State
University, Ames, IA50011-1120; PH: (515)
294-6317; FAX: (515) 294-2502; E-MAIL:
fssearch@iastate.edu. Iowa State University is
an Affmnative Action/Equal Opportunity Employer. Candidates from minority groups are
encouraged to apply. Additional infonnation
about the position is available on http://
www.fcs.iastate.edn!hdfs/
ent State University invites applications for the nine-month tenure-track
Associate Professor position in
Gerontology. The appoinhnent will be in the
School ofFamily and Consumer Studies, with
the successful applicant providing leadership to
our Interdisciplinary Graduate Program in
Gerontology. The program at Kent is unique in
that it brings together the research and teaching
expertise offaculty from diverse fields. The
following disciplines are currently represented:
Human Development and Family Studies;
Exercise Physiology; Psychology; Sociology;
Nursing; Education; Speech Pathology and
Audiology; and Recreation and Leisure Studies. We have a strong cmrunihnent to strength-
ening the program by recruiting and supporting
innovative and productive faculty in their
research and teaching endeavors.
Qualifications for the Associate Professor
position include: (1) earned doctorate in an
aging-related field (e.g., hmnan development,
fmnily studies, psychology, sociology, exercise
physiology) from an accredited university; (2)
a sustained research record in the field of aging
and success with exh·amural funding; (3)
cmrunih11ent to quality teaching at both the
graduate and undergraduate levels, demonstrated leadership and program development
experience and capacity to work effectively
with faculty and students from diverse agingrelated fields.
Review of applications will begin November
1, 1999 and continue until the position is filled.
To apply submit: ( 1) a letter indicating interest in and qualifications for the position; (2)
curriculum vitae (including a statement of
research interest and teaching experience and
(3) the names, addresses, telephone numbers
of three references to: Mary Dellmann-Jenkins,
Ph.D., 100 Nixson Hall, Kent State University,
Employment continued on next page
Today as never before families the world over address common
issues and concerns. There is an international explosion of valuable
analysis and research on topics which affect families as well as the
communities, schools, churches and professionals who serve them.
This symposium offers an ideal venue for U.S. researchers to share
expertise with international researchers and practitioners.
500 Word Proposals for: Papers, Poster Presentations and Panels
We welcome all topics relating to the family. Possible topics include:
Policy
Health
Culture
Therapy
Schools
Community
Demographics
Religion
Work
Social Welfare
Diversity
Child & Adolescent
Economics
Life Span
Development
Request details:
Academic Conferences and
Professional Programs
33rd and Holdrege Streets
Lincoln, NE 68583-9600
Phone: (402) 472-2844
Fax: (402) 472-9688
E-mail acpp1 @unl.edu
www.unl.edu/conted/acpp/
The University of Nebraska is an affirmative action/equal opportunity
institution.
NCFR REPORT
35
DECEMBER 1999
�EMPLOYMENT
continued fi'om page 35
44242, Phone: 330-672-2197, Fax 330-6722194. For more infonnation: http://
www.kent.edu/f&cs/
Northwestern University Department of
Communication Studies
he Department ofCml1111ID1ication
Studies is seeking applications for a
tenure track Assistant Professorship
that will begin in the fall of academic year
2000/2001. Applicants should have a research
and teaching specialization focused on the
interface between the family and workplace.
That focus could include but is not limited to
role conflict, close relationships on the job, the
effect of unemployment, underemployment,
downsizing and job relocation on family processes, and/or the impact of telecommuting and
mobile offices on the family. Applicants could
employ a range of empirical research methods,
including surveys, interviews, content/interaction analysis, or a secondary analysis of existing
databases. In addition to teaching courses in his
or her specific area of interest, applicants must
be able to teach undergraduate and graduate
courses in organizational and interpersonal
conummication. Hiring is contingent upon ability
to work in the United States.
T
Northwestern University is an Affinnative
Action, Equal Opportunity Employer. Women
and minorities are encouraged to apply. Consideration of applications will begin January
15, 2000 and will continue until the position is
filled. Please send a letter of application, curriculum vita and three letters of recommendation to: Michael Roloff, Search Conunittee
Chair, Department ofCmmmmication Studies,
Northwestem University, Ranis Hall, 1881
Sheridan Road, Evanston, lllinois 60208-2236.
EARLY CHILDHOOD DEVELOPMENT:
Assistant Professor, 9-month, tenure-track.
Responsibilities: undergraduate/graduate
instmction in early childhood development and
education in context offamilies, schools, and
COI11Inunities. Secure external funds for strong
program of research or program evaluation.
Advise undergraduate/graduate students. Work
with faculty in other disciplines & institutions.
Pariicipate in service to department and profession. Qualifications: Ph.D. in field with
strong emphasis on early childhood development. Early childhood care/education and/or
home visiting program experience desirable;
interest in infancy and/or special needs and/or
multicultural approaches desirable. Potential for
success in university teaching and scholarship,
including external funding. Submit letter of
NCFR REPORT
application, cmliculum vita, and three letters of
recm111nendation to Sharon Rosenkoetter,
Chair, Search Cm111nittee, Human Development & Family Sciences, Oregon State University, 322 Milam Hall, Corvallis, OR 973315102; 541-737-8529. Review of applications
will begin on February 1, 2000, but applications will be accepted tmtil the position is filled.
OSU is an AA/EO employer and has a policy
ofbeing responsive to the needs of dual-career
couples.
Assistant Professor of Rural Sociology
Department of Agricultural Economics
and Rural Sociology
College of Agricultural Sciences
The Pennsylvania State University
Position: Assistant Professor ofRural Sociology. Starting Date: March 1, 2000 or as
negotiated. Location: Depmiment of Agricultural Economics and Rural Sociology, College
of Agricultural Sciences, The Pennsylvania
State University, University Park, PA 16802.
Responsibilities: This tenure track position
has a 65% research and 35% extension education responsibility in nu·al family sociology.
The successful applicant will be expected to
develop a nationally recognized research
program that addresses critical policy areas
affecting the family. These might include the
effects of welfare refonn and welfare-to-work
programs in rmal settings as well as other
policies influencing family well-being. An
importar1t dimension is exmnining how nu·al
conummities with different resources and
capacities can develop local responses to
char1ges in federal and state policies influencing
the well-being of children, youth and families.
The extension component is expected to focus
on the effects of changes in policies on the
well-being of rural children and youth in Pem1sylvania. The incumbent is expected to cooperate with county extension staff, public and/or
private officials, and university extension and
research faculty to build an extension program
oriented toward the needs of children and
families in mral areas. The position is being
created under The Pennsylvania State
University's Children, Youth and Family Initiative. A unique strength of the position is the
opportunity for collaboration with over 250
other faculty at Pem1 State affiliated with the
Children, Youth, and Family Consortium. The
incumbent will be expected to secure external
funding in support of his/her program.
Qualifications: Ph.D. in rural social or sociology. Salary: Competitive, cmmnensurate with
background and experience. An attractive
benefits package is available.
Application: Applicants should submit a letter
36
of application, resume, graduate trm1scripts
and the names and addresses of three professional references to: Sharman Stokes, Chair,
Search Advismy Cm11Jl1ittee; Department of
Agricultural Economics and Rural Sociology;
lllKAnnsby Building; The Pennsylvania
State University; University Park, PA 16802.
Closing date for Applications: November 1,
1999 or until a qualified applicant is identified.
Perm State is committed to affinnative action,
equal opportunity and the diversity of its
workforce.
outhwest Texas State University invites
applications for a tenure track Assistan1
Associate Professor to fill a recent
retirement in the Depariment of Family and
Constm1er Sciences. Applicants should possess a doctorate in family and child development or closely related field. Responsibilities
include teaching tmdergraduate/graduate
courses in all areas offarnily and child development; conducting and publishing research;
and perfonning other services for the Department and University. Teaching, research, gran1
procurement, and administrative experience a1
highly desirable; and other professional experi
ences, including CFLE, are desirable. Submit
letter of intent outlining professional experiences, a vita, and a list of three references to
Dr. B.J. Friedman, Dept. ofFamily and Consumer Sciences, Southwest Texas State University, San Marcos, TX 78666. Phone: (51:
245-2155, FAX: (512) 245-3829, E-mail:
BF04@swt.edu. (This information may be se1
via E-mail with hard copy following.) Review
of applications will begin February 1, 2000
and continue nntil position is filled. SWT is an
AA/EOE and is a member ofTSUS. View m
Webpage at http://www.fcs.swt.edu/fcs_dept
index.htrnl.
Research- Assistant Professor(s)
University of Delaware
Individual and Family Studies
wo tenure track Assistant Professor
positions in the Depariment of Individual and Family Studies begirming
September 1, 2000. Minimum qualifications f
first position: Eamed doctorate in early childhood education, child development or relatec
field; experience in teaching and/or administr:
tion of early childhood education or early
intervention programs. We are seeking a per·
son with expertise and accomplishments in
areas such as early childhood cuniculum, chil
development, and teacher personnel prepara
tion. For the second position: Eamed docton
T
Employment continued on page .
DECEMBER 19!;
�ASSISTANT PROFESSOR and
STATE EXTENSION SPECIALIST
MONTCLAIR STATE UNIVERSITY
College of Education and Human Services • Fall 2000
The Department of Human Ecology is seeking applications for the
following tenure-track positions.
Assistant Professor (V-4). Teach undergraduate and graduate courses in
Consumer Studies and core courses in Personal & Family Management
and Senior Seminar. Advise students, conduct research and participate in
department, college and University activities. Doctorate in Consumer
Studies, Home Economics, Human Sciences, Human Ecology, Family &
Consumer Sciences, or related field. Evidence of familiarity with core
principles of Human Ecology, Home Economics, Family & Consumer
Sciences, College/University teaching and evidence of research and publications preferred.
Assistant Professor (V-6). Specialist in early childhood education.
Participate in CDA training and certification program. Candidates with
expertise in life span development, family and interpersonal dynamics
will be given preference. Supervise cooperative education and internship students. Assignment includes work in public schools through
the Center of Pedagogy, the NJ Network for Educational Renewal and
other outreach and off-campus programs. Doctorate in Early Childhood or a related area required. The candidate must have one of the
following: a degree in Home Economics/Human Ecology/Family &
Consumer Science Program, or evidence of familiarity with core principles of Home Economics/Human Ecology. College/University
teaching and evidence of research and publications preferred.
Candidates for both positions must demonstrate evidence of a commitment to education for social justice, democratic practice, critical
thinking and a diverse society.
Send separate letter and resume for each position to Leslie E.
Jenkins, Assistant Dean, Montclair State University, Box C316, V#_(NCFR) Upper Montclair, NJ 07043. (Include V# and department). The search will remain open until the position is filled.
Founded in 1908, Montclair State University serves about I 0,000
undergraduate and 3,500 graduate students with a distinguished
faculty dedicated to excellence in teaching, research and professional
achievement.
An equal opportunity/affirmative action institution.
The Ohio State University is seeking applications for
the tenure-track position of Assistant Professor,
Extension Specialist, Youth Program Management [4-H
Youth Development (75%) and the Department of
Human and Cmrununity Resource Development Extension Education (25%)].
Responsibilities: Partner with Extension professionals
(county and state) in the development and implementation of unique, cutting-edge youth development program
management initiatives. Provide leadership for 4-H
program management, impact studies, and evaluations.
Provide leadership for statewide 4-H program expansion
efforts with a focus on collaborations and partnerships.
Assist 4-H professionals working with programs and
events that focus on youth who are at risk for not
achieving their potential. Provide expertise and support
for 4-H Youth Development professionals working with
innovative delivery methods in expanding 4-H programs.
Develop and conduct a program of research and scholarly activities in Extension education with emphasis on
youth program management. Teach undergraduate and
graduate courses in Extension education with emphasis
on youth program management. Advise graduate
sh1dents in Extension education.
Associate Professor/Professor
Washington State University
Department of Human Development
Qualifications: Doctoral degree in youth/human
development, Extension education, or related fields is
required; experience in Extension education, 4-H youth
development, youth program management and/or youthat-risk programs is prefened. Demonstrated ability to
work in collaboration with diverse audiences and youth
development professionals.
Tenure track, nine-month appointment at Associate
or Full Professor rank, available August 16, 2000.
Required: Earned doctorate in family science,
family sh1dies or related area; prior to employment, associate or full professor rank. Desired:
Experience in undergraduate and graduate instruction and research in one or more of: family
processes; family public policy; family crisis,
well-being, and/or coping; related areas in family
sh1dies and/or human development; experience in
graduate advising, designing and teaching distance
education courses.
Application Procedure: Provide letter of application,
curriculum vita, and names, addresses and phone
numbers of four references. Vita should include personal
data, education, professional experience, key accomplishments in professional positions, research and special
grants, publications authored, professional organizations
and awards, papers presented and consultations.
Screening of applications will begin on December 20,
1999 and will continue until position is filled.
Submit letter of application, vita, transcripts, three
cunent letters of recommendation to: Sally
Horton, Washington State University, PO Box
646230, 411 Hulbert Hall, Pullman, WA 991646230, 509-335-9540, FAX 509-335-2808,
gosselin@wsu.edu. Screening begins December
31, 1999 and continues until filled. EEO/AAIADA.
NCFR REPORT
Applications should be sent to: Dr. Jeff King,
Assistant Director, 4-H Youth Development, Ohio State
University Extension, 2120 Fyffe Road, Room 25 Ag.
Admin. Building, Columbus, OH 43210-1067. Telephone: (614) 292-6996. Fax: (614) 292-5937.
The Ohio State University is committed to affinnative
action, equal opporhmity and diversity of its workforce.
37
DECEMBER 1999
�EMPLOYMENT
continued ji-om page 36
in fanrily studies, family sociology, psychology,
social work or related field; research interests
in human services and family policy; interests in
adult development desirable. For both positions, a record of published scholarship, university teaching, grantsmanship experience,
and ability to work in an interdisciplinary
envirom11ent and teach advanced methodology
courses are desirable. Successful applicants
will be expected to teach and advise undergraduate and graduate students; develop and
maintain an active program of research; supervise student research; be involved in College
research centers; and provide university,
professional, and conummity service. Application deadline: January 14, 2000. Applicants
should subnrit a letter expressing their interest,
a curriculum vitae, graduate transcripts, and
three letters of reference to Donald G. Unger,
Ph.D., Chair of Search Committee, Department oflndividual and Family Studies, College
of Human Resources, Education and Public
Policy, University ofDelaware, Newark, DE
19716. For more infonnation, visit
www.udel.edu/chep.
The UNIVERSITY OF DELAWARE is an
Equal Opportunity Employer which encourages applications from Minority Group Members and Women.
hild and Family DevelopmentThe University of Georgia seeks a
12-month tenure/tenure-track Depariment Head and Professor. There will be no
car1didates from within the Depariment. The
Department Head serves as administrator in
charge of instruction, research, ar1d service/
outreach prograrns including the McPhaul
children's programs and marliage and family
therapy clinic in the Department of Child and
Family Development. In addition, the Head is
responsible for cooperative relations with
other departments, institutes and centers within
and outside the College ofFamily and Consumer Sciences. More infonnation about the
depariment, college, and university can be
found at www.fcs.uga.edu/cfd. Qualifications
include: Doctorate in Human Development and
Family Sciences, or closely related area; at
least one degree and/or experience in Family
and Consumer Sciences or comparable unit is
desirable; qualified for appointment as Professor and as member of the Graduate Faculty;
accomplished in teaching and in research and/
or service/outreach including funded projects;
ability to communicate effectively with faculty,
administrators, students, and others; conm1itment to diversity in the lea111ing enviromnent.
Deadline: Applications received by December
1, 1999 are assured of consideration. Send
THE UNIVERSITY OF GEORGIA
COLLEGE OF FAMILY AND
CONSUMER SCIENCES
DEPARTMENT OF CHILD AND
FAMILY DEVELOPMENT
ssistant Professor in Child and Family
Development (nine-month, tenure
track); Emphasis in Far11ily Studies.
Teach undergraduate and graduate courses in
Child and Family Development. Develop
active research program. Seek extemal funding. Engage in University and Professional
service. Opportm1ities to participate in public
service/outreach prograrns are available.
Doctorate required in family studies or closely
related field. Emphasis on family processes
and relationships over the life span. Candidates with strong qualifications will be considered regardless of specialization. Ability and
cmmnitment to working in a multidisciplinary
program. Applications must be postmarked by
January 3, 2000. Job available August 2000.
Employment continued on next page
Institute for Social Research,
University of Michigan
Instructor
Jay Teach man,
Western Washington University
The emphasis of this course is on
hazard-rote models, in which the rote
of on event occurring varies according
to o set of explanatory variables.
Topics will include data structures, life
tables, censoring, discrete-time
methods, parametric and
non parametric models, lime varying
covoriates, and unobserved
heterogeneiiy.
DEPARTMENT OF
FAMILY RELATIONS AND
APPLIED NUTRITION
The Department of Family Relations and Applied Nutrition Invites
applications for a tenure track assistant professor position in family
relations and human development. Applicants should hold a Ph.D.
or equivalent in family sciences, marriage and family therapy, or related
field. The successful candidate will hold or be eligible for clinical
membership and approved supervisor status in the American
Association for Marriage and Family Therapy. Responsibilities include
leaching at the undergraduate and graduate level, leaching and
supervising Marriage and Family Therapy clinical training, participating
in strong MSc and Ph.D. programs in Family Relations and Human
Development (with MSC specialization in MFT) and establishing a
vigorous research program. Appointment will be as of July 1, 2000 or
as negotiated. Applications should include curriculum vilae and names
of three referees and should be submitted no later than January 31,
2000 to: Dr. Bruce Ryan, Acting Chair, Deparlinent of Family Relations
For more information on this
and other courses and
workshops contad:
and Applied Nutrition, University of Guelph, Guelph, Ontario, Canada
MtG 2W1. Telephone: (519) 824-4120, Ext. 6321; Fax: (519)7660691. More information about the Department can be found at
website: www.uoguelph.ca/FAMILY/
In accordance with Canadian Immigration requirements, priority wiU
be given to Canadian citizens and permanent residents of Canada.
T1ui appointment is subject to final budgetary approval.
The University of Guelph is committed to an emp/ayment equity
program that includes special measures to achieve diversity among its
facullyandstaff. We therefore particularly
enrourage applications from qualified
.1 ~
aboriginal· Canadians, persons with
:::;:~.members ofviSible minorities
Dr. James M. Lepkowski, Director
Summer Institute
Survey Research Center
lnsti!Ufe for Sodol Research
P.O. Box 1248
Ann Arbor, Ml48106-1248
CJTY
UNIVEDS
g<GUELPH
NCFR REPORT
letter of application, and ctmiculum vitae to:
Dr. Lym1 Hogan, Chairperson, Search Comnrittee, Dawson Hall, The Urriversity of Georgia, Athens, Georgia 30602-3622. The University of Georgia is an Equal Opportunity/
AffinnativeAction Employer.
Coil toll-free: 877/880-9389
Fox: 734!7 64-8263
Email: summers®isr.umich.edu
Website: W\Wi.isr.umich.edu/srr/sV
38
DECEMBER 1999
�EMPLOYMENT
Sh1dies under University review. The University is located close to Washington, DC and
Please send vita, letter of application, a two-page
Baltimore, MD (see University website
summary of research and teaching expe1ience/
infonn.umd.edu). The University ofMmyland
interests, samples of scholarly work (in print
is an Affinnative Action/Equal Opportunity
and/or preprint), and three letters of reference to:
Employer. Women and minority candidates are
Dr. Velma McBride Murry, Chair, Search Comparticularly encouraged to apply. For best
mittee, Department of Child and Family Develconsideration, applications should be received
opment, Dawson Hall, The
University of
by February 1, 2000. Send a letter of interest, a
Georgia, Athens, Georgia 30602-3622 (Televitae, and a list of at least three references to
phone 706/542-4831; e-mail:
Professor Nonnan Epstein, Search Committee
vmurry@fcs.uga.edu or
Chair, Department of Family Studies, University
vmuny@arches.uga.edu). The University of
of Maryland, College Park, Mmyland 20742.
Georgia is an EO/AA Employer.
continued from page 38
he Department of Family Studies at
the University of Maryland, College
Park seeks full-time senior tenure track
faculty member, effective Fall2000. We are
especially interested in candidates with a portfolio of funded research, and teaching and research
interests in areas such as etlmic minority families, at-risk populations, and family stress and
coping. Candidates must have an eamed doctorate in family studies or a related discipline, a
distinguished record of scholarly publications,
and a history of successful college teaching. The
Department offers an undergraduate Family
Studies degree, master's degree programs in
Family Studies and Marriage and Family
Therapy, and has a doctoral program in Family
Applicm1ts should forward a curriculum vita, a
statement of interest, three letters of reference,
and Wliting samples to: James S. House, Director, Survey Research Center, University of
Michigan, 1355 ISR, P.O. Box 1248, Alm
Arbor, MI 48106-1248.
Screening of applicants' materials will begin
inunediately and continue until the position is
filled.
Millsap Professorship of Family Diversity
and Multicultural Studies
ASSISTANT RESEARCH SCIENTIST
POSITION
FAMILY AND DEMOGRAPHY
PROGRAM
INSTITUTE FOR SOCIAL RESEARCH
SURVEY RESEARCH CENTER
he Survey Research Center (SRC) of
the Instihlte for Social Research (ISR)
seeks to fill a tenure-track Assistant
Research Scientist position in the area of sociology or demography and associated with the
Center's Family and Demography Program. The
successful candidate will have the following
interests and qualifications:
T
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Hargrave, Popenoe, arson, nawkins Ooms, Gov & Mrs
Keating· more than 170 marriage & relationship experts.
Train and certify to teach prac~ical, practice-expanding
programs to mclude:
PREP, PAIRS, Couple Communication, Relationship Enhancement, Divorce Busting, IMAGO, Hot Monogamy,
PREPARE, Community Marnages Policies, FOCCUS, Becoming Parents, RELATE, Reconcilable Differences, Parenting Adolescents Wisely, Seven Habits, Passionate
Marriages, Life Partners, Stepping Together, Compassion
Workshop, Connections, Focused Mediation, Mentor
Prep, Fathering Profiles & Couples Health Program.
Full-day training Institutes, Networking Lunches,
Banquets, Exhibits. 54 hours CE~ $285
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www.smartmarriages.com • 202-362·3332
FREE on-line
NCFR REPORT
gan is an Affinnative Action/Equal Opportunity
Employer.
1. Ph.D. in Sociology,
Demography, or related
fields.
2. Training, research
expe1ience, and major
substantive interests in one
or more of the following
areas: family and household; marriage and cohabitation; fertility; children
and adolescents; sibling
relationships and influences; the life course; the
transition to adulthood;
labor market participation;
and social policy.
3. A beginning record of
presentations and publications with promise of
future high quality security
products.
4. Strong promise offuture
funded resear·ch and proposal development in
relevant fields.
5. Ability to work well
with staff and with others
in the scientific community.
The University of Michi-
39
T
he Department of Human Development
and Family Sh1dies at the University of
Missomi-Columbia is recmiting for the
endowed Millsap Professorship of Family
Diversity and Multiculh1ral Sh1dies. The department has identified multiculturalism and
family diversity as its foci and seeks an individual with expertise in racial and ethnic issues
in human development and/or family studies.
The starting date for the 9-month position is
Aug. 2000. Prefe1Ted rank is advanced Associate or Full Professor. Duties include teaching
undergraduate and graduate courses; advising
undergraduate, masters and doctoral students;
conducting an active program of research;
pmiicipating in the depmiment's new Center
for Family Policy and Research; and engaging
in university and community service. Women
and minorities are especially encouraged to
apply. The Department of Human Development
and Family Studies at the University of Missouri-Columbia does not discriminate on the
basis of race, color, religion, national origin,
anceshy, sex, age, disability, stah1s as disabled
veteran or veteran of the Vietnam era, or sexual
orientation. Review of applications will begin
inunediately and will continue until the position is filled. Send a cover letter addressing
qualifications and interests, vitae, reprints, and
3 letters of reference to: Jean Ispa, Ph.D.,
Search Committee Chair; Dept. of Human
Development and Family Studies; 3 I 4 Gentry
Hall; University of Missouri-Columbia; Columbia, MO 65211. E-mail or phone questions
to: ispaj@missouri.edu, 573-882-2796.
Family Studies. The University ofNew
Mexico, College of Education invites applications for an assistant professor tenure-track
position begi1ming August 2000. Required
Qualifications: 1) eamed doctorate by the time
of appointment in family sh1dies (or highly
related area) with specialization in human
development and/or family relations; 2) evi-
Employment continued on next page
DECEMBER 1999
�Call for Papers for Special Issue Southern Communication Journal - Communication and Committed Couples
reative and innovative submissions are invited for a Southern
Communication Journal special
issue on communication and marriages or
other fonns of committed couples. Submitted manuscripts should be articlelength and meet two basic criteria: (1) be
data-based; and (2) conceptualize marriages and other committed couples as
unique, co-constructed entities, rather
than merely as a context in which interper-
sonal conununication constructs are examined. That is, in their submissions authors should recognize that there are idiosyncratic, private characteristics of marriages and other committed couples that
have no corollary in other kinds of dyads.
Especially desirable are submissions that
emphasize family development themy.
That is, although manuscripts on any topic
related to the special issue theme are
welcome, examples of especially desir-
EMPLOYMENT continued jimn page 39
deuce or potential for excellence in teaching; 3)
evidence or potential for excellence in research
and scholarship; 4) experience establishing
school and/or cmmnunity linkages; and 5)
cmmnitment to working in a multicultural,
multilingual setting with diverse leamers. For
complete infonnation regarding position qualifications and job responsibilities, visit the UNM
College of Education homepage at
www.unm.edu/colleges.html. Inquiries can be
addressed to Dr. Virginia Shipman, Search
Coordinator, College of Education, Dean's
Office, University ofNew Mexico, Albuquerque, NM 87131-123l.Please refer to JR
#4921. For best consideration, complete
applications must be received by 4:00PM
(MST) on January 6, 2000. UNM is an
Affinmtive Action, Equal Opportunity Employer and Educator.
F
aculty Position- Assistant Professor
of Child and Family Studies. The
Department of Child and Family Studies at Weber State University invites applications for a tenure track faculty teaching position
beginning August 2000.
Required Criteria: A Ph.D. in Family Science, Family and Consumer Science or closely
related field and demonstrated excellence in
teaching undergraduate students (a strong
A.B.D. candidate may be considered). The
candidate must be able to support the Department Curriculum designed around the NCFR
Substance Areas and Criteria for becoming a
Certified Family Life Educator; with an emphasis in Family Resource Management.
Preferred Criteria: A Certified Family Life
NCFR REPORT
Educator is prefeued, with a background in
Family Resource Management and Human
Development. Related conununity service and
work experience is desired. Candidates should
also have an interest in research and involving
students in research; plus a track record of
scholarly production and publication. The
department values diversity and seeks a candidate with multi-cultural/etlmic minority background or experience. Women and minorities
are encouraged to apply.
Duties/Responsibilities: The position includes a fi.Jll time Ulldergraduate teaching load
of 12 hrs. per semester, with expectations of
publication, student advisement, and participation in departmental and campus cmmnittees.
Salary cmmnensurate with qualifications and
expe1ience.
Review of applications begins January 17,
2000. Position will remain open until filled.
Candidates must submit a letter of application
addressing the position criteria, cuuent vita,
graduate transcript; plus the names, addresses
and phone numbers of three references to:
Child and Family Studies Search Committee,
c/o Human Resources, Weber State University,
1016 University Circle, Ogden, UT 844081016.
AA/EOE. Inquiries can be made to 801-6267151 or visit our website at http://
www.weber.edu/chfam/
Weber State University serves 14,500 students
and is located at the base of the Wasatch
Mountains in Ogden, Utah, 35 miles north of
Salt Lake City-Home of the 2002 Winter
Olympics. Cultural and recreational activities,
plus the scenic National Parks of the West fM
are within easy access.
40
able topics include: studies that examine
mauiages/couples in a particular couple/
family life cycle stage such as early marriage, mid-life, or later life; longih1dinal
sh1dies of couples across several life
cycle stages; research on couples' communication during transitions between
life cycles stages. The guest editor invites
questions, including queries about the
suitability of a particular manuscript for
submission to the special issue.
Submissions must be postmarked on or
before January 8, 2000. Include an email address for each author. Manuscripts
must comply with the "Notice to Contributors" in SCJ published in the most
recent issue, except that five (5) copies
should be submitted to:
Gail G. Whitchurch, Associate Professor
Guest Editor, SCJ
Communication Shtdies Department
309 Cavanaugh Hall
425 North University Blvd.
Indiana University-Purdue University
Indianapolis (IUPUI)
Indianapolis, IN 46202-5140
317-278-1155 (campus office/voice mail)
whig@iupui.edu (e-mail)
fM
Call for Papers
Building Family Strengths International Symposium, May 10-12,
2000, University of Nebraska-Lincoln. Proposals (500 words) due
January 15, 2000. All topics relating
to the well-being of families worldwide are relevant. Examples include
policy, therapy, demographics, social
welfare, economics, health, schools,
religion, diversity, life span, culture,
cmmnunity, work, and child and adolescent development. Contact Academic Conferences and Professional
Programs, 156 NCCE, 33rd and
Holdrege Streets, Lincoln, NE
68583-9600, 402-472-2844,
http://www.unl.edu/conted/acpp/,
e-mail: acppl@unl.edu.
DECEMBER 1999
�Award Announcement and Call for Nominations 2000
The Gimbel Child and Family Scholars Award Program
Scholarship and Service
Awards for Individual Efforts in
Promoting Racial, Ethnic, and
Religious Understanding
to prosper in the next milletmium than
respecting and appreciating the cultural
mosaic that is this countiy is of vital
importance.
he Gimbel Foundation of New
York, The Journal ofPrimmy
Prevention, and Child and Family
Agency of Southeastem Connecticut are
pleased to announce the 2000 Gimbel
Awards Program to recognize the academic and individual efforts of scholars
and practitioners developing interventions
for children, adolescents, and their families that promote emotional and physical
health and prevent emotional and physical
distress.
The objectives of this award are to facilitate cooperation among honored scholars
and practitioners in the area chosen for
study, to foster the interdisciplinmy study
of that issue, to facilitate the design of
promising multi-disciplinmy projects to
improve the effectiveness of interventions related to that issue, and to increase
understanding of the issue in professional
and public policy making circles.
For the year 2000, the program seeks to
identify individuals who are encouraging
young people to understand and embrace
the racial, ethnic, and religious diversity
found in the United States. If this nation is
Call for Papers
Michigan Family
Review - Families in the
New Millennium
he next issue of Michigan Family
Review will be dedicated to articles dealing with changes, challenges, and opportunities that we can expect families to face in the next century.
Topics such as gender roles and relationships, child bearing and parenting, implications of new technologies and medical
developments, changes in work, and moral
and ethical dilemmas are welcome. Theoretical and philosophical papers as well as
research or practice based articles will be
welcome. Implications for practitioners
should be emphasized. Atiicles are welcome from all areas of the country. Manuscripts will be peer-reviewed. For manuscript guidelines contact Dr. Anne Soderman, Family and Child Ecology, Michigan
State University, East Lansing, MI 48824;
e-mail: sodennan@pilot.msu.edu; phone:
517-355-1895.
Submissions are due February 1, 2000.
(This is an extension of date originally
announced.) Send 4 copies of article to t~~
Dr. Sodennan.
lliJ
NCFR REPORT
pectation that recipients will participate
in two intensive educational reu·eats and a
one-day symposium. Honored scholars
are expected to contribute to a special
edited volume in the Child and Family
Agency's book series Issues in
Children s and Families' Lives. Recipients also agree to collaborate in the possible design and preparation of a model
demonstration project.
Criteria for selection is based on the
individual's scholarly or programmatic
contribution to the field of interest selected for that year. A distinguished panel
of judges will choose six recipients.
Honored individuals will be provided with
travel expenses and a timepiece for their
efforts. Fmiher information may be obtained by writing Thomas Gullotta,
Gimbel Child and Family Scholar Program Committee, 255 Hempstead Street,
New London, CT 06320 or by calling
Judy Lovelace at 860-443-2896, ext.
1403/860-442-5909 (fax);
tpg@cfapress.org (e-mail).
Conditions of the award include the ex-
Nominations are due January 1, 2000.
fm
XXXVIIth International CFR-Seminar in Uppsala
June 20-23, 2000
Theoretical and Methodological Issues in Cross-Cultural Family Studies
This seminar is co-organized with the Nordic Family Research Network (NFRN).
Sessions will be held at Depamnent of Sociology, Thunbergsvagen 3a, Uppsala,
and lodging will be at Intemationella Kursgarden, Ovre Slottsgatan I, Uppsala. The
two sites are situated in central Uppsala, on each side of the English Park, a
distance of five minutes walk.
Program
Anival in the aftemoon and welcome dinner with
Tuesday June 20
official opening
Wednesday June 21 Sessions
Thursday June 22
Sessions
Friday June 23
Sessions before lunch, the seminar closes at lunch. This
day is also Midsummer Eve which means that there are
celebrations in honor of the shortest night of the year the night between the 23rd and the 24th.
Registration
Registration fee: USD 300.- (non-members 350.-), which includes lodging,
breakfasts, lunches and dinners as well as organization of the seminar. The
organizer has some resources to financially support colleagues from problematic
cunency countries as well as some students.
Abstracts are due to be in the organizer's office no later than December I, 1999,
and feed back will be given before the end of the year. Regisu·ation fees are due
March I, 2000.
Those who want to anive earlier and/or stay longer and want suppmi in finding
lodging in Uppsala, please infonn the organizer a reasonable time in advance.
Organizer: Jan Trost, Uppsala University, Department of Sociology, P. 0. Box 821,
S-75108 Uppsala, Sweden. E-mail: jan.trost@soc.uu.se, ~ +46 18 471 11 88
(home +46 18 54 60 67), fax +46 18 471 11 70.
41
DECEMBER 1999
�415-974-0300; E-mail: info@asa.asaging.org; Website:
www.asaging.org
Growing Strong Families: Celebrating Relationships,
27th ammal conference of the Texas Association for Marriage and Family Therapy, Inc. (TAMFT), Adam's Mark
Hotel, Houston, TX. For registration information contact:
TAMFT 2000 Conference, 1033 La Posada Dr., Ste. 220,
Austin, TX 78752-3880. Phone: 512-454-8626 or 800270-4320; Fax: 512-454-3036; E-mail:
tamft@assnmgmt.com; Website: www.txmft.org
Feminist Expo 2000 for Women's Empowerment, 2nd
Feminist Exposition, sponsored by the Feminist Majority
Foundation, Baltimore Convention Center, Baltimore, MD.
For infonnation, contact: Feminist Majority Foundation,
1600 Wilson Blvd., Ste. 801, Arlington, VA 22209. Phone:
703-522-2214; Fax: 703-522-2219; E-mail:
femmaj@feminist.org; Website: www.feminist.org
8th Annual Conference on Parent Education (Feb. 1819), pre-conference on Core Knowledge and Skills for
Working with Families (Feb. 17), University of North .
Texas, Denton, TX. For more infonnation contact: Anmnta
Jacobson, 940-369-7246; E-mail:
jacobson@coefs.coe.unt.edu or hirschy@coefs.coe.unt.edu;
Website: www.unt.edu/cpe
"'
PTSD: Critical Issues in Theory and Practice, Radisson
Hotel, Santa Barbara, CA. This conference focuses on the
current clinical research and practice of understanding and
treating Post-Traumatic Stress Disorders (PTSD). For registration information, contact Sage Publications, 2455 Teller
Rd., Thousand Oaks, CA 91320. Phone: 805-499-0721, ext.
7160; Fax: 805-499-0871; Website: www.sagepub.com
Working and Family: Expanding the Horizons, presented
by The Business and Professional Women's Founda~ion .
(BPW), The Center for Working Families at the Umvers1ty
of Califomia, Berkeley, and the Sloan Foundation, Cathedral
Hill Hotel, San Francisco, CA. For more infonnation contact: BPW, Meetings Dept., 2012 Massachusetts Ave., NW,
Washington, DC 20036. Phone: 202-293-11 00; Fax: 202861-0298; Website: www.bpwusa.org
0
0
Putting Family Support on the Map for the Next Century,
Family Resource Coalition of America, Chicago Downtown
Marriott, Chicago, IL. Contact: FRCA, 20 N. Wacker Dr.,
Ste. 1100, Chicago, IL 60606. Phone: 312-338-0900; Fax:
312-338-1522; Website: www.frca.org
What's Hot? Complexity and Change in Sexuality and
Sexual Health , 22nd Annual Guelph Conference and Training
.
Institute on Sexuality, University of Guelph, Guelph, Ontano,
Canada. Main conference: Jtme 19-20; Intensive Sex
Therapy Training Institute: June 12-16; Sexual ~ttitudes
Reassessment Weekend: June 17-18. For further mfonnation, contact: Office of Open Leaming, Univ. of Guelph,
Guelph, Ontario NIG 2Wl. Phone: 519-767-5000; Fax:
519-767 -1114; E-mail: info@openlmg.uoguelph.ca;
Website: www.open.uoguelph.ca/sexconf
Aim Higher Towards ... Opportunity, Caring, Knowledge,
Research, 23rd Annual Perinatal Nurses Conference,
Greater New York March of Dimes Nurse Advisory Committee The New York Marriott Marquis, New York, NY. For
additi~nal infonnation, contact: Nilda Perez, CSW, Program
Manager, Greater New York March of Dimes, 233 Park Ave.
S, 3rd Fir., New York, NY 10003. Phone: 212-353-2371;
Fax: 212-254-3518.
Theoretical and Methodological Issues in Cross-Cultural
Family Studies, 37th Intemational CFR Seminar, Dept. o~
Sociology, Uppsala University, Uppsala, Sweden. For additional information, contact: Jan Trost, Seminar Organizer,
Uppsala Univ., Dept. of Sociology, P.O. Box 821, S-75108
Uppsala, Sweden. Phone: +46 18 471 11 88; Fax: +46 18
471 11 70; E-mail: jan.trost@soc.uu.se
Passages Through Time: Facing Change, Finding Meaning, 46th Ammal Meeting, American Society on Aging,
Town & Country Hotel & Convention Center, San Diego,
CA. For further infonnation, phone 415-974-9600; Fax:
NCFR REPORT
Movilza Beyond Our Assumptions of Education and Learning: A New Role for Families, Schools & Commumtte~,
annual intemational conference sponsored by the Association for Childhood Education Intemational (ACEI), Hyatt
Regency Baltimore Hotel, Baltimore, MD. For complete
conference infonnation contact: Marilyn Gardner or Kathy
Rickard, ACEI, 17904 Georgia Ave., Ste. 215, Olney, MD
20832. Phone: 301-570-2111 or 800-423-3563; Fax: 301570-2212; E-mail: aceimc@aol.com
NEXTNCFRREPORTDEADLINE
IS FEBRUARY 1, 2000.
42
DECEMBER 1999
�1999 ANNUAL CONFERENCE PICTURES
Lou Bellamy, left, Founder of the Penumbra Theatre, St. Paul, MN, and Associate
ProfessOl; Theater and Dance Dept., University ofMinnesota, meets with NCFR
President Bill Doherty. D1: Bellamy splenary session addressed "The Necessity of
Black Theater in a Healthy Artistic and Social Environment. "
Osborne Award recipient, Carol Darling, CFLE (center) is pictured with Gladys
Hildreth (at left), chair of the Osborne Award committee, and Margaret Bubolz,
Carol:~ mentor and advisor when she received her doctorate.
2000 Summer Institute
Family Research Consortium Ill - "Race and Ethnicity in America"
he Family Research Consortium
III, supported by the National
Institute of Mental Health, will
sponsor a 2000 Summer Institute for
family researchers. The Institute will
provide a forum for dissemination, evaluation, and discussion of important new
developments in theory and research
design, methods and analysis in the field
of family research. The Institute accepts a
limited number of both junior and senior
researchers as participants and allows for
intellectual exchange among participants
and presenters in addition to the more
structured program of high quality presentations. Minority family researchers
are particularly encouraged to participate.
The theme of the 2000 Summer Institute
will be "Race and Ethnicity in America."
The Institute will be held at the Keystone
Resort and Conference Center in Keystone, Colorado, from June 22-25, 2000.
The Co-chairs of the 2000 Institute are
David Takeuchi and Donald Hernandez.
Access NCFR's website at: www.ncfr.org
To access Members Only:
user: legacy
password: burgess
To reach NCFR headquarters:
ncfr3989@ncfr.org
To reach specific staff members:
Michael Benjamin
mbenjamin@ncfr.org
Dawn Cassidy
cassidyd@ncfr.org
Nikki Cmmingham
nikki@ncfr.org
NCFR REPORT
Doris Hareland
harelandd@ncfr.org
John Pepper
pepperw@ncfr.org
Jeanne Ryberg
jryberg@ncfr.org
Abbey Showalter
abbey@ncfr.org
Cindy Winter
wintersc@ncfr.org
To reach NCFR President
Steve Jorgensen:
sjorgen@comp.uark.edu
43
Deadline for applying is Friday, March
24, 2000. For applications and/or more
information contact: Dee Frisque, Center
for Human Development and Family Research in Diverse Contexts, The Pennsylvania State University, I 06 Henderson
Building, University Park, PA 168026504; Phone: 814-863-71 06; Fax: 814[nj
863-7109; E-mail: dmrlO@psu.edu.
Head Start
Conference
Head Start's 5th National Research
Conference, Developmental and Contextual Transitions of Children and Families: Implications for Research, Policy,
and Practice, will be held June 28-July
1, 2000, at the Hyatt Regency Washington
on Capitol Hill, Washington, DC. The
central theme of the conference focuses
on the continuities and transitions of early
development and the contexts in which
they occur.
For inquiries about program content,
contact: Dr. Faith Lamb-Parker,
Project Director, 212-304-5251 orEmail: flpl@columbia.edu. For infonnation
on registration, contact: Bethany Chirico,
Ellsworth Associates, 703-82 I -3090,
ext. 233; Fax: 703-356-0472;
E-mail: bchirico@eainet.com. Websites:
http://cpmcnet.columbia.edu/dept/sph/
popfam/headstartconf.html or
www.acf.dhhs.gov/prognns/hsb.
DECEMBER 1999
�
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1999 Confer nee PI nary
Speakers
e gather in beautiful Irvine,
Califor-nia, our last NCFR meeting of this amazing decade, for an
intense time of study, reflection, and renewal. The major speakers will offer new
insights about places and experiences
affecting family lives and help us strategize
effective ways to serve the diverse people
we live with, study, and help in our personal and professional lives. Our three plenaries share several commonalities: all are
truly interdisciplinary, all have devoted
their lives to the study of diversity, and all
are committed humanitarians and activists.
Together, they'll share enriching stories
about borders, boundm·ies, and beacons in
family life.
W
others' lives, thereby contemplating their
own. Her views about the intermingling of
private and public are grounded in the intellectual study of English and Anthropology
and brought closer to home in the orbit of
worldly parents and their famous contemporaries. She will engage us with unique stories
from her new book, Full Circles/Overlapping
Lives, another
critical analysis of
society and
humanity to add
to her collection
of books that
have commanded
the attention of
countless readers.
Anticipating the centennial of her mother's
birth in the yem· 200 I, Professor Mary
Catherine Bateson, the daughter of
Margaret Mead
and Gregory
Bateson, will
shm·e memories
of her parents'
legacies and the
challenges of
composing a life
when one is
blessed with
accomplished
pm·ents.
Professor
MARY CATHERINE
Bateson is a
BATESON, PH.D.
gifted author in
her own right. Her portrayals of diverse
human beings across time and space allow
readers to wander through the details of
Professor and
Artistic Director
of the Penumbra
PROF. LOUIS BELLAMY
Theatre Company
of St. Paul,
Minnesota, Louis Richard Bellamy integrates culture, history, and society in his
dramatic interpretations of Black life in the
United States. Professor Bellamy is an award
winning educator, director, and actor. He will
grace the stage with a moving portrayal of
the historic struggles of African Americans
for full citizenship, weaving in a major
transition of the 20th century-the migration
of Black families from the rural south to the
urban north in an often compromised search
for equal opportunities. One of the richest
resources available to us is the flourishing
of emotion, spirit, mt, and activism that
has emerged from the oppressions and triumphs of Black families in North America.
�19
ar
CFR will honor outstanding
contributions in the family field
dming the annual conference in
Irvine, California. The Awards Ceremony will
be held on Saturday, November 13, 4:00p.m.,
prior to President Bill Doherty's address.
Distinguished
Service to Families Award
The American Refugee Committee
(Worldwide) has been selected to receive
the 1999 NCFR Distinguished Service to
Families Award. The award of $1 ,000 will
be presented to ARC President and CEO
Anthony J. Kozlowski.
Established by NCFR in 1973, the DSF
award is presented biannually to recognize
those who exert outstanding leadership
towmd the cause of better family living.
The Award is granted to an organization or
individual who has had a strong impact
upon the quality of family life at the
REPORT
of The National Council on
Family Relations
Mission Statement for the Report:
REPORT, the quarterly newsletter ofthe
National Council on Family Relations,
strives to provide tin1ely, usefid ill/ormation
to help members succeed in their roles as
researchers, educators. and practitioners.
Articles addressfamily.field issues,
programs and trends, including association news.
Editor: Michael L. Benjamin
Managing Editor: Doris A. I-Iareland
NCFR Report is published quarterly by
the National Council on Family Relations,
3989 Central Ave. N.E., Suite 550,
Minneapolis, MN 55421.
Third class postage pem1it.
Report subscription rate: $20.00 per
year; $5.00 per copy. For bulk rates, call
888-781-9331, ext. 23. Annual membership dues include newsletter subscription.
$15.00 U.S. postage per year postpaid at
individual rate.
NEWS DEADLINES: February 1 for
March issue; May 1 for June issue;
August 1 for September issue; November 1
for December issue.
Ill
rs
I
international, national, state, or local level.
The winners provide leadership and/or
service in action programs at the cutting
edge in society. Recipients more often
represent the future rather than the past and
responsibly pioneer with new programs,
ideas, and policies.
For more than 20 yems, the American
Refugee Committee has worked tirelessly
for the survival, health and well-being of
refugees and displaced persons affected by
war. "Their representatives have
been on the scene in the places
most of us have just read about in
the papers," commented award
committee co-chair Lane Powell.
"Kosovo, Boznia-Herzegovina,
Croatia, Guinea, Rwanda, Somalia,
the Sudan, Cambodia, Thailand, are
just a few of the areas where they
have recently of-fered service to
families in times of greatest crisis."
The Ernest G. Osborne Award is given in
recognition of individuals who have shown
distinguished careers as outstanding teachers in the family field. The award is given
in memory of Ernest G. Osborne, threetime president of NCFR, and an outstanding family life educator. He was wellknown for his innovative teaching methods,
and his mentoring to all his students. Some
of his students have become active NCFR
members and gone on to
The nonprofit, nonsectarian organization has a four-pronged approach
CAROL DARLING,
VELMA MCBRIDE
to service: health care, education,
PH.D.,CFLE
MURRY, PH.D.
sanitation, and shelter. More than
become presidents of our organization.
1,000 employees, mostly refugee and local
Criteria for the award include the uniqueworkers who are supervised and trained by
ness of the candidates' contributions to
volunteer expatriate specialists, work in
teaching family relations; innovation and
Asia, Africa and Europe to assist families
creativity in teaching; commitment to
in rebuilding their lives and communities.
teaching; and respect among colleagues and
While continually striving to respect
students for teaching excellence.
diverse cultures and values, the ARC has
assisted more than I million refugees Both of this year's winners are excellent
most of them women and children- in
examples in their creative teaching abilities.
reclaiming productive lives of dignity,
They are active members of NCFR; both
purpose and self-sufficiency. Mr.
have served on the Board of Directors
Kozlowski will be available to talk to
and many committees. The $1 ,000 Award
interested persons about the work of ARC,
will be shared.
following the Saturday awards presentation.
Darling received her M.S. from Utah State
Ernest G. Osborne Award
University and her Ph.D. fTom Michigan
State University. She was Visiting Professor
his year's recipients of the Ernest G.
and Fulbiight Scholar, Department of
Osborne Award are Carol A. DarSociology, University of Helsinki,
ling, CFLE, Professor, Department
Helsinski, Finland, and Director of GraduFamily and Child Sciences, Florida State
ate Studies and Research, Department of
University, and recently elected NCFR
Family and Child Sciences, College of
President for 2001-2003; and Velma
Human Sciences, Florida State University.
McBride Murry, Associate Professor of
Her works have appeared in: Handbook of
Child and Family Development, College of
Sexually-Related Measures, Journal of
Family and Consumer Sciences, The
Family and Consumer Sciences, Family
University of Georgia, co-director of the
Science RevieH~ Journal oj'Sex and Marital
Center for Family Research, and faculty
Therapy, Family Perspectives, Joumal of
fellow to the Institute for Behavioral
Consumer Studies and Home Economics.
Research at The University of Georgia.
Award Winners continuea on puc,<: 43
NCFR REPORT
2
SEPTEMBER 1999
�Family Policy dvocacy
or Education: hich
pproach is Best for You?
by Karen Bogenschneider, Board Member of the National Council on Family Relations
ood ideas are powerful political
tools (Smith, 1991 ). Research and
experience produce good ideas.
The members ofNCFR include scholars
who produce research, and practitioners
who generate, through experience and
observation, knowledge that is difficult to
acquire in other ways. How can we connect
this research and knowledge with
policymaking? Whether we are writing for
policymakers, testifying at hearings, or
contacting our elected representatives, we
can approach these policy efforts either
fi·om an advocacy or an educational
perspective. How do we know which
approach is best in our particular situation?
The NCFR Board has been considering this
question these past couple months. Our
deliberations have obvious relevance for
the role of the organization in the policy
arena, but may have relevance for each of
us as family professionals as well.
series of "Hot Topics" teleconferences that
our new Executive Director, Michael
Benjamin, is initiating Friday, October 1, at
11 a.m. CST (see his column for details). I
would like to invite you to join us for that
first teleconference or for a similar
discussion at the Family Policy Section
Meeting and Open Forum of the Public
Policy Committee on Sunday evening,
November 14, at the NCFRAnnual
Conference. The meeting nms from 6:45 to
9:00p.m., with the 45 to 60 minute
discussion of policy approaches scheduled
at 6:45p.m.
"HOT TOPICS"
TELECONFERENCES
Family Policy Advocacy
or Education:
Which Approach?
Featuring Karen Bogenschneider
OCTOBER 1, 1999
11:00 a.m. CDT
+
For registration and service
fee infonnation, visit our Website at
www.ncfr.org
or contact Michael L. Benjamin at
mbenjamin@ncfr.org.
polic families (Barrow, 1994;
Bogenschneider, 1995; Nye & McDonald,
1979). Put simply, the intent of the advocate is to persuade.
In contrast, the family policy altematives
education approach does not entail lobbying for a particular policy, but rather
attempts to inform policy discourse by
clarifying the potential consequences of
various policy altematives. The family
policy educator presents research findings
objectively without relaying personal
preferences. The intent is to educate. The
value judgments and the ultimate decision
are tmsted to the democratic process, rather
than to a single person such as Plato's
philosopher king or, in this case, the expert
(Barrows, 1994; Bogenschneider, 1995).
involved in the policy arena in the first of a
Any meaningful discussion of the role of
professionals in the policy arena requires
clear definitions. Family policy advocacy
means to campaign for an under represented group or a particular policy alternative that may potentially enhance family
well-being. The advocate examines options
in light of his or her own value system
using a personal interpretation of the
scientific evidence and promotes a single
CONFERENCE SPEAKERS
cantinuedfi·am page 1
Professor Bellamy will honor NCFR with
his interpretations of historical truths
affecting those of African descent, in
- - - , particular, and
all of us, in
general.
of the United States Delegation to the UN
Conference on Human Settlements in
Istanbul, Turkey. Dr. Sotomayor brings a
wealth of experiences as advisor to such
diverse constituencies as the White House
Conference· on Aging, the Kellogg Foundation, the Pan American Health Organizaadvocacy or education.
tion, and the Governor's Commission of
Hispanic Affairs for the State of Maryland. REFERENCES
Her breadth of scholarship has not impeded BmTows, R. (1994). Public policy education.
her activist work on behalf of Hispanic
Cooperative Extension Service: North Central
children, families, and aging adults. We are Regional Publications.
fortunate that she will share her particular
Bogenschneider, K. (1995). Roles for professionals in building family policy: A case study of
expertise on Latin America with us.
I will be discussing approaches for getting
Dr. Marta
Sotomayor,
policy analyst,
author, educator,
and President of
the National
Hispanic Council on Aging,
will share her
MARTA SOTOMAYOR, expertise on
PH.D.
continuous
immigrants to the United States, families
of Hispanic origin. Dr. Sotomayor is a
world traveler, literate in English and
Spanish, and has served as a representative
Join us at the teleconference or the NCFR
conference to hear real-life examples of
how family professionals have been
involved in policy as advocates and
educators. Then, to help you sort through
which approach is best for you, join in a
discussion of the potential consequences of
getting involved in the policy arena using
state family impact seminars. Family Relations,
44(1), 5-12.
Nye, F. I., & McDonald. G. W. (1979). Family
policy research: Emergent models and some
theoretical issues. Joumal ofMarriage and the
Family, 41, 473-485.
Katherine Allen, CFLE
Smith, J. A. (1991). The idea brokers: Think
1999 Program Chair
tanks and the rise of the new policy elite. New
-----------------------------------Yodc;_Er.eeJ:>.r.es.s.----------NCFR REPORT
3
SEPTEMBER 1999
Please join us for the plenaries and the
many exciting programs offered at the 1999
Annual Conference. We look forward to
seeing you!
�The ublic ork of
uilding Family and
ommunity
oung people, parent educators, and
grass roots leaders are talking
informally to the Vice President of
the United States, the U.S. Transportation
Secretary, and other top policymakers.
Moises Perez, founder of Alianza
Dominicana, proudly tells how his community created a neighborhood gathering
place for children and families in one of the
most troubled parts of Manhattan, and
named it La Plaza. "A safe haven and a
sense of home," Perez argues has to come
first, before any community development
efforts can take root. Others share similar
stories of strengthening families by
strengthening communities. This is Family
Re-Union: a two-day policy conference that
brings together ordinary citizens and public
officials for a down-to-earth conversation
about the role of families in American
democracy.
featured an array of
grassroots effmis, from
scrappy neighborhood garden
projects to sophisticated
community mapping initiatives. While celebrating
these model programs,
Family Re-Union 8 challenged participants to look
beyond the latest success
story to address the fundamental changes needed to
sustain healthy families and
Vice President AI Gore relaxes with Family Re-Union 8 particilivable communities.
pants after a .fit!/ day ofpanels and roundtable discussions.
Recalling the words of
public institutions." We also know more
Mmiin Luther King, Jr., Gore encouraged
than ever before about "how to build social
the audience to build "beloved communities" where families are strong and autono- capital so that families and communities
can thrive," Schorr added, drawing upon
mous but inextricably bound to their
communities and to other people.
her research in Common Purpose:
Strengthening Families and Neighborhoods
Along with reflection and debate, Family
to Rebuild America. What we need now is
Begun back in 1992, this remarkable yearly Re-Union conferences have led to specific
a bolder, broader and more strategic
event is moderated by Vice President AI
policy development. The expansion of the
blueprint, Schorr concluded, "to make our
Gore and Mrs. Gore and is sponsored by
Family and Medical Leave Act, the V-Chip
democracy more just, not just more
the University of Minnesota's Children,
legislation, and the BOOST-4-Kids
efficient." Ralph Smith, Vice President of
initiative to
the Annie E. Casey Foundation and longAlong with reflection and debate, Family Re-Union streamline the
time Family Re-Union supporter, added
delivery of social
this observation, "We lmow what we need
conferences have led to specific policy development. services to
- - - - - - - - - families are just a to do-and we have no shmiage of ideas,
research, and model programs-what we
Youth and Family Consortium and
few of the policies shaped by past conferneed now is leadership and will." Next
ences. This year's conference introduced
Vanderbilt University's Child and Family
year will provide yet another opportunity to
Policy Center. Held in Nashville in late
several initiatives that are likely to result in
build leadership and refine the blueprint for
substantive federal policy efforts: self-help
June, Family Re-Union focuses attention
family policy. On June 19-20, 2000, the
on issues critical to families and children- housing awards, community mapping
spotlight will shine on the theme of
resources available through a new federal
the role of men in the lives of children,
families across the generations and
family and work, families and the media,
Internet site, and an initiative to encourage
highlight ways to foster intergenerational
and families and health, have been among
universities to better prepare a riew
family and community life.
the featured themes. Each conference
generation of community builders. The
builds upon the year before in an on-going Community Building Initiative calls on
For more. information, please see the Family
effort to reinvent family policy so it more
universities to bring together schools of
Re-Union web site (www.familyrem1ion,org)
accurately reflects the challenges facing
architecture, health care, public policy,
and the web site of the University of
Minnesota's Children, Youth & Family
families and local communities. There is a
education, and city planning to strengthen
Consortium (www.cfyc.umn.edu).
limit, of course, to what government can
families and build livable neighborhoods.
do. As Gore acknowledged in his opening
hat has been learned over the
Jenny Keyser, Ph.D.
remarks, "No policy proposal can teach a
eight years of Family ReAssociate Director
child the right values. No policy conference
Union? Author and policy
University of Minnesota's Children, Youth
can create the kind of community where
analyst Lisbeth Schorr answered this
& Family Consortium
neighbors look after each other."
question by saying we know now "how
Martha Farrell Erickson, Ph.D.
This year's conference (June 21-22, 1999), closely families and communities are
Director
Family Re-Union 8: Family and Commuinteriwined. While there is no substitute for University of Minnesota's Children, Youth
nity, focused on the interconnection
a family that is crazy about a kid, family
& Family Consmiium
between families and communities and
values must also be reinforced by our other Member ofNCFR
NCFRREPORT
4
SEPTEMBER 1999
�Ill
mer1can ealth are
1n a I e f han e
Ill
Ill
by Pat Langley, Independent Policy Consultant
nyone who sh1dies the history of
medicine in America quickly leams
that there have been many effmis
to pass some form of legislation to guar·antee availability ofhealth care to all citizens.
Every effort, beginning with those of
Franklin Roosevelt's administration and
ending with the proposals of the Clinton
administTation, has failed.
American medicine in the 20th cenhuy
evolved as a product of the free enterprise
system, and every effort to make it a
service belonging to families and cmmnunities has had the
same outcome:
defeat by the
vested business
interests with the
help of confused
citizens. Yet
quality health
care in the
broadest sense
-preventive,
comprehensive
and communityPAT LANGLEY
based- is one
of the most impmiant protections for every
American family, whatever their age or
income. Sadly, the U.S. remains the only
Westem nation unable to provide that
guarantee for its families and communities.
Americans are looking for ways to create a
stronger community life and an overall
better quality oflife. Good health care is
one of the most impmiant elements of a
community's infrastmcture because it is
critical to the well-being of those who live
in the community. We know from national
polls that consumers want a solution to the
nation's health care problems. But they are
poorly prepared for the attack that inevitably ensues each time Congress or a
president draws national attention to our
broken system.
NCFR REPORT
The Need for Change
orchestrated by many of those elements in
the marketplace that most benefited from
the profits of trillion dollar health care
expendih1res. This costly attack on the
Clinton proposal appeared to stem from a
concern about choice and consumer wellbeing. In reality, it was an attack paid for by
the insurance indust1y and others to protect
profits. It succeeded.
The Clinton proposal of 1992 went forward
because many experts believed, then and
now, that the health care system desperately needed extemal constraints to bring
some discipline to care and costs. The
incentives of the fee-for-service system, it
was thought, were aligned in the wrong
direction: the more tests ordered by a
physician, the more money he made. The
Who Shapes the System?
most important question- is the patient's
ith the defeat of the Clinton
health improved?- was never asked. Nor
proposal, managed care
was health care monitored or measured by
any segment of the health care establishcompanies were accountable
only to the marketplace and not to a
ment. Client outcomes simply didn't matter
in a bottom-line world. Many observed that competitive regional structure that would
have given consumers a meaningful role in
American health care was really about
shaping a system of care. The Kaiser
business and profits and not about
- - - - · - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - system and
Good health care is one of the most important elements other nonprofit entities
have continof a community's infrastructure because it is critical
ued to offer
to the well-being ofthose who live in the community.
quality care to
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - consumers.
American health care (which until about 20
building a family and consumer- and
community-centered system of care. Many years ago was predominantly nonprofit) is
now largely market-driven. The numbers of
physicians, however, supported the need
for change.
uninsured are growing.
In the late 1980s, when major corporations
began to believe that managed care was
THE solution, they looked at the Kaiser
model and saw a nonprofit system that was
working well for consumers. It cost less to
operate and had good outcomes. The
Clinton proposal was designed to build on
this managed care approach and bring
discipline with choice to the health care
marketplace through "managed competition." At no time was nationalization of
health care ever promoted by the Clinton
administration.
A media campaign, designed to promote
public opposition and fear, ensued,
5
Meanwhile, federal and state policymakers
had learned their lesson from the attack on
the Clinton administration. Most now keep
a careful distance from any talk about
comprehensive system refonn. The new
market-driven players who have entered
health care in recent decades have added to
the problems. Many physicians are now as
unhappy as the consumers. Both have
become pawns oflarge Wall Street businesses whose primary accountability is not
to families or communities. In fact, the
problem is that American health care is now
a fully owned and operated product of Wall
Street. (See "Taking Stock ofHealth Care.")
Health Care continued on next page
SEPTEMBER 1999
�h
oes ealth are
eed to be ana ed?
by Gwen Wagstmm Halaas, MD, MBA, Director, Family Medicine Residency Program,
Institute for Medical Education, HealthPartners, St. Paul, Minnesota
his is clearly the battle cry of the
1990s: "Why does health care need
to be managed?" Government is
busy trying to respond to that battle cry
with consumer protection acts and legislated efforts to dismantle cunent processes
for managing care, as well as enabling
patients to sue health plans for malpractice
and creating mandatory extemal agencies
for making decisions about what care is
covered.
So, why does health care need to be
managed? Critics point to the existence of
HEALTH CARE
HMOs or managed care as the origin of the
problem, but is it? When the cost of care
was primarily the doctor's time in a clinic
setting, the price was affordable for most
customers. But technological advances in
treatment and the creation of new and
better dmgs have caused a dramatic rise in
the cost of providing medical care.
Paying the price
Health insurance was initially created to
Who pays the price of the health insurance
pay for hospital costs, particularly for
premiums? The first and most obvious
catastrophic events. Now insurance is an
answer is the employer. For small busiexpected benefit of employment, covering
Why Does continued on next page
the costs of hospitalization, clinic visits and
continued.fi"OJn pages
To compound today's dilemma we now
have a biomedical revolution. Many predict
that medicine of the future will fix many of
the health problems associated with old age
and even extend our lives by several
decades. Wall Street is closely watching
dozens of biomedical research companies
wmild shift the focus of our health care
services to emphasize prevention, wellness
and quality through efficiency. Instead, we
remain adrift as a nation with a rapidly
aging population and no idea how home
health care or long-term care needs will be
financed. Will we have both wonder dmgs
and millions of uninsured
families?
Family life professionals are in a position
The TV commercials that
have aired in opposition to the
administration's recent
and to influence policymakers to consider proposal to include a prescription benefit in Medicare are
the health care needs offamilies.
sponsored by the wealthy
pharmaceutical companies.
and phannaceutical companies that show
They fear that if the government requires
promise of offering new products created
competitive pricing, they will lose profits
through genetic engineering, new drugs
as prices are driven down. The ads are as
that will replace failing antibiotics and new
distorted as the "Sally and Hany" ads
treatments for fatal diseases. But who will
created by the opponents of the original
be able to afford them?
Clinton health care proposal.
Unanswered Questions
It is, as Yogi Bena might say, "deja vu all
nee again, these innovations will
over again." Family life professionals are
be profit-driven. Will families and in a position to help families become
communities be seen merely as
better infonned and to influence
markets for new products or will they be
policymakers to consider the health care
treated as important stakeholders? Will we needs of families. In the ariicles that
continue as the only Western nation with no follow, we attempt to explain some of the
national health care guidelines, no national complexities of the managed care system,
data and no national oversight to guide our to raise questions about its success and to
nation as it goes forward into the next
provide readers with further resources on
managed care topics. 11
century? It was hoped that managed care
to help families become better informed
0
NCFR REPORT
drugs. In addition to these increasing
costs, the link between medical services
and the payment for those services has
been lost. For most people, the payment for
health care benefits is invisible and there is
no expectation that patients will pay as
they leave the office.
6
Taking Stock of
Health Care
T.
he ra.p.r.· d· growth of·ma·n· .. g·ed• c.ar'e
.
.. a
has brought with ita gr;owing ..·
connection betweeilithe stock
market andhealth care organizations~
Health care services have evolved from
being delivered by physicians . a11dta1Cexemptinstitution~toawarkl:)t~driyen•
industry attracting•.:ip,vl:)l)tment.capital
from numerous sourcl:)_~: .The rrwrket
capitaliz~~()n, ortqtal sfock value, qfthe
relatively young·HIYfO illdustrygrew · ··
from a Ii~le over $3 ;b~~li()J:LigJ98,'Zt(). .
alm()St~3Qbillionitll~9'Zi .•· a11almost
twelve-fold iii~rease •. . .w1Ul~ th~ sto~k
market.as awliole grewabo1lt fo~r~fol~
to. at()talof$10.~ trillio~:Ho:vyl:)~er, Iecent
1Jealth plane.aming~aridp~~U1il}fll•.·.·...
annO!lllC~rnents indicatin~ co~panieS'
diffiClUtiesin~!lnagir;lg fA~diC!i~ cogts •·
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SEPTEMBER 1999
�WHY DOES
continuedfimn page 6
nesses, health insurance is rapidly becoming an unaffordable benefit. Large businesses are shopping for affordably priced
health plans or are becoming self-insured
and taking on
the risk directly
and avoiding
state mandates
through ERISA
(The Employee
Retirement
Income Security Act of
1974). Taxpayers foot the bill
for individuals
who qualify for
GWEN WAGSTROM
government
HALAAS, MD, MBA
programs, such
as Medicare and Medicaid. As the continuing development and use of new technology and drugs drives up health care costs,
the direct result is a rise in insurance premiums that is actuarially detennined to cover
the needs of the insured population.
Managed care has historically meant defined networks of providers that care for a
defined population. Health plans, particularly the not-for-profit health plans required
by law in some states, need to balance
quality health care services with the ability
to pay for them with the premium dollar. At
their inception, health plans did not fully
anticipate rapidly rising costs. This has
resulted in an operating loss that must be
covered by financial reserves. The only
way to stay in business is to raise premiums to keep up with the cost.
Controlling the cost
Iflegislation succeeds in removing the
tools that some health plans have used to
control cost while assuring quality, there
are two possible outcomes. One is that
costs will continue to rise at a rate that is
unaffordable for families at risk. The other
is that quality care will suffer. If the concept of networks is challenged, health
plans may once again limit coverage to
catastrophic coverage and stop paying for
preventive care. If, for example, drug formularies -which specify which drugs
may be prescribed by providers within a
plan
are removed, health insurance may
not cover drugs at all. If there is uncontrolled coverage of new technology, we
may lose the assurance of safety and
effectiveness that is the result of long-tenn
sh1dy - or we may even lose coverage of
basic health care benefits for many who
are now covered.
Managed Care
Maneuvering
The docs - not all, but many detest managed care for undercutting
their prerogatives and income. They'd
be happy to see the industry regulated
.... But employers who pay for
employee health insurance support
aggressive managed care because it
cuts their costs. The insurance
indushy, which has morphed into the
managed care indushy, also opposes
serious regulation.
Washington Post editorial, August 23,
1999, A16.
Best treatment options
ne very important task for families
as consumers is to understand the
cost effectiveness of certain medical treatments: that is, to understand how
one treatment compares in cost and longtenn outcome to other treatment options.
For certain mental health diagnoses, for
example, we may want to compare the costs
and outcomes
of drug
We must stop being angry about limited freedom of
therapy to the
choice and start valuing evidence-based best outcomes. costs and
outcomes of
insurance and/or more limitations to cover- behavioral therapy. To do this, we need to
find out whether guidelines exist for the
age of expensive services or services that
best therapeutic approach to a given condiare not absolutely medically necessary.
tion, and which provider or health system
The entrepreneurial spirit of this countly
has the best outcomes for a particular
has resulted in many medical advances
problem.
and enhanced options for medical care.
We must change our perspective. We must
Not all of those advances have resulted in
stop being angry about limited freedom of
improved health or improved access to
choice and stmi valuing evidence-based
health care services. The challenge in the
best outcomes. Once we do this, the renext decade will be to continue to support
sources spent on legislative lobbying, legal
and reward innovation while assuring that
battles and media coverage can be directed
a basic level of health care remains accestoward leaming how to create a healthier,
sible to all.
happier society. 111
In the United States, there are those who
believe that health care is a basic right for
all citizens, and those who believe that
they are entitled -without limitationto the best technological advances that
medical science has to offer. We can no
longer afford to do both. As costs increase
there will be fewer people covered by
Dr. James Pacala, associate professor of family practice at the University of Minnesota,
has designed a program to teach medical sh1dents why HMOs do the things they doand how, in some ways, they can help people stay healthier than ever before. He has
observed that when he asks medical students how they would control costs if they
worked for an HMO, "they'll come up with the same shrffmanaged-care companies
come up with."
Pacala tells shJdents that they have a choice. "They can sit around
and complain about people in three-piece suits with MBAs telling
them how to practice medicine. Or they can understand they're only
going be an advocate for good care if they understand the system."
-Minneapolis Star Tribune, August 7, 1999, section A, page 1.
NCFR REPORT
7
SEPTEMBER 1999
�Managed Care is Double-Edged
word for People of Color
by King Davis, Ph.D.
or ethnic minorities and people of
color, managed health care is both
crisis and opportunity: it has great
potential for both positive and negative
impact. To understand the impmiance of
managed health care it is important to
consider the fee-for-service system that
managed health care is replacing. The major
dilemma in fee-for-service stemmed from
the fact that doctors and hospitals had a
conflict of interest: the more extensive care
they provided, the greater their personal
and financial
retum. It was
believed by
managed health
care plans that
this dile1mna
was the primary
cause for the
major up tum in
the cost of
health care over
the past several
decades.
KING DAVIS, PH.D.
Under the fee-for-service system, many
families and individuals of color- who are
frequently uninsured or underinsuredtended to wait until their illness was too
serious to ignore before seeking medical
care, often in hospital emergency rooms,
where care was the most expensive and
discontinuous. Access to and level of
health status under the fee- for-service
system for people of color was lower than
that of other Americans. People of color
had significantly high rates of mortality and
untreated illness at every age group under
the fee-for-service system. For them, annual physicals, prenatal and well-baby
exams, and other routine preventive measures were luxmies they couldn't afford.
Managed care has the potential to offer
this population consistent access to better
care in general, continuity of health care
and a greater emphasis on prevention and
early intervention.
Effect on providers of color
But the potentially negative outcomes of
managed care for people of color are also
serious and need to be addressed if we are
NCFR REPORT
serious about ensuring equal access to
quality health care. Managed care plans,
for example, tend not to admit providers of
color to panels or provider networks. At a
time when 85 percent of those who are
insured belong to managed care plans, this
means that many minority providers may
or etlmic community. In addition, their
practice experience and outcomes may be
viewed less "positive" by the plans. This
is because these providers tend to care for
low-income people who are most likely to
have long-tenn serious illness and are,
therefore, more expensive to treat. Man-
Managed care plans tend not to admit providers of color to panels.
som1 find themselves without a practice, in
salaried jobs or suffering a major decline in
mcome.
aged health care plans favor short-tenn
acute illness that can be h·eated quickly
and least expensively.
Plans select providers according to criteria
based on modes of practice not found as
frequently in communities of color. Managed care is data driven and data dependent, and plan managers want documentation of provider practices and patient
outcomes. But many providers of color
have not yet computerized their medical
and billing records, making it impossible for
them to supply this infonnation. A pediatrician might be excluded from a panel because he can't easily provide 15 years
wmih of data about his treatment of middle
ear infections.
Access is an issue
Some providers may not be board-certified.
Because nonwhite physicians were not
permitted to take the certification exams
until the mid- 1950s, many older doctors
simply followed the "tradition" and didn't
become certified, although they are licensed to practice. Unfortunately, this
means that in the managed health care
environment they are viewed as "lessqualified."
Plans also have a bias toward group practice. But many providers of color are solo
practitioners who serve their neighborhood
King Davis, Ph.D. is professor of
public mental health policy, Virginia
Commonwealth University; William
and Camille Cosby Scholar of public
policy, Howard University; fanner
commissioner of mental health, mental
retardation and substance abuse for
the Cmmnonwealth of Virginia.
8
ccess to medical care remains
difficult for the working poormany of whom are people of color.
Some of these are people who work fulltime in a low paying service job that
doesn't offer medical coverage. Others
work two or three part-time jobs in an
effmi to make ends meet; they, too, are
without benefits. The 45 million uninsured,
working poor include a high percentage of
African Americans, Hispanics, Asian and
Pacific Islanders, and Native Americans.
Unemployed men comprise another large
group of individuals without health insurance. A high percentage of men of color
between 17 and 45 years of age fall into
this group. (Among Native American men,
for example, the unemployment rate hovers around 75 percent in some communities.) Because they are not eligible for
Medicaid, they have little access to health
care. This group tends to suffer from
chronically poor access to mental and
physical health care services.
In the past, individuals without health
insurance could receive emergency care at
inner city hospitals. These days, however,
as hospitals become "managed-care
specific," they often turn the uninsured
away in favor of paying customers. Increasingly, too, more hospitals are closing
their emergency rooms and giving preference to outpatient services to satisfy the
demands of managed care.
Managed Care continued on next page
SEPTEMBER 1999
�ealth Care Rationing is not
Abstract Concept
"Many of the concems about managed
care are related- directly or indirectlyto this fear: namely, that the economic
imperatives of managed care will result in
the inappropriate rationing of health care
services. If we accept, as we must, that our
resources are finite, then we must address
this issue openly and clearly. The very
concept of rationing is explosive. I prefer
the concept of"stewardship." How do we
best protect human life and enhance
human dignity in a situation oflimited
health resources?
MANAGED CARE
If we define rationing as the withholding of
potentially beneficial health care services
because policies and practices establish
limits on the resources available for health
care, rationing becomes an issue of
balance between the individual and the
community, both of which have acknowledged needs. Under this definition, we do
not prejudge the issue of whether a
specific proposal of rationing is good or
evil; we leave open the possibility that
withholding care may be justified by limits
on resources.
continued.fi·om page 8
The need for cultural competence
s was the case with fee-for-service health care, managed care plans often do not
provide culh1rally competent care. To begin with, clinics may not be located in
the community, and they may be hard to reach without a car. (Imagine, for example, a mother with several children in tow who must ride the bus for over an hourperhaps transferring at least once - to get to her appointment.)
Making an appointment can be difficult when the person who answers the phone speaks
only English. Some patients, in fact, may not have a phone. Those who do manage to
make an appointment and find their way to the clinic sometimes find themselves unwelcome
like the welfare mother who said the staff"made her feel dirty."
In the exam room, patients with a limited command of English may not be able to communicate their symptoms and concems. And because the majority of teaching models,
theories and research results center around white males, patients of color- especially
those with mental
illness -may be
The 45 million uninsured, working poor include a
misdiagnosed.
It's not uncomhigh percentage ofAfrican Americans, Hispanics,
mon for Native
Asian and Pacific Islanders, and Native Americans. American, Hispanic, African
American and Asian patients to receive a diagnosis of schizophrenia when they are
suffering from other fonns of mental illness or are reacting to physical illness in a way
that is peculiar to their culrure.
Other barriers include copayments for visits and prescriptions, which may be costly
enough to discourage low-income patients.
With the legalization offor-profit HMOs in the early 1980s, we have seen the slow death
of nonprofit managed care organizations. Since for-profit managed care industry makes
money by providing fewer and less costly services, plans tend to practice a fonn of "redlining," that is, they avoid patients who are difficult to treat: the poor, the elderly and
children and adults with disabilities. They also avoid populations with a real or assumed
history of poor health (for example, individuals who are assumed to have HIV). The
result is decreasing access to health care for these vulnerable populations and fewer
practice opporrunities for the health care providers who have historically provided them
with services. 1111
NCFR REPORT
9
This is not an abstract discussion. Rationing is a regular, if unacknowledged, feah1re
of both our traditional health care system
and of our system as modified by managed
care. As a nation, we ration health care by
choosing not to adopt a system of tmiversal health care coverage. As a result, nearly
40 million are uninsured and some 50
million
more
Rationing is a regular, underinsured.
unacknowledged
Govemment
feature of our
programs,
health care system.
such as
Medicare
and Medicaid, ration access to care on the
basis of age, income and family composition. Private health care is rationed by a
person's or an employer's ability and
willingness to pay. It is also rationed
through insurance marketing techniques
such as medical underwriting, preexisting
condition exclusion and redlining.
if
In my own life, as a person diagnosed with
pancreatic cancer, I could have been denied
treatment on several different grounds:
1111
1111
1111
My age- ifi had been under 65 (the
Medicare qualifying age) and ifi had
been uninsured,
The expected outcome for persons of
my age and health, or
Lack of coverage by my health plan for
a specific procedure.
I also could have been discouraged,
directly or indirectly, from seeking treatment if my physician had incentives to
infonn me of only certain treatments or
incentives to provide needed treatment for
my condition in a facility far from my home
and loved ones. In my case, however, I was
well-insured through a combination of
private coverage paid by my diocese and
Medicare that allowed me and my physicians maximum flexibility in selecting a
treatment regimen."
Excerpted from "Managing Managed Care," an
address by Joseph Cardinal Bernardin, Archbishop of Chicago, to the International Association of Catholic Medical Schools, May 13, 1996.
SEPTEMBER 1999
�roviders and ealth Plans
Clash ften ver atient are
survey of doctors and nurses
released in July 1999 sheds new
ight on how frequently health
plans and care providers disagree about
the appropriate care for patients, and what
implications those disagreements have for
patients' health.
nurses (46 percent) said that they have
exaggerated the severity of a patient's
condition to get coverage for medical care
they felt was required by the patient.
percent of doctors repOiied that within the
last two years they had exaggerated the
severity of a patient's condition.
"The detailed descriptions of denials of
"There is a great deal of inappropriate care
coverage provided by doctors underscore
in the health care system and it is the
the challenges of addressing the unique
managed care industry that has taken on
needs of individual patients within the
The Survey of Physicians and Nurses is a
the unpopular job of controlling costs, but
mles of managed care," said Dr. Karen
national random survey of 1053 doctors
this level of conflict and administrative
Donelan, assistant professor at the
and 768 nurses conducted by researchers
haggling between doctors and plans can't
Harvard School of Public Health.
at the Kaiser Family Foundation and the
be good for om health care system or for
Attitudes of physicians and nurses
Harvard School ofPublic Health. The
patients who are often caught in the
ost health care providers see
middle,"
the growing influence of mansaid
Doctors and nurses see the growing influence of managed
aged care as having primarily
Drew
negative effects on health care:
Alh11an,
care as having primarily negative effects on health care.
Ph.D.,
More than 90 percent of doctors and
survey collected quantitative infonnation
president of the Kaiser Family Foundation.
nurses said that managed care has infrom doctors and nurses about their nonBoth doctors and nurses see the growing
creased the amount of administrative
elderly patients, as well as verbatim deinfluence of managed care as having
paperwork for providers and patients; over
scriptions of patient experiences with
primarily negative effects on the health
80 percent of doctors and nurses said that
health plan decisions. The survey reports
care of this nation's families. Doctors cited
managed care has decreased their patients'
doctors' judgements on the impact of
increases in paperwork and nurses cited
ability to see medical specialists; over 80
denials; health plans or independent redecreasing quality of care as the prime
percent of doctors and nurses said manviewers might disagree with these judgedownsides. But both also gave more
aged care has decreased the amount of
ments in some cases.
positive marks to health
plans for preventive care
Almost nine out of ten doctors said that
"The detailed descriptions of denials of
and for practice guidelines
their patients have experienced health plan
denials of coverage for health services over and disease management
coverage provid~d by doctors unclcrscore
protocols they find helpful.
the last two years, with denials reported
the r:hallenges ofaddressing the unique
most frequently for prescription drugs (61
Provider reports of
percent of doctors said they see denials for patient experiences
· needs of individuti/patients within
prescriptions they order on a weekly or
he survey asked
monthly basis). Many doctors- between
the rules of managed care," said
doctors and nurses
a third and two-thirds, depending on the
for specific infonnatype of denial- also reported that (in their
Dr. Karen Donelan, assb;tant]Jrofessor at
tion about the nature and
judgement) health pIan denials of drugs,
the Harvard School ofPublic Health.
frequency of health plan
hospital stays, diagnostic tests or refenals
decisions to deny coverto specialists or mental health services
age. The most frequent
resulted in adverse health consequences
time they spent with patients; and threedenials reported by doctors were for
for their patients. About half of nurses (48
qumiers of doctors and nurses said that
prescription dmg coverage, followed by
percent) said that within the last two years
managed care has decreased the quality of
denials for diagnostic tests, overnight
care for people who are sick.
a health plan decision has resulted in a
hospital stays, referrals to specialists and
decline in health for their patients.
Many providers also see positive aspects
refenals for mental health services.
in managed care: 68 percent of the doctors
Two-thirds of doctors said they often or
Of the 48 percent of nurses who said a
sometimes intervened with plans on their
and 51 percent of nurses said that manhealth plan decision over the last two
aged care has increased the use of practice
patients' behalf. And these doctors said
guidelines and disease management
their interventions often led to a resolution years had resulted in a decline in a
patient's health, almost two-thirds said it
protocols in patient care; and 45 percent of
in the patient's favor, with plans respondhappened on a weekly or monthly basis.
ing positively 42 percent of the time, or
doctors and 42 percent of nurses said that
compromising 21 percent of the time. Close In order to get patients coverage for care
managed care has increased the likelihood
to one-half of doctors (48 percent) and
they thought was medically necessary, 48
Clash continued on next page
T
NCFR REPORT
10
SEPTEMBER 1999
�Who decides what's best for the patient?
by Marva Benjamin, ACSW
t age 87, my mother is frail and
disabled by severe arthritis.
Fiercely independent, she lives
alone in the family home in Little Rock,
Arkansas. She has had Medicare, Part A and
week with her after she came home from
the hospital. We decided then that she
needed regular help to remain safely at
home. We got a Medicaid waiver for
ElderChoice
a program designed to keep
frail elderly
individuals out
I question whether my mother would be alive today
of nursing
homes. This
her children hadn't been there to advocate for her.
entitled her to
receive MedPart B, since she was 65, and is also
Alert services, weekly homemaking and
enrolled in MediPak, a Blue Cross and Blue personal care services, and home-delivered
meals.
Shield program, which she pays for out of
Social Security.
Discharge options
Until recently, she depended on my brother,
hings went well until February
who also lived in Little Rock, for help with
1999, when my mother fell at home
grocery shopping, getting to the doctor and
. and was hospitalized on an emerother tasks. But when he died two years ago,
gency basis. At the hospital, it was detershe lost this local support. My siblings and I
mined that she had no broken bones or
are scattered across the U.S. We stay in
other injuries. When it came time to
close touch with my mother, but are unable
discharge her, I discussed the options with
to help her with the activities of daily living.
her doctors. There were three possibilities:
mother could receive medical follow-up at
When mother needed stomach surgery in
1996, each of her six adult children spent a
home from a visiting nurse and occupa-
if
CLASH
continuedfi·om page 10
that patients would get preventive services.
Many doctors also reported that health
plans sometimes acted to help them improve patient care in their own practices,
for example by providing them with innovative screening tools to help them manage
their patients' illness; helping them encourage patients to lead healthier lives; or
providing them with clinical data to help
better manage their patients' care.
n reflecting on their own experiences
in medicine, 58 percent of doctors said
spending too much time on administration and not enough time with patients was
a "great concern." Fewer said not having
enough clinical autonomy and not making
as much money as they had planned were
also "great concerns." Almost seven in ten
nurses cited inadequate staffing levels as a
"great concern." Other concerns included:
not having enough clinical autonomy,
inadequate training to cope with changes
I
NCFRREPORT
and not making as much money as they had
planned.
Most doctors (79 percent) and nurses (70
percent) said their views of managed care
were shaped primarily by their own experiences as health care providers. Fewer cited
reports from professional organizations and
the media as major influences. Nurses were
more likely than doctors to say they were
influenced a great deal by their personal
experiences as patients or by repmis from
friends and family members.
Views are not homogenous
Physicians views and experiences with
managed care varied substantially by
specialty designation and practice setting.
Specialists (71 percent) were more likely to
say that managed care had a negative
impact on patients than primary care physicians (58 percent). Doctors who contract
with multiple health plans were also more
likely than doctors who work predominantly with a single HMO to report negative effects of managed care on patients. 111
11
tiona! and physical therapists; she could be
transfened to the rehabilitation floor in the
same hospital; or she could be transfened
to a separate acute rehabilitation facility.
Before I could meet with the hospital social
worker for a discharge conference, I was
told by her doctor that my mother was
being discharged that very day. "Discharged where?" I asked. Her case manager
told me that she would be evaluated by a
physical therapist who would decide what
follow-up was needed once she went home.
After her fall, my mother couldn't walk or
even support herself by holding on to the
furniture. Neveriheless, the therapist felt
she could manage at home with follow-up
care. At that point, she needed 24-hour care
and had no
family members to provide
it. Yet the
discharge
summary said
that she was to
rehtrn home,
with "additional care to
be provided by
the family."
I insisted on
writing my own
ACSW
discharge
summary for the record. I also asked to see
the regulations on which the hospital's
discharge "plan" was based. After a
conference with the supervising social
worker, it was decided that my mother
could be transferTed to the hospital's
rehabilitation unit. Approximately two
weeks later, she was discharged to a
rehabilitation facility, and from there she
was able to go home.
MARVA BENJAMIN,
Perspectives continued on next page
by Marva Benjamin, ACSW,
Assistant Professor and Director,
Culmra1 Competence Initiative,
Georgetown University, Child
Development Center, Washington, DC.
SEPTEMBER 1999
�PERSPECTIVES
continued fimn page 11
Experience raises questions
F
or me this experience raises important questions about managed care: Who makes
the decisions? What value should be placed on access to quality medical and
support services for senior citizens? And to what extent should the family be
involved in deciding the treatment plan, as well as discharge and follow-up?
If someone hadn't been there to advocate for my mother, the original discharge "plan"
would have been a disaster. Sending my mother home was certainly more "cost-effective" in the short run, but it could have led to another fall and more serious - and
expensive- complications. More importantly, it simply did not make sense, in human
tem1s, to send her home and let her fend for herself. I question whether my mother would
be alive today if we, her children, hadn't been there to see that her needs were met and
her rights protected. Unfortunately, not all older people can count on having someone
speak up on their behalf, especially in a crisis situation. 1111
Children with special needs in managed
health care: a parent's perspective
by Carolyn S. Gleason, M.S. RD.
y perspective is based on my
personal experiences with my
medically fragile son, Aaron. I
have seen the best and the worst of both
the old fee-for-service and managed care, in
a capitated, staff-model health maintenance
organization (HMO) that relied on in-plan
providers to care for children with special
needs. This j oumey left me with many
unanswered concems about managed care,
and a detennination to help find solutions.
For years I have explored issues conceming
children with special needs in managed care
with other parents; with stakeholders,
including providers, administrators and
health policy researchers; and with colleagues in Medicaid and public health.
These issues include:
411
the economic disincentives managed
care organizations (MCOs) have to
enroll children with special needs
and to provide interdisciplinary team
evaluations and monitoring for this
population;
•
adequate training and expertise of
primary care providers;
o refenal processes and access to appropriate specialty care; and
411
processes to promote good outcomes
for children with special needs.
Aaron's story
Aaron was bam with spina bifida, severe
epilepsy, hydrocephaly and Am old Chiari
Malfonnation. Taking care of Aaron was
complicated when he was "healthy." We
NCIFR REPORT
knew that even one day of simply letting up
on his personal care could result in pressure sores, urinary tract infections or even
grand.mal seizures. Usual childhood illnesses or major changes in routine such as
a new wheelchair could bring on these
problems no matter what we did.
serious problems, we often contacted our
nurse case manager or the pediatric specialist when Aaron was ill. Although this
system may not be perfect for all families, it
worked well for us.
When Aaron was 16, our HMO stopped
refening children to the pediatric specialty
refenal center. This was a cost-cutting
measure on the part of the HMO, and to my
knowledge, was not based on any study or
consultation with experts in the care of
children with special needs.
Aaron's care was abruptly changed. The
generalist who was the primary care provider for the rest of our family became
responsible for Aaron's primary care and
any necessary referrals. He would address
Aaron's acute illnesses and any apparent
medical symptoms. He was not interested in
reviewing Aaron's history, gaining knowledge about his underlying disabilities or
working with us on preventive measures.
I was not at all comfortable with this
change, but we had no feasible alternatives
since my husband's employer selected our
health plan. Unfortunately, Aaron began
developing subtle symptoms that gradually
worsened. We began five years of struggling to understand Aaron's medical problems and make the health care system work
for him. Ultimately, everyone lost, and
Aaron died in January 1995 at the age of21.
Our family was covered through employment by a large HMO. Its policy was to
refer children with rare, complex disabilities
to the children's
specialty care
The key is to provide services in a cost-efficien-t
facility in our city.
Thus, Aaron was
way that does not promote overutilization or
followed from
unnecessary treatment. Parents of children with
birth in a neurodevelopmental
special needs can be the managed care system's
specialty clinic,
with yearly checkgreatest advocates to achieve ihis :goal.
ups by an interdisciplinary team that
Primary care provider as
included a nurse case manager, a pediatrician who specializes in neural tube defects, case manager
a pediatric rehabilitation specialist, a pediatn a managed care plan, the primary
ric urologist, a pediatric orthopedic specialcare provider functions as a case
ist, occupational and physical therapists,
manager, ensuring that preventive
and a social worker.
interventions occur and that coordinated
These checkups caught problems early and refenals for specialty care are made. With
Aaron, however, I was concemed about
kept us infonned of what to expect as
whether our primary care provider was wellAaron grew and developed. Although
Aaron did not have a separate primary care trained, experienced and knowledgeable
about his condition. The nurse case managphysician, the clinic nurses assisted with
ers and pediatric specialists who previously
routine issues such as immunizations and
managed Aaron's care had years of training
typical childhood illnesses. Because comin pediatrics and developmental disabilities,
mon illnesses, injuries or even growth
spurts always posed the threat of more
Perspectives continued on next page
I
12
SEPTEMBER 1999
�PERSPECTIVES
continued ji-om page 12
and they served only children with these
conditions. I wonied that the HMO providers would not be so experienced. I also
was concemed about whether the primary
care provider in the HMO faced pressure
to contain costs by limiting expensive
specialty refenals and procedures.
Our first primary care provider in the
HMO was excellent at the "nom1al"
preventive procedures such as immunizations and routine childhood illness management. He did not, however, understand
Aaron's complex conditions and the need
to identify potential problems early and
intervene promptly. Consequently, Aaron's
subtle symptoms- progressive weakness
and loss of voice volume- went undiagnosed for more than 18 months. In desperation, I took Aaron to his previous
pediatric specialist, who saw him on his
own time. He recognized the complications of Amold Chiari Malfom1ation
immediately and contacted the HMO with
advice that Aaron needed neurosurgery as
soon as possible.
Our second primary care provider was
also inexperienced in Aaron's conditions.
But she took the time to establish mutual
tmst with Aaron and our family, and while
she could not resolve all of our concems
about managed care, she became an ally.
She also was willing to research Aaron's
conditions and consult with specialists in
the HMOs network. She became a partner
with us and several other key providers.
These key providers included a pediah·ic
neurologist who had never operated on a
child with spina bifida, as well as a plastic
surgeon, a physical therapist, and a visiting nurse- none of whom were experienced in Aaron's conditions. Although this
made me uneasy, our family could not
afford to pay for the out-of-plan specialists
who previously cared for Aaron in the
neurodevelopmental clinic.
Special services
fter Aaron's neurosurgery, the
HMO assigned us a visiting nurse.
She came to our home regularly to
teach us how best to care for Aaron and to
monitor his recovery. When Aaron's
condition began to deteriorate, she also
helped us obtain necessary diagnostic
services with neurologists. Finally, once
we found out about Aaron's poor prognoNCFR REPORT
The role of the family
My husband and I had spent years finding and building trust in providers who had
h·aining and experience in Aaron's conditions. Once Aaron's care was h1med over to
our HMO providers, we had to leam how to navigate an entirely new system and
select new providers from the HMO's limited network.
Few of the HMO administrators or providers had expe1ience serving children with
Aaron's particular conditions. It became our responsibility to make sure everyone
understood his unique needs. We also had to ensure that those needs were met in a
health plan that focused primarily on serving healthy populations in a cost-efficient
marmer.
Some plans have special care coordinators who help families navigate an unfamiliar
managed care system. Ours did not, and I often found myselflonging for assistance
from someone who had expertise in both childhood disabilities and the managed care
system- someone who could advise us on what we needed to do to get Aaron the
care he needed and help us over the barriers we encountered. - Carolyn Gleason
sis, this visiting nurse helped our family
deal with the reality of his degenerative
condition.
Coordinating with other systems
anaged care plans can also
improve care for children with
I am concerned that as pressures to contain
special needs by coordinating
with other systems such as special educacosts become more intense, decisiontion, social services and home providers.
makers may not support adequate funding
and appropriate allocation of these services For example, our family often battled rigid
to families with special needs children. Our school policies related to issues such as
safe transportaI was unprepared for the task oftaking on the managed tion, afterschool care,
special dietary
care system at the same time as my son-s health was
needs, and
failing and my family was under tremendous stress.
bowel and
bladder care.
family, for example, was assigned a visiting On occasion, our health care providers in
the HMO wrote letters to school adminisnurse only after Aaron's condition was
trators explaining how Aaron's unique
detennined to be debilitating and he had
undergone surge1y. If she had been inneeds related to his conditions. This was
cmcial in our negotiations with the educavolved from the time Aaron's care was
taken over by the HMO providers, it would tion system.
have been far less stressful for our family,
I am concerned that managed care
and I believe the care he received would
decision-makers often do not recognize the
have been better.
preventive value of supporting and encouraging providers to actively coordinate care
Ironically, families often know about
across other systems that work with speservices for their children that can help
prevent complications and illness- such as cial needs children and their families. Our
providers, for example, often had to limit
home care assistance, equipment and
their participation or donate their personal
supplies, nutritional services and occupational, physical, and speech therapy- but time to accommodate our special requests.
many of these services are not covered in
Making specialists available
managed care contracts.
Managed care plans need to make available a network of providers that includes
by Carolyn S. Gleason, M.S. R.D.,
appropriate pediatric specialists. Also
regional nutrition consultant at the
needed is a mechanism for out-of-plan
Seattle Field Office of the Health
refe1Tals when wananted. Although most
Resources and Services Administration
managed care contracts require this, many
in the Matemal and Child Health
Program.
continued on next
13
SEPTEMBER 1999
�PERSPECTIVES
continued fi·om page 13
health plans build in disincentives for
referTals, particularly to out-of-plan
specialists.
Disincentives exist when primary care
providers are at financial risk through
capitation. Under capitation, the primary
care provider may be responsible for the
cost of a patient's care beyond the predetennined level of reimbursement. Sometimes coverage for out-of-plan providers is
denied altogether. Consequently, referrals
may be delayed at the onset of symptoms
in a "wait and see" approach, or to ensure
that the refenals will be deemed medically
necessary under a utilization review. If the
appropriate pediatric specialist is not
available within the plan's provider network, there may be pressure to use a
specialist who primarily serves adults or a
pediatric specialist without experience in
the complex disabilities of a specific child.
or our family, the "wait and see"
approach was devastating. When
Aaron's life-threatening condition
was finally recognized by the specialist I
sought outside our plan's network, we
were denied access to a pediatric neurosurgeon with expertise specific to Aaron's
problems. Instead, our HMO provided
specialists who did not have this expertise
and experience.
Only after Aaron's condition became
terminal were we refeiTed to the specialist
we had originally requested. Unfortunately, it was too late. Over a period of
three years, Aaron's body gradually lost
the strength to fight even minor illnesses
and infections, and one of these eventually
caused his death.
More research and expertise are
needed to develop mechanisms to
ensure quality of care in MCOs.
These mechanisms would
•
identify special needs children
within managed care plans,
• identify and communicate costeffective care models to providers
and administrators,
•
collect and evaluate data on both
cost and quality measures, and
•
communicate results to all relevant
stakeholders, including families.
NCFRREPORT
Reducing cost
and unnecessary care
process to address concems early on and
avoid later complaints.
I was unprepared for the task of taking on
the managed care system at the same time
hile necessary care should be
as my son's health was failing and my
provided, managed care can
family was under tremendous stress. Once
and should reduce runaway
Aaron's prognosis was a slow, progressive
costs and mmecessmy care. In the fee-fordecline until death, all my attention and
service system, providers face incentives
strength became dedicated to his care and
that encourage the overutilization of serpreparing for the inevitable. I had no
vices and expensive procedures.
stomach or time for filing grievances and
Overtreatment and unnecessary services are
felt it would be useless at that point.
not only expensive, but they can have an
Critical next steps
adverse effect on families with special
needs children.
How can we ensure quality managed care
Our family became overwhelmed by many systems for children with special health
care needs? First, we must all speak the
invasive and painful medical tests Aaron
same language. We must leam how to
underwent; numerous office visits during
identify children
with complex,
I worry that capitation and fierce competition in
special needs and
articulate these
the managed care arena make children with
needs so that
special needs unwelcome and unwanted enrollees. policymakers and
managed care
administrators can build appropriate
our work hours; specialty care that was
systems and safeguards with adequate
available only with extensive travel;
financing and support.
hospitalizations that disrupted our lives
and terrified Aaron; medical equipment
Secondly, education, infonnation and
that required our training and the training
communication are crucial at all levels.
of others in our child's life; and medicaProviders need the knowledge, skills and
tions that caused frightful side effects such
ability to serve children with special needs
as mood swings, dimThea and an inability
and to recognize the necessity of approprito eat.
ate specialty refeiTals. Families must
understand the costs and financial issues
These health care resources are precious
of designing and delivering health serwhen they keep children like Aaron alive
vices, and learn to weigh costs and benand functionaL The key is to provide
efits. They must also leam to advocate and
services in a cost-efficient way that does
not promote overutilization or unnecessary negotiate reasonably for high-quality care.
treatment. Parents of children with special
Administrators and other decision-makers
needs can be the managed care system's
need to understand special needs children
greatest advocates to achiev~ this goaL
and their great diversity- only then can
they create a system that will be responCapitation and substandard care
sive to the needs of individual children.
I woiTy that capitation and fierce competihirdly, financial disincentives need
tion in the managed care arena make chilto be resolved, either by adjusting
dren with special needs unwelcome and
reimbursement rates for high-cost
unwanted enrollees. Providers that rely on
care or by creating altemative financing
capitation may lose money when they
systems. Purchasers such as Medicaid and
enroll more than their fair share of special
needs children.
employers need to ensure that contracts
with managed care plans adequately
I never saw adequate measures taken by
address the needs of these children. Serour HMO to safeguard my son from subvices should be clearly defined. If purstandard care aimed at saving money.
chasers are unable to afford all the serAlthough we had access to consumer
vices our children require, this must be
complaint and grievance procedures, these
made clear to families, so that we can
relied on having bad things happen before
explore other resources and not waste time
an issue would be addressed. What our
family really needed was an anticipatory
Perspectives continued on next page
T
14
SEPTEMBER 1999
�Types of managed care plans
Group and Staff Model Health
Maintenance Organizations (HMO)
are the most restrictive and offer fewer
choices to the consumer. In a group or staff
HMO, you must choose a primary care
physician; if you don't make a choice, the
plan will assign you one. Usually, you may
change primary care physicians if you wish
to do so.
are under contract to a separate group,
called an IPA that, in turn, contracts with
an HMO. You receive a list of participating
physicians from which you may choose
your primary care doctor. Visits take place
in the doctor's office. If you require specialty care, your primary care doctor refers
you to a specialist who belongs to the IPA
or with whom the IPA has contracted. By
far the largest number of HMO members
are enrolled in the IPA model. In this arrangement, physicians often belong to
more tl1an one HMO. In addition to their
HMO patients, these physicians also may
continue to see fee-for-service patients in
their offices.
HMOs either pay physicians a salary or a
set amount per patient (capitation). Staff or
group HMOs often have their own medical
centers. When specialists and primary care
physicians practice in the same medical
center, all medical care and services can be
received in one central location, including
laboratory, x-ray, and sometimes phannacy
services.
Point of Service Plans (POS), also
called self-referral options (or open-ended
options), permit members even greater
choice and flexibility. You ordinarily use
doctors within the network, but have the
option to go "out of plan" to use nonHMO providers. Ifyou go "out of plan,"
you must pay more, most typically in the
fonn of coinsurance and deductibles.
Individual Practice Associations
(I PAs) are a less restrictive form of HMO
than the group or staff model. Individual
physicians practicing in their own offices
Preferred Provider Organizations
(PPOs) are networks of doctors and
hospitals that have agreed to give the
sponsoring organization (for example, an
anaged care plans come in many
shapes and sizes and, in fact,
the lines between types are
becoming blnrred. Managed care plans
range in type from "more restrictive" to
"less restrictive" models. Some types may
not be available in your community.
PERSPECTIVES
continued from page 14
and energy trying to get managed care plans to provide services that are not in their
contracts.
Finally, more research and expertise are needed to develop mechanisms to ensure quality of care in MCOs. These mechanisms would
e identify special needs children within managed care plans,
e identify and communicate cost-effective care models to providers and administrators,
•
collect and evaluate data on both cost and quality measures, and
•
communicate results to all relevant stakeholders, including families.
After my experiences with Aaron and careful consideration of the issues, I have come to
the conclusion that no perfect system exists for children with special health care needs.
If managed health care is to succeed for these children and their families, we have a
great deal of work ahead. Families such as mine are willing and able to join forces with
others to ensure the highest quality of care for our children within the economic realities
of our times. We have the most at stake here: the lives of our precious children. 1111
Abridged and reprinted with permission from The Future of Children, "Children and Managed
Health Care," Vol. 8, No.2, Summer/Falll998. Published by The David and Lucile Packard
Foundation. For more information, see www.futureofchildren.org.
NCFR REPORT
15
employer or an insurance company) discounts on their usual rates. You'll pay
more out-of-pocket costs if you use physicians or hospitals outside the PPO network. Some PPOs use primary care physicians as gatekeepers. In other PPOs, you
may choose your own doctors and visit
specialists without permission from a
gatekeeper. In some PPOs, you may receive more benefits (such as immunizations) if you use providers who are a part
ofthe PPO network. PPOs offer you the
greatest freedom among managed care
plans in selecting health care providers,
but PPO premiums are usually somewhat
higher than HMO premiums and there is
less coordination of care.
© 1995, 1998, American Association of Retired
Persons. All rights reserved. Reprinted by
permission. For more infonnation, visit the
AARP website at www.aarp.org.
How does
managed care
differ from
traditional
insurance?
RECEIVING CARE
Gatekeepers
nder fee-for-service insurance or
traditional insurance, you can
choose any licensed physician to
be your personal doctor, and you can use
the services of any hospital or other
health care facility. In contrast, managed
care enrollees receive care that is either
provided directly or authorized by the
managed care plan. Most managed care
plans require enrollees to choose a primary
care physician from a list of available
doctors. (If you don't make a choice, the
plan will assign you a doctor.) Most plans
pennit you to change primary care physicians ifyou wish to do so.
Hmv Does continued on next page
SEPTEMBER 1999
�HOW DOES
Your choice of primary care physician is
most important. The primary care doctor
you choose becomes your personal physician and coordinates your care. He or she
acts as a "gatekeeper," treating you directly
or authorizing you to have tests, see a
specialist, or enter a hospital. The
gatekeeper anangement is designed to
provide the necessary care at the lowest
cost and to avoid giving unnecessary care.
Some plans have added some flexibility for
enrollees by allowing direct access to
specialists such as gynecologists or dennatologists.
sure they are no longer than absolutely
needed and that all tests and procedures that are ordered are medically
necessary.
•
Discharge Planning: Plans want to
keep hospital stays to their shortest
appropriate length. If necessary, the
plan will arrange post-hospital care,
even nursing home or home health care.
•
Case Management: Care plans are
developed for complicated cases to be
sure care is coordinated and provided
in the most cost-effective manner. For
example, a plan might provide roundthe-clock home care in order to avoid
expensive hospital stays.
•
Second Surgical Opinions: Plans may
require a second opinion before scheduling elective surgety. The second
physician may be asked to judge the
necessity of the surgety and also to
Quality Review
U
nder traditional health insurance
plans, doctors practice independently with little or no assessment
of their performance by their peers or
govemment regulators. Managed care
plans usually have quality review procedures that may include intemal and extemal
quality assurance programs. For plans that
are "federally qualified" or are qualified to
provide health care to Medicare or Medicaid enrollees, federal law requires quality
assurance programs. Many states have
similar requirements. The overall performance of the plan is monitored through
govemment oversight, patient satisfaction
surveys, data from grievance procedures,
and independent reviews.
NCFRREPORT
Some managed care plans give
gatekeepers financial incentives to avoid
unnecessary referrals to specialists. Because these incentives might discourage
doctors participating in a managed care
network from providing needed care, it is
critical that managed care plans be monitored by appropriate outside organizations
to ensure that members get the care they
need. In the case of Medicare managed
care plans, the federal Health Care Financ-
H01v Does continued on next page
Practical tips for everyone
by Sandy Holmstoen, Health Care Advocate,
Minnesota Association for Children's Mental Health
-- the plan may not pay for non-emergency e
services.
Concurrent Review: Managed care
plans monitor your hospital stays to be
Many states have enacted laws that
prohibit managed care plans from including so-called "gag clauses" in physician
contracts. Gag clauses prevent the plan's
doctors from discussing the full range of
treatment options with patients, whether or
not the plan actually covers the services.
CHECK OUT YOUR COVERAGE:
aybe you have a new health plan
with different benefits and
restrictions. Or maybe you've reThe federal govemment and private quality enrolled and your coverage has changed.
assurance organizations are developing
Take a few extra minutes today to check
more sophisticated techniques for measuryour health care coverage and protect your
ing the quality of care provided by manfamily from unnecessary medical bills. Here
aged care and other organizations. They are are some questions to guide you:
also working on ways to communicate this
• Has your employer recently contracted
information about quality in a way that
with a different health plan or insurance
consumers can use to make infonned health
company? If so, how will your benefits
care choices.
and access to services change?
Utilization Review
• Is your health care coverage part of a
Managed care plans review the medical care
managed care plan or is it a more tradiproposed by your doctors to detennine
tional fee-for-service pIan?
whether or not it is appropriate and neces• Does your coverage require a deductsary. This is called a "utilization review."
ible or co-payments or both?
Your primary care physician is part of the
• How comprehensive are your mental
utilization review. When hospital care is
health benefits?
indicated, other factors and safeguards in
the utilization review include:
• Can you choose any provider or are
you limited to specific providers within
• Preadmission Certification: This is
a network?
approval for care in advance. Without it,
•
express an opinion on the most economical, appropriate place to perform
the surgery (e.g., in a hospital, an
outpatient clinic, or a doctor's office).
continuedfi·om page 15
•
Do you have access to providers who
understand your family's cultural
values?
Do you need a referral from your pri16
mmy care physician or an approval
from your health plan (authorization) to
see a specialist?
•
Where can you have prescriptions
filled? Is there a fixed co-payment or do
you pay a certain percentage of the
prescription cost?
•
Do you lmow how to file a complaint or
appeal?
If you have questions about your coverage, check with your plan's customer
service department, the benefits representative at your company or a representative
from your state's health care system.
Write down the name of the person you
talked to, the date and time of the call, and
the information you receive. You may want
to keep a record of all calls in a special
notebook. If the information you receive
isn't clear, ask to have it explained in a way
that makes more sense to you or ask to
speak to a supervisor.
Adapted and reprinted with permission.fi·om the
winter 1999 issue ofThe Networker, the
newsletter ofthe Minnesota Association for
Children :S Mental Health.
SEPTEMBER 1999
�HOW DOES
Comparison of Traditional Health Insurance with Managed Care
continued ji·01n page 16
TYPE OF PLAN
ADVANTAGES
DISADVANTAGES
ingAdministration (HCFA)
is responsible for this monitoring function.
HMO Staff Model
Centralized facility where
care is provided and coordinated;
low copayments; preventive care;
no claim forms
Providers use their own offices;
low copayments; preventive care;
no claim fom1s
Must use doctors in the
HMO; plan must approve
treatment and make
refen·als
Must use doctors from a
designated list; plan must
approve treatment
and make referrals
Higher cost outside the
network; plan must sometimes
approve treatment and make
referrals; out-of-network
coverage may be limited
Higher cost outside the
network; additional paperwork to secure approval for
some services; limited
coordination of care
Preventive care usually not
covered; claim forms to file;
usually more expensive; little
or no coordination of care
PAYING FOR CARE
For most people with traditional health insurance,
premiums are only one pari
of the cost. Consumers must
also pay deductibles, coinsurance, and the cost of
services that are not covered, such as physicals.
With managed care, out-ofpocket costs are generally
lower, and there is far less (if
any) paperwork for beneficiaries to contend with. If
you belong to a Medicare
managed care plan, you will
not need to purchase a
Medigap policy. 111
HMO Individual Practice
Association (IPA)
HMO Point of Service (POS)
More choice of providers outside
the network; preventive care
covered; no claim forms; lower
cost within network
Preferred Provider
Organization (PPO)
Choice of staying in or going
out of the network for care;
lower cost if providers
within network are used
Traditional Indemnity
Insurance
Unrestricted choice of provider
© 1995, 1998, American Association of Retired Persons.
All rights reserved. Reprinted by permission. For more iT!formation, visit the AARP website at www.aarp.01;g.
Patient privacy: where do we draw the line?
ven though most records are still on
paper, a growing volume of computerized medical infmmation is within
easy reach of employees at insurance
companies, hospitals, phannacies, dmg
benefit management companies and medical laboratories ....
E
allows states and the federal govemment
to ferret out waste in ... Medicaid and
Medicare. And it gives new tools to
researchers in private insurance companies
and the nation's major medical centers to
help deduce what kinds of treatment are
most effective ....
Ready access to patients' computerized
records does make it easier for managedcare plans to control costs by making sure
patients get only the care they need. It
[For example], Aetna U.S. Healthcare ...
sifts through patients' records to find out
who might be suitable for one of its "disease management programs." The com-
Thank you for your excellent response to our call for topic papers or resources for subsequent topics in this publication. We continue to welcome your suggestions and offers to write
or be willing to be interviewed by our journalist, Dr. Nancy Giguere.
The special topic focus for the December issue of REPORT is Professional Issues including
such areas as limits on academic freedom of speech, pivotal career path issues, surviving
tenure, balancing work and family, finding jobs outside of academe. The deadline for topic
materials on Professional Issues is November l. The March 2000 issue will focus on the
Impact of Welfare Reform on Families with deadline for topic materials of February 1.
Children/Adolescent's Mental Health/Substance Abuse Treatment and Prevention
Issues will be the focus of the June 2000 issue. Topic materials deadline is May 1. Prevention Strategies Impacting the Juvenile Justice System will be the focus of the September
2000 issue. Deadline for topic materials is August l.
If you have data, research or practice ariicles for any of these topics, or know of outstanding
persons who can be interviewed or taped please e-mail or call Michael Benjamin immediately
at 888-781-9331 extension 21 or mbenjamin@ncfr.org. Let us also hear from you about other
topics that you would like to see published in the REPORT. liB
NCFR REPORT
17
pany gets in touch with such people and
their doctors, asking whether patients with
diabetes would like a free kit to test their
blood-sugar levels at home or whether
congestive heari patients would like a
home visit from a nurse ....
On the other side of the debate, civil
liberties advocates and specialists in
privacy issues warn that the widening
access to patients' records hold distinct
dangers. For instance, they predict that the
burgeoning ability to test people for a
genetic predisposition to certain diseases
opens them to possible discrimination in
getting health insurance or jobs ....
This spring and summer, the Senate
Health, Education, Labor and Pensions
Committee canceled votes four times on a
patient privacy bill, because members
could not agree how far to go .... The only
privacy provision to reach a vote by the
full House this year was grafted onto a
banking bill- and the privacy section
was quickly rescinded after civil liberties
advocates convinced even its sponsor
that it would leave patients more vulnerable than they are today.
"Long Reach Into Patients' Privacy, " Washington Post, August 23, 1999, page 1, section A.
SEPTEMBER 1999
�Medicaid managed care: an overview
he Medicaid program provides
medical assistance for certain
individuals and families with low
incomes and resources. The program is a
jointly funded cooperative venture between
the federal and state governments. Within
broad national guidelines set by the federal
government, each state establishes its own
eligibility standards; detennines the type,
amount, duration and scope of services;
sets the rate of payment for services; and
administers its own program.
work. States monitor quality of care by
setting clear standards for managed care
plans, ananging for periodic reviews and
inspections, and reviewing frequent
reports provided by health plans.
Federal waivers
I
n the past, states had to apply for
federal waivers in order to require
Medicaid recipients to enroll inmanaged care. Many states restricted enrollment in waiver programs to persons in
certain eligibility categories (such as
In recent years, many states have begun
Temporary Assistance to Needy Families)
requiring some Medicaid beneficiaries to
or geographic areas. With the passage of
enroll in managed care plans. As of June 30,
the Balanced Budget Act of 1997 (BBA),
1997, 15.3 million Medicaid beneficiaries
states may now move Medicaid recipients
were enrolled in managed care plans, repreinto managed care without a waiver.
senting 48 percent of all beneficiaries.
The BBA also provides for a new entitleStates hope that these Medicaid program
ment program, the Children's Health
design changes will improve cost efficiency
Insurance Progrmn (CHIP), which comand beneficiary access to care through
bines federal and state monies to expand
enrollment in a guaranteed provider nethealth care coverage to low-income chil-
A Theory that Doesn't Work
tates have latched onto managed
care in hopes of improving on
the original approach to Medicaid.... By relying on HMOs, the thinking
was, states could save money and
usher patients into the medical mainstream, making sure they got reliable
preventive care.
... But much of the on-the-ground
experience with this broad effort at
health reform suggests that poor patients are not entirely welcome in the
private medical marketplace, that managed care is not as economical as states
had hoped, and that giving memberships in HMOs doesn't guarantee
changes in patients' ingrained habits of
medical care ....
For every commercial HMO that began
accepting Medicaid patients last year,
·six HMOs dropped out, according to a
new study. And increasingly, the health
plans that remain are designed solely
for Medicaid patients, often funneling
NCFR REPORT
patients into the same clinics and hospitals that treated people in low-income
neighborhoods before managed care
came along ....
In part, these trends reflect a miscalculation by states. Some have been so eager
to spend less on Medicaid that they pay
HMOs less than they are willing to
accept, thus driving away the health
plans on which their reforms depend. At
the same time, those plans often make
for unreliable partners, te.nding to be
driven by profit motives and ill-equipped
for the special difficulties of caring for
poor patients ....
dren. In some states, this new program
may include managed care options.
There is one important exception, however.
Even after BBA implementation, states
cannot mandate enrollment without a
waiver for children with disabilities severe
enough to qualify for
Supplemental SecuJn 1997,
titylncome(SSI).
nearly half of
But many states are
seeking waivers.
all Medicaid Although the federal
government, through
recipients
the Medicaid, Mediwere enrolled care, SSI, and Maternal and Child Health
in managed
programs (also
lmown as Title V
care plans.
programs because
they were authorized
under Title Vofthe 1935 Social Security
Act), is often partly or wholly responsible
for the financing of care to children with
special health care needs, state agencies
generally design these programs and
develop budgets for them. And as medical
An Ovendew continued on next page
Stuck with the Bill
"It sounds good, but the people who are
.... But the biggest problem [with
managed-care Medicaid in Ohio], was
that HMOs refused to cover bills that
old-fashioned Medicaid probably
would have .paid. J,ast December,
Yvette Jones called an ambulance to
rush her 43-year-old husband to
University Hospital with what turned
out to be a mild heart attack He stayed
for two days, then landed there again
two weeks later. when he fell uncon~
sciou~ 1onNew Year's Day.
on Medicaid aren't able to be plugged at
this point into a private system," said
Judith Daniels, the longtime medical
director ofthe Cincinnati health department. "It is a theory that doesn't work."
Togay, the Joneses are stuck with
nearly $5,000 in hospital bills that
HMO Health Ohio refused to cover,
becausetheyhadnot called the HMO
for permission in advance.
"Managed-Care Medicaid Experiment Fails
in Ohio," Washington Post, August 14, 1999,
page 1, section A.
"Managed-Care Medicaid Experiment ·
Fails in Ohio, "Washington Post, August
14, 1999,pi:lge 8, section A.
18
/-
SEPTEMBER 199
�Creating a managed care system for Medicaid
recipients with special needs
by Alice Thieman, Jacques Lempers, and Cathy Hockaday,
Department of Human Development and Family Studies, Iowa State University, Ames, IA
education, and other specialized services
are provided, persons with special needs
actually may benefit more from a managed
care organization than healthy persons.
Potentially, the programs provided by a
managed care organization can result in
improvements of functional health status
~-~--------------------~
for special needs persons.
The state of Iowa is
50 percent of Medicaid recipients in Iowa
embarking on a project to
provide better health care
currently are enrolled in some form of
services to special needs
managed care for medical/surgical services. Medicaid recipients and
For these reasons, some physicians limit or
thereby improve their
completely refuse to accept Medicaid
functional health status by enrolling these
Up to now, Iowa, like many other states,
clients. Because they do not have a "medirecipients in HMOs. Obviously, this prohas limited its managed care initiatives to
cal home" and a primary care physician
gram is taking extensive planning to ensure
generally healthy participants, because
(PCP) to coordinate their health care,
successful outcomes for recipients.
persons with special health care needs
almost half of Medicaid enrollees receive
incur costs that are considerably higher
medical services in hospital outpatient
Fair reimbursement is essential
than average. This makes it more difficult
departments. Enrolling recipients with an
fair reimbursement plan is the
HMO under a contract that assures access to negotiate contracts with HMOs that will
most important way to ensure
ensure the same quality health care to
to mainstream health care addresses these
uality health care to this special
chronically ill persons that is available to
shortcomings.
population. The state pays a "capitation
healthy individuals.
Medicaid in Iowa
rate" to the HMO for every Medicaid
Caring for people with special
enrollee. Since the capitation rate is figured
As a way to ensure that Medicaid recipineeds
on the average costs for all enrollees, most
ents have access to quality health care,
of whom are generally healthy, this amount
about 50 percent of Medicaid recipients in
However, if flexibility of services, care
will fall far short of covering health care
Iowa currently are enrolled in some fonn of coordination, preventive care, patient
costs for individuals with special needs.
Thus, without a "risk adjusted rate," HMOs
may resist enrolling these individuals.
AN OVERVIEW continued.fi·om page 18
Iowa has decided to use the Disability
costs for children with special needs
include specific protections to ensure that
Payment System developed by Kronick and
continue to grow, many states are finding it vulnerable patients receive necessary
colleagues. In this new program, the HMOs
services, parents remain concemed about
necessary to include them in general
will be reimbursed according to the
the additional hassles and time delays
managed care programs. As a result, parindividual's diagnosis and the predicted
ents and advocates have grown concemed managed care may bring.
medical/surgical costs for providing health
about the effects these changes may have
care services. This should motivate HMOs
Florida, Texas and Maryland are including
on their children's access to care.
to enroll and provide individuals with
children with special needs in broader
quality health care.
efforts to expand Medicaid managed care.
Chronically ill children have
Massachusetts, Michigan, and the District
special needs
Consumers should have a voice
of Columbia, all of which have had basic
Many children with chronic illness are
Medicaid recipients
especially recipients
Medicaid managed care programs up and
treated by pediatric sub-specialists, not
with special needs
should be involved
mnning for some time, have recently
the general pediatricians found in most
in the planning and evaluation process. We
instituted dedicated programs specifically
HMO's provider panels. In addition, chilhave conducted focus groups across the
designed to meet the special needs of
dren with severe illnesses often require
state to gain a better understanding of the
disabled children and their families.
special treatments, dmgs and equipment
needs, concems and fmstrations of these
that managed care plans do not typically
Adapted from material on the Disabilities and
recipients and their caregivers. Here are
provide. While most programs that enroll
Managed Care Website (managedcare.hhs.gov/
children with special health care needs
Special Needs continued on next page
program_descriptions/medicaid/index.html).
he original goal of Medicaid was to
provide health care to low-income
persons within the same system
that is available to privately insured individuals. But Medicaid reimbursements
have never covered the full cost of medical
services. Medicaid enrollees are more
likely to miss appointments because of
rigid work hours or lack of transportation,
and health care providers are burdened
with substantial paperwork when treating
Medicaid recipients.
NCFR REPORT
managed care for medical/surgical services.
This movement to managed care reflects a
national trend, and a recent review of
managed care organizations by the Govemment Accounting Office indicated that they
are succeeding at least on the c1iteria of
access and quality of care.
19
SEPTEMBER 1999
�SPECIAL NEEDS
some of their most salient and frequent
concen1s:
•
Care coordination. Individuals with
special needs are likely to be involved
with several aspects of the health care
system- for example, physicians,
physical therapists, laboratory technicians and medical equipment outlets.
They need an advocate to assist in
negotiating the system, coordinating
appointments and locating resources.
This need for advocacy goes well
beyond the services provided by a
primary care physician, who will coordinate health care but is unlikely to have
the time to seek out ancillary resources.
we track 200 young people who are
approaching this transition.
•
•
Transitions. Several groups (enrollees,
health care providers, and others)
expressed concem about the difficulty
of transitions, when changing to a
managed care system from fee-forservice or when transitioning from the
child to the adult health care system.
Both kinds of transitions can involve a
change in primary care physician and
other care providers.
Enrollment in an HMO. New enrollees
will have the option of continuing with
their previous physician if they are
involved in a cun-ent treatment program.
Pediatric to Adult Health Care. Chronic
illness or disability may be apparent
early in life and the pediatrician is often
the expeti on developmentally correlated
disorders. As the individual matures and
moves into the adult health care system,
it is sometimes difficult to locate a PCP
with the same level of expetiise as the
pediatrician. Our next phase of research
will investigate this problem in detail as
NCFR REPORT
Hurley, R. E., & Draper, D.A. (1998).
Special plans for special persons: The
elusive pursuit of customized managed care. InS. M. Davidson & S. A.
Somers (Eds.) Remaking Medicaid:
Managed care for the public good.
San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.
The planning process for this program is
still underway and several critical components are yet to be completed. These
include:
e Outcome evaluation. Baseline data to
assess client satisfaction, access to
health care, and functional health stahts
of the state's Medicaid special needs
populaMedicaid recipients- tion are
currently
being
especially recipients
collected.
with special needs These
data will
• Patient choice. Clients need to be
should be involved in
provide
educated and counseled about their
the baseright to choose their primary care physi- the planning and
line to
cian (PCP) and how to change their PCP
which
if desired.
evaluation process.
post• Ancillar·y services. Chronically ill or
program data can be compared. And,
disabled persons are more likely to need
since it is a statewide survey, data from
various ancillary services. These may
the nonpilot counties will provide the
include equipment, transpmiation, home
comparison for the pilot counties as the
visits and other services. Public agenprogram is initiated.
cies and community organizations, such
as public health, schools, churches and • Focus groups. Drafts of the program
charitable groups, should be connected
implementation plan and new enrollee
materials will be presented to focus
to the HMOs and the care coordination
groups during fall 1999 for comment
process to facilitate access to these
resources.
•
Resources: planning
for special needs
continuedfl-om page 19
Kronick, R., Dreyfus, T., Lee, L., &
Zhou, Z. (1996). Diagnostic risk
adjustment for Medicaid: The Disability Payment System. Health Care
Financing Review, 17(3), 7-33.
United States General Accounting
Office (July, 1996). Medicaid
Managed Care: Serving the disabled
challenges state programs. Health,
Education, and Human Services
Division. Document number: GAO/
HEHS-96-136.
and discussion. Results of this feedback will be included in the final adjustments of this program.
•
Monitoring HMOs. Quality assurance
and quality improvement proposals are
being developed to assist the managed
care organizations with intemal monitoring procedures and to ensure quality
health care for recipients. 1111
Managed care must recognize
needs of individuals
with developmental disabilities
any people with mental retardation or developmental disabilities (MR/DD) require long-tem1
supports, which are often funded by the
Medicaid program (Medicaid funds account for nearly tlu·ee-quarters of the
operating costs of state developmental
disabilities systems).
Medicaid historically financed long-tenn
instihttional care. These days, however,
fewer persons with MR/DD are instihttionalized. Instead effective community support enables many to live and work in their
communities and achieve self-sufficiency.
Medicaid Home- and Cmmnunity-based
Waiver programs have been effective at
reducing institutionalization, but pressure
20
from the federal and state governments to
reduce Medicaid spending has led to an
interest in managed care alternatives to
cunent systems of care.
Integrated managed care systems can, in
themy, provide a flexible system for
policymakers and program administrators
to blend funding and integrate what are
now multiple programs serving persons
with MR/DD. Many providers, advocates,
and policymakers, however, wony that the
privatization of care delivety and introduction of profit-making organizations may
lead to a deterioration in the level of care
and suppmi provided.
Must Recognize continued on next page
SEPTEMBER 1999
�An overview of managed
behavioral health care
0
ver 125 million persons in the
U.S. have all or some of their
behav-ioral health benefits covered
by managed care arrangements, including
approximately two-thirds of those with
private health insurance, most Medicaid
managed care emollees (one third of Medicaid recipients), and 11 percent of Medicare
emollees. ("Behavioral health" care includes mental health and substance abuse
services. See article on Health Care Refonn
Tracking Project, page 22.)
Public policy concems regarding managed
behavioral health care include:
•
ensming appropriate financial incentives
that will not lead to over- or tmderutilization of services;
•
promoting access to behavioral (and
physical) health care for persons with a
severe mental illness that may cause
trouble negotiating a managed care
system; and
•
incorporating and sustaining conmmnity
and safety-net behavioral health providers under a ptivatized managed behavioral health system.
Managed behavioral health in the
public sector
substantial rate. This is especially true for
the Medicaid population.
A total of36 states have Medicaid waivers
implemented or approved which include
behavioral health in some fonn (six others
have specifically excluded mental health
and/or substance abuse fi:om their waivers).
Seven states and the District of Columbia
have implemented or received approval for
mental
health and!
Managed mental
or subhealth care has grown stance
abuse
at a substantial rate.
carve-out
waivers for
specific populations, primmily for children
with serious emotional disturbance (SED).
Two states have also used this approach to
set up selective contTacting programs, in
which Medicaid programs contract with a
small number of inpatient psychiatric hospitals and require Medicaid beneficiaries to
use these facilities.
States are slowly beginning to emoll disabled populations into Medicaid managed
care waivers; fifteen states have pending or
approved behavioral health waivers that
extend services to the SSI population.
Despite these public policy concems,
managed mental health care has grown at a
MUST RECOGNIZE
Behavioral continued on next page
continuedfi·om page 20
In addition, there is a concem that managed care will lead to a health-only focus,
despite the fact that medical services fonn
only a portion of the required supports
necessary to maintain quality of life.
Some strategies proposed to ensure that
managed care systems serving people with
developmental disabilities protect rights
and provide quality health care include:
•
•
Adequately compensating providers
for the additional resources required by
people with disabilities or chronic
illness;
Defining a comprehensive benefits
NCFR REPORT
package that meets the needs of people
with disabilities and special health care
needs, including medical services,
mental health services, and cmrununity
and family supports;
•
Requiring managed care plans to
provide all necessary benefits, services,
and supports across multiple settings,
such as home, school, work, without
arbitrary limitations on service settings.
Adapted.fimn material on the Disabilities and
!Yfanaged Care Website (managedcare.hhs.gov/
populations/dd. htm)
21
Behavioral health
resources
The Bazelon Center for Mental Health
Law(110115th StteetNW, Suite 1212,
Washington, DC 20005-5002, Fax: 202-'
223~0409) offers the following publica•
tions on managed care and behavioral
health:
• Can Managed Care Meet the Mentat Health Needs of Vel)l Young
Children? Ten-page issl1e. paper
with. advocacy tipsfor influencing a
state's planning. (Oct.1996). EI~7: $3.
• Defining "Medically Necessary"
Services .to.Protect Children .. Discusses policy issues and proposes a
definition for inclusion in managed
care contracts. 24 pp. (Apr. 1998).
P-5: $7 plus shipping,
• Managed Behavioral Heaith Care
for Children and Youth: A Family
Advocate :S Guide. Developed with
the Federation ofFamilies for
Children's Mental· Health, this 34page guide offers. principles of how
managed .care should work for children with mental, emotional or behavioral disorders and a checklist of
strategies to assure that state. systems adhere to these .principles.
Includes handouts to copy for educating policymakers and managed
care administrators. (Sept 1996). F-1:
$9.95, includes a copy of Your Family and Managed Care (call for
discount on 10 or more}. Spanish
version, Sistemas de Salud Integra. les para Problemas de ·la. Conducta
de Ni-os y Adolescentes: Una Gu 'a
para los Defensores deFamilias .(40
pages), at same price, F~lS.
• Your Family and Managed Care.
·Clearly written 12-page booldet
explains the workings; advantages
and pitfalls of managed C$'e for
children with mental, emotional or
behavioral disorders. Includes a
family checklist to rate. a 1llanaged
care plan. (November1996). F-2:
$3.50 .(call for discount on. orders of
more than 15 to the same address).
Spanish version; Su Familia y .el
Sistema de Salud Integral (16
pages), at same price: F~2S:
SEPTEMBER 1999
�Public sector managed behavioral care
for children presents a mixed picture
by Sheila A. Pires, MPA, Human Service Collaborative, Washington, DC
Coprincipal investigator, Health Care Refom1 Tracking Project
he Health Care Refonn Tracking
Project is a five-year project (19951999) designed to track and analyze
the impact of public sector managed care
refom1s on children and adolescents with
emotional and substance abuse problems
and their families. It is
cofunded by the
Substance
Abuse and
Mental Health
Services Administration of the
Depattment of
Health and
Human Services
and the National
Institute on
SHEILA PIRES, MPA Disability and
Rehabilitation Research of the Deparhnent
of Education.
T
Reformers see potential benefits from the
application of managed care technologies
in these fields -but they also have concems. The Health Care Refonn Tracking
Project is a first step toward understanding
the impact of managed care in the public
sector on children and adolescents with
efforts in children's mental health to develop community-based systems of care,
particularly for children with serious disorders and their families. Efforts are also
being made in the adolescent substance
abuse treahnent field to
Care within integrated designs tends to focus develop a broad continuum of treatment
on the child and leave out the family- an
options.
disorder affects the entire family
behavioral health disorders and their
families. Ctmently, it is the only national
sh1dy of its kind.
The project was undertaken at a time when
states have begun applying managed care
technologies to the delivery of mental
health and substance abuse services
(together referred to as "behavioral health"
services). State managed care activities are
occurring against a backdrop of reform
BEHAVIORAL continued.fimn page 21
population. Some states are beginning to
experiment with "Special Needs Plans"
designed specifically for Medicaid recipients with severe or persistent mental
illness.
Managed behavioral health in the
private sector
rivate insurance often limits the
amount of mental health services
covered under employer-sponsored
plans. The federal govemment and many
states may increase coverage of mental
health services by requiring benefits
packages to treat mental health services
like regular medical and physical health
serv1ces.
P
The federal Mental Health Parity Act of
1996, which applies to traditional employer-sponsored insurance as well as
managed care an·angements, requires
employers to provide the equal lifetime
maximum dollar limits for medical and
mental health benefits. The Act does not
NCFR REPORT
Almost every family with
a child who has a serious
system.
behavioral health disorder will eventually need
public sector services. This is because at
some point most families exhaust their
private coverage or need services that
private insurance doesn't cover.
important omission since a child's behavioral
require employers to provide mental health
coverage, and benefits packages can have
different limits on the number of visits
allowed for medical and mental health
services. The requirement excludes employers with less than 50 employees, or
employers whose insurance costs would
rise by more than one percent. Substance
abuse coverage is separate from mental
health coverage, and can be limited.
Mmyland was the first state to pass a
parity law (1993). This law requires insurers
to cover treatment and diagnosis of emotional disorders or drug or alcohol abuse
disorders under the same tenns and conditions applied to treatment of physical
illness. New Hampshire, Rhode Island,
Maine, and Minnesota have passed similar
bills, and parity legislation has been introduced in over a dozen other states.
Adaptedji·om material on the Disabilities and
Managed Care Website (managedcare.
hhs.gov/populations/mental.htm).
22
Carve outs mean better access
n general, public sector managed
behavioral health care is delivered in
two ways: through an integrated
design that includes both physical and
behavioral health care and through behavioral health "carve outs," through which
states design a special behavioral health
program. In a sense, states with carve outs
create a kind of"BHO" that is completely
separate from state-funded HMO services.
I
Our study shows that children with behavioral health disorders have better access to
a broader range of services in states with
carve outs. That's because in integrated
designs, physical health care dominates,
and only a small percentage of the overall
health care dollars go to fund behavioral
health services. Care within integrated
designs tends to focus on the child and
leave out the family
an important omission since a child's behavioral disorder
affects the entire family system.
Although it was hoped that integrated
designs would lead to better coordination
between physical and mental health providers, this has not happened. Most primary
care physicians don't have the necessary
training or the time to screen children for
behavioral health disorders. In addition,
primmy care physicians are often not aware
Public Sector continued on next page
SEPTEMBER 1999
�•
ore Medicare Beneficiaries Enroll 1n
anaged Care Plans
T
he federal Health Care Financing
Administration (HCFA) administers
Medicare, the nation's largest
health insurance program, which covers 37
million Americans. Medicare provides
insurance to people who are 65 years old,
those who meet a particular definition of
work disability for at least two years or
those who have permanent kidney failure.
Medicare provides coverage of hospital,
physician, and other medical services
and supplies. Persons who qualify for
Medicare can elect to receive these services on a fee-for-service basis, or they
can choose to enroll in a Medicare man-
PUBLIC SECTOR
aged care plan, which provides services
through a network of hospitals, skilled
nursing facilities, doctors and other health
care professionals, often for lower out-ofpocket payments.
As of August 1997, more than 5.5 million
Medicare beneficiaries were enrolled in a
total of 398 managed care plans, accounting for.14 percent of the total Medicare
population. That represents a 132 percent
increase in managed care enrollment since
1992. Cunently, about 80,000 Medicare
beneficiaries voluntarily enroll in riskbearing HMOs each month.
edicare+Choice, a new program
authorized by the Balanced
udget Act of 1997, allows
greater flexibility in the Medicare program.
This new program, also known as Medicare Part C, allows Medicare beneficimies
to enroll in a variety of plans beyond the
traditional fee-for-service and managed
care options, including:
• health maintenance organizations
(HMOs) (i.e., current Medicare managed care);
More lvfedicare continued on next page
continuedfi·om page 22
of behavioral health providers in their
plan's network.
Emphasis on acute services
ur study also shows that, in
?eneral: tl:e ~~s~ of managed care
111 Medrcmd IS mcreasing access to
short-tenn behavioral health services
while, at the same time, making access to
needed longer-term care more difficult for
children and adolescents with serious
behavioral health disorders.
O
In _addition, states tend to leave funding for
chrld and adolescent behavioral health care
in other systems like the child welfare or
For a copy of Health Care Reform
Tracldng Project: Tracking State
Managed Care Reform as They
Affect Children and Adolescents
with Behavioral Health Disorders
and Their Families, contact the
Louis de la Parte Florida Mental
Health Institute, at the University of
South Florida. Address: 13301
Bmce B. Downs Blvd., Tampa, FL
33612-3899. Tel: (813) 974-6271. Cost
is $8 per copy. Make checks payable to the Louis de la Parte FMHI
Auxiliary Fund.
j~1venile
justice systems. This fragmentation of funding streams means that states
are not realizing the potential of managed
care to rationalize their behavioral health
care systems.
We also found a serious shortage of public
sector services for the treatment of adolescent substance abuse. This shortage predates the introduction of managed care
into the public sector, but is not improving
under managed care.
Lack of cultural competence- which has
always been a problem, no matter what the
system - is also not improving under
managed care.
Effect on providers
In most states, public sector managed care
is increasing the range of behavioral
health care providers who participate in
Medicaid. Family therapists, for example,
are often now included. But some providers - such as certified addiction counselors - still stmggle to gain admittance to
managed care networks. Small community-based providers may also be omitted,
often due to a lack of fonnal credentials or
because their organizations lack the neces~my administrative capacity to participate
m managed care.
Managed care also seems to be moving
NCFR REPORT
Medicare Part C
23
pr?viders toward short-tenn care. Although
thrs can be good in some cases, it is not
always appropriate for children who suffer
from serious behavioral health disorders.
A huge "disconnect" often exists between
state policy and contractual regulations and
the real-life implementation of care needed
by children and their families. Children
and adolescents with behavioral health
disorders often need after-care supports on
a continuing basis. But managed care
criteria may allow for nothing beyond
stabilization of an acute condition.
A mixed picture
n sum, we have found that public
sector managed behavioral health care
presents a mixed picture. Much depends on how a state chooses to organize
its system of care. In general, we can say
that managed care has broadened the kinds
of services available and improved access
to some services- especially short-tenn
care. On the down side, managed care
tends to make access to longer-tenn services more difficult; doesn't pay sufficient
attention to family involvement or interagency coordination, which are cmcial for
children and adolescents with behavioral
health disorders; and tends to focus exclu~ively on the child or adolescent patient,
mstead of the entire family. 1111
I
SEPTEMBER 1999
�Medicare pilot programs use
managed care principles
he Medicare program is sponsoring
several demonstration programs
that use managed care principles,
including persons who have both Medicaid
and Medicare coverage - so-called "dual
eligibles." These individuals are of special
interest because they tend to use more
health care resources and because the
separation of financing sources between
Medicare and Medicaid can adversely
affect care.
In 1995, Medicare and Medicaid paid
approximately $106 billion for health care
services for the nearly six million dual
eligibles. Many of these persons are disabled and become dual eligibles when high
health care expenses and low income reach
Medicaid-qualifying levels. Although frail
elderly make up a sizeable portion of dual
eligibles, approximately 30 percent of dual
MORE MEDICARE
eligibles were younger than age 65 in 1992.
PACE
The Program for All-Inclusive Care for the
Elderly (PACE) has grown out of the highly
regarded On Lok program. On Lok is an
early demonstration of integrated acuteand long-tenn care for nursing-home-level,
low-income clients in San Francisco's
Chinatown. The essential elements of the
program include:
• · capitation of both Medicare and Medicaid; a staff-model medical program,
wliere staff physicians are responsible
for primary and preventive care;
•
mandatory attendance. at adult day
health centers (also the site for primary
health care); and
•
a multidisciplinary team model of care
management.
continuedfi·om page 23
•
prefetTed provider organizations (PPOs );
•
provider-sponsored organizations
(PSOs);
•
religious fratemal benefit society plans
which may restrict enrollment to members of the church, convention or group
with which the society is affiliated;
ties may not receive materials that directly
address the specific requirements of their
medical situation. They may have difficulty
understanding the various options and
comparing the costs and benefits of
different plans.
The federal government and beneficiary
premimns will finance Medicare+Choice.
• private fee-for-service plans which
Plans can also
reimburse providers on a fee-for-service
In ]99 7, more
charge deductibasis, and are authorized to charge
bles, coinsurance,
enrolled beneficiaries up to 115% of the than 5. 5 million
and co-payments.
plan's payment schedule; and
Plans will receive
Medicare
a monthly capita• medical savings accounts (MSAs).
tion payment,
Enrollment for persons with
beneficiaries
which is adjusted
disabilities
for beneficiaries'
were enrolled in age, disability
edicare+Choice plans are specifistatus, gender,
cally prohibited from denying or a total of 398
institutional
limiting coverage based on
managed care
status, and other
health status or pre-existing conditions.
factors. In the
Thus, unlike Medicare Supplemental poliplans.
future, HCFAwill
cies, they cannot prevent individuals with
adjust capitation
disabilities from enrolling. This makes these
rates to account for cost variations based
plans the only option for supplemental
on health stahts arid other factors.
coverage for most Medicare beneficiaries
under the age of 65.
Adapted from infom1ation on the Disabilities
Although HCFA will undertake a massive
and Managed Care Website
education effort related to Medicare+
(managedcare.hhs.gov) and the HCFA Website
Choice, Medicare beneficiaries with disabili- (www.hcfa.gov).
NCFR REPORT
24
In 1996 (the most recent year for which
figmes ar·e available), 2,700 enrollees
participated in ten PACE sites and On Lok.
This number will likely grow as more states
use the new state plan option authorized
under the Balanced Budget Act of 1997.
PACE programs provide all acute- and
long-term care including personal care and
homemaker services. These programs are
open to individuals who:
•
are Medicaid eligible;
•
have a chronic illness and disability
that, without the services of the waiver
program (nmsing home eligible), would
require Medicaid institutional care
services; and
•
live within the coverage area of a
program.
Medicare, Medicaid, and private insurance
funds are pooled to achieve maximum
efficiency and flexibility in the use of
resources. PACE providers receive a fixed
monthly fee for each participant. This
capitation fee is supposed to approximate
the cost of caring for PACE pariicipants in
the fee-for-service system.
Enrollees tend to be highly positive
about PACE, but in many communities
enrollment has lagged because enrollees
are required to use PACE physicians and
attend adult day care. Even so, PACE
offers a model for capitating a long-tenn
care entity to provide both acute- and
long-tenn care for low-income populations.
Many states are considering creating
PACE-like organizations.
SociaiHMOs
Congress established the Social Health
Maintenance Organization (S/HMO)
demonstration authority in 1984 to determine whether investing in some long-tem1
care benefits for Medicare HMO enrollees
could save money by coordinating care
and providing services that might prevent
costly medical complications. The Balanced Budget Act of 1997 dramatically
increased the number ofbeneficiaries
Social HMOs could enroll. The Act also
mandates the transition of the programs
from demonstrations to pennanent status.
Pilot Programs continued on next page
SEPTEMBER 1999
�1
Manageil Cal"e on tile Net
lpha Center. Established in 1976,
this nonprofit and nonpartisan
health policy center helps public
and private sector clients respond to health
care challenges by providing the essential
keys to policymaking: objective infonnation, insightful analysis, and expert strategic planning and program management.
www.ac.org
American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry provides information on
legislation, topics for children and adolescents and even a managed care complaint
registry. Available in Spanish and French.
www.aacap.org
based in Menlo Park, California, is an
independent health care philanthropy and is
not associated with Kaiser Permanente or
Kaiser Industries. The Foundation's work is
focused on four main areas: health policy,
reproductive health, I-IIV policy, and health
and development in South Africa. The
Foundation also maintains a special interest
in health policy and innovation in its home
state of California. www.kff.org
American Association of Retired People.
The site offers material on issues of importance to aging people, including information on Medicare options. www.aarp.org
Managed Care Systems Serving Persons
with Disabilities. This site provides
information for researchers, policymakers,
consumers and advocates on a wide range
of issues associated with managed care and
disabilities. It is sponsored by the Office of
the Assistant Secretaty for Planning and
Evaluation within the Department of
Health and Human Services.
managedcare.hhs.gov
Bazelon Center is the leading national
legal advocate for people with mental
illness and mental retardation. The site
includes information on managed behavioral care. www.bazelon.org
Medicare. TI1is official U.S. governmental
site offers information on benefits, enrollment, medicare plans and more. Infornmtion available in Spanish and Chinese.
www.metlicare.gov
Center for Health Care Strategies is
committed to promoting the development
and implementation of health programs and
research that will improve health care for
America's most vulnerable populations.
Site includes infonnation on the Medicaid
Managed Care Program and Building
Health Systems for People with Chronic
Illnesses, both programs of the Robert
Wood Johnson Foundation, and Children's
Issues in Managed Care, a program ofthe
Annie E. Casey Foundation; topics on
Medicaid managed care; and relevant
industry links. www.chcs.org
National Mental Health Services Knowledge Exchange Network (KEN) provides
infonnation about mental health for users
of mental health services and their families
the general public, policymakers, provid- '
ers, and the media. www.mentalhealth.org
Children's Defense Fund provides case
studies on innovative approaches to outreach and enrollment of children in free or
low-cost insurance program under
Children's Health Insurance Program
(CHIP). www.childrensdefense.org
Health Care Financing Administration
(HCFA), is the federal agency that administers the Medicare, Medicaid and Child
Health Insurance Programs. In addition to
providing health insurance, HCFA also
performs a number of quality-focused
activities, including regulation oflaboratory testing, surveys and certification,
development of coverage policies and
quality-of-care improvement.
www.hcfa.gov
Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation,
NCFRREPORT
NHeLP, website of the National Health
Law Program, offers inforn1ation about all
facets of health care for low-income
people, including medicaid managed care.
www.healthlaw.org
0
ffice of Minority Health coordinates and monitors activities
across the Department of Health
and Human Services in disease prevention,
health promotion, service delivery and
research related to racial and ethnic minority populations. www.os.dhhs.gov:SO/
progorg/ophs/omh.htm
Robert Wood Johnson Foundation based
in Princeton, N.J., is the nation's larg~st
philanthropy devoted exclusively to health
and health care. It concentrates its
grantmaking in three goal areas: (1) to
assure that all Americans have access to
basic health care at reasonable cost; (2) to
improve the way services are organized and
provided to people with chronic health
conditions; and (3) to reduce the personal,
social and economic harm caused by
substance abuse-tobacco, alcohol, and
illicit drugs. www.rwjf.org
25
PILOT PROGRAMS
continued from page 24
S/HMOs provid.e standard HMO benefits,
such as hospital, physician, skilled nmsing
home, and home health services, together
with limited long-tenn care benefits. S/HMOs
provide personal care aides, homemakers,
medical transportation, adult day health care,
respite care and case management in a community setting. The S/HMO program provides more limited long-term care benefits
than PACE. S/HMOs have a yearly dollar cap
for the long-tenn care benefit, whereas PACE
does not have such a cap.
S/HMOs are open to elderly Medicare beneficiaries who live within a S/HMO's coverage
area and who voluntarily enroll. Services are
paid for by funds from Medicare and Medicaid. Member premiums and co-payments are
pooled to finance each program, and S/
HMOs are paid on a capitated basis. The
level of the beneficiary premium payments as
well as benefits and capitation payments vary
by site.
EverCare
verCare is a demonstration designed
to study the effectiveness of managing the acute-care needs of nursing
home residents by pairing physicians and
gmiatric nurse practitioners, who function as
primary medical caregivers and case managers.
The major goals of the program are to reduce
medical complications and dislocation trauma
resulting from hospitalization and to save the
expense of hospital care when patients could
be managed safely in nursing homes. Three
sites are operational in Georgia, Maryland,
and Massachusetts. CmTently, the University
of Minnesota is conducting an evaluation of
EverCare.
EverCare includes Medicare-covered services. Medicaid-covered services, such as
nursing facility care, are not covered. The
program is open to pennanent residents in a
pariicipating nursing home. They must be
eligible for Medicare and enroll in the program voluntarily.
EverCare receives a capitated rate from
Medicare to provide Medicare-covered
services. EverCare does not pool Medicaid
and Medicare funds; it simply provides
Medicare covered services in a case management setting.
Adapted ji-om information on the Disabilities and
Managed Care Website (managedcare.hhs.gov/
program_descriptions).
SEPTEMBER 1999
�F and ublic
Iicy:
larity and F cus
he NCFR Board is
in the process of
committing the organization to a
more explicit and focused role in the public
policy arena. I want to let you know what
the Board has been doing, based on feedback from members, and how you can
advise the Board about future directions.
The global statement of purpose generated
by the Board in the policy domain is as
follows: "Families, professionals, and
public decision-makers will be better
infonned about family well-being." This
guiding statement commits NCFR primarily to a role in family policy education, as
distinguished from family policy advocacy.
The traditional purpose of family policy
education is to irifonn policymakers (and
others) by clarifying the potential consequences of various policy alternatives for
family well-being. In this model, policymakers come to trust and seek out the
expertise and objectivity of family scholars
and professionals who bring to bear the
best knowledge from research and practice
to the policy issue. This non-partisan
approach has been successfully implemented nationally over many years by the
Family Impact Seminar, headed by Theodora Ooms, and by NCFR board member
Karen Bogensclmeider in Wisconsin. An
important subtext of each specific educational effort is to make the point, over and
over, that family issues are a vital component of virtually all major policy initiatives,
from welfare refonn to educational refonn
to health care refonn to tax policy.
Among our members and in our journals,
we have rich resources to infonn the dis-
National Family Week is
November 21-27.
This is an excellent opportunity to spotlight
family support efforts and promote the
strengths of America's families. For more
information on hosting a forum on family
issues or sponsoring other activities in
celebration of National Family Week, contact
Shamara Riley at 312-338-0900, ext. 129, or
shamara.riley@frca.org.
NCFR REPORT
cussion and debate about family policy. We
have a responsibility to make our voice
heard as an association. We are one of the
few professional organizations with a
consistent family-level perspective; most
other groups work on policy issues affecting specific subgroups such as children or
the.elderly. The Board has made the commitment to move more ofNCFR's resources towards public policy education,
and we have hired a new Executive Director who has decades of experience and
contacts in Washington and the states. In
the fut11re, the Board will take more responsibility for fonnulating the domains of
policy education that the organization will
pursi.Ie. To set priorities well, we need to
be in conversation with NCFR members as
advocacy stands at all. Some organizations
take advocacy stands only when their
members' interests are at stake, as in health
care refonn legislation.
Although we see NCFR's role as p1imarily
educational, the NCFR Board sees certain
scenarios in which the association should
take an advocacy position in public policy.
We have developed a set of five criteria for
deciding whether NCFR should take an
advocacy stance on a family policy issue:
a) the issue is important for families or
NCFR members, b) the issue is infonned
by research and member expertise, c) there
is a high level of member consensus, d)
there is potential to make a timely contribution, and e) there are resources available to
make a difference. All five
criteria would have to be met
The NCFR Board sees certain scenarios for N CFR to move out of its
educational role into an advoin which the association should take
cacy role.
an advocacy position in public policy.
well as tracking the important policy issues
facing families. Policy education must
begin "at home," as it were, among our
own members, and spread out to policymakers, other professionals, and to families at large.
Given our primary emphasis on education,
what role should NCFR play in public
policy advocacy? Advocacy traditionally
involves working for a particular policy
altemative that may potentially enhance
family well-being. It means direct involvement in the political process. Direct advocacy is a contentious area in almost all
professional associations because of the
diversity of values and political views
among dues-paying members. Some
organizations, such as the National Association of Social Workers, take a large
number of advocacy stands (and thereby
sacrificing much of their educational credibility with a segment ofpolicymakers),
while others, such as the Society for
Research in Child Development, take no
26
To make these criteria concrete,
here is an example of a policy
issue that would clearly fit all the criteria:
supporting legislation to restore funding for
state-levelmaniage and divorce statistics.
And here is an example of an issue that
would probably not meet the criterion of a
high level of member consensus: govemment funding for late-term abortions.
e have begun the process of
defining and focusing NCFR's
public policy role and of committing more resources to this effmi. NCFR
is poised to do more, and we need your
input as a member about the steps we have
taken so far and where we should go in the
future. What policy issues do you want to
get educated about? What issues should
capture our attention so that we can capture
the attention of decision-makers? How can
we prepare ourselves as individuals, as
divisional councils, and as an association to
make a difference for families in the public
arena? We would like to hear from you.
William J. Doherty, Ph.D.
NCFR President
SEPTEMBER 1999
�H
l_nvestment in Membership
licy
Services Public
avingrecently
completed my NCFR
orientation and my first three
months as your fourth Executive Director, I
must say that I am extremely impressed
with the breath ofleadership, membership
and programs on family well-being that
NCFR has contributed to the field in support of researchers, practitioners,
policymakers and students since its inception in 1938. From my readings of A FiftyYem· History 1938-1987, the Vision 2010
publications and the journals; my almost
daily briefings with Mary Jo Czaplewski
during her last month as Executive Director; and now my discussions with NCFR
Board, individual members, the NCFR staff
and others about the rich and stellar history
and contributions ofNCFR, I'm getting an
enriched tutorial on the substance and
character ofNCFR. What stood out in my
discussions and readings were two things:
first, the very active policy leadership role
that NCFR provided in 1948 and in 1980
for the White House Conferences on the
Family; and the recognition that NCFR has
members in every state ofthe U.S., including the District of Columbia and Puerto
Rico, on military bases and in 34 countries.
ideas that advance our mission. Two most
recent examples of seeking out input from
our members include: ( 1) getting feedback
through your responses to ensure that the
Family Relations journal meets the needs
of practitioners in the family field, and (2)
detennining the percentage of resources to
be allocated to the two global Ends Policies (EPs) fommConsistent with the goals of our Board ofDirectors, lated by the
Board. Ends
my goal is to engage the membership in developing Policies, you will
recall, are the
creative, innovative ideas that advance our mission. statements that
tell
after all is
said and done- what difference NCFR is
To keep us moving forward, a focus on the
to make, for whom, and at what cost.
mission ofNCFR is essential: " ... to
NCFR now has two global Ends Policies:
provide a forum ... to share in the develop411 EPl-NCFR members will have the
ment and dissemination of lawwledge ...
knowledge and skills to shtdy, teach
establish professional standards ... and
about, and serve families.
work to promote family well-being." In
order to support the programs, services,
411 EP2-Families, professionals, and
infonnation and structure ofNCFR and to
policymakers will make family wellmaintain that focus while at the same time
being a high priority in decision-making.
delivering on our mission, NCFR needs a
ver 40 members responded to the
more involved and growing membership.
Family Relations query and over
Consistent with the goals of our Board of
160 members responded to the
Directors, my goal is to engage the memIn my first communique to you, I have
allocation question. The outcomes: on
chosen to focus on the latter the member- bership in developing creative, iru1ovative
October 2nd, a time-limited Family Relations Advisory Committee, appointed by
President Bill Doherty, will meet with
Have Fun in the Sun and Donate to the
Jeffrey Dwyer, the cunent editor, and with
Czaplewski Fellowship Fund
the editor-elect to review and make recommendations regarding an increased focus
CZAPLEWSKI GOLF OUTING FUNDRAISER
on the activities, interests and contributions
of the practitioner. Member feedback will
Thursday, November 11, 1:00 pm., Oak Creek Golf Club, Irvine, CA
be shared with this task group.
ship - and how we might be able to influence the former- policymakers. Without a
doubt the most important asset ofNCFR is
its members, currently at 3,864. For over
61 years, NCFR, through its membership
of researchers, educators, practitioners and
students, has focused its energies and
expertise on promoting family well-being.
Cost: $125 (includes greens fee, golf cart and donation to the Czaplewski Fellowship Fund).
Golf clubs may be rented for $20. Transportation to and from the event provided.
NCFR is taking advantage of the beautiful sunny California temperature. We invite you to a
fun golf outing to help us build up the Czaplewski Fellowship Fund.
Come and join your friends. With a 1:00 beginning tee time, you can fly in to the Conference
on Thursday morning and still take in a minimum of 9 - 13 holes before dark. Transportation
will be provided to and from the golf course.
See page 7 of the Conference Program for details; register on the registration fom.
For further information contact: NCFR toll free 888-781-9331, ext. 15
or visit NCFR's website: www.ncfr.org.
Regarding the allocation question, [i.e.,
What proportion ofNCFR resourceshuman (staff, members) and fiscal (dues,
income) - should be allocated between
EP1 and EP2?] the median response called
for a split of75:25 or
EP1-75% + EP2- 25% = 100%
As many of my colleagues are saying, the
era of top-down management is history, if
Investment continued on next page
NCFRREPORT
27
SEPTEMBER 1999
�Report fr m Washingt n
CENSUS
T
he House and Senate have passed
bills giving a huge tax cut, but it is
expected that the President will
veto them. In order to meet the goals of the
tax cuts, many discretionary programs
would have to be cut, among them would
potentially be the Census.
The January Supreme Court ruling that
prohibits sampling methods to calculate
state population totals used for congressional apportionment has made it necessary for the census to have an additional
$1.7 billion for final census preparations
and operations. By declaring this extra
INVESTMENT
that some areas had actually been
overcounted because of unclear designations of"family members."
The Bureau of the Census has agreed to
hire temporary workers who are not citizens. This ruling came about from complaints by immigrants that only census
workers who live in the neighborhoods
being counted would be trusted enough to
get a good count. A study of
undercounted districts from the 1990
census found that anthropologists who
had studied various enclaves of immigrant,
poor, or migrant groups made excellent
enumerators. To my surprise, it was found
ARM: MOTHERHOOD
ffective in September and with
technical assistance from one of
our members, NCFR is initiating
statewide/region-wide listservs available
for all Affiliated Councils and Sections
(see ad page 3 7). The listservs will pennit
individuals to reach each other across the
state or region quickly and effectively
through e-mail. This service will have the
potential of pennitting each member of
NCFR to receive up-to-date information
about critical programs, research and
public policy issues that affect families in a
particular state or region. Contact John
Pepper at NCFR, 888-781-9331, ext. 16, with
questions or concerns.
Secondly, we plan to establish monthly
teleconferences. "Hot Topics" are designed to be monthly teleconferences
where, from your office or classroom, you
can interact with experts on the latest
public policy issues affecting family wellbeing. Presentations (approximately 30-40
The Association for Research on Mothering (ARM), founded in 1998 at York University, Toronto, has had conferences on
Mothers and Daughters, Mothers and
Sons, and a one-day symposium on Lesbian Mothering. Upcoming conferences are
on Mothering and Education, two on
Mothering in the African Diaspora, and
Mothering in Literature. ARM has
launched a jmm1al, "Mothering and Motherhood," and invites membership. Get
infmmation by email: arm@yorku.ca.
FATHERHOOD
continued jimn page 27
we want a productive member-driven
organization. Based on this input and the
various questions and concerns expressed, I'm developing a set of proposals
for the Board's consideration and introducing two low cost but effective tools to
improve the dissemination of information
among our members.
NCFRREPORT
money for census to be an "emergency"
Congress could maintain the fiction of
spending within the mandatory "caps."
minutes) from resource persons who are
chosen because of their expertise and
engagement in public policy issues will
share updates and insights from congressional and federal debates and other "hot
topics." Participant questions and exchange of ideas as time permits will follow
these presentations. The "Hot Topics"
calls will last about one hour. The first
"Hot Topic" is scheduled for Friday,
October 1, at 11 a.m. CDT (see Karen
Bogenschneider's article on page 3). Check
NCFR's website (www.ncfr.org) for instructions! All conferences are scheduled for
the first Friday of each month, 11 a.m.
Central Time. For those unable to be a part
of the call, an audio tape or transcript will
be available at cost.
NCFR is moving forward with emphasis on
professional development and membership
growth through service. We all look forward to your sustained involvement in
helping to meet our mission of promoting
family well-being.
We close the century with our 61 st Armual
Conference in Irvine, California, November
12-15, 1999. I loolc forward to meeting many
of you at the conference. See you in sunny
California!
Michael L. Benjamin, M.P.H.
Executive Director
28
n exciting session on Fatherhood
was part of the recent National
Center for Health Statistics Conference for researchers. An outgrowth of the
Interagency Panel on Family Statistics,
there has been increasing interest in fatherhood and male participation in the family.
New and old studies are collaborating to
focus on two aspects of fatherhood. Becoming a Dad, before birth, is being studied
through the National Survey ofFamily
Growth, the National Longitudinal Survey
of Youth, and the Adolescent Study of
Health (ADD Health). Being a Dad, fathering after birth, is being studied by an Early
Childhood-birth study, the Early Head Start
shtdy which includes low income fathers,
and the Fragile Families Shtdy of cohorts of
unwed fathers using data gathered in the
delivery rooms in 21 cities with a later
follow-up.
These six studies will provide an integrated, comprehensive picture of fathers of
different income levels. The surveys are
especially looking at the ways behavior is
related to policy.
Check the Fatherhood Project on
www.childstats.gov for the complete report
and other infonnation.
Margaret Feldman, Ph.D.
NCFR Policy Representative
SEPTEMBER 1999
�The Case for Grandfathering
e've previously announced
NCFR's plans to provide a
grandfathering opportunity for
a limited period prior to the introduction of
the CFLE exam. The qualifying criteria are
currently under development. Most likely
the grandfathering process will require
applicants to complete a brief application
fonn and submit a vitae or resume and a
letter of endorsement from a supervisor or
colleague.
Minimum requirements will include a combination of work experience and relevant
degrees. The number of years of experience
required will vary depending upon the
relevancy and level of degree. In other
words, applicants with a Ph.D. in the family
field will need less experience than applicants with a Masters degree. Substantial
experience in family life education ( 15 to 20
years) may be allowed in place of a specific
family degree. We plan to have the qualifying criteria established and announced at
the NCFR conference in November.
promises to grow as more and more students complete the pre-approved course
work using the Abbreviated Application
and qualify for Provisional certification.
Why is NCFR providing a grand fathering
opportunity? We want to include more
well-established family professionals
among those certified. This will help us to
increase the recognition and value of the
CFLE designation.
Slowly, family life education is becoming
recognized and valued. More grant money
is going toward preventive and educational
programming. Recent research highlighting
the importance of the first three years of life
has resulted in an increased awareness of
the need for education and support for
parents. State govemments are beginning
to provide incentives for pre-marital and
marriage education and for the inclusion of
relationship skills Clmiculum in junior and
senior high schools.
Overall the CFLE program is doing very
well. We cmrently have over 825 Certified
Family Life Educators. The Academic
Program has 3 l approved programs and
nine additional programs currently under
review. The Abbreviated Application
process available to graduates of approved
schools has resulted in over 150 new
CFLEs in just two years. This number
But the reality is that many still don't
understand what family life education is.
Grandfathering continued on next page
NCFR members present suggestions to Janet Reno
xecutive Director MichaelL. Benjamin and two other
members ofNCFR were invited to Washington, DC,
last July for a special two-day symposium on how the
justice system can meet the needs of people with mental
disorders. The symposium was sponsored by two federal
agencies- Office ofJustice Programs in the U.S. Department of
Justice and the Center for Mental Health Services in the U.S.
Department of Health and Hmnan Services.
Participants discussed the importance of partnerships - both
public and private- in providing integrated federal, state and
local responses to individuals with mental disorders who come
into contact with the juvenile and criminal justice systems. The
group identified issues and developed an action agenda.
Benjamin led a policy development seminar on "Creating
Community Partnerships to Respond to the Needs of People
with Mental Illness," one of five such seminars held on the
first day ofthe meeting. The next day, Benjamin reported
recommended action steps to the 200 symposium participants,
who included U.S. Attomey General Janet Reno. In his report,
he lmderlined the need to focus on strength-based models,
especially family involvement in planning and implementation
of services.
Chibucos told Reno that NCFR members have a role to play in
conducting research on relevant issues. He suggested that
NCFR might publish a special jomnal issue on children's and
family issues as they related to justice programs or create a
section [to deal with these topics] within NCFR.
William Michael Fleming, CFLE, called the symposium "very
informative." He found it "remarkable" that the group included
"correctional and law enforcement personnel, district attorneys,
public defenders, judges, mental health providers, victim advocates, imnate advocates along with family professionals all
talking with each other."
Fleming, a faculty member at University ofNorthem Iowa, also
noted that "it was clear that these folks do not understand fully
family systems .... family professionals could become a valuable asset."
In a joint statement, Lamie Robinson, Assistant Attorney
General, and Dr. Bernard Arons, Director of the Center for
Mental Health Services, summed up the proceedings: "We have
a great deal of work before us in addressing the many issues
raised during our discussions ... we look forward to continuing
to work with you... "
NCFR member Thomas R. Chibucos ofBowling Green State
University also met with the attorney general. He applauded
NCFRREPORT
her for having a "more inclusive approach to justice that included a greater emphasis on developmental problems, family
issues, health and child care."
29
SEPTEMBER 1999
�GRANDFATHERING
continued ji-om page 29
Our society still operates frmp a medical
model where the goal is to identify problems and then try to fix them rather than
prevent the problems in the first place. I
receive calls regularly from CFLEs who are
frustrated because their degree and certification are not being recognized. They
apply for jobs within state governmentsjobs that involve teaching conmmnication
skills, conflict resolution, resource management and parenting- and they are told that
they need a social work degree or license.
NCFR is working hard to increase awareness of family life education. However,
family life educators, certified and noncertified, have to be their own advocates,
selling the concept offamily life education
and their qualifications to potential employers as well.
his is an important and expected
step when establishing a new
profession. And family life is still a
relatively new profession. In order to
advance the field we need to increase
awareness. One way to do this is to increase the
number of
Employers need to
qualified
know that there is a professionals
certified in
reasonable pool of
the field. I've
talked to
employees to pull
employers at
state and
from they choose
federal
to look for the CFLE agencies and
those that
designation ...
hire in health
care settings
and other places where family life education takes place. They are interested in
knowing about family life education and
the CFLE designation. But when they ask
me about how to find these family life
educators and how many have the CFLE
designation, my response of"over 800"
receives a lukewarm response. We will not
be able to get family life educators included
in state job listings and considered as a
field for licensure with such small numbers.
Employers need to know that there is a
reasonable pool of employees to pull from
if they choose to look for the CFLE designation or for those with specific family life
education training.
T
if
Which brings us back to the need to increase the number of CFLEs. We need a
NCFRREPORT
Following is a list of Certified Family Life Educators designated since May 1999.
A list of all current CFLEs is now included in the certification section of the
NCFR web page at www.ncfi:org.
[* -Provisional]
Colorado
Tyler Homer
Jodi Harris*
Gail Hauser-Hurley*
Michele,.hlibbert*
Sue t':ef~~ozki*
'rmiefield*
Florida
Thomas Camille
MmisolVega
Indiana
Kandy Taylor
Ohio
Cari Bryant*
SharriGallup
Kimberly Henson*
Oregon
Susan Webber*
Pennsylvania
Julie Monismith*
Carrie Pearl*
Kansas
Karla Biber*
Marla Canfield*
Lisa Kelley*
Andrea Roth*
Tennessee
Yonna Anderson*
Susan Carter
,~~'""''l:.J.tah
Maine
Sm1dra Caron
L~icas Hammond*
,i'Qwen Heath*
'~Sally Jones
Michigan
Mary Ellen Beers*
Melissa Griffith*
.,if;!
''"Washington
Lori Carraway
David Jobe
North Carolina
Paul Schvaneveldt
solid foundation ofCFLEs promoting
themselves as certified, building awareness
of the designation and the field, and suppmiing the program financially.
There are many NCFR members who are
qualified to be Certified Family Life Educators but who have never taken the time to
apply. These people have masters and
doctoral degrees in the family or related
fields and/ or teach marriage and family
classes. They've written books andresearch articles that have contributed to the
field. Many teach the classes that have
been approved by the Academic Program
Review committee as meeting the CFLE
critetia.
They suppmi the concept of certification;
they see the value in setting standards and
assuring that those providing this important service are qualified. But many earned
their degrees in the 60s and 70s. Their
course work doesn't easily match up with
the ten family life substance areas that
make up the CFLE criteria. Their knowledge
is a culmination of many years of working
in the family field but it is not knowledge
that is easily documented through course
syllabi or conference brochures. As you
know, the current certification process
relies heavily on documentation and is
more easily completed by those just graduating with specific family degrees. It is not a
user-friendly process for those who must
rely more on experience or whose course
work was completed years ago. Which
means those with the CFLE designation are
30
more likely to be new professionals. We
need more established professionals
canying the designation as well!
Also, the reality is that someone with a
Ph.D., who teaches marriage and family
related course work doesn't need to be
certified in order to advance their career.
Tenure provides a clearly defined and
recognized path for career advancement.
We know these people are qualified by the
fact that they have well-established careers
in the family field. We need to include them
in the CFLE numbers and we need to figure
out how to increase the likelihood that they
will seek the designation.
roviding such professionals with a
streamlined application process that
gives them credit for their years of
contribution to the family field makes
sense. The key is to include qualifying
criteria that maintains the integrity of the
CFLE designation. Our program is strong
because of our high standards - being a
CFLE really means something! Our goal is
to increase the number of qualified designates, not just the number of designates.
With a well-thought out grandfathering
process we can do that.
P
The next year or two are very important to
the future of the CFLE program and the
field offamily life education. We need your
support in helping the CFLE designation
reach its potential!
Dawn Cassidy, M.Ed.
Certification Director
SEPTEMBER 1999
�This colwnnfeatures news ofNCFR promotions, awards, career changes of interest to
all members. T¥rite to us and let us !mow what you are doing.
uzanne Begin, CFLE, has accepted
the position of executive director of
the Georgia PTA after serving 4
years as the volunteer family development
chair. Founded in 1906, the Georgia PTA is
the oldest and largest volunteer child
advocacy organization in the state with
over 360,000 members.
The PTA has as its mission: to support and
speak on behalf of children and youth in
the schools, in the community, and before
govemmental bodies and other organizations that make decisions affecting children; to assist parents in developing the
skills they need to raise and protect their
children; and to encourage parent and
public involvement in the public schools of
the nation.
Thomas R. Chibucos & Richard M. Lemer
-have edited a new publication, Sen;ing
Children and Families Through Community-University Partnerships: Success
Stories. Published by Kluwer Academic
Publishers, it is the first volume in the new
Outreach Scholarship Series.
Serving Children and Families presents
several dozen exemplary "success stories"
of community-university partnerships that
serve to enhance the lives of children,
youth, and families. These illustrations are
drawn from collaborations across the
breadth of the nation and reflect the work
of many diverse colleges and universities.
Moreover, these partnerships involve an
array of target audiences, ranging across
the individual life span from infancy
through old age and involving a diverse
set of groups and organizations. This
volume will guide universities and communities to work together to promote positive
development in the diverse children,
families, and communities of our nation.
For more infonnation, contact Klumer by
phone: 781-871-6600 or e-mail:
kluwer@wkap.com.
Lawrence Ganong & Marilyn ColemanTheir new book, Changing Families,
Changing Responsibilities: Fami~v Obligations Follmving Divorce and Remarriage is now available through Lawrence
Erlbaum Associates. Chapters include:
Who is responsible for dependent family
members?, parental financial support of
children following divorce, parents' responsibility to assume physical custody of
children, older family members' financial
obligations to younger generations,
adults' obligations to parents, in-laws, and
SPECIAl LEGACY CIRCLE
RECEPTION AT THE CONFERENCE
FOR MEMBERS WHO JOINED NCFR
IN 1974 OR BEFORE
Saturaa¥,
NovemBer;~ S 7:00-8:00 p.m., Imperial Room
Gather with your Legacy Circle friends and colleagues for hors d' oeuvres and
beverages. View memorabilia from NCFR's tich history. Meet NCFR President
Bill Doherty and his wife, Leah; NCFR Executive Director Michael Benjamin and
his wife, Marva; and members of the NCFR Board. A short program will celebrate
NCFR's histmy and plans for the next century. At 8:00 you will want to go to the
Counsel of Sages Session as we look back with several NCFR members who joined
as students and continued through the years, serving the organization in leadership capacities.
The Legacy Circle is by invitation only to those who have been NCFR members for
25 or more years. Invitations will be sent in the mail in September.
NCFRREPORT
31
stepparents, responsibilities to elders after
the divorce of the middle generation.
Models of intergenerational obligations as
well as propositions still to be tested are
offered. The book should be of interest to
policymakers, and professionals and
scholars in family studies, sociology,
psychology, and gerontology. Erlbaum has
a special prepaid offer for $27.50. E-mail
book orders: orders@erlbaum.com.
arcie Parker, CFLE, has
published a book chapter in
Special Populations in the
Community: Advances in Reducing
Health Disparities [Aspen Publishers,
1999]. "Families Caring for Chronically Ill
Children with Tuberous Sclerosis Complex" is a qualitative research shtdy of the
complex feelings, emotions and family life
of families caring for special needs children. This year, Dr. Parker has also given
13 professional presentations at national
or international conferences and has
published an additional12 articles, mostly
on aging, health care (especially for ethnically and racially diverse populations),
long-tenn care and case management. She
is Senior Qualitative Researcher with
Ophnn, a health and well-being company,
in Golden Valley, Minnesota.
Menil Silverstein, Univ. ofSouthem
Califomia, has beet1awarded a Fulbright
grant to lechtre and conduct research in
Sweden on family and govemment support
to the elderly, the U.S. InfonnationAgency
and J. William Fulbright Foreign Scholarship Board announced recently. Dr.
Silverstein is one of approximately 2,000
U.S. grantees who will travel abroad for the
1999/2000 academic year through the
Fulbright Program. Established in 1946
under Congressional legislation introduced by the late Senator J. William
Fulbright of Arkansas, the program is
designed "to increase mutual understanding between the people of the United
States and the people of other countries."
Congratulations, Merrill
111
SEPTEMBER 1999
�IN MEMORIAM
arlfre
artholomew
ro erick
1932-1999
ew, if any, individuals
have made more significant contributions to the
field of family science and the
well-being offamilies in our society than Dr. Carlfred Brodelick. He was such a unique individual that
he-doesn't compare with anyone else, he doesn't fit into standard
categmies, and he is not easily summarized. He was truly his own
man. He was bom Aplil 7, 1932 in Salt Lake City, Utah and died at
his home in Cenitos, Califomia on July 29, 1999. He is survived by
his wife, Kathleen, four daughters, four sons, and 17 grandchildren.
Memorials can be sent to the Ame1ican Cancer Society.
Carlfied received his A.B. from Harvard in Social Relations and his
Ph.D. fi"Oin Comell in Child Development and Family Relations.
Later, he took a year· off for a post-doctoral clinical fellowship in
maniage and family therapy at the University ofMiimesota. His
thirst for leaming never waned. Throughout his life he took advan-
tage of opportunities to increase his tmderstanding and maste1y of
ideas, themies and skills in his professional activities.
His contributions to the family took place through the channels of
teaching, counseling, w1iting, research, speaking, fulfilling leadership positions in professional organizations, and by setting an
enviable example in his personal life.
He held full-time faculty positions at The University of Georgia,
The Pennsylvania State University, and the University of Southem
Califomia. He was an effective teacher and continues to have a
major impact on the family through the contributions of his students. He directed and expanded the maniage and family therapy
training program at the University ofSouthem Califomia into one
of the most outstanding of its kind in the nation.
His knowledge of and skills in marriage and family therapy not only
contlibuted to training many outstanding therapists, but
Broderick continued on next page
The following persons have contributed donations since May 1999. Their generosity aids NCFR in continuing its programs and awards.
Mary Jo Czaplewski Fellowship
Katherine Allen - Blacksburg, VA
Jim & Barbara Anderson- Shoreview, MN
Mary Lou Anderson- Cambridge, MN
Sister Judith Bakula - St. Paul, MN
Shirley L. Barber - Roseville, MN
Howard Barnes- Cedar Falls, IA
Marilyn Bensman -New York, NY
Gerhardt Boelter Family~ Shoreview, MN
Karen Bogenschneider - Spring Green, WI
Marcia J. Brooke - Maplewood, MN
Timothy Brubaker Oxford, OH
Margaret M. Bubolz- East Lansing, Ml
Dawn Cassidy - Minneapolis, MN
Barbara A. Chandler -Arlington, VA
David Coker- Athens, GA ·
Betty L. Cooke - Minnetonka, MN
Edna Czaplewski- Winona, MN
Carol A. Darling- Tallahassee, FL
Joyce DeBoe- Minneapolis, MN
Ann Ellwood -Minneapolis, MN
Martha J. Erickson ·Minneapolis, MN
Family Information Servicl)s-Joan Comeau
- Minneapolis, MN
Margaret Feldman -Washington, DC
NCFRREPORT
Marilyn Flick- Coburg, OR
Greer Litton Fox- Knoxville, TN
Paul C. Glick- Phoenix, AZ
Stuart R. Hemphill - Minneapolis, MN
Richard & Miriam Hey Roseville, MN
Marion E. Hill- Minneapolis, MN
M. Janice Hogan- Lake Elmo, MN
Jessica J. Jahnke -Belfast, ME
Sisters Rita/Paulissa Jirik - W. St. Paul, MN
Eunsun Joo- Seoul, Korea
Sam Hwan Joo- Seoul, Korea
Virginia M. Juffer- St. Paul, MN
Joan Jurich- West Lafayette, IN
Lorraine Kemmer- St. Paul, MN
Nancy Kingsbury- Statesboro, GA
Kathleen Kinzer - St. Cloud, MN
Leslie A. Koepke - St. Paul, MN
Leigh A. Leslie - Silver Springs, MD
Keith & Mary McFarland- St. Paul, MN
Brent C. Miller - ~ogan, UT
David Olson -North Oaks, MN
Lane Powell - Lubbock, TX
Sharon Price - Athens, GA
Ron Reed - St. Pat'tl, MN
32
Roger H. Rubin- College Park, MD
Lynn Schoonmaker -Richfield, MN
Joyce Schultenover- Minnetonka, MN
Lowery J. & Mary Ann Smith
- Minneapolis, MN
Graham Spanier- University Park, PA
SisterMary Tacheny - Mankato, MN
Ruth Thomas - St. Paul, MN
Alexis Walker - Corvallis, OR
Lynda & James Walters- Athens, GA
Jim Webb- Bloomington, lL
Doris Wiehe - Roseville, MN
Cal & Sharon Wilson - Roseville, MN
Britton Wood- Fort Worth; TX
Shirley Zimmerman - St. Lonis Park, MN
For more information on
contributing to NCFR, contact:
Michael L. Benjamin
NCFR Executive Director
3989 Central Ave. NE, Suite 550
Minneapolis, MN 55421
Toll free: 888-781-9331 ext. 21
E-mail: mbenjamin@ncfr.org
SEPTEMBER 1999
�BRODERICK
continued from page 32
allowed him to personally assist individuals to become productive, contributing
members of their families and their communities.
Carlfred had the ability to successfully
write for both professional and lay audiences. Even though he wrote several
books and articles for the popular press,
he was, to the end, held with the highest
degree of respect by his professional
associates. The list of his publications is
lengthy and impressive. Probably his most
successful trade book, Couples (Simon
and Schuster, 1979), is still in print. He
authored a college text, Marriage and the
Family, now in its 4th edition. His clinical
interests appeared in print in several
joumal articles and in books edited by
others and finally his own book, The
Therapeutic Triangle (Sage, 1983). He
contributed numerous articles and chapters to books on theories about the family
and more recently his own book-length
treatment of the subject, Understanding
Family Process: The Basics ofFamily
Systems The01y (Sage, 1993). Through his
writings, he influenced thousands of
students and scholars in academia and
probably millions of individuals in the
general population.
hose fortunate enough to hear him
speak were not only impressed by
his skills in clearly articulating the
infonnation and ideas he had in mind, but
also his ability to frequently filter his
thoughts and observations through his
inepressible sense of humor. He was
enthusiastically received by both professional and lay audiences. Because of his
keen insights, innumerable individuals
were inspired to implement changes in
their behavior and to identify and magnify
their strengths. Sh1dents were motivated
to deepen and expand their intellecrual
pursuits. Professional colleagues were
challenged with new perspectives and
interpretations of family theory, research
strategies and therapeutic practices.
He helped organizations examine their
stated purposes, clarify their policies, and
improve their networks of influence. He
served as President of the National Council on Family Relations, President of the
Southem California Association of Marriage and Family Counselors, and President of the Association of Mannon CounNCFR REPORT
Three generations of NCFR leadership attend the Retirement Reception for
Mmy Jo Czapletvski on June 26. Ruth Jewson, seated, Executive Director .fi'om
1956-1984, Mmy Jo Czaplewski, Ex. Dil: 1984-1999, and Michael Benjamin,
incoming Ex. Dil: Accompanying Ruth was her husband, Vance Jewson.
selors and Psychotherapists. He also held
important leadership positions in the American Sociological Association and the
American Association for Maniage and
Family Therapy.
said, "masquerading as an expert on marriage and sex, but always going for a better
audience response than the host."
Those who knew Carlfred well were aware
that he was a "perfonner," whether he was
at a podium, on the stage, or enjoying
dim1er with associates. He sang in a choir
almost his entire life. He loved being in
stage shows and performed in The Mikado,
Plain and Fancy, and Mame. When he
lived in California, Carlfred was frequently
the music director and every year a perfanner in the annual Mormon "stake road
show." He made ten appearances with
Jolumy Carson on the Tonight Show, as he
that lead to success in family living, he lived
them and provided a model that any and all
of us could beneficially emulate. And
finally, in death, he provided an example of
enduring pain gracefully and without
bittemess or losing faith. The world is a
better place because ofCarlfred Broderick.
Carlfred was a very active participant in The
Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
In addition to serving as President ofNCFR He held important leadership positions,
including bishop, stake president, patTiarch,
in 1975, and as editor of the Journal of
and temple worker. He not only found this
Marriage and the Family, he held many
an additional way to strengthen families,
other positions of leadership, accepted
many committee assignments, and contrib- but also gained much of his value for the
uted significantly to building and strength- importance offamilies from the teachings of
ening this organization. In 1996, he wrote, "I his church.
took particular pleasure in serving as Presiarlfred experienced life enthusiastident ofNCFR because that organization
cally and joyfully. He leaves a
had always been, and remains, my profeslegacy that has and will influence
sional home base. Most of the people who
srudents offamily life for years to come. He
have been important in my professional life is an inspiration to those wanting to
are regularly attending members. I think I
strengthen relationships within families,
have missed only one annual meeting
including their own. He not only taught,
(1975-I had the flu) since 1960."
talked, wrote, and researched the principles
33
Blaine Porter
Provo, Utah
NCFRPresident 1963
Dean Emerirus, College ofFamily Living
Brigham Young University
SEPTEMBER 1999
�Get a New lease on Your Professional
Life at the 61 st NCFR Annual Conference!
n June 8, 1999 I celebrated a milestone in my life - my 35 111 anniversary at NCFR! It is a joy to be a
part of such a wonderful organization. As I
look back over the years it is interesting to
note that NCFR has always tried to be on
the "cutting edge" of family infonnation.
Some things have changed over the years
like technology. It is much nicer using the
computer today than typing everything by
hand, cranking out mimeographed materials, and pasting artwork, but the constant is
NCFR's mission to provide new infonna-
O
National Council on Family
tion to its members. One of the ways of
disseminating the infonnation is through
the Conference. Perhaps you might think
that after 35 years, planning these conferences would become rather "boring," but I
find the opposite to be true. Each year I
find myself becoming more excited as
plans for the Conference unfold. This year
in particular, it is easy to become excited
as the enthusiasm and effervescence of
Katherine Allen, CFLE, Program Chair,
rubs off on the entire planning committee.
This year's Conference will be better than
the previous 60. Here are just a
few reasons why you should
Relations
come:
* The theme is current and
61st Annual Conference
relevant for today.
November 12-15, 1999
Hyatt Regency Hotel,
Irvine, CA
Program Chair: Katherine Allen, CFLE, Virginia Tech
You Will Want to be at the Conference!
+listen to the top "facts about families" in dlis
century - revealed tor die first time at die Conference!
+Leam from more dian 425 presentations of 01iginal
research in vmiecl tonnat'i for researchers, practitioners,
educators.
+Listen to plenaries, updates for practitioners, and
special sessions focusing on die dieme.
+Meet Michael Benjamin, NCFR's new Executive
Directoc Tell him about your hopes <mel dreams tor
NCFR, and learn how you can actively pa1ticipate.
+Leam about new benefits for NCFR members.
+Keep physically fit by patticipating in the Czaplewski
Fellowship Golf Outing - and add to die Fund!
+Connect wid1 leaders in die Fm1lily field.
+Have fun in die sun at Disneyland at reduced plices!
You will be missed if you don't attend!
li •
•
@ontact: N@FR, Toll free: 888-%81-9391
~·
Website: www.ncfr.org
,
1ftl Fax: 612-781-9948; E-mail: ncfr9989@ncfr.org;
NCFR REPORT
·
Borders, Boundaries, and
Beacons: Diverse Families in
Dynamic Societies covers the
family of today. With the recent
war in Kosovo and the flood of
refugees, nations such as the
U.S. must open their doors to
troubled people, and help them
adjust to a new life in an unfamiliar world. Today's diverse
families have different daily
situations unknown to their
forefathers. What are family
professionals doing to help
them? Come to the Conference
and find out. The following
major speakers directly address
items related to the theme: Mary
Catherine Bateson, Lou
Bellamy, Marta Sotomayor
(Plenary speakers); Dan
Detzner, Blong Xiong, and
Pauline Boss (Research Updates
for Practitioners speakers),
Peggye Dilworth-Anderson,
(Marie Peters Award Address);
Ruben Rumbaut, Mel White,
Belinda Reyes, Cecilia Munoz,
Wendy Zimmerman, Michael
Fix, Kate Kendall, John
Davidson, and Carol Stack
(Special Speakers) to name just a
34
few. Check your Conference Program fo
details.
*
Presentations are based on ne\1
findings.
Take a look at some of the new research
and ideas that will be presented: Ross
Parke, speaking on Fathering for the Nf
Generation: Barriers and Prospects;
Bryan Rodgers and Jan Pryor with the
new study on British Research on Children ofDivorce: Academic Research or
Political Battlefield?; Vern Bengtson an
his team are presenting their 26-year shu
of Intergenerational Relationships; and
Judith Landau and a team of experts WI
discuss A Relational Intervention Sequence for Engagement (ARISE): A Fam
ily Intervention for Engaging Substance
Abusers in Treatment.
* You can become actively involvE
in Public Policy to provide crediblE
knowledge to lawmakers throughout the world.
Michael Benjamin, NCFR's new Execu·
tive Director, has a great background in
working with Federal agencies and in the
policy arena. He is dedicated to putting
NCFR on the map as an organization
which the media and policymakers can
come to for the latest facts about families
Look at the ways in which other organiza
tions are sharing with NCFR and NCFR
with them at the Conference:
1. The Head Start Association is using
the NCFR Conference as a sounding
board for ideas for 2010. You can
provide testimony at the Hearing on
Thursday, Nov. 11, 4:00- 6:00p.m.
2. Karol Kumpfer, Director of the Center for Substance Abuse Prevention,
Substance Abuse and Mental Health
Service Administration, is presenting <
special session on Parenting Prevention Initiative Programs.
3. Margaret Feldman has planned an
outstanding Public Policy Seminar on
Getting Tough on Crime: Effects on
Families, with panelists, James Lyncl
Nevi' Lease continued on next page
SEPTEMBER 1999
�NEW LEASE
continued.fi'om page 34
Dept. of Justice, Law and Society, American
Univ., Washington, DC; Elliot Currie,
Legal Studies Program, Univ. of California-Berkeley; Douglas Kieso, Univ. of
Califomia-Irvine; and Sue Reams, a
Califomia resident whose family was
severely affected by the im-pact of
Califomia's "Tlu·ee-shikes" law.
4. Catherine Chilman has seemed Pamela
Larson, Executive Vice-president of the
National Academy of Social Insmance, to
address the issue of Social Security
Reform: Where Are We Now?
5. NCFR Board Member, Karen
Bogenschneider, will present a session
on NCFR s Role in the Policy Arena:
Education or Advocacy?
6. NCFR; the Substance Abuse and Mental
Health Services Administration, Center
for Substance Abuse Prevention (CSAP);
Parenting IS Prevention Project (PIPP);
and the White House Office of National
Drug Control Policy (ONDCP) are
planning a Post-conference Workshop,
Monday aftemoon, Nov. 15, on Collaborating With Community Gmups and
National Organizations in Integrating
Parenting, Research, and Substance
Abuse Prevention. Sign up today and
learn how NCFR can work cooperatively
with other agencies in spreading the news
about families.
*
You Can Network With Leaders
Face to Face
any people who return each year
for conferences have stated that
they keep coming back to NCFR
conferences because they feel "welcome"
regardless of their employment position or
stailts. Conference planningjoumals have
stated that even with the teclmological age,
on-site conferences will continue to be
popular. Some members have begun collaborations with colleagues across the counhy or
world that they met at NCFR. Others have
found employment positions through the
Employment Matching Service. Still others
have been mentored by some of the "leaders"
in the field through their contacts at the
conference.
* Have Fun and Reach Out to Help
Others at the Same Time
1. Play golf in smmy California and contrib-
NCFRREPORT
ute to the Czaplewski Fellowship Fund
on Thmsday, Nov. 11. See the article on
page 27 for details.
2. Pmchase a gift at the Hospitality Cafe. All
funds will go to a refugee agency in the
Orange Col.ll1ty area.
3. Celebrate the retirement ofWesley Burr,
one ofNCFR's Past Presidents, at the
Brigham Young University Ice Cream
Social. Donations will be accepted there
to give to an area refugee agency.
4. Meet NCFR President Bill Doherty and
his wife, Leah, and new Executive
Director Michael Benjamin and his wife,
Marva, at the Opening Reception. They
really want to meet all of you.
5. Enjoy Disneyland at a discount. See the
Program for details.
6. Watch yomself and yom colleagues on
the screen asyou enter the Plenary Sessions. Come and see where NCFR's
roving photographer will be each day!
Over the past two years we have heard a lot
about Y2K m1d its impending doom! As
family professionals you can look to a bright
future for families in Y2K.
Become Y2K ready for tomorrow's families by attending the NCFR Conference
this year.
I look forward to seeing each of you there.
It's a great place to meet new colleagues
and renew friendships.
Cindy Winter, CMP
Conference Coordinator
A Tribute to
Cindy Winter
Honoring 35 Years
of Service to NCFR
"Time flies
when one
enjoys what
CINDY WINTER, CMP
one is doing." This adage aptly describes Cindy
Winter's 35 years of dedicated service to
NCFR. She loves NCFR and it shows!
Board, Staff and members take this opportunity to recognize and thank Cindy for her
devoted services, always with a smile, a
hearty laugh, always seeking a better way
to improve the quality of services she
gives to us all.
Cindy's career with NCFR began on June 8,
1964 when she was hired as a pari-time
secretary. At the time, she was a student at
the Minnesota Bible College majoring in
Sacred Music and went on to earn a
Bachelor's Degree in Music. Despite the
fact that she had to sit on a phone book to
reach the typewriter keyboard, Cindy's
outstanding abilities and her versatility at
many tasks eamed her a full-time position
the following year.
In her early NCFR career, Cindy kept the
membership, subscriptions, and pennissions records. She worked extensively with
35
Affiliated Councils and hand-typed the
NCFR Report and the conference programs. She worked at the annual conferences in registrations and numerous other
details of conference planning. She also
accompanied Ruth Jewson (Executive
Director 1956-84) on her site visits for
future conferences.
In 1985, Cindy was promoted to the position of Conference Coordinator, and went
on to earn the Certified Meeting Professional (CMP) designation from the Convention Liaison Council in January 1992. Since
then she has been a regular presenter and
tutorial leader at the Religious Conference
Management Association annual meetings
and a certification test proctor.
Cindy's willingness to share her lmowledge
and experiences with others culminated in a
book commissioned by Sage Publishers in
1994 entitled "Planning a Successful Conference," which has become a standard
guideline in the industry and adapted by
leading hotel chains nationwide.
In addition to her outstanding work with
Conference Program Vice Presidents,
35 Years continued on next page
SEPTEMBER 1999
�Education and Enrichment Section
CFR has changed its governing
model and hence, some of its
stmctures. That is not news, all
members had a chance to study the
changes and to vote on them. But questions remain. One of them is "What does
the new NCFR governance system (the
Carver system) mean to members of the
Education and Enrichment Section?"
While I am no expert on the new system,
there are a couple of issues I would like to
tiy to stress for E&E members. First, the
new system does not change the way our
section operates, except that the section
chair no longer sits as a member of the
Board. The section chairs serve as members of the conference planning committee.
However, while the major changes were
proposed and designed to streamline the
Board and "free it up" so it could be a
more pro-active body in guiding policy
35 YEARS continuedji·om page 35
Section Chairs, Association of Council
officers, keynoters and speakeJ"S, hotel staff
and NCFR staff over the years, Cindy is
perhaps best known for her phenomenal
memmy of past events, names and dates
which has provided continuity and assistance to NCFR leaders and colleagues alike.
Her other sterling trait is an attitude of
"never say never!" If she or anyone encounters an obstacle to a goal, she will
always find an alternate route, which is
often superior to the first.
Graciously, Cindy has helped to shape
changes in NCFR through three executive
directors and countless Presidents and
Boards.
In addition to Cindy's NCFR career, she has
been a piano teacher to 3 generations of
students, is an organist and Sunday School
teacher at her church, and, together with
her husband Doug, plans and coordinates
the Minnesota Bible Church conventions.
Congratulations Cindy! Thank you for
your services to NCFR and for your personal, caring interest in each and every
NCFR member over these 35 years!
Submitted by:
Mary Jo Czaplewski, Ex. Dir. Emeritus
NCFR REPORT
fonnulation for NCFR, the section and the
concerns represented by each section, no
longer have direct representation on the
Board. Therefore, it is impmiant for members to do two things: 1) vote, and 2) get to
know your Board Members. Members can
no longer assume their section chair will
represent their interests on the Board
because the section chairs no longer serve
on the Board. So learn about the candidates, detennine their perspectives on
issues impmiant to you and mail back your
ballot when you receive it. The second
important step is to get to know members
of the NCFR Board, let them know your
concerns, interests, and desires for the
organization. The postings on the new
NCFR listserv for folies on e-mail will give
you some insight into issues the Board is
discussing. Take time to read, and respond
to them. However, remember those questions are raised by the Board and respond-
ing to them is not a substitute for raising your own
concerns to one or more
members of the Board.
rn
Together we can create a more effective,
active NCFR. The new governance stmchire provides us that opportunity, but it will
also require a new pattern of involvement
from individual members, from you, to be
most effective!
Howard L. Barnes, Ph.D., CFLE
Chair, Education & Enrichment Section
Associate Professor and Head
Design, Family and Consumer Sciences
23 7 Latham Hall
University of Northern Iowa
Cedar Falls, Iowa 50614-0332
Phone: 319-273-2358
FAX: 319-273-7096
E-mail: BarnesH@tmi.edu
or Howard.Barnes@uni.edu
Family Policy Section
At the 1999 NCFR
conference, the
Family Policy Section will once again
be held in conjunction with the Public
Policy Fomm. Karen Bogenschneider
will give a presentation on "NCFR's Role
in the Policy Arena: Education or Advocacy?" which should be infonnative for all
NCFR members.
impact upon patemal caregiving. We will
also recognize out-going officers, and
usher in the new Family Policy Section
officers! Congratulations to Dennis
Orthner, Chair; Steve Wisensale, Vicechair; Debra Berke, CFLE, Secretary/
Treasurer and Jonathan Olson, Shident/
New Professional representative. We look
fmward to hearing your goals for the next
two years.
Following the Fonun, the Family Policy
Section meeting will recognize Kevin Roy,
recipient of the first Margaret Feldman
Family Policy Intem Award. We look
forward to hearing from him about his
work in the area of welfare refonn and its
Leslie Koepke, Ph.D.
Chair, Family Policy Section
University of Wisconsin-Stout
Menomonie, WI 54751
W: (715) 232-2237
E-mail: koepkel@uwstout.edu
Excerpt from Comments on the new Section Listservs Thanks for the note regarding the new listserve. As you may /mow, I am the nevvly
elected vice-chair of the Family Policy Section. ffyou recall, this idea of a
listsen7elwebpage was one of three ideas I put forth in my "biography of the
candidate" section of tlze netvsletter prior to the organizations election .... I
think we are moving in the right direction. Let's see if we can attract more
"outsiders" into tlze NCFRfold .... thanks for getting this started.
Steve Wisensale
Assoc. Prof. of Public Policy, School of Family Studies, University ofCom1ecticut
36
SEPTEMBER 1999
�Feminism & Family Studies {FFS) Section
Greetings to all!
Our NCFR mmual meeting is just around
the comer, and I am really looking forward
to this meeting in Irvine. We have an
excellent program again this year, including
symposia, paper sessions, roundtables and
posters.
One of the highlights this
year is the distinguished
lecture to be presented by
Dr. Carol Stackofthe
University of California at
Berkeley. The lecture is
titled "Family Trees Across the Landscape:
Race, Gender, Migration, and the Call to
Home." In her talk, Dr. Stack will address
new ways of studying race, gender, and
families in motion in the context of interregional and transnational migration. The
lecture is scheduled for Sunday, November
14, at5:15 p.m.
Also note the symposium on Legal and
Social Policy Issues faced by GLBT families, with Kate Kendall of the National
Center of Lesbian Rights, and John
Davidson, Lambda Legal Defense. This
symposium is sponsored by the Gay/
NOW AVAILABLE!
Enrollment is open to all NCFR
members.
EducationEnrichment@cfapress.org
Ethnic Minorities website:
www.asn.csus.edu/em-ncfr
FamilyHealth@cfapress.org
Family Policy@cfapress.org
FamilyScience@cfapress.org
FamilyTherapy@cfapress.org
FeminismFamilyStudies@cfapress.org
lnternational@cfapress.org
ReligionFamilyLife@cfapress.org
ResearchTheory@cfapress.org
To enroll, send your name, e-mail address,
and the listserv(s) you wish to join to:
John Pepper at 888-781-9331, ext. 16;
E-mail: pepperw@ncfr.org. To sign up
for the Ethnic Minorities Section
Iistserv, go directly to its website.
NCFR REPORT
Lesbian/Bisexual/Transgender Family
Issues Focus Group, and will meet on
Sunday, November 14, at 12:39 p.m.
Our paper sessions and symposia promise
to be very stimulating. Topics include:
Gender Politics of Time in Families; A
Beacon for Integration of Sexually Diverse
Individuals and Families Across the
Lifespan; Violence in Relationships; Marital and Family Roles; and Masculinity and
Fathering.
Mark your calendars for our always
exciting section business meeting!
We're scheduled for Friday, November
12, at 7:15p.m. It will be great to be able
to meet together so early in the conference. And who knows what may
evolve after our meeting!
If you haven't yet purchased your Feminism and Family Studies Course Syllabi
packet, it's not too late! Remember that
proceeds from the sale of the packets will
go to tlie Jessie Bernard Endowment Fund.
Many thanks to Joan Jurich and Brenda
Seery and to all of those who worked so
closely with them on this project. The
packets cost $20.00; to purchase one (or
more!), contact Joan at 1267 CDFS, Purdue
University, W. Lafayette, IN 42957-1267;
765-494-2956;jurichj@cfs.purdue.edu. Not
only will you help a good cause, but you
will benefit i1mnensely from the syllabi, tl1e
al1llotated bibliography offeminist teaching materials, the review of media resources, and the list of Intemet listservs
related to gender.
On behalf of the outgoing officers of our
Section, let me congratulate our incoming
officers:
Shelley MacDermid, Chair; Anisa
Zvonkovic, Vice-chair; Brenda Seery,
Secretmy/Treasurer; Michael Johnson,
Newsletter Editor; Aine Humble, CFLE,
and Phyllis Greenberg, Student/New
Professional Representatives.
And I'd like to thank the cutTent officers
for being such a wonderful group. It has
truly been a joy to work together. Thanks
to Shelley MacDermid, Vice-chair; Mark
Fine, Secretary/Treasurer; Stephen Marks,
Newsletter Editor; and Kaitilin O'Shea
and Beth Silken Catlett, Student/New
Professional Representatives.
FFS Section continued on next page
Family Science (FS) Section
T
he Family Science Section is
pleased with the natural cmmection between this year's conference
theme on Borders, Boundaries, and
Beacons: Diverse Families in Dynamic
Societies and the professional and career
development of family scientists. Worldwide trends toward globalization call for
paradigm shifts in the training of family
professionals. Educators face mounting
pressures to diversify course content and
expand their pedagogical repertoires. These
same impulses toward globalization place
new pressures on family practitioners, as
well. For example, work with diverse
families requires heightened sensitivity to
dimensions of culture, and enhanced social
and linguistic competencies.
A number of these concerns will be addressed in the 1999 conference program.
For example, the Family Science Section is
sponsoring a symposium on "Exploring
Effective Pedagogies with Diverse Families." Related presentations focus on such
topics as "Promoting Ethical Reasoning in
37
Family Science" and
"Teaching Family
Science from a
Postmodern Perspective."
Conference attendees with a general interest in professional development will find
helpful ideas in two of our co-sponsored
sessions, as well: one on "Learning to
Write: Preparing Students in Family Science for Professional Roles," and a second
on "Steps to Getting Tenure." Yet another
timely symposium will explore the rapidly
changing envirol1111ent for "Certification in
Family Science Careers." This session will
provide updates on new certification
initiatives in the public policy arena.
Suggestions will be offered for how NCFR
members might assume a more active role
in detennining whom their states officially
recognize and legitimize as "family professionals." If you are cmmnitted to on-going
professional growth, the Irvine conference
is one you won't want to miss!
Mary Ann Hollinger
Chair, Family Science Section
SEPTEMBER 1999
�Research and Theory Section
CFR members should check out
some of the outstanding sessions
being sponsored by the Research
and Theory Section at the 1999 conference
in Irvine.
University, and Dr. Jan Pryor, University
of Auckland, New Zealand, will give a
talk on "British Studies of Children and
Divorce." They recently published a comprehensive review of research conducted
Professor Ruben G. Rumbaut, Professor of in Great Britain and are currently writing a
book on the same topic. Their talk will not
Sociology at Michigan State University,
only summarize the research literature, but
will be speaking on the experiences of
also focus on how the topic of children
immigrant children. Professor Rumbaut
and divorce is treated (and mistreated) in
was born in Havana, Cuba, and received his
the media. This session is scheduled for
Ph.D. in sociology from Brandeis UniverFriday, November 12.
sity. He has published widely on immigration and is the co-director of the Children of Professor Ross Parke, University of CaliImmigrants Longitudinal Study-the largfomia-Riverside, will be speaking on
est study of immigrant children in the
"Fathering for the Next Generation: BaniUnited States
to date. His talk will
ers and Prospects." Professor Parke has
focus on factors that
published extensively on child developinfluence the educament and is an expert on the role of fathers
tional attainment of
in children's lives. His talk was organized
immigrant children.
by the Men in Families Focus Group and
This session is sched- is scheduled for Saturday, November 13.
uled for Friday,
Our section will also feature several excelNovember 12.
Professor Alan A cock, Department of
Human Development and Family Science
at Oregon State University, will present a
"methods update" on latent growth models.
His friendly introduction to the topic will
focus on how to interpret growth models as
they appear in the research literature. Following the general talk, there will be a
detailed workshop (including software
demonstrations) for researchers working
with longitudinal data. It is assumed that
researchers attending the workshop will
first attend the general introduction. Both
the general talk and the workshop are
scheduled for Saturday, November 13.
I hope that you will join us in Irvine for
some of these great sessions!
Paul R. Amato
Chair, Research and Theory Section
International Section
all is in the air, and it is time to start
getting excited about the NCFR
convention in Irvine! We have a
great program planned-please see our
newsletter on the NCFR website for details.
F
Our section business meeting will be Sunday evening at 6:45 p.m. We will have a
FFS SECTION
cantinuedfi·am 37
And, finally, I'd like to thank all of you for
your enthusiasm and for all the work
Dr. Bryan Rodgers, Australian National
you've done to make our section so vital.
Thank you for the opportunity to serve as your FFSS
chair it has been an enrichUpdated Graduate Study Guide
ing experience. I especially
Available
enjoyed the opportunity to
work with so many of you,
The 1999 revision of Graduate Study in Ma1Tiage
and I look forward to seeing
and the Family is now available, according to John
everyone in November!
Touliatos, Editor. Now in its fourth edition, Graduate
Donna Sollie
Study describes 177 family programs in family and
Chair, Feminism & Family
consmner sciences, psychology, sociology,
Studies Section
education, nursing, counseling, religion, and
Aubum University
Aubmn, AL 36849-5604
marriage and family therapy.
Phone: 334-844-3230
To order a copy, contactNCFRHeadquarters
FPC(:334-844-4515
E-mail:
toll-free at(888)781-9331, ext.14.
dsollie@humsci.aubum.edu
NCFR REPORT
lent symposia. One symposium will focus
on Vern Bengtson's 26-year intergenerational study and will feature papers by
Bengtson and his colleagues. Another
symposium, organized by William
Marsiglio, will focus on social psychological perspectives on fatherhood. And a
third symposium, organized by Stephen
Marks, will focus on how family members balance multiple roles and identities.
We will also have paper sessions devoted
to "Cross Cultural and Historical Approaches," "Family of Origin and Offspring Outcomes in Adolescence and
Young Adulthood," "Maniage and Marital
Quality," "Parents and Children over the
Life Course," "After Divorce," and "Adolescents and Their Families."
38
light dinner to encourage
all section members to
attend. I look forward to
handing the gavel over to my good friend
and colleague, incoming Section Chair
Stephan Wilson. It has been a real pleasure for me to have been able to serve you
these last two years. The same is true for
Jay Schvaneveldt and Raeann Hamon,
CFLE, who have served well in their
positions and have made my job easy.
At the business meeting we will unveil a
new section award: The Jan Trost Award
for Outstanding Contribution to Comparative Family Studies. Section founder
Jan will be in attendance and has done a
great deal over the years to promote crosscultural family research. Everyone is invited to join us in honoring him and to
leam the details of this new award.
Our section listserv should be up and
running by the time you read this. All
section members with e-mail will be notified, but anyone with cross-cultural interests is invited to join in on the discussions.
Hopefully, we will create a vibrant network of intemational scholars and enjoy
getting to !mow each other and what we
are doing better.
Bron Ingoldsby, CFLE
Chair, International Section
SEPTEMBER 1999
�Association of Councils of the National Council on Famil
President's Report
Congratulations to
New AC Officers
slate of officers for the Association of Councils have recently
been elected. Under the new
govemance plan, they will serve with
incoming AC President Lane Powell,
CFLE, in 1999-2000.
Britton Wood, CFLE, ofFt. Wmih, Texas is
the new Conference Program Chair. Britton
is a past president of the Association and
has served as conference coordinator for
many organizations, including the Texas
affiliate and most recently the Intemational
Maniage Enrichment Conference in Kansas
City, Missouri, sponsored by the Association of Couples for MarTiage Enrichment.
Denise Donnelly of Georgia State University, Atlanta, will serve as Secretary/Treasurer and Affiliate Connection Editor. She
is the immediate past president of the
Southeastem Regional Council. 1111
PDCFR Men in
Families Conference
October 2
he Pennsylvania Delaware Council
on Family Relations Conference,
focusing on the theme of Jvfen in
Families, will be held on Saturday, October
2, 1999 at Messiah College, Grantham
(near Hanisburg), Pennsylvania. Dr. Bill
Doherty, Professor and Director of the
MarTiage and Family Therapy Program at
the University of Minnesota and President
of the National Council on Family Relations
will provide two keynote addresses: 1)
Promoting Responsible Fathering, and 2)
Men in Maniage: Promoting Com1ections
That Work for Both Men and Women.
Additional workshops on the theme will be
offered as well. For additional infonnation
contact: Dr. Raeann Hamon, CFLE, P/DCFR
President, 717-766-2511 x2850 or e-mail:
rhamon@messiah.edu.
The date for this conference was changed
from September 11, as listed in the June
Report, to October 2. 1111
NCFR REPORT
ssociation of Councils
Greetings!
I hope your summer was restful and productive. I am excited about the upcoming
conference but even more about the
progress that is continuously being made
by the new Board of Directors. This has
been a significantly different
This has been a
year than any
other since my
significantly
affiliation with
different year than NCFR began
in 1986. With
any other since my the adoption of
the new orgaaffiliation with
nizational
govemance
NCFR began in
model, the
1986;
interactions are
more intense
as we focus on how to make the organization stronger, more succinct, and more
accountable to our members.
Leaming all that we need to know has
provided much stimulation for us. Even
when we think we have it clearly understood, we are challenged even further with
determining exactly what "means" and
"ends" are. You will hear more about this
during the annual meeting as the concepts
take on shape. The Board members as a
group have been in closer contact with
each other through monthly conference
calls and an early summer board meeting.
Incoming Board members, including Lane
Powell, will receive early orientation
during September so that she will be able
to "hit the
ground" running
with all the new
and wonderful
ideas about how
councils will be
most effective
and in further
defining their
roles within the
NCFR organizational context.
Lane and I look
forward to seeing NORMA BURGESS, PH.D.
you this fall and sharing the program with
you. Our new constitution will be voted
upon during the business meeting and will
reflect changes in conjunction with the
new govemance structure and conducting
business consistent with the new board
practices. See you in Irvine!
Norma Burgess
President, Association of Councils
315-443-2757 (w)
315-656-5136 (h)
Pre-Conference Symposium Focuses
on Teleconferencing
An in-depth look at the potential of
Intemet Video Teleconferencing (IVT) will
be the focus of a pre-conference symposium, Thursday evening, November 11,
during the annual conference.
Entitled "Crossing the Boundaries: Intemet
Video Teleconferencing," the symposium is
being sponsored by the Association of
Councils. It will begin at 6:30p.m., Thmsday evening with a light buffet, followed
by presentations and demonstrations of
how IVT can cross boundaries of states
and nations to bring speakers and discussions together. Ethical and legal issues of
39
IVT, and potential problems will also be
discussed. Presenters include Aaron
Larson, CFLE, University ofTennessee;
Anne Stanberry, CFLE, University of
Mississippi; Kathleen Gilbert, Indiana
University; and Larry McCallum,
Augustana College.
Cost to attend the pre-conference is $20,
which includes the buffet. Registration is
open to any interested conference participants. For more infmmation and a registration fonn, please contactjryberg@ncfr.org.
Lane Powell, CFLE
Program Chair, Association of Councils
SEPTEMBER 1999
�Assistant Professor of Rural Sociology
Rural Family Sociology
The Pennsylvania State University
Kent State University invites applications for the above position
in School of Family and Consumer Studies. Responsibilities:
Executive administrator of the School reporting to the Dean,
College of Fine and Professional Atis. Duties: Financial and
personnel management; academic program development and
evaluation; leadership in research and professional development,
generation of outside f1mding, extemal partnerships. Qualifications: Must possess an earned terminal degree (doctorate prefelTed) in discipline represented within School to be appointed to
a senior faculty rank. Review of applications will begin on August
3, 1999, and will continue until the position is filled. Application
to included a letter of interest, vitae, and names, addresses and
telephone numbers of three (3) references. The letter of interest
should include a summary of the candidate's vision of a professional school such as Family and Consumer Studies, especially in
the areas of teaching and research/creative activity. Please send
application materials to: Dr. S. Harold Smith, Chair, Director
Search Committee, School of Family and Consumer Studies, Kent
State University, P.O. Box 5190, Kent, OH 44242-0001, (330) 6722012 Office, (330) 672-2194 Fax, hsmith@kent.edu. ·
Equal Opportunity/Affinnative Action Employer. 111
The Department of Agriculrural Economics and
Rural Sociology invites applications for a newly created
position starting March 1, 2000 or as negotiated. This
tenure track position is being created under The Pennsylvania State University's Children, Youth and Family
Initiative with a 65% research and 35% extension
responsibility in rural family sociology. The successful
applicant will be expected to develop a nationally and
intemationally recognized research program that addresses critical policy areas. These include the effects of
welfare refonn and welfare-to-work programs in rural
settings and policies influencing family well-being. An
important dimension is examining how mral communities
with different resources and capacities can develop local
responses to changes in federal and state policies
influencing the well-being of children, youth and families.
The incumbent will be expected to secure extemal
funding in suppoti of his/her program. The extension
component is expected to focus on the effects of
changes in policies on the well-being of rural children
and youth in Pennsylvania. The incumbent is expected to
cooperate with county and regional extension staff,
govemmental officials, private groups, and university
extension and research faculty to build an extension
program oriented toward the needs of children and
families in rural areas. A unique strength of the position
is the support for collaboration with faculty from other
disciplines and colleges that will be facilitated by the
Children, Youth, and Family Consortium. Qualifications
include a Ph.D. in rural sociology or sociology. Salary
and benefits are competitive.
The College of Agriculhtre and Home Economics at Washington
State University, Pullman, WA, is seeking applications for the
position of Chair, Human Development Department. The Chair
will have a record of scholarly accomplishment suitable to qualify
for tenure at the rank of professor. Required: Eamed doctoral
degree in Human Development, Child/Youth Development, Child
and Family Shtdies, Early Childhood Education, Family and Consumer Sciences, or related Social Sciences; attainment of tenured
status and Associate Professor academic rank (or equivalent) at a
college or university. Highly Desired: Effectiveness in teaching,
research, and outreach; ability to provide leadership and vision;
work with faculty from diverse subject matter disciplines; high
level of administrative, management and interpersonal skills.
Desired: Strong commitment to distance education and technological advances; ability to work with diverse groups and commitment to promoting diversity; national reputation in Human
Development, or related areas; commitment to the integrated
mission (teaching-research-extension) of a land-grant institution;
success in developing and administering programs funded by
extramural sources.
Applicants should submit a letter of application, resume,
graduate transcripts and the names and addresses of
three professional references to:
Shannon Stokes, Chair, Search Advisory Committee,
Department of Agriculhtral Economics and Rural
Sociology, 111 G Annsby Building, The Pennsylvania
State University, University Park, PA 16802.
Screening of applications will begin on October 1, 1999 and will
continue until the position is filled. Send a letter of application;
cutTiculum vitae and the name, address, phone/fax number and e~
mail address of five professional references qualified to comment
on academic achievements and leadership ability to:
Dr. C. Richard Shumway, PO Box 646241, Pullman WA, 991646241, 509-335-2822, 509-335-2926 (FAX), an11Stro@mail.wsu.edu
(email). EEO/ANADA. 111
NCFRREPORT
Applications will be screened starting November 1, 1999
until a qualified applicant is identified.
Pellil. State is committed to affirmative action, equal
opportilnity and the diversity of its workforce;
40
SEPTEMBER 1999
�Call for Papers
Narratives In and About Relations/zips. A
special issue of the Journal of Social and
Personal Relationships will be dedicated
to research using narrative methodologies
to study interpersonal relationships. The
special issue will highlight recent methodological advances in the use of narratives
to understand how individuals find
relevance in dyadic and group relationships (including family relationships)
which in tum may be related to relational
well-being. Authors must clearly address
the theoretical rationale for using nauatives to sh1dy relationships as well as
provide substantial documentation of their
methods. Preference will be given to
empirical sh1dies, although theoretical
papers may be considered. Manuscripts
will be peer-reviewed, consistent with
policies of the Journal. Questions regarding the issue may be directed to Barbara
Fiese, bhfiese@psych.syr.edu or Harold
Grotevant, hgrotevant@che2.che.umn.edu.
Submissions are due not later than
February I, 2000. Six copies, prepared in
APA style, should be sent to Barbara H.
Fiese, Ph.D., 430 Huntington Hall, Department of Psychology, Syracuse University,
Syracuse, NY 13244-2340. IIIII
Family Publications
Seek New Editors
Editors are being sought for two family
publications: Graduate Study in Marriage and the Family and Family
Index. Now in its fourth edition,
Graduate Study describes 177 graduate programs in family shidies and
family therapy for prospective graduate students and faculty advisers. It is
published every 2-3 years.
Published annually, Family Index lists
and organizes, by subject and by
author, the intemational family literah!re from over 5,500 articles in I, 100
journals. Three volumes have been
published to date.
Persons interested in coordinating one
or both series may contact current
editor, John Touliatos at 817-292-6758.
NCFRREPORT
Head Start co·nference
Head Start's 5 111 National Research
Conference, Developmental and Contex-
tual Transitions of Children and Families: Implications for Research, Policy,
and Practice, will be held June 28-July 1,
2000, at the Hyatt Regency Washington on
Capitol Hill, Washington, DC.
The central theme of the conference
focuses on the continuities and transitions
of early development and the contexts in
which they occur.
For inquiries about program content,
contact: Dr. Faith Lamb-Parker,
Project Director, 212-304-5251 or E-mail:
flpl@columbia.edu. For information on
registration, contact: Bethany Chirico,
Ellsworth Associates, 703-821-3090,
ext. 233; Fax: 703-356-0472;
E-mail: bchirico@eainet.com. Websites:
http://cpmcnet.columbia.edu/dept/splll
popfam/headstartconf.html or
www.acf.dhhs.gov/programs/hsb. 111
CALL FOR PAPERS
JOURNAL OF FAMILY ISSUES
THEME: The Household in its Neighborhood and Community
rowing attention is being paid to
the connections (or lack thereof)
between the household and the
neighborhood and/or community in which
it is located. Scholars are exploring the
degree of interdependence between the
household and its community, and identifYing the implications for children and
youth, and for adults of both genders and
all ages. The Journal of Family Issues
invites researchers, theorists, and policy
analysts from a variety of disciplines (e.g.,
social sciences, urban planning, design) to
submit papers for possible inclusion in a
special issue devoted to this theme. Because we intend to cast a wide net, we
invite papers with an historical or crossculhiral perspective, as well those based
on the contemporary North American
scene, as well as papers oriented towards
cuiTent or proposed social policies and
programs. Papers with a racial, ethnic,
gender, or socioeconomics focus are especially welcome, as are papers reflecting a
particular subculh1re or subsociety. Papers
may be empirically based, or organized as a
theoretical essay. All papers are subject to
peer review.
DEADLINE FOR SUBMISSION OF PAPERS IS 15 MARCH, 2000. Prospective
authors should submit five (5) copies of
their manuscript, and should follow the
cuuent style used by the Journal of Family
Issues. Please mail the submission before
the deadline to the guest editor: Professor
John Scanzoni, Department of Sociology,
Box 117330, University of Florida,
Gainesville FL 3261!. Any questions
should be addressed to
scanzoni@soc.ufl.edu. 1111
The Society for Research in Child Development (SRCD) is a multidisciplinmy,
international professional association with 5000 members. SRCD's goals include
promoting interdisciplinary human development research, fostering an information exchange among scientists and other professionals, and encouraging
application of research findings. SRCD conducts a bietmial meeting and
sponsors the following journals: Child Development, Child Development
Monographs, Child Development Abstracts, Social Policy Report and a
newsletter. For further information, please visit the website at www.srcd.org or
contact Thelma Tucker, Membership Coordinator, by phone (734-998-6524) oremail (teh!cker@umich.edu).
41
SEPTEMBER 1999
�Announcement of a Multidisciplinary Academic Conference and
Call for Papers:
F
Revitalizing the Institution of Marriage
for t~e 21st Century
Co-Sponsors:
Family Studies Center and J. Reuben Clark School of Law, Brigham Young
University
Columbus School of Law, Catholic University
Marital Matches"
I 5
as
We look at the family from a
Family Science perspective.
March 9-11, 2000
Brigham Young University, Provo, Utah
• \Vade Horn: "Promoting Marriage to
Promote Responsible Fathering"
• Robert Lerner: "'The Use and Abuse of
Social Science Research about
Parenting"
• Theodora Ooms: "Strengthening
Marriage in Low-Income Communities"
t
t
Social Science and Legal Scholars
Setting a Research and Policy Agenda
for Strengthening Marriage
Invited Social Science Scholars:
• Don S. Browning: "The Language of
Health vs. the Language of Religion:
Competing Models of Marriage for the
21st Century"
• William H. Doherty: "Marriage
Permanence in a Consumer Culture"
• Maggie Gallagher: "No-fault Divorce
and the Privatization of Marriage"
• Norval Glenn: "The Importance of Good
il
1111
Articles are selected, abstracted, and indexed based on their
relevance to the fields of Family Science and Human Ecology;
articles are described using the vocabulary and terminology of
Family Science, which spells better retrieval for you. Furthermore,
Family Studies Database abstracts and indexes from journals, reports,
government documents, and many other sources not covered by
the other major social/behavioral science databases.
• Steven C. Nock: "Rediscovering
Marriage as a Social Institution"
• David Popenoe: ''A Marriage Research
Agenda for the 21 ' 1 Century: Ten Critical
Questions"
• Diane Sollee: '"The Current State of the
Marriage Movement in the U.S. and
An indispensable resource for any
Abroad"
• Scott Stanley: "The Hope or Divorce
family Studies graduate program.
Prevention Through Premarital
Education: What We Know/What We
Don't Know-Yet"
• Linda J. Waite: "Scholarship on
Marriage: Where Do We Go from Here?"
• Barbara Dafoe \..Yhitehcad: "Contemporary Mating Patterns and Their
Implications for Successful Marriage"
Noted legal scholars will also be present.
Proposals
Scholars from all academic disciplines arc invited to submit a proposal by
October I 0, 1999, for a paper or poster to address an issue related to the theme of the
conference. For further infom1ation, contact: Alan J. Hawkins; Director,
Family Studies Center: hawkinsa@byu.edu. (801)378-7088.
CALENDAR
• October 11-14, 1999: Holding Up Half the Sky, 2nd China-U.S. Conference on Women's Issues, Beijing, China. For additional information contact:
Global Interactions, Inc., 9002 N. Central Ave., Phoenix, AZ 85020-2405. Phone:
602-906-8886; Fax: 602-906-8887; E-mail: global@goodnet.com; Website:
www.goodnet.com/-Global.
o November 17-20, 1999: Celebrating 20 Years of Work in Adolescent
Pregnancy, Parenting ami Prevention: Creating Programs for the Future,
National Organization on Adolescent Pregnancy, Parenting and Prevention, Inc.
(NOAPPP), Marriott Wardman Park Hotel, Washington, DC. For conference
information contact: NOAPPP, 2401 Pennsylvania Ave. NW, Ste. 350, Washington, DC 20037. Phone: 202-783-5770.
• November 19-23, 1999: New Perspectives on Aging in the Post-Genome
Era, 52nd Annual Scientific Meeting of the Gerontological Society of America,
San Francisco Hilton & Towers, San Francisco, CA. Requests for information
should be directed to: GSA's Central Office, 1030-15th St. NW, Ste. 250,
Washington, DC 20005; E-mail: geron@geron.org; Website: www.geron.org.
• January 26-29, 2000: Growing Strong Families: Celebrating Relationships, 27th annual conference of the Texas Association for Marriage and Family
Therapy, Inc. (TAMFT), Adam's Mark Hotel, Houston, TX. For registration
infonnation contact: TAMFT 2000 Conference, 1033 La Posada Dr., Ste. 220,
Austin, TX 78752-3880. Phone: 512-454-8626 or 800-270-4320; Fax: 512-4543036; E-mail: tamft@assnmgmt.com; Website: www.txmft.org.
With over 235,000 abstracts and
citations, Family Studies Database is
the most comprehensive index to
family studies literature available,
featuring the Inventory of Marriage &
Family Literature (formerly published in
print). Family Resources (formerly available
online) and the Australian Family & Society
Abstracts database.
available
on
CD-ROM!
Over a thousand journals and
other sources are regularly
reviewed.
Search all 235,000 records (1970present) concurrently, easily, and
instantly.
WWW or CD-ROM access available!
.
• March 3-4, 2000: Working and Family: Expanding the Horizons, presented
by the Business and Professional Women's Foundation (BPW), the Center for
Working Families at the University of California, Berkeley, and the Sloan
Foundation, Cathedral Hill Hotel, San Francisco, CA. For more infonnation
contact: BPW, Meetings Dept., 2012 Massachusetts Ave., NW, Washington, DC
20036. Phone: 202-293-11 00; Fax: 202-861-0298; Website: www.bpwusa.org.
NfSC3100 St. Paul St., Baltimore, MD 21218 USA
ill41 0/243-0797 llll41 0/243-0982 (:Jsales@nisc.com
42
SEPTEMBER 1999
NCFR REPORT
www.n1sc.com
Published in association with the National Council on Family Relations
�AWARD WINNERS
Student of the Year Award
continuedfrompage2
Darling has been awarded the National
Research Fellovvship by Kappa Omicron
Nu, the National Founders' Fellovvship by
Phi Upsilon Omicron, the Dissertation
Fellowship Award by the College of Human
Ecology, Michigan State University, Lansing, Michigan, and the Excellence in
Teaching Award by Flmida State University.
cBride Murry received her M.S.
and Ph.D. from the University of
issouri-Columbia, and was a
Fellow to the National Institutes ofHealthWorkshop on Families and AIDS, and the
International Society for the Study of Behavioral Development. Her work has appeared in several refereed journals: Journal
ofFamily Issues, Families in Society: Journal of Con tempormy Human Sen1ices,
Journal of Adolescent Research, Youth and
Society, Journal ofFamily Relations, Family Science Review, and in several books:
The Black Family: Essays and Studies,
Urban Girls, Families and Change, and
Race Relations in the United States.
Consumer Sciences, University of Georgia.
Reuben Hill Award
The Reuben Hill Award is given in recognition of the outstanding article, book, or
monograph that combines themy and
methodology in the analysis and interpretation of a significant family issue. The
award-winning ariicle was "Sex ofParent
and Children's Well-Being in Single Parent
Households," by Douglas B. Downey,
James W. Ainsworth-Darnell, and
Mikaela J. Dufur. The article was published in Journal of Marriage and the
Family in November 1998. The award
can·ies a p1ize of$1,000.
The authors are affiliated with the Department of Sociology, The Ohio State University, Columbus, OH.
CFR Sh1dents/New Professionals
are pleased to announce that the
winners of the 1999 NCFR Student
of the Year Award are Steven M. Kogan and
Heather Heims-Erikson.
Kogan recently received his Ph.D. from the
Deparhnent of Child and Family Development at The University of Georgia and is
cunently a Post-Doctoral Fellow at the
Center for Treatment Research on Adolescent Drug Abuse, University of Miami
School of Medicine. He has been a member
ofNCFRsince 1996.
Heims-Erikson is a Doctoral Candidate in
the Department of Human Development
and Family Studies at The Pennsylvania
State University. She has been a member of
NCFRsince 1991.
The Reuben Hill Award was established in The Student Award, which began in 1970,
honor of Reuben Hill, one of the nation's
recognizes that these students have demmost distinguished family theo.----------,
rists and researchers on marTiage
and the family. Hill was a recipient
ofNCFR's Burgess Award, DirecMcBride Muny had been characterized by
tor of the Minnesota Family Study
students as a "stellar perfonner," "superior
Center, and a Regent's Professor
teacher," "outstanding ability to integrate
research and teaching into innovative learn- ofFamily Sociology at the University of Minnesota. He was considing experiences," and an "exemplary role
ered the father of family sh1dies,
model." She has received several awards in
and stimulated the international
recognition of her teaching scholarship:
interchange of family scholarship.
Outstanding Graduate Student Teaching
Dr. Hill was very active in NCFR,
Award from the University of MissouriHEATHER
STEVEN M. KOGAN,
served on many committees and
Columbia; Gamma Sigma Delta DistinHELMS-ERIKSON
PH.D.
Sections, and was a prime mover in
guished Teaching Award from The Univeronstrated excellence in their academic studsity of Georgia, and Outstanding Teaching beginning the Theory Construction and
ies and professional activities, and have
Research Methodology Workshop at the
Award from the Depariment of Child and
high potential for contribution to the field
Family Development, College ofFamily and NCFR annual conferences.
of family studies. Students who are nominated for this award must write a brief statement defining an impmiant problem they
see in the family studies field, and outline
possible steps toward solution, and briefly
summarize a personal program, research
project, or publication representing the
Access NCFR's website at: www.ncfr.org
quality of their work and area of interest.
To access Members Only: Doris Hare land
Both winners will be presented with a
user: legacy harelandd@ncfr.org
plaque and cash award.
password: burgess John Pepper
Other awards, which will be presented
To reach NCFR headquariers: pepperw@ncfi:org
during the Awards Ceremony, include the
ncfr3989@ncfr.org Jeanne Ryberg
Jessie Bernard Awards for Outstanding
To reach specific staff members: jryberg@ncf&org
Research Proposal From a Feminist Perspective, and for Outstanding Contribution
Michael Benjamin Cindy Winter
to Feminist Scholarship. Inforn1ation on
mbenjamin@ncfr.org wintersc@ncfr.org
winners of these awards and biographical
Dawn Cassidy To reach NCFR President Bill Dohe1iy:
sketches on the winners of the Reuben Hill
cassidyd@ncfr.org bdoherty@che2.che.umn.edu
and Student Awards will be published in
the December 1999 Report. 11
NCFR REPORT
43
SEPTEMBER 1999
�
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ncfr-newsletters
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September 1999 NCFR Report Magazine
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september-1999-ncfr-report-magazine
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September 1999
-
https://archive.ncfr.org/files/original/5c8cc1f321fed1309561067421701086.pdf
6234c227b444d7bce3ab6850dbbd1d73
PDF Text
Text
enjamin J ins NCFR as
xecutive irect r
ichael L. Benjamin, M.P.H., has
accepted an appointment as the
Executive Director of the
National Council on Family
Relations. He likes to be called "Michael"
and is only the fourth executive director to
lead NCFR. He is replacing Mary Jo
Czaplewski, who is retiring on June 30,
1999 after 15 years of service. He noted,
"I'm looking forward to using my skills in
meeting the challenge and opportunities in
fmihering NCFR's mission. I solicit the support of everyone associated with NCFR in
making this organization as successful as
possible."
and program development, and publication.
Michael's skills, interests, and contacts are
particularly useful at this time as NCFR
continues to streamline and develop its new
organizational structure. In a statement he
observed, "With the new Board serving as
the 'visionary engine' for NCFR, staff will
be about the business of developing strategies to get us where we want to be. As your
new Executive Director, my goals will be to
make NCFR a world-class organization.
Underlying this goal are the principles of
customer and quality services. In helping to
provide
Michaels skills, interests, and contacts
Michael comes to NCFR from the
Institute for Mental Health Initiatives are particularly useful at this time as
in Washington, D.C. where he has been NCFR continues to streamline and
the Executive Director since 1994.
develop its new 01ganizational structure.
Many of his interests focus on family
and mental health issues such as work and
quality customer service, I will be using,
family, fatherhood and families, violence
among others, the answers to the following
prevention practices, and cultural diversity
seven questions as a basis for making deciand ethics. He has appeared on local and
sions in improving the operations ofNCFR:
national television numerous times on such
topics as anger management, aggressive dri(1) Will it have a positive impact on the
ving behavior, and violence prevention. A
family, community, and society-at-large? (2)
current focus is on aggressive driving
Will it cany out the vision of the Board? (3)
behavior. He sees the socialization individuWill it help to serve our members better? (4)
als receive in the family as central to their
Will it add value to our services? (5) Will it
later driving behaviors.
save money? (6) Will it motivate the staff?
And lastly, do we have strong support sysPrevious experience in management and
tems for any changes?"
administration includes public policy develMr. Benjamin earned his Master's degree in
opment, fund raising, grant writing, training
�NCFR Members Elect 2001 Leaders
for New Governance Model
Board Members elected are:
arol Darling, Ph.D., CFLE, Professor ofFmnily & Child Sciences
at Florida State Univ., Tallahassee,
was elected President-elect ofNCFR and
will be succeeding Stephen Jorgensen,
who will initiate the 2-year Presidential
term beginning Nov. 1999 and completing
his term in Nov. 2001. At that time Dr.
Darling will begin her presidential tenn
with completion in 2003. Darling has
served on NCFR's Board of Directors as
Education and Enrichment Section Chair;
has served on the Nominating Committee,
Conference Program Cmmnittee, Publications Search Cmmnittee for the FR editor,
Osbome Award Cmmnittee, Cmmnittee on
Standards & Crite1ia for CFLE, CFLE Implementation Conunittee, CFLE Progratn Review Cmmnittee, and chairs the Cmmnittee
C
REPORT
··of The National Council on
Family Relations
.Mission Statement for the Report:
REPORT, the quarterly newsletter ofthe
National Council on Family Relations,
strives to provide timely~ usefitl information
to help members succeed in their roles as
researchers, educators, and practitioners.
Articles address familyfi,eld issues,
prog;'anis and trends, iizcluding association news.
Executiv.e Direc.tor: Mary Jo Czaplewski
NCFR Report is published quarterly by
the National Co.uticil oil Family Relations,
3989 Centra~ .Ave, N;K, Suite550;
Jyillirleapolis, MN55421,
.·Third ci!l&~·p~~fuge pen11lt.
I{ep()rt·s~bscripti6ni-at~: $20.00 ~er
year; $5~00 per copy. For bulk rates, call
888~781-9331, ext. 23.Annualmembetsbjp d~es incl:tlde Il:ewsletter ~ubscription.
$15,00 1J:.Srpostage per year postpaid at
indiVidual rate.
.
N:Bws bEt\I)pNJ3s: ~ebntaryJfor.
Ivimch issue; May 1• for June issue;
J\:-qgustl for Septemi:>er issue; N ovetnber
lfor Decemberissue.
·
NCFR REPORT
on CFLE Test Development. She is active
in many other professional organizations.
In her platfonn statement Darling noted
that while NCFR shares its vision for fatuilies through
high quality
journals and
conferences,
NCFRis being
challenged to
extend its
outreach by
increasing its
influence in the
public arena as
legislative
CAROL DARLING,
attention on
PH.D.,CFLE
issues of children and families increases. She challenges
NCFR as a professional organization to
take leadership in credentialing profes-
BENJAMIN
sional competence and developing quality
educational materials in specialty areas.
Key to NCFR's future is the commitment to
continued development, support and marketing the family life education field with
increased efforts to bring quality research
to practitioners. "We are at a crossroads
where meaningful dialogue and creative
solutions are needed," she said. ''NCFR
must use its solid reputation for scholarly
and professional competence to meet
increasing needs of family professionals
and the families they serve."
At-large Board members elected are: David
Demo, Ph.D., Professor and Chair of Human Development & Family Studies Dept.
at the Univ. ofNorth Carolina at Greensboro. He has served on both JMF & FR
editorial boards, the Research & Theory
Section Executive Cmmnittee, and the
2001 Leaders continued on next page
continuedfi·om page 1
Public Health Administration from Yale
University and his undergraduate degree
in psychology from Texas Southem University in Houston, Texas. Among his
previous positions, Mr. Benjamin was chief
operating officer of the Employee Assistance Professional Association in Arlington, Virginia. Before that, he served as a
human services lobbyist and program
director of both mental health and alcohol
abuse prevention programs with the National Association of Counties, a health
scientist administrator at the National
Institute of Mental Health, all in the Washington, DC area, and Executive Director of
a Portland, Oregon Comprehensive Community Mental Health Center. He noted,
"I'm very enthusiastic about joining NCFR
at this exciting, yet challenging time in its
history. This is the second time in my
career that I've had the opportunity to help
shape and, in the case ofNCFR, to provide
leadership in reshaping an organization.
The first was when I started a new community mental health center with an empty
building and a multi1nillion-dollar budget.
That was a heady experience!"
2
Mr. Benjamin has served on numerous
boards. Most notable is the Seattle-based
National Coalition for Mental and Substance Abuse in the Justice System. The
National Coalition was founded in 1989 to
deal with a
national crisis-the growing number of
juvenile and
adult offenders
who are mentally ill or dualdiagnosed.
After serving
nine years as
Chairman of its
MICHAEL L. BENJAMIN, Board ofDirecM.P.H.
tors, he retired
from the Board in 1997. His most recent
appointment is by the U.S. Surgeon General as a member of The Planning Board for
the Surgeon General's Report on Mental
Health, U.S. Department ofHealth and
Human Services.
NCFR enthusiastically welcomes Mi. Benjatnin!ll
JUNE 1999
�oar
evelops tatement
f lobal urpose
e conference quality
tits Spring meeting the NCFR
Board of Directors, using the
• CFLE program
historical mission ofNCFRand the
• public policy activities
feedback received over recent months from
NCFR members, developed a Statement of
GLOBAL STATEMENT OF.
Global Purpose for NCFR. This statement is
NCFR'S PURPOSE:
intended to guide all of the more specific
NCFR members will have the
policies to be developed by the Board in
knowledge and skills to study, teach
consultation with NCFR members. The
about, and serve families with the
statement below reflects the seven values
result that family well-being will be a
expressed by several hundred members in
high priority in private and public
response to two sets of questions sent over
decision-making.
the NCFR listserv and the website and
published in the March issue of REPORT.
The statement indicates that NCFR's core
Briefly, those values for NCFR include its
contribution is to its members' professional development and, through that
o family focus
development, to the welfare of individual
o interdisciplinary nahrre of the
families and families in society. It further
membership
indicates that NCFR promotes a full gamut
• research and practice interface
of family-related competencies in research,
• scholarly journals
education, practice, and policy.
Board members are:
William J. Doherty, President
Stephen Jorgensen, President-elect
Greer Litton Fox, Past President
Kathleen Gilberi, Secretary/Treasurer
Mark Benson, At-large member
Nonna Bond Burgess, President of
Association of Councils
Debra Hughes, Shrdent/New Professional
Tim Bmbaker, At-large member
Karen Bogensclmeider, At-large member
Cheryl Buehler, At-large member
The Board of Directors invites your
response to this statement via e-mail,
phone or letter to NCFR at 3989 Central
Ave., NE, Ste. 550, Minneapolis, MN
55421. Toll Free: 888-781-9331; Phone: 612781-9331; E-mail: ncfr3989@ncfr.org. 111
2001 LEADERS continuedfimn page 2
Reuben Hill Award Cmmnittee. His 2-year
term on the Board of Directors begins in
Nov. 1999 and ends in Nov. 2001. His platfonn stated that as NCFR's govemance
struchlre is changed and streamlined, it is
ever more
impmiant that
NCFRBoard
members are
attentive and
responsive to
the values and
needs of its
diverse members and constihwncy. He
cited aggresDAVID DEMO, PH.D.
sive recmitment to expand and broaden the membership base, and continued high quality
publications and conferences. "But," he
said, "we need to strengthen NCFR's voice
in the national debate on families and redouble our efforts to facilitate effective
application of our understanding of research and themy to family practice."
Leigh Leslie, Ph.D., Associate Professor
NCFR REPORT
ofFamily Srudies at the University of Maryland, has been
an NCFR Board
member as FFS
Section Chair.
She served on
the editorial
boards of .TMF &
LEIGH LESLIE, PH.D.
FR and is a
member of various other professional associations. As a Board member, Leigh's three
goals from 1999-2001 are to help the Board
find ways to move beyond co-existence and
make the relationship between researchers
and practitioners in the organization muhtally beneficial and reciprocal while respecting the distinctiveness of each group. Secondly, to strengthen our efforts to be an
inclusive organization representing the
diverse voices of family scholars. Thirdly,
to position NCFR as a leading voice for the
needs offamilies and children in infmming
public debate on families.
National Elections Council members were
elected for 1-, 2-, and 3-year tenns. 19993
2000 members are: Leanne K. Lamke,
Ph.D., CFLE, Aubum Univ., and Velma
McBride Murry, Ph.D., Univ. of Georgia.
1999-2001 members are: CarolA.Matusicky, Ph.D., Executive Director, British
Columbia Council for Families, and Alexis
Walker, Ph.D., Oregon State Univ. 19992002 members are: Maxine HammondsSmith, Ph.D., CFLE, Texas Southem Univ.,
and Lean or Boulin Johnson, Ph.D., Arizona State Univ. This committee will begin
the new nominations stmchrre for NCFR
elections which will require longer tenns
and a separate meeting prior to the conference for building the slate of candidates.
NCFR Fellowship Committee members
elected to 3-yeartenns (1999-2002) are:
Vern L. Bengtson, Ph.D., Peggye
Dilworth-Anderson, Ph.D., and Gary R.
Lee, Ph.D.
Gay C. Kitson, Ph.D., Professor of Sociology at the Univ. of Akron, has been elected
Conference Chair-elect 1999-2000. She will
be the 2001 Conference Chair. Her goals are
to produce an exciting, vital, interactive,
2001 Leaders continued on next page
JUNE 1999
�ecruitment inners nnounced as
each egins!
ear 3 f eflect
Phase 2 ofNCFR's Reflect & Reach, Member-Recruit-A-Member Campaign is over.
For this year's campaign, any member who
recruited a new NCFR member on the specially coded membership brochure was
entered into a pool for the prize drawings,
which took place in May. Due to the low
response, the Grand Prize of2 round trip
airline tickets to Orlando was not given.
complimentary 3 night/4 day suite accommodations for 2 at the Hyatt Regency
Hotel in Irvine, Califomia. Her ptize includes dinner at the famous Ciao Mein
Restaurant.
Raeann Hamon, CFLE, Grantham, PAhas
won a complimentary weekend (3 nights)
Executive Suite accommodations for 2
including dinner in the Chesapeake Grill at
the Crystal City Hyatt Hotel in Alexandria,
Suzanne Bartholomae, Columbus, OI-l, is
Virginia, a short metro ride from Washingthe winner of a 3 day/2 night complimentary
ton, DC. This lovely hotel was the site of
stay for 2 at the fabulous Hyatt Orlando
NCFR's record-breaking 1997 conference.
Hotel near the Walt Disney World Resort.
This prize includes breakfast for two each
Congratulations to these three winners!
day in the Summerhouse Restaurant.
The goal ofNCFR's Membership CommitLinda Behrendt, Ann Arbor, Ml, has won a tee was to conduct a 3-year campaign
2001 LEADERS
continuedji·om page 3
and fun conference.
Section Officers elected were:
Family Policy
Dennis K. Orthner, Ph.D., Chair 1999-2001; Steven K. Wisensale, Ph.D., Vice-chair 19992001; Debra L. Berke, Ph.D., CFLE, Secretary/Treasurer, 1999-2001; and Jonathon Olson,
M.S., Student/New Professional1999-2001.
starting in 1997 and ending in 2000, to
recruit 2000 new members by the end of the
Millennium year. Though, at this junchtre,
we are far short of reaching that goal, it is
through members who make an effort to
build a strong, dedicated membership base
for NCFR by passing on the good word
that NCFR's fuhtre is ensured far into the
next cenhny. Phase 3 1999-2000 will begin
in November. With efforts from each of
NCFR's 4000 members, reaching the goal of
2000 is doable. That's one new member for
evety 2 existing members! Let's get started
early. lfyou value your membership in
NCFR, will you pass that value on to another professional friend or colleague?
Brochures will be sent to you or you can
download one from the NCFR Website. It
takes a dedicated family professional to
expand the professional organization'sNCFR's- membership foundation.
NCFR is especially grateful to Fred
Reichelt, National Sales Director of Hyatt
Hotels & Resorts, Chicago, and the Orlando, Ctystal City, and [rvine hotels for
their generous donations of these prizes. 1111
Family Therapy Nominating Committee
D. Russell Crane, Ph.D.; Mudita Rastogi, Ph.D., LMFT, and Volker Thomas, Ph.D.
Feminism and Family Studies
Shelley M. MacDermid, Ph.D., Chair 1999-2001; Anisa M. Zvonkovic, Ph.D., Vice-chair,
1999-2001; Brenda Seery, Ph.D., Secretary/Treasurer, 1999-2001; Michael P. Johnson,
Ph.D., Newsletter Editor 1999-2001; Aine Humble, M.Sc., CFLE, Student/New Professional1999-200 1; and Phyllis A. Greenberg, Ph.D., Student/New Professional1999-200 1.
WA1fiml9 ~mWR MAIL.
illiHIS SWMME:R!
The preliminary program
International
for the 1999 conference will
Stephan M. Wilson, Ph.D., Chair 1999-2001; Raeann R. Hamon, Ph.D., CFLE, Vice-chair
1999-2001; Colleen Murray, Ph.D., Secretary/Treasurer 1999-2001; and Gail M. Mulligan,
M.A., Student/New Professional1999-2001.
be mailed soon. Check out
the schedule and send in
Religion and Family Life
your early bird registration.
Dale Hawley, Ph.D., Chair 1999-2001; Thomas W. Roberts, Ph.D., CFLE, Vice-chair 19992001; Rebecca A. Adams, Ph.D., Secretary/Treasurer 1999-2001; and Tyler M. Smith,
M.S., Student/New Professionall999-2001.
Save time and money
by renewing your
Research and Theory
Jane F. Gilgun, Ph.D., LICSW, Chair 1999-2001; Mark A. Fine, Ph.D., Vice-chair 19992001; Maureen Perry Jenldns, Ph.D., Secretary/Treasurer 1999-2001; and Laurie L.
Meschke, Ph.D., Student/New Professional1999-200 1. 1111
NCIFR REPORT
4
membership
when you register!
JUNE 1999
�Immigrant and efugee
Families: n verv1e
Ill
by Daniel F. Detzner, Ph.D.
here are few better examples of the
interconnections within the human
ecosystem than the multilevel crisis
confronting families in transit as refugees,
migrants and displaced persons. In 1998,
the number of refugees alone exceeded 20
million persons, the largest forced relocation in human histmy. Some 25 million more
people are internally displaced in their own
countries because of war, famine or ethnic
conflicts. Countless others are on the move
seeking food, economic opportunity or
escape from natural disasters.
T
Families forced to leave home abruptly face
different challenges than those who
choose to migrate. Cambodian, Hmong and
Laotian
refugees,
Host populations
for example,
vary in their ability to experienced
harrowing
integrate strangers.
escapes as
- - - - - - - - - - - - they
evaded bandits, pursuing soldiers and Thai
border guards. Later they spent years in
refugee camps with no assurance ofpennanent relocation.
Economic immigrants usually have an
easier passage because they have chosen
and planned their migration. But once they
anive at their destination, they often face
relocation problems similar to those faced
by refugees who left in haste.
Some members of transnational families
migrate as individuals. They hope to establish a base so that other family members
can join them in an orderly fashion. Others
migrate as family groups or separated parts
of multigenerational family systems. Many
separated families have members living on
different continents - some left behind at
home, some in camps and others relocated
in various asylum countries. Uncertainty
NCFR REPORT
about the fate of their relatives may exacerbate readjustment problems.
Relocated but not reintegrated
Relocated families face an immediate need
for food, shelter and clothing. Long-tenn
needs include language training, work
skills and family assistance services. Families also need to feel accepted in their new
environment, but host populations vary in
their ability to integrate strangers and their
willingness to share resources.
Some countries put pressure on immigrants
to assimilate. The newcomers may be
strongly encouraged to convert to the
predominate religion; change their hair
style, clothing or self-presentation; modify
their family or given names; give up their
traditional family and religious rituals; and
stop speaking their native language.
Residents of the host country may show
hostility to these foreigners in their midst,
and immigrants may feel the effects of
discrimination in employment, housing and
other areas of daily life for several generations. In some cases, refugees remain displaced and become a perennial political
problem for an entire region. This has
Daniel F. Detzne1; Ph.D., is Professor of Family
Social Science and Acting Dean, College of
Human Ecology, at the University oflvlinnesota.
ity can be the source of rectming conflict
within families. Grandparents and parents
may insist on speaking their language and
observing traditional customs, while their
children and grandchildren bring new
values and behaviors into the household.
Surviving but not thriving
T
ransnational families are survivors.
But not all family members thrive
in the new environment. To thrive,
migrants must create a support network.
Family members who arrived earlier and
have already established themselves are
an important source of support.
Fonnal support services
from the larger community are also necessary
include several generations ofpoverty.
and helpful, but they
can threaten pride,
happened in the Middle East where Palesfamily relationships and independence.
tinians have remained in camps for almost
Fonnal services are often culturally insen50 years.
sitive. Resettlement workers may lack
language skills and ethnic knowledge, and
Refugee and irmnigrant youth find it easier
to adapt. This is because they are less well they sometimes foster misunderstandings.
Economic consequences for relocated families
socialized in the traditions, language, history and places that nurtured their elders.
This results in multigenerational households whose members are at different
stages of adaptation. This cultural ambigu5
On the other hand, host nations sometimes assume that the extended family
systems of immigrant etlmic groups will
take care of their own and that long-tenn
An Overview continued on next page
JUNE 1999
�AN OVERVIEW continuedfi'ompage 5
support is not needed.
The economic consequences for relocated
individuals and families typically include
several generations of poverty. This is true
whether the relocation occurs across international borders or within the same countty - and regardless of the reason, the
amount of time spent in transit or the ultimate destination.
Poor language skills, inadequate preparation for economic productivity and the
long-tem1 psychological impact of multiple
losses take decades to overcome. Many
families flee poverty at home only to fall
into it again -lack of resources in some
first asylum countries mean desperate
conditions and subsistence living for many
refugees.
Broken lives
Families are often shattered by losing their
homes, extended kin networks and economic resources. Many families have seen
loved ones brutally murdered or rapedthis is the case for most refugees from
Immigration
Bosnia, Pol Pot's Cambodia and, more
recently, Kosovo. Families who have fled
natural disasters such as cyclones or
drought have usually lost homes, livelihood, extended family and their sense of
place. Loss of family members and changes
in family structure may mean that important
rituals can no longer be perfonned.
Some individuals show symptoms of posttt·aumatic stress. These include recurring
nightmares and night sweats, paranoia,
hyper-alertness,
Post-traumatic obsessive hatred
of the perpetrastress can affect tors, an inability to
concentrate, exentire families. tt·eme sadness and
clinical depression. Evidence shows that post-traumatic
stress affects not only individuals but
entire families whose members are repeatedly brought back to the ultimate moments
ofhorror in their common history.
Adjusting to multiple losses and the symptoms of stress is a major issue for relocat-
lossary
sylee: A noncitizen in the U.S. or at a port of entry who is unable or
lmwilling to rettm1 to his or her country of nationality because of persecution or a well-founded fear of persecution on the basis of race, religion,
nationality, membership in a particular social group or political opinion); only
10,000 noncitizens can have their status adjusted to asylee each fiscal year.
Circular migration: The circumstance in which immigrants to the U.S. travel back
and forth between the U.S. and their countt·ies of origin.
First-generation immigrant: An immigrant to the U.S. who has not been preceded
by his or her parents or other family members.
Humanitarian admission: The process by which immigrants are admitted to the
U.S. for humanitarian reasons, such as human rights abuses in the country of
origin; usually involves asylees and refhgees.
Refugee: Any person outside his or her country of nationality who is unable or
lmwilling to return to that country because of persecution or a well-founded fear of
persecution, and is unable or unwilling to avail himself or herself of the protection
of that country. Refugees are exempt from numerical limitation and eligible to become lawful permanent residents after one year of continuous presence in the U.S.
Second-generation immigrant: The U.S.-bom child of a first-generation immigrant.
Selective migration: The circumstance in which immigrants who choose to come
to the United States are not representative of the full spectrum of citizens in their
country of origin due to factors influencing their decision to migrate, such as
higher (or lower) educationlevels. 111
ing families. This adjustt11ent is made more
difficult by the need to establish a degree
of nonnalcy in a disrupted world.
First asylum and host countries confront
difficult issues in the resettlement of displaced persons. Refugees and migrants are
viewed as a burden because the host society must find immediate financial resources
for their relief. Receiving countries also
incur the psychological and political cost of
focusing limited resources on a problem not
of their own making, while other pressing
human needs go unattended. This is why
many countries refuse to sign the 1951
United Nations Convention and the 1967
Protocol on the status of refugees. It's also
the reason that an alanning number of
countries that have signed are pushing
back escaping refugees and forcibly repatriating migrants.
Searching for answers
F
rom an ecological perspective, migratory persons experience multiple
layers of displacement at the individual, family, local, national and international levels. At the international level, the
most important questions revolve around
the root causes for ethnic conflict, war,
famine and the equitable distribution of
scarce resources.
At the national level, the questions revolve around the reception of refugees and
immigrants by asylum countries. These
include:
• Is this a local or an international problem
that requires United Nations intervention?
• Do nations have a right to tum away
refugees?
• How many displaced people should each
nation resettle?
• How long does the obligation to host
camps and resettlement centers continue
before repatriation is encouraged or even
forced?
• What responsibility does a host countty
have for providing language, job and
survival training for refugees who have
moved into the local economy?
e How should unaccompanied minors be
cared for?
An Overview continued on next page
NCFR REPORT
6
.JUNE 1999
�AN OVERVIEW
colztinuedfi·om page 6
• What provision should be made for the
special needs of elders, women and
children?
Questions that must be addressed at the
family level include:
• How can a family maintain its traditions
in a new environment?
• How much of the new culture should be
adopted?
• What aspects of the new culture must
be rejected if the family is to survive as
an intact unit?
• What types of programs are most likely
to provide families with the help they
need?
• How can intergenerational and genderrelated conflicts be mediated or resolved?
• What types of ethnic organizations can
be established in host countries to
promote the well-being offamilies?
e How much support does a repatriated
family need to reestablish itself in its
home country? Who should provide it?
At the individual level, questions revolve
around survival, the family, loss and grief,
and a sense of meaning. Adults must find
ways to provide a safe environment and
the basic necessities of life for themselves
and their extended family. Other questions
include:
• How can loss of family and the symptoms of post-traumatic stress be treated
in a culturally sensitive manner?
• What multicultural skills do individuals
need to cope in a host nation that is
different and often indifferent?
• How can individuals maintain some
degree of continuity in their lives?
As the bipolar world cmmbles and a new
multipolar world emerges, the number of
refugees and internally displaced persons
continues to increase. Responsibility for a
long-tenn solution lies at each level of the
human ecosystem. How these responsibilities are shared and the degree of cooperation that emerges in the near future will
detennine the quality oflife for those who
are displaced- and for those who remain
comfortably at home. 1111
NCFRREPORT
Not Alone: Unaccompanied
.
Refugee 1nors
by Maureen Lynch, Ph.D., Public Infom1ation/Extemal Relations Secretary, United
Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, Regional Office for the United States of
America and the Caribbean
ven in the most difficult circumstances, refugee parents do not easily abandon or transfer responsibilities for the care of their children. But sometimes
children are lost, abducted, or orphaned when parents are killed. Children
may also run away and get lost, or retum home only to find that their family has dispersed. Others become separated from their families through military conscription.
Few children are intentionally abandoned, and most parents who do voluntarily
separate from their children entmst them to relatives or friends. Children may be
sent away to relieve their physical oremotionalsuffering. And.sometimes parents
send their children away because. they feetit's the only wax to save their lives.
Refugees q.mently fleeingKosovo, like. refugees in other mass exoduses, need
protection and ~upport. ":Unaccompanied minors," ~.cl1ildrenuiider th~ age of
eighteen who hav9 become separate<ifr0111their families.- need special protection
and support.
·
.
During tl1is ''emergeqcy phase'lcb.ildren aremptavailableJor adoptimi.Experience
has shown. that children in. thes9 ci~cumsta11ces are oftenpot orphans at all, but are
instead temporarily separated fr~:nn their fainilies by cirt11mstances beyond
anyone's control. Parents and families who a'relqoking for their children. have the
right to be reunitedwith them. Many international agencies have developed standards for dealing withunacc()mpanied minors. These'staJ1dards provide a framework for addressing iss.ues su~h as:
whether or tiot to evacuate children;
how to provide for children in!amilies .or after sepantioh from their prim my
caregivers, what protective measures are necessmy, and ·
how to deal with the psychological and socialconseqm~I1ces and the difficulties
offacilitating family reimion and repatriation. .. .
. .'
..
UNHCR and its implementing parj:ners, which ihclude nongovemmental organizations and private voluntary agencies, are among the first to intervene in emergencies. Their collaboration is based on legal principles and standards as well as child
development fundamentals set forth in the Convention relating to the Stahts of
Refugees (1951 ), the Protocol relating to the StahJs of Refugees (1967) and the
Convention on the Rights of the Child (1989).
UNHCR adheres to the basic principle that the state is responsible for protecting
the human rights of all persons within its territory, including refugee childrenthough, admittedly, not all governments maintain this intemational standard.
UNHCR and its partners also follow the principle of "best interest," which regards
children and adolescents as active agents with strengths, vulnerabilities and varied
degrees of dependency on adults.
Programs which follow the guidelines generally follow these best practices:
They look for ways to care for unaccompanied children within the child's community and larger culture.
They identify unaccompanied children at ports of entry. They make an effort to
use experienced and specially trained individuals to help with the identification.
Refitgee Minors continued on next page
7
JUNE 1999
�''Immigrant t ck'' umbers
ne-Fi h of
opulati n
Ill
Ill
by Ruben G. Rumbaut, Ph.D.
he "immigrant stock" population of the United States today numbers about
55 million people-that is, persons who are either foreign-bam (26.8 million) or
U.S.-bom children of immigrants (27.8 million). That figure-one fifth of the
national total-does not include 2.8 million others residing in the 50 states who were
bam in Puerto Rico or other U.S. teuitories, nor the even larger number who reside in
Puerto Rico and the other teuitories. Iftoday's "immigrant stock" fanned a country, it
would equal roughly
the population of the
"While immigration's impact on the United States
United Kingdom,
continues to be a subject of intense
France, or Italy.
national debate, there can be 110 doubt that the
Immigrant children
large number of immigrants now living here
and U.S.-bom children of immigrants
represents an enormous challenge.
are the fastest growNo nation has ever attempted to incorporate over
ing segment of the
26 million newcomers into its society."
U.S. child popula-The Center for Immigration Studies
tion. They account
for nearly 20 percent
of all American children. In 1997, there were concentrations in selected metropolitan
3 million foreign-bam children under 18,
areas of these states.
and nearly 11 million U.S.-bom children
There are eight primary metropolitan areas
under 18 living with at least one foreignwith immigrant-stock populations greater
born parent.
than one million. Proportionately, Miami
Immigrant families are heavily concentrated leads with nearly three-quariers of its
in areas of settlement. For example, fully
population coming from itrunigrant migin.
one third of the "immigrant stock" populaLos Angeles is next with nearly two-thirds,
tion of the U.S.lives in Califomia. Another followed by New York City and Orange
County, California, each with over half of
third lives in Florida, Texas, and the New
York-New Jersey region, with the densest
their population. Other concentrations of
REFUGEE MINORS
continuedfi"om page 1
When possible, these individuals share the same language and cultural background as
the child. If children are accompanied by relatives or other families, care is taken in
assessing the nature and implications of those relationships.
• They trace families by gathering information from children and parents. They maintain
fom1al registration for parents and children who are looking for each other. They promote systematic infonnation sharing - through the use of radio, television or newspapers, for example, or by putting notices and photos of unaccompanied children on
infonnation boards in refugee camps.
• They continue to trace families for at least two years. In time, most separated children
are either reunited with their immediate or extended family or placed in the care offamilies in the same community so they can maintain ties with their own language and
cultural group.
By upholding international standards and seeking to understand child and adolescent
development, we protect and suppmi unaccompanied refugee children. When children
are reunited with their families, we rejoice. But when this is not possible, the UNHCR and
its patinering agencies - working in collaboration- ensure that they will not be alone. 1111
NCIFR REPORT
8
Ruben G. Rumbaut, Ph.D., is Professor of
Sociology at Michigan State University.
immigrant-stock population are found in
San Diego, 43 percent; Chicago and Houston, 29 percent each; and Washington, DC,
23 percent.
Of the 26.8 million foreign-bam, fully 60
percent anived since 1980, and an overwhelming 90 percent immigrated to the U.S.
since 1960. Of those post-1960 "new immigrants," slightly over half have come from
Latin America and the Caribbean, with
Mexico alone accounting for more than a
quatier of the total. Another 29 percent
have come from Asia and the Middle East;
Filipinos, Chinese, and Indochinese alone
account for 15% of the total, or as much as
all of those born in Europe and Canada
combined.
Immigration, as always, is mostly the province of the young. Of the more than 24
million immigrants in the U.S. today who
have come since 1960, 40 percent arrived
as children under the age of 18. (They are
sometimes tenned the "1.5 generation" to
distinguish them from both the "first generation" who immigrated as adults and the
U.S.-born "second generation.") Another
40 percent an·ived as young adults between
Immigrant Stock continued on next page
JUNE 1999
�IMMIGRANT STOCK
The Newest Refugees
continued ji·01n page 8
the ages of 18 and 34. Only one in ten
innnigrated after the age of 40.
ccording to tl1e U.S. Connnittee for Refugees, the U.S. resettled just over
70,000 refugees in fiscal year 1997, a decrease of more than seven percent
from the year before, and a 4 7 percent decrease from the more than 131,000
refugees resettled in 1992.
And of the 27.8million who fonn the U.S.bom "second generation" (defined as
those with at least one foreign-born parent), about 40 percent are currently under
18. Another 16 percent are young adults 18
to 34-mostly the offspring of the new
immigrants fi·om Asia, Latin Ametica and
the Caribbean. About a third, however, are
over 55 years old-bom before World War
II to parents who had immigrated to the
U.S., mostly from Europe, in the early part
of this century. The late Joe DiMaggio,
U.S.-bom son ofltalian immigrants, was a
member of this group.
The increasing size and concentration of
the immigrant population, added to its
diverse national and socioeconomic origins
and fonns of adaptation, have raised significant questions about the impact of
immigration on American society. A new
generation of Americans raised in immigrant families is coming of age. Over time,
its members will decisively shape the character of their ethnic communities and their
success or failure. The long-tenn effects of
contemporary innnigration will hinge more
on the trajectories of these youths than on
the fate of their parents. The children of
today's innnigrants are here to stay, and
they represent the most consequential and
lasting legacy of the new mass immigration
to the United States. 111
As in every year since 1992, the largest number (slightly more than 27,000) came
from the former Soviet Union. Even so, the number of former Soviet refugees has
also decreased every year since 1992. Former Yugoslavs were fue second largest
group to be resettled (about21,000).
Although Vietnamese resettlement, like fanner Soviet resettlement, has steadily
declined since 1992, Vietnamese represented the third largest group of refugees to
arrive in the U.S. in 1997.
Other notable nationality groups resettled in larger numbers in 1997 than in the
previous year included Bunnese, Iranians, Iraqis, Liberians, Sierra Leoneans and
Togolese. Nationalities with notable declines- along with fanner Soviets and
Vietnamese- included Laotians, Somalis and Sudanese. 1111
A Fertile Field for Researchers
T
he family is central to innnigration
and adaptation studies. Embeddedness in family is both a rich
resource and a potential vulnerability for
innnigrants and their children. It enables
and constrains a wide range of outcomes
- and thus provides family researchers
with an equally wide range of issues for
comparative investigation and analysis.
A few examples:
• The family is a strategic research site for
understanding the dynamics of innnigration- both legal and illegal- and of
Number of Immigrants: 1900-1998
Immigrants as
a Percentage of
U.S. Population
30.------------------------------------------,
1900 13.6percent
1910 14.7 percent
1920 13.2 percent
(i)
1930 11.6 percent
:§l
.E 15
1940
8.8 percent
1950
6.9percent
1960
5.4percent
1970
4.8 percent
1980
6.2percent
c
1990
7.9 percent
1998
9.8 percent
c
=
'0
tv
.a
E
::::J
z
1900
YEAR
NCFR REPORT
1910
1920
1930
1940
1950
1960
1970
1980
1990
1998
-CENTER FOR IMMIGRATION STUDIES
9
immigrant adaptation and etlmic fonnation processes, as well as the long-tem1
consequences of these processes for
sending and receiving countries.
• Kinship is also central to understanding
U.S. itmnigration policies and their consequences - intended and unintended.
Marriage and close family ties are the
basis for longstanding selection criteria
built into U.S. itmnigration law.
• Some 27 million innnigrants (plus millions more oftheir U.S.-bom offspring)
are embedded in intricate webs of family
ties, both here and abroad. These ties
fonn extraordinary transnational linkages and networks that can, by reducing the costs and risks of migration,
expand and serve as conduits to additional and potentially self-perpetuating
"chain" migration. This often leads to
dense etlmic concentrations in U.S.
cities, consisting of entire community
segments- including extended families
and friends - from the same area or
region.
• Remittances sent by immigrants to
family members back home (which by
1991 exceeded $71 billion worldwide,
second only to oil sales) link communities across national borders and are vital
to the economies of many sending
countries.
-Ruben G. Rumbaut
JUNE 1999
�hi I ren of Immigrants: oteworthy
chievement and esilient
bition
by Ruben G. Rumbaut, Ph.D.
hildren of immigrants account for
one-fifth of all American children
today, yet little is known about
them. Questions have been raised about
their prospects for assimilation into the
middle-class mainstream or into an expaneled multiethnic underclass.
The Children ofimmigrants Longitudinal
Study (CILS), a multifaceted investigation
of the educational perfom1ance and social,
cultural and psychological adaptation of
these children, is the largest study of its
kind to date. It is co-directed by Alejandro
Partes (Princeton University) and Ruben G.
Rumbaut, and funded by the Russell Sage,
Andrew W. Mellon, Spencer and National
Science Foundations.
The study has followed the progress of a
diverse and representative sample of 5,262
teenage youths representing 77 nationalities in two key areas of immigrant settlement in the U.S.: Southem Califomia and
South Florida. The sample is evenly balanced by gender and between foreignbam and U.S.-born children of immigrants.
The original survey, conducted in Spring
1992, interviewed students enrolled in the
8th and 9th grades in the San Diego Unified School District and in private and
public schools in Miami-Dade and
Broward Counties. All students had at
least one foreign-born parent. A follow-up
survey of these youths was done in 199596, as they were completing high school.
Key findings focus on changes in language, identity, ambition and achievement.
SchooiPertormance
In both San Diego and Miami, the dropout
rate for youth from immigrant families was
significantly lower than the overall rate for
the distTict. In the Miami-Dade schools, it
was less than 9 percent compared to the
overall rate of 17.6 percent. In the San
Diego schools, the difference was even
greater: less than six percent, compared to
Ambition continued on next page
Influential Factors
CILS found that these factors influence achievement and
ambition in children of inunigrant stock:
ork discipline and future goals. Students
who had dedicated more hours to daily homework
in junior high were the highest achievers at the
time of the first survey. In general, children of immigrants
invested significantly more time on schoolwork than the U.S.
national average. High educational and occupational goals in
early adolescence and high parental achievement expectations
are closely associated with remaining in school and better
educational perfonnance. Even among students from low
socioeconomic backgrounds, work discipline and a clear sense
of future goals pay off in achievement dividends. On the other
hand, junior high students who spent many hams watching
TV tended to perfonn poorly in high school.
Fluent bilingualism. Students with limited English proficiency in 1992 were achieving at a lower academic level three
years later. On the other hand, immigrant students whose
English was fluent achieved higher GPAs and had lower dropout rates than students with limited proficiency and Englishonly students. This confinns previous research linking fluent
bilingualism with cognitive achievement.
The family. Family structure and the strength of parent-child
bonds arc key predictors of successful outcomes. Children in
intact families do much better than children in stepfamilies and
NCFR REPORT
single-parent homes. Low-conflict intact
families exhibit the best outcomes across
the board, while high-conflict non-intact
families fare worst (especially with high dropout rates), although high-conflict families yield equally poor GPAs regardless of family stmcture.
Socioeconomic resources and vulnerabilities.
Youths whose parents have a college education set higher
goals and perfonn better in school than those whose parents
have less education, work in low-wage jobs or are not in the
labor force. Other indicators of socioeconomic status, such as
homeowncrship, neighborhood poverty rates and inner-city
school locations, exert a similar influence on achievement and
ambition.
The peer group. At the time of the second survey, the lowest-achieving and least-ambitious students were those whose
close friends had dropped out of school or had no plans for
college. High-achieving students had friends who were going
to 4-ycar universities.
Self-esteem. Scores measured at the end of junior high
schoo1 were significantly predictive of GPAs and educational
aspirations measured at the end of high school. This further
underscores the effect of subjective variables in the achievement process.
-Ruben G. Rumbaut
1 0
JUNE 1999
�AMBITION
continuedfimn page 10
over 16 percent for the entire dish·ict. The
CILS dropout rates were also noticeably
lower than the district-wide rates for preponderantly native non-Hispanic white
high school shrdents on both coasts.
Children from immigrant families tend to
outperform district nonns at all grade levels. In San Diego, for example, only 29
percent of all ninth graders in the district
had A or B averages, compared to 44 percent of those from immigrant families; onethird of ninth graders district-wide had less
than a C average, compared to only 18
percent cif CILS participants. By senior
year, however, this advantage was reduced
to a few percentage points - in part because fewer youth from inunigrant families
drop out of school.
Language
English is alive and well among the new
second generation. Although over 90
percent of the children do not speak English at horpe, they reported an overwhelming preference for English. Nearly threequarters of the ninth graders prefeiTed
English to their parents' native language
-including a majority of the foreign-bam
youth. By their senior year, that percentage
rose to 88 percent. Although there were
wide variations between nationalities, even
the most mother-tongue-retentive group Mexican-bam children in San DiegoprefeiTed English over Spanish.
The CILS data underscore the rapid triumph of English, rebutting nativist alai1ns
about the perpehmtion of foreign-language
enclaves. Unfortunately, the triumph of
English means a significant loss of bilingual resources for individuals and for the
U.S. in an increasingly global economy.
Ethnic Identity
CILS participants did not move toward
assimilative mainstream identities (either
plain or hyphenated American). Instead
they either reaffinned
Children from their immigrant identity or moved toward
immigrant
pan-ethnic identities,
families tend such as "Hispanic"
and "Black." Only 13
to outperform percent of these
youths consider
native-born
themselves "white,"
children at all
and over the course
of the shrdy they
became increasingly
grade levels.
________ aware of the etlmic
and racial categories in which they are
classified by mainsh·eam society.
In San Diego the biggest gainer was the
foreign national identity, especially among
youth of Mexican and Filipino origin, apparently a backlash response to the growing anti-inunigrant climate ofthe period (the
follow-up survey was conducted right after
the passage of Proposition 187).
California's Proposition
187 Disputed
T
he Califomia Democratic Govemor Gray Davis and his Lt. Govemor Cruz
Bustamante are in open disagreement over Davis' announcement that he
would ask a federal appeals court to mediate a dispute over Proposition
187. Inl998, a federal court threw outmost of the ballot measure passed in 1994 as
unconstimtional. The measure stripped illegal immigrants of most state benefits
including education. Bustamante wanted Davis to drop the appeal started by
fonner Gov. Pete Wilson, but Davis chose mediation instead. Davis did reverse the
policy that denied pre-natal care to pregnant illegal immigrant women. Davis, who
won the election in Califomia with support of the Latino and minority cormnunity,
is in a political dilenuna oflosing this support group. Thus, he has asked for a
compromise, which angered Bustamante who opposed the appeal.
NCFR members should be aware of these issues as we prepare to attend the conference in Califomia. Check the following link for the latest developments:
http:/www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/chronicle/archive/1999/04/49/
MN80014.DL.111
NCFRREPORT
1 1
Dr. Ruben Rumbaut will give a
Distinguished Scholar address: "It
Takes a Family (and a Village):
Pattems of Incorporation Among
Children oflnunigrants," at the 1999
NCFR ammal conference in Irvine,
CA. The address will be presented
Friday, Nov. 12, at 12:30 p.m.
For conference registration infonnation, contact NCFR toll free at 888781-9331; E-mail: ncfi"3989@ncfr.org;
Website: www.ncfr.org.
In South Florida, with the exception of
children of Haitian and Nicaraguan origin,
the biggest gains were in pan-etlmic minority group identities. In both areas there was
a marked decline of plain "American" and
hyphenated-American self-identities.
This points to the rise of a "reactive
ethnicity" that may have significant political implications as these children move into
adulthood. In Califomia, soon to become
the first "majority minority" state in the
country, politicians perceived as "immigrant-bashers" may face long-tenn opposition from the children of those inunigrants.
And in Florida, the politics of race may take
on increasing importance.
Discrimination and
Views of the U.S.
etween the first and second survey,
reports of discrimination increased
from 54 percent to 62 percent. The
increase was reported by virtually every
group. Children of Afro-Caribbean and
Asian immigrants experienced the most
discrimination, while Cuban youth in Miami
experienced the least. CILS participants feel
their race or nationality is the trigger for
unfair treatment from others. Over time,
youth tend to feel more pessimistic about
their chances of reducing discriminatory
h·eatment through educational achievement. This pessimism is associated with a
higher incidence of depression.
Nevertheless, nearly two-thirds of the
pariicipants believed in the promise of
equal opporhmity through educational
achievement. In 1992, 60 percent agreed
that "there is no better country to live in
than the United States." That endorsement
grew to 72 percent three years later. Those
most likely to believe this were children of
Ambition continued on next page
JUNE 1999
�AMBITION
continuedfinm page 11
Cuban and Vietnamese political exiles who generally found a
favorable reception in the U.S. By contrast, those most likely
to disagree with that rosy assessment were Haitians, Jamaicans and other West Indians who had most felt the sting of
racial discrimination.
IN OBSERVANCE OF THE
50TH ANNIVERSARY OF THE U.N.
UNIVERSAL DECLARATION
OF HUMAN RIGHTS
Ambition and achievement
hildren of immigrants are no different from the children of the native-born in that a more cohesive,
stable, and resourceful home environment, together
with the early inculcation of disciplined work habits and clear
goals for the future, lead to higher educational achievement
and ambition.
veryone has
the right to seek and
to en;·oy in other
countries asylum
from persecution. "
CILS participants value the importance of a good education
(over 90 percent consider it "very important"). They are
ambitious in their educational and occupational goals. In
1992, two-thirds aspired to advanced degrees, and 42 percent
"realistically" expected to eam an advanced degree. Those
aspirations and expectations remained virtually unaltered
three years later.
A wide range of differences exists, however, between ethnic
groups in achievement and ambition. This points to significant socioeconomic segmentation by ethnicity as these
youths enter the adult labor force. And though boys are only
slightly more likely to drop out of school than girls, girls
perform better academically and have higher aspirations. 1111
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NCFRREPORT
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1 2
JUNE 1999
�rking gether: lm
Fa ilies an the ch
igrant
Is
by Katia Paz Goldfarb, Ph.D.
mmigration produces discontinuity
between a family's original context
and the new social context. Immigrants must deal with differences in language, values and eve1yday experience.
This means that their children also experience discontinuity because they inhabit
two worlds: their community and their
school. Immigrant children are placed in a
difficult position when the adults in these
two worlds fail to know, respect and celebrate each other. When schools fail to
recognize and value the family's teaming
and knowledge, students often begin to
question their own worth and that of their
home culture.
I
Even when schools do tly to encourage
families to participate in their children's
education, that participation is often stmctured to support the school district's own
agenda. Conventional school activities,
such as f1.mdraising or helping children
with homework, occur under conditions
dictated and imposed by the school. Such
activities do little to meet the needs of
children, their families and communities.
Interpretation
Tips
When meeting with family members
who don't speak English, it's best to
use an interpreter. Don't rely on
children to do the interpretation.
This is disrespectful to parents and
grandparents because it puts children in a position of superiority to
their elders. When using an interpreter, always:
Teachers and administrators may analyze a
seeming lack of involvement by immigrant
parents from a "deficit perspective." That
is, they may feel that parents are not involved because there is something wrong
or lacking in immigrant families or their
culh1re. This devaluation silences families
and makes them less able to participate in
their children's education.
On the other hand, when schools take the
initiative to work with families and communities, rather than on them, immigrant parents are empowered. Parent empowerment
is a key factor in the creation of a strong
school-home connection for immigrant
families. Here are some ways that schools
can work with immigrant families instead of
on them:
• Use intergenerational resources,
such as elders
and parents.
e Support the
maintenance of
the family's
native language.
Don't emphasize
the use of English at home.
Katia Paz Goldfarb,
Ph.D. is Assistant
ProfessoJ; Family
Studies, at the College
ofEducation, University ofNew Mexico.
• Respect the parent's role and responsibility as the child's most important
teacher and influence.
• Respect the importance of the extended
family.
e Weave common home practices into the
cuniculum.
• Involve families in the creation and
planning of school policies and programs. Activities should be socially
significant: for example, communityplanned holiday celebrations or afterschool computer classes for parents and
their children.
• Understand that nonliterate families
shape literacy through oral histmy and
storytelling.
e Observe school practices critically.
Teachers and school personnel should
explore their own cultural biases. 111
• Leam about sh1dents' home culhire,
traditions and practices.
Resources for school personnel
Building Communities of Learners: A Collaboration Among Teachers, Students,
Families and Community, by Sudia Paloma McCaleb{St. Mmiin's Press, 1994).
Con Respecto: Breaching the Distance Between Culturally Diverse Families and
Schools, by Guadalupe Valdez (Teachers College Press, 1996).
"Contexhml Bm'riers to Collaboration," by Linda Ware in Journal ofEducational
and Psychological Consultation, (vol. 5, no. 4, 1994).
"Creating Sanchiaries for Latino Itmnigrant Families: A Case for the Schools," by
Katia Goldfarb in Journal for a Just and Caring Education (vol. 4, no. 4, 1998).
The Inner World ofthe Immigrant Child, by Cristina Igoa (St. Martin's Press, 1995).
• Talk directly to the family member.
Don't talk to the interpreter.
An Introduction to Multicultural Education, oy J. Banks (Alyn & Bacon, 1994).
• Avoid jargon. Use simple, direct
words.
"Moving Teacher Education into the Cmmmmity" by J. Grinberg and Katia Goldfarb
in Themy into Practice (vol. 37, no. 2, 1998).
• Pause between sentences or questions to give the interpreter time to
translate your words. 111
"Strengthening Family and School Bonds in Promoting Hispanic Children's School
Perfonnance," by Hennan Curiel in Empowering Hispanic Families: A Critical
Issue for the '90s, edited by Marta Sotomayor (Family Service of America, 1991 ).
NCFR REPORT
1 3
JUNE 1999
�5 utheast sian Families
traddle wo
rids
by Daniel F. Detzner, Ph.D., and Blong Xiong, M.A.
raditionally, Southeast Asians
have large, extended families,
usually with three or four generations living together. The family is an
individual's religious, economic, political
and social core. It is the first loyalty and
primaJy obligation. Family members must
care for each other. Family relations and
functions are clearly and elaborately defined. Muhtal, two-way obligations connect family members, helping them with
tasks such as
"Adolescence"
parenting and
creating strong
doesn 't exist in
bonds.
T
Southeast
Southeast Asian
families anive
Asian culture.
in the U.S. with
few material and
psychological resources, having lost some
or all of their suppmi system. They often
live in isolated, substandard housing in
poor areas, and they face language and
culhtral baniers. In Southeast Asia, cuirural pattems of parental authority, child
rearing and child conduct were supported
by the extended family, the local community and the Buddhist temple. But in the
U.S., these supports are weakened or
absent.
Unemployment and underemployment are
stressful for people with a tradition of hard
work and self-sufficiency. Downward
mobility and financial insecurity lead to a
loss of social stahls, work roles and selfesteem. Long hours spent at low-paying
jobs mean less time and energy to supervise children. In addition, Southeast Asian
parents may suffer from depression and
post-traumatic stress.
social security and other services diminishes the emphasis on family obligations.
In these circumstances, parents find it hard
to raise their children in an unfamiliar
culhtre. They may lack the energy to discipline their children consistently. Some htm
to drinking or gambling, which further
erodes family stability.
As children become Americanized, parents
fear the loss of tradition. They see their
sons and daughters eagerly embracing
individualism and materialism while they
continue to emphasize the retention of
culhtre and the importance of family. Parents want continuity with the past, but they
are less able to enforce traditional roles and
values.
A new stage of development
"Adolescence" is completely foreign to
most Southeast Asian parents. In Southeast
Asia, children of 6 or 7 are expected to
assume specific household responsibilities,
which expand as the children grow older.
By age 12, a Southeast Asian adolescent is
expected to make a significant contribution
to the household within gender-specific
roles. In many traditional families, children many young - between ages 14 and
17 - and take on adult responsibilities
with the family business or fann.
In the U.S., these parents face five to seven
years of parenting adolescents with little
knowledge or experience to draw upon.
According to some researchers, this is the
main reason for conflict between Southeast
Asian parents and their adolescent children.
Southeast Asian families emphasize absolute parental knowledge and child deference to that knowledge. ButAmerican
families typically encourage individualism
and self-reliance. Americans emphasize
two-way communication between family
members and allow open expression of
feelings. In addition, the availability of
health insurance, unemployment benefits,
Help for Southeast Asian Parents
The University of Minnesota Extension Service has published Helping Youth
Succeed: A Bicultural Parenting Guide for Southeast Asian Parents. The full
curriculum includes 24 family stories, detailed background and culhtral infonnation,
a video, and a process to help resolve the dilemmas. The cuniculmn and video are
available in English, Vietnamese, Cambodian, Hmong and Lao versions. For more
infmmation, call (612) 625-4261 or e~mail nanderson@cets.extension.umn.edu.
Troubled teens
efugee youth face accelerated
acculhtration, parental pressure to
naintain their culhtral identity and
traditions, and all the issues associated
with adolescent identity fonnation. Perhaps
the greatest threat to their own identity is
not the sense of
Parents fear the
loss of tradition.
belonging to two
culhtres, but the
feeling that they
belong to none.
Shtdents may face pressure from parents to
succeed academically. According to one
srudy, 87 percent of Southeast Asian parents surveyed used family honor and pride to
motivate their children to
do well in school.
School presents its own
problems: Southeast
Asian children often face
harassment. They may be
BLONGXIONG, M.A.
called names, have personal items stolen from them, be beaten up.
Other problems include age-grade matching and mainstreaming, limited Englishlanguage instmction, lack of prior educational skills and major gaps in schooling.
Younger children often leam English fairly
quickly. But newly arrived adolescents find
language leaming more difficult and their
schooling may be affected.
Poor shtdents may become involved with
gangs. Many young refugees, particularly
Worlds continued on next page
NCFR REPORT
14
JUNE 1999
�WORLDS
continuedfi·om page 14
those who have come to the U.S. by themselves, relied on antisocial strategies to
escape from their homeland and to survive
in camps. Gangs allow them to continue
adaptive behaviors such as fighting, cheating and stealing. Even refugee youth with
families may him to peers for emotional
support and guidance as they grow distant
from their parents and first culhJre.
Building on strength
D
espite the experience ofloss and
trauma, refugees often have great
resilience and the confidence that
comes from surmounting great difficulties.
Many have excellent adaptation skills
gained from years of warfare, refugee
camps and adjustment to life in the U.S.
Southeast Asian families have additional
strengths: strong devotion to family and
community, respect for hard work, reverence for education, generally good health
and a strong sense of spirih~ality. Southeast Asian communities in the U.S. generally have low crime rates. They often have
a well-developed network of communitybased service providers to help meet their
needs. A growing number of successful
role models from within these communities
provide inspiration and practical help for
Southeast Asian youth.
Adapted with permission.fi"om "Background on
Southeast Asian Parenting," chapter one ofthe
facilitator guidef'or Helping Youth Succeed:
Bicultural Parenting for Southeast Asian Families. This groundbreaking parenting curriculum
was published by the University oflv!innesota
Extension Service. It was written by Daniel
Detzne1; professor ofFamily Social Science;
Blong Xiong, doctoral student in Family Social
Science; and Patricia Eliason, education specialist in the Commanding English Program,
General College. 1111
enerati ns f
ccording to a sh1dy published in
1998, children who are innnigrm1ts
or have parents who are immigrants appear in many ways to be as
healthy or even healthier than children in
U.S.-bom families. The study, From Generation to Generation: The Health and
Well-Being of Children in Immigrant
Families, was
caiTied out by
Immigrant
the Committee
children may face on the Health
and Adjustan increased risk ment oflmmiof certain medical grant Children
m1d Families;
problems.
the Board of
Children, Youth
and Families; the National Research
Council; and the Instih1te of Medicine.
According to parental surveys, these
children have fewer shmi- and long-tenn
health problems and fewer accidents and
ealth
injuries than their native-hom peers. Innnigrant families experience fewer low
birthweight babies and infant deaths. Adolescents repmiedly have a lower incidence
of mental health problems and are less
likely to engage in risky behaviors, such as
violence, illegal drug use or unprotected
sexual intercourse.
But as the children of immigrants move into
the second and third generations, these
advantages recede, and risk-related behaviors, for example, approach or exceed those
ofwhite adolescents with U.S.-bomparents.
Medicaid makes a difference
Children in innnigrant families expelience,
on average, a higher poverty rate than
children of nonimmigrant parents. They are
less likely to have health insurance or
receive regular medical care. Depending on·
their country of origin, immigrant children
Generations continued on next page
What Culturally Competent
Health Care Looks Like
ulh!rally competent health care takes into account the world view, causal
understandings and decision-making customs of the patient's etlmic
group. It respects traditional mles of etiquette in interpersonal relationships and pays attention to the patient's support system of family, elders or clan.
According to the Lao Family Community of Minnesota, culh!rally competent health
care for Hmong would include:
o Allowing traditional Hmong healing practices to continue in tandem with Westem medicine.
For conference registration infonnation, contact NCFR toll free at 888781-9331; E-mail: ncfr3989@ncfr.org;
Website: www.ncfr.org.
NCIFR REPORT
Giving thorough, concrete explanations.
•
Daniel Detzner and Blong Xiong will
present a Research Update for Practitioners (RUP) entitled "Intergenerational Relationships in Southeast
Asian Families" at the NCFR mmual
conference in Irvine, CA on Sunday,
Nov.14,at3:30p.m.PLANTO
ATTEND!
•
Offering alternatives to general anesthesia whenever possible.
•
Using only skilled, trained Hmong health professionals, paraprofessionals and
interpreters. Never using a patient's fatnily members, particularly children, or
another Hmong patient as an interpreter.
•
Pennitting the Hmong patient to make decisions in traditional ways. This
usually involves the extended family. Clan leaders or male relatives should be
present when fue diagnosis, prognosis and treatment options are explained.
The provider should accept the decision made by these persons and the patient. Informed consent structures should be adapted to this practice.
•
Understanding that some Hmong will have adopted a more Western view of
health care and disease and don't want to use traditional practices. 111
1 5
JUNE 1999
�GENERATIONS
continued fimn page 15
may face an increased risk of certain medical problems, including dmg-resistant
tuberculosis, intestinal parasites, hepatitis
B and malaria. Without treatment, these
conditions can worsen and, in some cases,
affect the health of large numbers of people.
Medicaid offsets the lower rate of private
health insurance coverage. Children with
Medicaid are more likely to receive health
care services. The report notes, however,
that most immigrants who anived later than
August 22, 1996, are no longer eligible for
Medicaid, food stamps or Supplemental
Security Income for their first five years in
the U.S.
Special concern
The report expresses special concern for
children from the former Soviet Union,
Generations continued on next page
elfare Reform and Children of Immigrants
How
Many
Children?
Welfare refonn dramatically reduced immigrants' access to benefits, and this limitation could affect the
health and well-being of their children. A surprising number of these children are U.S. citizens: one in ten
American children lives in a family with a non-citizen parent and at least one citizen child. And since 1990,
the immigrant child population has been growing seven times faster than the child population of native
parents. Immigrant children are concentrated in Califomia, New York, Texas, Illinois, Florida, and New
Jersey. Their numbers are also growing quickly in other states.
Before
Reform
Prior to federal welfare reform in 1996, legal immigrants and their children were entitled to health care and
other public benefits 011 more or less the same terms as citizens. States played 110 role in determining eligibility and a smaller role in funding services than is true today. Illegal irmnigrants were baned from most
public services, though some exceptions were made for emergency health, maternal and child health, and
infant nutrition programs.
New
Rules
Three major changes occurred when welfare refonn was enacted:
• An immigrant's citizenship, not legal stah1s, determines eligibility for receiving full public benefits.
• States have greater power to detennine which immigrants qualify for federal and state public services.
• Legal ilmnigrants who arrived in the United States after the law's enactment on August 22, 1996, have
far fewer claims to services than those who anived.before this deadline.
Federal
Changes
At the federal level, Congress restored food stamps and Supplemental Security Income to some groups of
ilmnigrants, ir1cluding children, who were in the United States before the law passed. But immigrants arri ving after. that date (new immigrants) remain baned for five years from Medicaid and other federal meanstested benefits. The restoration of food stamps does not help either these new illll11igrants or the more
than 600,000 working-age ilmnigrants who were in the United States before the deadline. For these families,
there are likely to be far fewer resources available to their children, most of whom are U.S. citizens.
State
Reactions
States have been generous in providing Temporary Assistance for Needy Farnilies and Medicaid to legal
i1mnigrants and their children who were in the United States before the deadline. Virhtally all states still
offer them these benefits. But states have to bear most of the costs of providing services to legal immigrants who anivedafter the deadline. Califomia,for instance, has cmmnitted to providing food stamps to
many poor legal immigrants baned from receiving fed~ral assistance. For states who follow California's
lead, the overall result will be substantially higher state outlays- in California's case, an additional $60
million ammally. States may have to cut this spending as state or national economies get worse.
Impact on
Immigrant
Families
The dramatic changes to welfare refonn policy may also keep some immigrants from applying for cash and
medical benefits. Immigrants may fear that using benefits will hurt their chances to become citizens, reenter the United States or get a green card. A recent Urban Instih1te shldy in Los Angeles County found
that while approved applications for Medicaid and cash assistance from citizens held steady following
welfare refonn, they had dropped 52 percent for i1mnigrants between January, 1996 and January, 1998. The
drop was just as steep for citizen children of immigrants. This means that 25,000 more children would have
been enrolled in Medicaid in Los Angeles County if enrollment rates had remained at pre-refonnlevels.
This suggests that targeted outreach is needed to enroll the children of immigrants in the health and other
programs for which they may remain eligible.
Reprinted with permission Ji"om the Urban Institute. For more information on this topic, call the
Urban Institute Office ofPublic Affairs at (202) 261-5709. 01; visit the Urban Institute home page at http:llvvww.urban.OJg.
NCFIR IREPOIRT
1 6
JUNE 1999
�BOOKS:
At the Crossroads: Jvfexico and U.S. Immigration Policy, edited by Frank D. Bean,
Rodolfo 0. de La Garza, BryanR. Roberts
and Sidney Weintraub (Rowman &
Littlefield, 1997).
Between Tvvo Nations: The Political Predicament of Latinos in New York City, by
Michael Jones-Conea (Comell University
Press, 1998).
Blurred Boundaries: Migration, Ethnicity,
Citizenship, edited by Rainier Baubi:ick and
John Rundell (Ashgate Publishing, 1998).
GENERATIONS
Citizens, Strangers, and In-Betweens:
Essays on Immigration and Citizenship,
by Peter H. Schuck (Westview Press, 1998).
Children Adapt to Life in the United
States, by Min Zhou and Carl L. Bankston
III (Russell Sage, 1998).
Counseling Across Cultures, edited by
Paul B. Pederson. 4th edition. (Sage Publications, 1996). Examines the cultural context of accurate assessment and appropriate interventions.
Immigrant America: A Portrait, by Alejandro Partes and Ruben Rumbaut (University ofCalifomia Press, 2nd ed., 1996).
Ethnic Los Angeles, edited by Roger
Waldinger and Mehdi Bozorgmehr (Russell
Sage Foundation, 1996).
Growing Up American: How Vietnamese
continuedfi"Oin page 16
Cambodia, Laos, Thailand, Vietnam, El Salvador, Guatemala, Nicaragua, Haiti, Honduras,
the Dominican Republic and Mexico. Children from these 12 countries are more likely to
have parents with little fonnal education and are more likely to live in crowded conditions. Taken as a whole, 35 percent ofthe children from these countries live in poverty.
Access to medical services can be complicated by lack of English fluency and non-Westem culhiral beliefs about illness, health care-seeking behavior and response to treatment.
The medical community has repeatedly called for the provision of culh1rally sensitive
services, but such care remains limited.
To read the entire report, edited by Donald J Hernandez and Evan Charney, go to
www.uap.edu/readiugroomlbooks/geueratiou. 111
Developing Competence
Web Sites:
CulturedMed is a resource center of print materials and electronic databases dealing with culh1rally competent health care for refugees and immigrants. It is organized by The SUNY Institute of Technology librmy. The Web Site contains bibliographies and links to relevant resources about refugees and immigrants for nursing
students, health care providers, social workers, medical interpreters and other
interested people. wwwl.sunyit.edullibrny/culturedmed/index.html
Diversity Rx is a clearinghouse of infonnation on how to meet the language and
cultural needs of minorities, immigrants, refugees and other diverse populations
seeking health care. It is sponsored by the National Conference of State Legislahires, Resources for Cross Cultural Health Care and the Henry J. Kaiser Family
Foundation. www.diversityrx.org
EthnoMed provides infom1ation about cultural beliefs, medical issues and other
related issues pertinent to the health care of recent immigrants to the Seattle area,
many of whom are refugees fleeing war-tom parts of the world.
www.hslib.washington.edu/clinical/ethnomed/index.html
Article:
"Culh!ral Aspects of Caring for Refugees," by DavidS. Kang, M.D.; Lucinda R.
Hahler, R.N. M.S.; and Catherine M. Tesar, Ph.D.American Family Physician,
March 15, 1998. Also available atwww.aafp.org/afp/980315ap/medsoc.html
Immigration and Citizenship in the 21st
Centwy, edited by Noah M. J. Pickus
(Rowman & Littlefield, 1998).
Immigration: A Civil Rights Issue for the
Americas, edited by Susanne Jonas and
Suzie Dod Thomas (Scholarly Resources,
1999).
Immigrants & Refitgees: Create Your New
Life in America, by Raimonda Mikatavage
(MelodijaBooks, 1998. Call410-374-3117).
Advice for new anivals from a first-generation American.
Jvfanualfor Refitgee Service Workers and
Refitgee Artists, by the Institute for Culh1ral
Partnerships (Institute for Cultural Partnerships, 1997. Call717-238-1770). Provides
guidance on identifying refugees with
artistic or traditional skills and talents.
Helps refugees maintain and pass on their
cultural heritage, apply their artistic talent
to new employment situations or create
small businesses.
The New Americans: Economic, Demographic, and Fiscal Effects ofImmigration,
edited by National Research Council (National Academy Press, 1997).
Worlds in Jvfotion: Understanding Intemational Migration at the End of the Millennium, by Douglas Massey, Joaquin
Arango, Graeme Hugo, Ali Kouaouci,
Adela Pellegrino, and J. Edward Taylor
(Oxford University Press, forthcoming).
ON THE WEB:
The Center for Immigration Studies is a
non-partisan, non-profit think tank devoted
exclusively to research and policy analysis
of the economic, social, demographic,
fiscal, and other impacts of irmnigration on
the United States. www.cis.org
The Center for Victims of Torture is a
private, not-for-profit organization providing multidisciplinary rehabilitative treatment services for survivors of foreign
political torhrre. www.cvt.org
Resources continued on page 29
NCFR REPORT
1 7
JUNE 1999
�he hallenge of lntegratin
esearch
ractice in
F
I
want to challenge NCFR
to accomplish something
nearly unprecedented in the histoty of
professional associations: to be a professional home that nmtures both excellent
researchers and excellent practitioners, a
place where both groups feel valued as
contributors and learners. I believe that
this will be our greatest challenge over the
next decade. If we fail, NCFR will either
become an association of family scholars
based in academic settings, or an association of family educators and other practitioners based in community settings. If we
succeed in doing justice to both domains,
along with developing a significant family
policy voice, we will have created something quite unique and valuable-and
perhaps unprecedented.
Most professional associations specialize
in either research or practice. Some, like the
American Sociological Association, are
scholarly organizations with little focus on
practice with
individuals or
The split between
families.
research and
Others, like
the American
Association
practice reflects
for Marriage
historical and
and Family
cultural influences Therapy, and
the National
that are now
Association
of Social
widely critiqued.
Workers,
have traditionally focused on practice and not on
research. When associations have tried to
do both research and practice, they have
faced serious intemal obstacles. The
American Psychological Association, for
example, has historically embraced both
research and practice, but as the practice
membership grew in the 1970s and 1980s,
many researchers became alienated and
then split off to fom1 their own association.
The same has occurred in professional
NCFR REPORT
associations of nurses, where, when the
practitioner base increased, research
nurses split off.
roots. New work is emerging in a variety of
fields tore-envision practice as a form of
scholarship and scholarship as a form of
practice, with both seen as heavily influenced by cultural and community contexts.
The trickle down relationship between
researchers and practitioners is not only
politically anogant, it is based on conceptually flawed thinking. For one thing it
ignores the important, original contributions that come from those who practice
NCFR has avoided this rift thus far because, although our mission emphasizes
research and practice, we have been predominantly a scholarly organization, with
relatively less emphasis on practice. Our
leadership is almost entirely composed of
academics. Our journals appeal mainly to
basic family researchers (JMF) and applied
familyresearchers
NCFR can only be true to its mission if we can create
(FR), not to
a unity ofpurpose and respect for family researchers
front -line
practitioners.
and family practitioners in one professional home.
The overwhelming
majority of presenters at our annual confer- with families. There are some forms of
ence are from academic settings, and not
knowledge that can be generated only in
many of the presentations deal with hands- the crucible of eve1yday work with families
on practice with families. Not that we do
in all their complexity.
not offer valuable services to practitioner
ut the two cultural identities of
members, including access to important
research and practice are still with
research knowledge, but practitioners are
us, and inside us. We have not yet
not especially visible as conh·ibutors to
begun the necessary conversation about
NCFR at the national level. (The divisional this kind of diversity in our association.
level is a different story.) When it comes to What would it mean to NCFR if we added
the relationship between research and
1,000 new practitioner members, made sure
practice, we seem to embrace a tricklewe elected community-based practitioners
down model, with the original contributo the NCFR Board, encouraged more
tions being made by academics who pass
practitioners to present at the annual
on knowledge to practitioners, from top to
conference, developed a practice-based
bottom as it were.
journal, extended credentialing to new
B
The split between research and practice
reflects historical and cultural influences
that are now widely critiqued. Feminist
scholars and critical theorists led the way
in breaking down the dichotomy between
research and practice. They deconstructed
the modes of thinking that favor "hard"
research over "soft" research, analytical
thinking over context-based thinking, the
cognitive domain over the affective domain, value-free science over value-laden
practice, the ivory tower over the grass
1 8
arenas of family practice? Would our academic members decry the loss of the academic culture, the lowering of standards?
Would they fear becoming peripheral in
NCFR? Would they stop attending conferences? Would they leave NCFR and fonn ~
new family research organization?
This is one failure path for N CFR in the
next decade-ending in the departure of
academic members. The other failure path
The Challenge continued on next pag
JUNE 199
�Ill
urn1n
remember a most significant tuming
point in my life which occmTed 15
years ago. It was my decision to leave
a career in academe and my position as
Associate Dean of the College of Professional Sh1dies at U.W. Stevens Point to
become NCFR's third executive director. As
a member ofNCFR since the early 70s, I
enjoyed the journals and conferences. But
the big attraction to this position was the
I
when they can look back on them. I look
around me at the wonderful colleagues and
friends this job at NCFR has afforded me in
the space of the past 15 years and see that
seeds planted have bome fruit in a healthy,
viable 61-year-old professional organization. It has been a pleasure to serve this
great organization and you wonderful
people in it. Let's review a bit of where
NCFR has come from and where we hope
to go in the fuhtre.
It is our hope that in the future NCFR can
truly integrate its products and services to
serve both practitioners and researchers.
Family Resources Database - a technology
far ahead of its time, the developing CFLE
program and the challenge of getting NCFR
out of debt. Now I am at another hm1ing
point, and NCFR is truly at its h1ming
point. As of July 1, 1999, the management
baton will be passed to Mr. Michael Benjamin, who will take this marvelous organization in new directions. The time has come
to say thank you and goodbye.
Some people spend a good part of their
working careers looking fotward to the day
THE CHALLENGE
ints
As an ordinmy member, I
look fotward to following
NCFR's entry into the 21st
Cenhny.
e Among the seeds that
have bome fruit at NCFR is its financial
stahiS. In 1985, President Dr. Sharon Price
announced a deficit of$152,000. At the
end of this last fiscal year, NCFR had a net
fund balance of$89,000. The Assets of
NCFR went fi·om 0 to $1.8 million with a
reserve fund of almost $1.3 million. With
NCFR's value of almost $3 million, it is our
hope that this will continue to grow and
that the Board will be able to use some of
those resources for R&D purposes.
411
Membership numbers have remained
continuedfi·om page 18
would be to continue to do a half-hearted job of nurturing the practice side of our historic mission. The result, I believe, would be that one or more new practice organizations
will spring up to do the job that NCFR declined to do-to be a professional home for
those working in preventative, educational, community-based services for families. Our
students will join those organizations and not NCFR, and NCFR will become an aging,
downsized academic association that pays only lip service to its mission of combining
research and practice.
Some NCFR members might favor one of the directions that I have labeled failure paths.
Why not a primarily academic organization? Why not a primarily practitioner organization? For me, we would lose the heart of why NCFR was created. Just as you have to
have atria and ventricles to make a human heart function, NCFR can only be true to its
mission if we can create a unity of purpose and respect for family researchers and family
practitioners in one professional home. Let an honest conversation begin about the role
of professional diversity in our future.
William J. Doherty, Ph.D., NCFR President
NCFR REPORT
1 9
stable at 4,000 with approximately 1,000
members entering or leaving annually. The
membership profile has changed to include
more practitioners, more female professionals and sh1dents, and longer-termmember
stays. It is our hope that in the fuhtre
NCFR can truly integrate its products and
services to serve both practitioners and
researchers.
e The Annual Conference, enhanced by
many new offerings, has grown in attendance from 900 in 1985 to 1500 in 1997.
NCFR's national reputation for being one
of the best organized conferences in the
conference industry generates hope that in
the fuh1re it will take advantage of technology and distance education to increase the
number of conferences offered during the
year, while continuing to improve the offerings of the annual conference.
e NCFR's two premier joumals continue to
enjoy top ranking among the social science
scholarly communities. In June the management of these joumals will pass to Allen
Press of Lawrence, Kansas. The Journal of
Family HistOIJ! was sold to Sage Publishing, and the Family Resources Database/
lnventOIJ! of Marriage and Family Literature was sold to National Information
Services Corporation. It is our hope that
the Family Relations joumal will distinguish itself as the premier practitioner's
joumal, and that new publications will
serve a broader range of family field professionals particularly in special areas such as
parenting education, marriage and couples
education and family education, while
always maintaining the solid research base
of the information enclosed.
411 The Certified Family Life Education
Program, still new by some standards, now
has over 800 certified professionals, and 32
approved academic programs and is gaining in national recognition. It is our hope
that in the fuh1re, this program will eam
national recognition in the "Federal Directory of Professional Occupations."
Turning Points continued on next page
.JUNE 1999
�TURNING POINTS continuedfi·om page 19
e Since 1985 NCFR has also published a
list of related books on family topics for
use as classroom supplements. Over that
time these products (including the hardbound InventOI)! of fl;farriage and Family
Literature) have grossed NCFR 3/4 million
dollars in income. It is our hope that future
publications will become more widely available in print and on the intemet.
• One of the accomplishments for which I
am most proud and honored to have been a
part, is the work of the NCFR Board of
Directors in restructuring its size and Govemance policies for more responsive decision making.
I thank previMany opportunities ous boards
of directors
ofNCFR
who paved
new millennium
the way, and
approaches and the the cmTent
Board who
changes in the
are transitioning this
family field
new model of
continue to increase governance
into the
in complexity.
NCFRculture. Our
hope is that the new leadership model will
truly serve all NCFR members.
remain as the
proaches and the changes in the family
field continue to increase in complexity. I
wish Mr. Benjamin my best, and I thank all
of you, especially the many presidents and
fonner/cunent board members with whom I
have worked over the years, who have
contributed their time and talents to NCFR.
I thank the dedicated and loyal staff who
provided ideas, hard work and support and
organizational skills to make my work easy.
As we embark on a new Century, I have no
doubt that NCFR will truly embrace the
necessary "tuming points" that will build
on and expand and improve NCFR's reputation as a premier, cutting edge professional organization for multi- and interdisciplinary scholars and practitioners in
the service offamilies.
Mary Jo Czaplewski, Ph.D., CFLE
Executive Director
Czaplewski Fellowship 1n
Administration Grant
II
t the November 1999 annual conference, Lynda Walters (1991 President)
announced the first ever NCFR special grant fellowship to provide financial
support to family scholars wishing to obtain training needed to make a career
move from academe to administration. Walters and NCFR's former presidents and the
Board of Directors established this program to honor Mary Jo Czaplewski's 15 years of
effective administrative leadership ofNCFR.
This fellowship will be awarded once annually only if a request for the support is made.
Criteria for applications and processing is cunently under development and will be announced upon Board approval, and as the funding pool nears its goal of a $12,000 endowment base. Donations toward this fund are being accepted. If you wish to honor
Mary Jo Czaplewski by contributing to this fellowship, please send a check and a copy
of the fonn below to NCFR. 1111
e The Staff ofNCFR are well trained and
competent, though smaller in number than
in 1985 due to technology used at headquarters. This staff is the most NCFR dedicated staff I have ever worked with. They
really care about this organization. It is my
hope that they will continue to serve
NCFR.
1/we am/are proud to contribute to the Mary Jo Czaplewski Fellowship Fund to help
support professionals who wish to obtain training and make a mid-career move into
administr·ation. Enclosed is a check payable to NCFR!Czaplewski Fellowship Fund for:
e Public Policy efforts were effective
through the Coalition ofFamily Organization and continuing in the work of Margaret Feldman in Washington, D.C. and the
Public Policy Committee. NCFR extended
its policy outreach intemationally through
its membership as an NGO (non-governmental organization) at the United Nations.
It is our hope that the new leadership will
continue to bring NCFR's strengths into
national recognition by policy makers and
Federal agencies as the premier resource
for infonnation on families.
Signature________________
Milestones have passed, but many opportunities remain as the new millermium apNICFR REPORT
D $1,000 D $500 D $250
Method of Paym~nt:
D $100 D Other$- - - -
D Check D Money Order D Visa D MasterCard
Credit Card Number ________________ Exp. Date_ _ _ __
If you do not enclose the entire amount now,
please indicate when you would like a reminder about
your pledge: D Quarterly D Semi-annually
Your Name______________
Phone._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ __
MAIL TO:
National Council
on Family Relations
3989 Central Ave. NE
Suite #550
NCFR Minneapolis, MN 55421
Address _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ ____
City_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ State/Province/Country_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ __
Zip/Postal Code________ E-mail._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ __
Your employer- if your company matches gifts_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ __
All donations are tax deductible, as allowed by law.
20
U.S. funds drawn on U.S. banks only.
JUNE 1999
�Ill
I
ith the Kosovo sihration so
dominant in everyone's mind,
and the great differences
between the two political parties, there
seems to be little chance for real action this
year on the pressing problems of the nation. It is looking more and more unlikely
that a compromise satisfactmy to all can
be reached on Social Security or Medicare.
Tax cuts continue to be controversial. Gun
control, even after the disaster in Colorado, seems to be just as controversial and
unlikely to be dealt with.
Budget
fr m
ashingt n
course. Which generation and which
group are to make the most sacrifice?
Check out the Urban Instihrte publications
web: www.urban.org.
Many are concerned about the special peril
to women if privatization goes fmward with
inadequate provision for the safety net.
There is also concern about the potential
transition costs, which could be a major
cost of a drastic change to the system.
Planning for change will not be easy.
National Longitudinal Study
of Adolescent Health
I hope all NCFR members are aware of this
study. It was designed to help understand
the social context of adolescents' lives
which influence their health and health
behavior. It
is the most
"For Americans who earn twice as much as the
scientific,
median income, their income tax burden is significantly complex and
inclusive
lower today than it was 20 or 25 years ago."
shrdy ever
attempted
"nearly all of the financing for the tax cuts
and includes infonnation about the effect
effectively comes from the reductions in
of genetic factors, parents, peers and peer
discretionaty programs which would be
networks, schools, and neighborhoods as
required."
they effect the self-reported functioning of
adolescents. A huge national random
Those of us interested in justice and eqsample was obtained from 90,000 in-school
uity might do well to keep in mind some
questionnaires, and 16,000 90-minute, infacts I obtained at an Urban lnstihtte
home interviews in 80 communities of all
seminar recently. One expert pointed out
types. Minority and special groups were
that "For Americans who earn twice as
over sampled. Perhaps the most important
much as the median income, their income
finding for NCFR members is that parents
tax burden is significantly lower today
do make a difference, but parents do not
than it was 20 or 25 years ago" due to the
know much about what their teens are
fact that the top income subjected to the
doing and thinking.
FICA tax has remained at the same figure
A major political controversy is the budget
and the surplus. The Center for Budget
Policies and Priorities has noted that
and the top tax rate has been reduced. In
addition, the economist Eugene Steuerle
reminds us all that policymakers might not
be ready to take full account of the inevitable losers in refonn- middle income
taxpayers with higher proportion of income
going to taxes or beneficiaries with smaller
benefits. The sacrifices which will be necessary in any one of the schemes being
put forward has not been part of the disNCFR REPORT
The new news is that there is to be a 10year follow-up of this shrdy to track the
early work and matTiage experience of
these adolescents who were so intensively
shrdied while they were in school.
COS SA, the Consortium of Social Science
Associations, to which NCFR belongs,
held a seminar on this shtdy in July last
year. The reports presented by Richard
21
Udry and other main researchers in the
shtdy are available on the web: http://
members.aol.com/socscience/index.htm or
on e-mail: socscience@aol.com. The National Longihrdinal Shrdy of Adolescent
Health Web page is http://www.cpc.unc.edu/
addhealth. Infom1ation is available there as
to how you can get the data for your own
analyses.
Health Statistics
Researchers making use of statistics from
the National Center for Health Statistics
who have not heard about the Center's nocharge Conference on August 2-4 1999 in
Washington could call the Program Development staff at 301-436-7122. A wide anay
of concunent sessions will be offered
dealing with design, collection, analysis,
and special uses of health data. This conference is an excellent opporhmity to meet
NCHS officials and fellow researchers.
Equal Pay
Raising the minimum wage and working
toward equal pay for women and minorities
could make a tremendous difference in
women's lifetime earnings and their income
as older women. The Instihtte for Women's
Policy
Research
If the 5.4 million
Director
Heidi
working single
Hartmann
mothers earned
has produced an
wages comparable to
analysis of
men, their annual
the effect of
equal pay
family incomes would for working
families.
increase nearly 17
Her analypercent.
sis shows
that "if the
approximately 33 million manied women
had equal pay, their earnings would increase by 20 percent and raise family income by six percent. This translates into an
Washington continued on next page
JUNE 1999
�randfatherin
pti nf r
F
Introduced
any organizations
provide a grandfathering opportunity when
they first launch a certification program or
examination. This limited-time certification
option allows professionals with appropriate experience and degrees to apply for.
certification based upon established experience in the field. NCFR will be making a
grandfathering option available for a period
of approximately 18 months, prior to the
introduction of the CFLE Examination.
Once the exam is available, all applicants,
with the exception of those seeking Provisional certification who have graduated
from an NCFR-approved program, will be
required to take the exam in order to receive
the CFLE designation.
Criteria Currently under
Development
The qualifying criteria are currently under
development. Most likely the grandfathering process will require applicants to complete a brief application form and submit a
vitae or resume and a letter of endorsement
from a supervisor or colleague.
Minimum requirements will include a combination of work experience and relevant
degrees. The number of years experience
required will vary depending upon the
relevancy and level of degree. In other
words, applicants with a Ph.D. in the family
field would need less experience than
someone with a Masters degree. Substan-
WASHINGTON
tial experience in family life education (1 0 to All Affiliate Council-sponsored meetings
20 years) may be allowed in place of a
are automatically approved for CFLE credit
specific family degree.
but an application form must still be completed. Contact Jeanne Ryberg at
If you have specific input regarding
jryberg@ncfr.org for the application fonn.
grandfathering, contact Dawn at (888) 7819331 or via E-mail at Cassidyd@ncfr.org.
Approved events will be listed on the
NCFR website under CFLE and can include
NCFR to List CFLE-Approved Worklinks to E-mail addresses and websites.
shops, Conferences, etc. on Website
Cunent and potential CFLEs frequently
NCFR will begin listing CFLE-approved
contact the NCFR in search of relevant
conferences, workshops, trainings, semieducational opportunities, so a listing on
nars, for-credit courses, etc. on its website. the website will provide great exposure! 1111
NCFR Transfers Journals
Management to Allen Press
Beginning June 1, 1999, all of the marketing,
management, production, fulfillment, and
circulation ofNCFR's two premier joumals
will be handled by Allen Press of Lawrence,
Kansas.
In a unanimous vote of the Board ofDirectors in Nov. 1998, it was decided that
outsourcing all functions of the joumals
would decrease NCFR's overhead costs
and make for more efficient management of
both journals. Starting June 1, 1999 all existing journal inventory will be transferr-ed and
Allen Press will begin fulfilling author reprint requests, back orders, and claims.
Allen will also process all pennissions for
book publishing copyrights and Copyright
continuedfi'Om page 21
average of$4,205 more income, per year. Poverty rates for married working women's families would fall by more than half, from 2.1 percent to 0.8 percent. If the 5.4million working
single mothers eamed wages comparable to men, their aruma! family incomes would
increase $4,459 on average or nearly 17 percent, reducing poverty rates for working single
mothers by half, from 25.3 percent to 12.6 percent. Equal pay for women would be a very
effective anti-poverty strategy." The report shows that unionized women make more and
that "unionization means higher wages for women and minorities and smaller race and
gender-based wage gaps." Get the whole report: Phone: 202-785-5100; Fax: 202-833-4362;
Web: www.iwpr.org.
Margaret Feldman, Ph.D., NCFR Policy Representative
NCFR REPORT
22
Clearance Center will process all pennissions for educational use and course packs.
Allen will also perfonn all copy editing
functions, which were formerly done in the
editmial offices, thereby simplifying the job
of the editors. Starting with the 2000 volumes of the journals, Allen Press will mount
the articles full text online, and will print
and fulfill all subscription and member
copies of the joumals.
Allen Press was the only service that could
offer NCFR the unique advantage of a
seamless service combining marketing,
publishing, printing and distribution in one
company. Allen has been in the business
for over 50 years and is devoted exclusively
to the production and distribution of scholarly and medical journals. They produce
over 325 journal titles including the Journal
of Experimental Analysis of Behavior, the
American Anthropologist, the Behavior
Analyst, and others.
Handling NCFR's account at Allen Press
will be Angela Pfeifer, Publishing Coordinator. She can be reached at 800-627-0932,
ext. 268; E-mail: apfeifer@allenpress.com.
NCFR's customer liaison to Allen Press is
Doris Hare land at 888-781-9331, ext. 23 or
harelandd@ncfr.org. You may direct questions to her. 1111
JUNE 1999
�This column features news ofNCFR promotions, awards, career changes of interest to
all members. Write to us and let us !azow what you are doing.
onations
The following persons have contributed
donations since March 1999. Their
generosity aids NCFR in continuing its
programs and awards.
General Fund
Alfred J. Kahn- Cliffside Park, NJ
Mary Jo Czaplewski Fellowship
J. Kenneth Davidson, Sr., CFLEEau Claire, WI
Dr. J. Ross Eshleman- Detroit, MI
For more infonnation on contributing to
NCFR, contact:
NCFR Executive Director
3989 Central Ave. NE, Suite 550
Mill1leapolis, MN 55421
Toll:fiee: 888-781-9331 ext.21.
On March 4, 1999 the NCFR Board
approved the following mission statement for Family Relations.
MISSION OF
Family Relations
Family Relations publishes applied
articles that are original, innovative
and interdisciplinary and that focus on
diverse families and family issues.
Audiences include family life educators in academic and community settings, researchers with an applied or
evaluation focus, family practitioners
who utilize prevention or therapeutic
models and techniques, and family
policy specialists. Examples of appropriate articles include those dealing
with applied research, educational
philosophies or practices, syntheses
of substantive areas, program evaluations, and curriculum development and
assessment. Articles should be conceived and written with the needs of
practitioners in mind. 1111
NCFRREPORT
auline Boss- Her new book, Ambiguous Loss, Harvard University
Press, is now available in bookstores. Ambiguous Loss summarizes research and theoty developed from 1973 to
the present, but for the first time, the work
is written for a general audience. The
theoty is integrated through professional
and sometimes personal nanatives describing people's experiences with loved ones
who are physically or psychologically
missing. Boss addresses the meaning of
ambiguous loss, when it is a problem, and
what families can do about it. Excerpts from
the book were included in her 1997 NCFR
presidential address.
JeffDwyer-EffectiveMay 1, 1999,Jeffis
Professor and Head of the Division of
Aging in the Department of Health Policy
and Epidemiology, College ofMedicine, at
the University ofF1orida. The editorial
offices of Family Relations will remain at
Wayne State University for the remainder
ofDr. Dwyer's term as editor (through
May2000).
Constance R. Ahrons- Dr. Ahrons has
been awarded the 1999 Research Grant by
the Califomia Judicial Council's Statewide
Office of Family Court Services (FCS) for
her proposal, Divorce and Remarriage:
The Children Speak Out. The FCS supports research to improve court practices
in the resolution of child custody and
visitation disputes. Twenty years ago, Dr.
Ahrons began a unique longitudinal study
of families that gathered infonnation from
parents and stepparents for six years after
divorce. With the FCS grant, Dr. Ahrons, of
the Council on Contemporary Families, will
be able to extend this exciting shidy by
researching the perspectives of the children, now grown and aged 21 to 45. Congratulations, Connie!
Alan Booth, Ann C. Crouter- Their new
publication, Transitions to Adulthood in a
Changing Economy: No Work, No Fgmily,
No Future?, is an edited collection of
papers from Pennsylvania State Univer-
23
sity's 5th Annual Family Symposium and
explores the main issues involved in
young people's transition to adulthood,
such as the widening gap between rich
and poor, downsizing, global competition,
and technological change. (DISCOUNT
SPECIAL: Greenwood Publishing is offering_ a special "Members Only" discount on
their book. For infommtion on how to take
advantage of this special offer, visit the
"Members Only" page ofNCFR's website
atwww.ncfr.org.)
H
amilton McCubbin- Retiring as
dean, but continuing as faculty.
After a year of independent
research, Dr. McCubbin will continue his
research and scholarship in the Dept. of
Child and Family Sh1dies, University of
Wisconsin-Madison. McCubbin served as
Dean of the School of Human Ecology,
University ofWisconsin-Madison for 15
years.
Mary Heltsley- has been named Associate Vice President in the office of the Executive Vice President and Provost, University of Minnesota, with responsibility
for the University's outreach activities.
Heltsley's new duties begin July 1. She
served as Dean of the College of Human
Ecology from 1987 to 1999.
Kevin Roy has been awarded the first
Margaret Feldman Family Policy Intem
Award. Kevin is a Ph.D. candidate at
Northwestem University, Chicago, Illinois,
and plans to use his award to expand a
component of his doctoral research, which
examines the impact of welfare refonn
policies on patemal providing and
caregiving. Congrahiiations, Kevin! 1111
NOMINATIONS
BALLOT
The Nominations Ballot is
located on page 36. Complete and
Fax or mail in today!
.JUNE 1999
�nnual
he 1999 annual conference, "Borders, Boundaries, and Beacons:
Diverse Families in Dynamic Societies," is going to be infommtive, exciting,
and fun. The program committee (consisting of Section Chairs, representatives from
SNP and Association of Councils, the 1999
and 2000 program chairs and the ineplaceable Cindy Winter) met in April at the Hyatt
Regency Irvine Hotel to finalize plans for
the 1999 conference. We are happy to
report that the hotel is wonderful! There are
many spaces, indoors and outdoors, for
Iii
onference rev1e
meeting, visiting, and networking, and
there are nearby bike paths for walking and
riding. Newport Beach is 7 miles awaythe coastline is gorgeous, and well worth
some serious overcrowding in Chico
Villarruel 'scar to bum a ride to Corona del
Mar, (thanks, Chico, for transporting almost the entire committee to the beach) or
a shuttle will take you there.
The program committee wanted to cover
some new ground this year and hear from
diverse constituencies about the families
that bring us all together. It is
fitting that our conference
National Council on Family Relations
will be in the most diverse
state in the United States in
61st Annual Conference
1999, Califomia became the
U.S.'s first "majority-minorNovember 12-15, 1999
ity" state, with a substantial
representation of every
Hyatt Regency l-Iotel,
ethnic group.
Irvine, CA
Program Chair: Katherine Allen, CFLE, Virginia Tech
Special Sessions Focus on Theme
+ ln!ergenerational Family Legacie.rArro.r.r Time and Spare, Mary
Catherine Bateson, George Mason U.; lnst. for Intercultural Studies
+The Neces.ri!J of B!t1ck Theatre in a Healthy Artistic and Social
Environment, Lou Bellamy, U. of Minnesota; Penumbra
Theatre Co., St. Paul, MN
+Contemporary Immigration Is.rmsAJJecting I-ii.rpanic Fa miles,
Marta Sotomayor, Nat!. Hispanic Council on Aging,
Washington, DC
+lntergenerational Relationships in So11lheast. ·i.rian Ref11ge~· Families,
Daniel Detzner and Blong Xiong, U. of Minnesota
+It Take.r a Family (and a Village): Pattem.r of Incorporation.Among
Children of Immigrants, Ruben Rumbaut, Michigan State U.
+US. Immigration Policy: I-JistOJicaiTrendr and lmpacl, Belinda
Reyes, Public Policy Inst. of California and Cecilia
Munoz, Nat!. Conf. of LaRossa
+Family Tree.rAcro.r.r the Land.rcape: Race, Gender, Migration and
the Call to Home, Carol Stack, U. of California-Berkeley
Plus: More than 425 presentations of original research in
varied formats + Meet Michael Benjamin, NCFR's new
Executive Director + and much more!
Our enthusiasm soared as we
tallied the number of"must
attend" sessions at the conference. Alert to the diverse
needs ofNCFR members, we
made sure that teaching,
research, practice, and professional development are
well represented. One irmovation this year is to expand
the type of practitioner updates to include intersections
across the kinds of work
family professionals do.
Research Updates for Practitioners (RUPs) now include a
MUP (Methodological Update) on a friendly introduction to Latent Growth Models by Alan Acock, and a
TUP (Teaching Update) on
implementing writing practice
among family professionals
by Alexis Walker and her
colleagues. Pauline Boss,
author of a new book, Ambiguous Loss: Learning to
Live with Unresolved Grief(1999, Harvard
University Press), will present a RUP on
boundary ambiguities in families that
should appeal to all types of practitioners.
Dan Detzner and Blong Xiong will also
provide a RUP on their work with Southeast Asian
Refugee Families. Given that
Elaine Anderson
is the Program
Chair next year,
look for a PUP
(Policy Update)
in 2000, as well!
In addition to
our fantastic
keynote speakKATHERINE ALLEN, CFLE
ers (Mary
Catherine Bateson, Lou Bellamy, and
Marta Sotomayor), all of whom combine
various types of activism (literary, theatrical, and political, respectively) in their
scholarly pursuits, we are fortunate to
have several high profile special sessions
organized by our sections and focus
groups, most of which feature scholars
and activists from Califomia. Feminism
and Family Studies is sponsoring Carol
Stack, the
renowned
Our enthusiasm
ethnograsoared as we tallied pher, whose
classic text,
the number of"must All Our Kin,
attend" sessions at has been
read by
the conference.
countless
students and
professors studying family diversity. Religion and Family Life is bringing Mel
White, a humanitarian and spokesman for
gay civil rights and justice. Research and
Theory has invited Ruben Rumbaut, codirector of the Children oflmmigrants
Longitudinal Shrdy, to share his work. The
Men in Families Focus Group is sponsoring a lechrre by Ross Parke, on fathering in
Preview continued on next page
NCFR REPORT
24
.JUNE 1999
�PREVIEW continuedjimnpage 24
the next generation. The Gay, Lesbian,
Bisexual, and Transgender Focus Group
is organizing a special session on legal and
social policy issues faced by GLBT families, featuring Kate Kendall, of the National
Center of Lesbian Rights and John
Davidson, of Lambda Legal Defense. Vem
Bengtson has also organized a special
symposium on the 26-year longitudinal
study of generations. We are honored to
have such wide-ranging and critical topics
on our program.
s a special opportunity, two of our
keynote speakers, Dr. Bateson and
Dr. Sotomayor, have offered their
time to meet with students about their
dissertation and thesis research. If you are
interested in sharing your work with either
of these outstanding scholars in a small
group, please let me know in advance
(kallen@vt.edu), as I am arranging these
"fireside chats."
The pre-conference sessions begin on
Wednesday, November 10, with the Theory
Construction and Research Methods Workshop and continue on Thursday, November
11, with the Family Life Education with
Diverse Families Workshop (co-sponsored
by Education and Enrichment and Ethnic
Minorities) and the Family Ministry Con-
sultation (Religion and Family Life). The
official program begins on Friday. Please
plan to stay until Monday, when the conference ends at noon. Sunday night is the
Student/New Professional Party, and on
Monday, in addition to excellent poster and
paper sessions and a RUP, there will be a
special public policy seminar.
The Head Stmi pre-conference workshop
"Head Start 2010: Fulfilling the Promise"
will be held on Thursday, November 11.
For infonnation see the related article,
"Call for Expert Testimonials," on page 26.
"Collaborating With Community Groups
and National Organizations in Integrating
Parenting, Research, and Substance Abuse
Prevention" is the post-conference workshop scheduled for Monday, November 15.
See the article below for details.
As you can see, there will be a lot to do,
and in a beautiful setting at that! We look
forward to a record attendance in 1999 and
to sharing all of our perspectives on families today.
Katherine Allen, CFLE
1999 Program Chair
Work: 540-231-6526
Home: 540-552-6947
E-mail: kallen@vt.edu
Collaborating With Community Groups and
National Organizations in Integrating Parenting,
Research, and Substance Abuse Prevention
ponsored by NCFR; the Center
for Substance Abuse Prevention
(CSAP); Parenting is Prevention
Project (PIPP); and the Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP)
After NCFR's stimulating Conference
on Borders, Boundaries, and Beacons:
Diverse Families in Dynamic Societies, plan to stay Monday aftemoon for
an exciting Post-conference Workshop.
Workshop goals:
0 Build collaboration between researchers, community groups,
NCFR, and national groups to increase visibility of parenting substance abuse prevention programs to
reach the public.
NCFR REPORT
0 Discover grant opp01iunities for
research.
0 Begin a dialogue between researchers
and community groups on how to
develop research and overcome baniers
so that research can progress to
community awareness.
0 Leam how to get research outcomes
disseminated to the public in useable
fonn.
Fees: Students $35; NCFR members $40;
Non-members $45. Fee includes lunch,
dim1er, and breaks.
Check NCFR's website www.ncfr.org
begim1ing June 1 for more infonnation.
Program details will also be included in
the special NCFR Conference mailing sent
in June.
25
It's Coming ...
The 1999 Annual
Conference
November 12-15
by Denise Berg, Ph.D.
Local Arrangements Committee
e, in Southem Califomia, are
looking forward to hosting the
upcoming NCFR 61 st Annual
Conference in our sunny climes. If you
have not been here before, you are in for a
treat because our locale offers some special features. While, Irvine itself does not
hug the Pacific Shoreline, both nearby
Newport and Laguna Beaches do, along
with a plethora of other activities. Bring
your family! Bring your swimsuit! But
most importantly of all bring yourself!
You're coming to a land of many recreational choices including: Disneyland, the
brand new Lego Land, Universal Shtdios,
Knotts Beny Fam1, and the world famous
San Diego Zoo, to name but a few. Good
news! NCFR will have discounts available
for members for some of these exciting
adventures. Check for further details in the
Conference Program.
New on the Employment Matching Service front: A new feature of this year's
placement service is that there will be
phone notification on a nightly basis to
potential employers/interviewers of interested job seekers. In the past there has
been some conf"ltsion on the connecting
front. Hopefully, with this new system in
place, there will be optimal opporhmity for
employment matches!
Remember the theme: "Borders, Boundaries, and Beacons: Diverse Families in
Dynamic Society." Where better to explore
these ideas and concepts than the state of
"minorities," California? You might even
want to take advantage of our proximity to
Mexico by planning a day trip to our
neighbor to the South. It will also be a rare
Cm~ference continued on next pageJUNE 1999
�Family Policy Section
t the 1999 NCFR Conference our
Family Policy section meeting is
scheduled for Sunday, November
14 at 6:45p.m. and will be held in cm"Utmction with the Public Policy Fonnn. We will
be presenting the FIRST Margaret Feldman
Family Policy IntemAward to Kevin Roy.
Kevin is a Ph.D. candidate at Northwestem
University and plans to
use his award to expand
a component of his
doctoral research which
examines the impact of welfare refonn
policies on paternal providing and
caregiving. He served as an intem with the
Patemal Involvement Project (PIP) located
at Kennedy King College in Chicago. PIP
acts as a catalyst for creating family-centered policies which recognize the
strengths and importance oflow-income
fathers. From Kevin's research with lowincome fathers in Chicago'sAfi·icanAmerican community, he will explore how policy
shapes the lives of family members, particularly through constrained involvement
of fathers. Congratulations, Kevin!
The Family Policy program for the 1999
Conference will be interesting and diverse.
CONFERENCE
continued fi·mn page 25
chance to meet and hear Mary Catherine
Bateson, the daughter of one of our
founders, Margaret Mead. Dr. Bateson will
speak about family legacies and who better
to deal with this topic than the daughter of
two luminaries. Her father was Gregory
Bateson. She is a dynamic speaker and only
one of several exciting plenary presenters.
The convention will also provide an excellent opportunity to meet NCFR's new executive director, Michael L. Benjamin,
M.P.H.
For more infonnation about registration,
prograrmning, and other aspects of this
conference, please visit our web site at:
www.ncfr.com/confer.html. We look forward
to seeing you there.
I'd like to call your attention to two symposia we will be sponsoring. "U.S. Immigration Policy: Historical Trends and Cunent
Impact" will be held on Friday, November
12. Belinda Reyes, fi·om the Public Policy
Institute ofCalifomia, will review the histmy of immigration policy in the U.S., and
Cecilia Munoz, from the National Conference of La Rossa, will discuss the impact of
current innnigration policies on immigrant
families. This promises to be an infonnative
and stimulating symposium!
On Sahrrday, November 13 the Family
Policy section will sponsor a symposium
highlighting the impact of welfare refonn on
families. Wendy Zirmnennar1 and Michael
Fix will review the qualitative and quantita-
tive data gathered by The Urban Instihlte
to date, and discuss implications for immigrant and non-immigrant families. Our
symposium discussant will lead us in a
lively discussion which you will want to
attend!
If you have any questions or issues you
would like the Family Policy Section to
consider, please call or e-mail me. Have a
wonderful summer, and mark your calendars for the 1999 NCFR Conference!
Leslie Koepke, Ph.D.
Family Policy Section Chair
University of Wisconsin-Stout
Menomonie, WI
W: 715-232-2237
E-mail: koepkel@uwstout.edu
Family and Health Section
On behalf of the Family and Health Section, I want to invite NCFR members to
attend the conference "Borders, Boundaries, and Beacons: Diverse Families in
Dynamic Societies," and the sessions on
families and health. The November program is very exciting. Numerous topics
on diversity are included. Some examples
are: What are the health practices of parents of poor Latino and African-American
children with asthma? What factors are
associated with father-only households
and adolescent violence? How does uncertainty influence families of pre-adolescents with chronic conditions? Family
FH Section continued on next page
Call for NCFR Expert Testimonials
T
he National Head Start Association project: "Head Start 2010: Fulfilling the
Promise" will be conducting a special hearing at NCFR's annual conference
on Thursday, Nov. 11, 1999 from 4-6 p.m. NHSAis seeking NCFRmembers
to give expert testimonies to the panel. Witnesses will be selected for presentation
at the hearing based on their written testimony.
If you are interested in testifying at the conference, please submit your paper
before Oct. 6, 1999. (Do not Fax or E-mail.) Fonnat: 3 page one side, doublespaced; 8-1/2 x 11 white paper with 1" margins all4 sides; 1 high quality original
and 2 copies required. Discuss only one topic per submission. Attach testimonial
application fonn to each copy. Submission information and application fonn are
posted on NCFR's website (www.ncfr.org). Go to Annual Conference Program
Highlights, Pre-Conference Workshops (http://www.ncfr.org/conf_ high.html).
For complete infonnation, call or write to Filipina Carlos, Pro g. Coord., National
Head Start Association, 1651 Prince St.,Alexandria, VA22314; Phone: 703-2997511; Website: www.nhsa.org.
Please notify Cindy Winter, NCFR Conference Coordinator, if you are selected
to testify.
11111
NCFRREPORT
26
.JUNE 1999
�INVITATION!
International Section
just retumed from the program planning meeting in sunny southem Califomia. The hotel has a beautiful outdoor pool and Jacuzzi, and Newport
Beach is only a few miles away, so bring
your swimsuits!
I
The conference theme and plenaty speakers are ideal for those with cross-cultural
interests. Our section has a fine program-we will have three paper sessions,
five round-tables and thirteen poster presentations. The details will be in our summer newsletter.
To read the newsletter, get into the
internet and then do the following: 1)
bring up the NCFR website, which is at
www.ncfr.org 2) click on "membership"
3) on the left hand column, click on "special interest sections" 4) scroll down to the
International section, and 5) click on
"newsletter." If you do not have access to
the intemet, then please contact me and I
will mail you a copy of the newsletter.
FH SECTION
continuedfi"OJn page 26
and Health has several sessions: a) Families and Chronic
Illness, b) Minorities, Ethnic
Groups, and Health, c) Occupations and Health, and d) Adolescent
Sexual Orientation and Healthy Family
Relationships. Our posters cover diverse
subjects. There are round tables such as "A
Nuestra Salud: A Health Education Project
in the Latino Community." These will
provide a forum for discussing research
and practice issues about family health that
include contemporary and historical diversity across families and cultures both nationally and internationally. Come and talk
about rural families, suicide, caregivers,
interactions with health systems, depression in other countries, and many other
health issues. We need your ideas, energy,
and expetiise to create the exchange of
ideas needed for keeping families healthy.
Vivian Gedaly-Duff, Chair
Family and Health Section
E-Mail: duffv@ohsu.edu
Office: 503-494-3866
Fax: 503-494-3878
NCFR REPORT
The details of our
section's contributions to
the conference program
will be in the newsletter,
as well as many other things. I talk about
the histmy of the section, a new award that
we will be starting, and what we will be
doing during our business meeting. I also
hope to get a discussion going on area
needs for comparative research, which we
can cany on once our section listserv is up
and going.
Each year I see more cross-cultural research being presented at NCFR. Those of
you dping this kind of work should join
our section and submit your presentation
proposals through us. Our business meeting is the gathering place for comparative
scholars from around the globe (and we
always have some kind of tasty "ethnic"
food).
For those of you who found this issue of
the REPORT on immigrant families inter-
Use our Website for
your Information
If your Section has news of activities
or announcements of upcoming
events you would like posted on
NCFR's Website, please send them
via e-mail to .Temme Ryberg at
jryberg@ncfr.org by the 1st of each
month and they will be mounted on
the webpage by the 1Oth.
esting, you will want to look for our poster
presentation on Hong Kong Immigrant
Families in Irvine. See you there!
Bron Ingoldsby, Ph.D., CFLE
Chair, International Section
Phone: 208-356-1344
Fax: 208-356-1366
E-mail: ingoldsbyb@ricks.edu
Dept. of Family Science
Ricks College
Rexburg, Idaho 83460-0605
Education and Enrichment
& Ethnic Minorities Sections
FAMILY LIFE EDUCATION WITH DIVERSE FAMILIES
ark your calendars now for the
November 11, 1999 NCFR
pre-conference workshop,
"Family Life Education with Diverse
Families." Co-sponsored by the Education
and Enrichment and Ethnic Minorities
sections, this interactive program will
focus on gaining tools for working with
and teaching about diverse family forms.
Participants will begin the half-day workshop with lunch and a session on "How to
be an educator in a diverse world," led by
Paul Rosenblatt, a 1997 NCFR co-awardee
of the Osborne Award for excellence in
teaching. The bulk of the workshop will
then be spent in subsessions that focus on
specific diverse family fonns and related
issues. Participants will enjoy in-depth
examinations of any two of eight options:
*African American families
*American Indian families
*Arab American/Muslim families
*Asian American families
27
rn
*Families headed by
gay/lesbian members
*Latino American families
*Multiracial families
The workshop will conclude with a look at
syllabi for courses in family ethnic diversity and a discussion panel.
Please plan to join us in Irvine for this
exciting pre-conference program.
Howard L. Barnes, Ph.D., CFLE
Associate Professor and Head Design
Family and Consumer Sciences
237 Latham Hall, Univ. ofNorthem Iowa
Cedar Falls, IA 50614-0332
Phone: 319-273-2358
Fax: 319-273-7096
E-mail: BarnesH@uni.edu or
Howard.Bames@uni.edu
Lisen C. Roberts, Ph.D., CFLE
EE EM Pre-conference Workshop Chair
.JUNE 1999
�Research and Theory Section
he Research and Theory Section
will be sponsming several sessions that should be of general
interest to NCFR members. First, Professor
Ruben Rumbaut from Michigan State University will give a Distinguished Scholar
address. The title of his talk is, "It takes a
family (and a village): Pattems of incorporation among children of i1m11igrants."
Second, Professor Alan Acock from Oregon
State University will give a "Research Update." This session is entitled, "What I really
need to know about latent growth models: A
fiiendly introduction." Alan will follow his
address with a more detailed workshop for
interested researchers entitled, "Using latent
growth models on my longitudinal data."
The workshop is open to all interested
NCFR members. If we find that there is
sufficient interest, then we will schedule
additional research methods workshops in
fitture conferences.
Third, we are scheduling a session entitled
"B1itish research on children of divorce:
Academic research or political battlefield?"
The presenters are Bryan Rodgers (a B1itish
psychologist, cmTently at Australian National University) and Jan Pryor (a psychologist at the University of Auckland).
They recently published a report smmnmizing academic research on children and
divorce in England. Their report generated a
major controversy in the British media.
They will be talldng about their research
summary, as well as some ofthe political
and media reactions to it. David Demo
Religion and Family Life Section
ow that we have experienced our
1999 Conference site (and weather)
first-hand, our enthusiasm for the
annual gathering builds. The Irvine setting
will provide a fine field to
the focus of the Religion
& Family Life Section. We
want to highlight several
"offerings" that are of
interest to all readers.
First, our pre-conference workshop offers
training in Family Ministry Consultation by
Diana Garland ofBaylor University. This
workshop comes at a time when our culture
is increasingly understanding the need to
implement community resources to support
the family. While one of the prime resources is the local congregation, few of its
members have had any fonnal training in
family issues. Dr. Garland will bring her
extensive background in congregational
research to further equip those who would
like family minis by consultation training.
Second, we are fortunate to have Rev. Mel
White address our theme in a special presentation. You may remember him as the
ghostwriter for many leaders in the "religious right" until he came out as gay. He
has been the subject of a 60 Minutes report
as well as authored Stranger at the Gate:
To be Gay and Christian in America. He
was recently awarded the ACLU's National
Civil Liberties Award for his effmis to
NCFR REPORT
apply the "soul force" principles of Gandhi
and King to the shuggle for justice for
sexual minorities. He currently serves as
Justice Minister for the Universal Fellowship ofMetropolitan Community
Churches. The Gay/Lesbian/Bisexual/
Transgender Family Issues focus group is
cosponsoring this presentation.
Third, we have some very exciting papers,
roundtable and poster presentations, some
of which poignantly deal with the topic of
immigrant and refugee families. For example, see how a Mennonite community
turned out to be a welcoming refuge for
Laotian refugees. Plus, we have the guided
meditation opportunities and the worship
service, an annual highlight for many in
the NCFR organization and cosponsored
by the Feminism & Family Studies and
Ethnic Minorities Sections.
Finally, we have a section list serve. If you
would like to join, send a "SUBSCRIBE RFNCFR" command to
LISTSERVE@SDSUVM.SDSTATE.EDU.
Thanks to Scott Gardner at SDSU in
Brookings, SD for organizing this. We
look forward to further interaction with
you, via e-mail or at the conference!
Judy Watson Tiesel, Ph.D.
Chair, Religion & Family Life Section
Family Therapy Resources
621 West Lake St., #203
Minneapolis, MN 55408
612-822-8238
28
(University ofNorth
Carolina-Greensboro)
and Ronald Simons
(Iowa State University)
will serve as discussants.
Fourth, the Men in Families focus group (a
focus group within the Research and Theory
Section) has ananged for Professor Ross
Parke fi·om the University of CaliforniaRiverside to give an address. As many
NCFR members realize, Ross Parke has
published extensively on child development
and fatheting. The title of his talk will be,
"Fathering for the next generation: Barriers
and Prospects." All NCFR members (not
just focus group members) are welcome to
attend this address.
I want to thank all of the Research and
Themy Section members who conhibuted
their time to rate proposals this year. Without you, we could not have assembled the
1999 program. The program will be one of
the best we have had in years!
Paul Amato
Chair, Research and Theo1·y Section
Professor of Socia logy
University ofNebraska-Lincoln
Lincoln, NE 68588-0324
Phone: 402-472-6002
Fax:402-472-6070
E-mail: pamato@unlinfo.unl.edu
EM Website
Receives
"Gold Star"
The Ethnic Minorities Section website has
eamed its first award. The Cool Site Award
is given by Open Directmy, the web's largest human edited web-directory, to acknowledge outstanding website designs.
Walt Kawamoto, designer of the site, has
done a fantastic job. Be sure to check it out
at http://www.asn.csus.edu/em-ncfr.
Perhaps other sections ofNCFR would like
to do something similar. This site has generated a lot of communications among
section members and is a real service in
disseminating news & infonnation quickly!
For example, the site has an open directmy
of many ethnic and cultural groups.
Congrah1lations W.K.!
1111
JUNE 1999
�RESOURCES
Students/New Professionals
s William James once said,
"Research is to teaching as sin is
to confession; without the former
you have nothing to say in the latter." Taking a Jamesian position, the S/NPs are
proud to co-sponsor
both teaching and
methodological updates (TUP and MUP)
in Irvine, CA. Alexis
Walker and colleagues will present on teaching writing to
students of Family Science (TUP) on Friday. Alan A cock will present on how to
understand journal articles using growth
curve modeling (MUP) on Saturday.
discussed. The S/NP Business Meetinganother great opporhmity to get involved
with NCFR, will follow Saturday's networking session!
Please come to the conference! Sh1dents
and new professionals are a source of fresh
energy for NCFR. The history of most of
NCFR's leaders includes involvement in
the organization at early stages of professional development. Typically, investment
in NCFR activities promotes professional
success through access to knowledge,
identity building, and leadership opporhJnities.
Another conduit for professional opporhJnities is through local student affiliates of
In addition, the S/NPs are sponsoring the
NCFR at the university departmental level.
S/NP Skills Exchange (Round Table forLeaders in sh1dent affiliate chapters of
mat) and the S/NP Developmental Forum.
NCFR often go on to graduate school
This year the topic of the Developmental
programs or enter professional fields in a
Forum is "Steps to Getting Tenure." Panelvariety of disciplines related to family
ists include Tammy Henderson, Gary Lee,
sh1dies. Please contact either Hilmy or
Beth Nonell, Becky Warner, and moderator
Debra for more information about profesKaren Seccombe. The panel is willing to
sional development or to submit feedback
address questions from S/NPs sent in adabout general concems.
vance to rwarner@orst.edu-this is a
Hilat·y A. Rose, Ph.D.
unique opportunity for S/NPs to interact
hrose@mail. wsu.edu
with presenters!
Dept. of Human Development
S/NPs are also invited to attend early momWashington State University
ing networking sessions with other S/NPs
P.O. Box 646236
on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday. Each
Pullman, WA 99164-6236
moming from 7:30 to 8:15, S/NPs will
meet for an infonnal discussion and chance Debra K. Hughes, Ph.D.
hughesdk@muohio.edu
to get to know other students and new
Dept. of Family Sh1dies
professionals. Watch for an announcement
Miami University
about the different themes that will be
Oxford, OI-l 45056
Call for Topic Pa
cant.Ji·am page 11
The Immigrant Policy Project of the
State and Local Coalition on Immigration. The coal\tion was created to address
the role of state and local govemments in
the U.S. resettlement ofrefugees and immigrants. www.ncsl.org/statefed/
ipphmpg.htm
Immigrants and Welfare Reform is part
of the National Conference of State Legislatures Website. www.StateServ.hpts.org
The Urban Institute, a nonpartisan economic and social research organization,
investigates problems confronting the
nation and analyzes efforts to solve these
problems. Their Website contains a special
section on "Noncitizens' and Citizens' Use
of Public Benefits Following Welfare Refonn." www.urban.org
The National Network for Immigrant
and Refugee Rights (NNIRR) represents
leading Asian/Pacific Islander American
and Latina/Hispanic national organizations.
Visitors may sign up for an electronic
mailing list or purchase the report, "Portrait
of Injustice: The Impact of Immigration
Raids on Families, Workers and Communities." www.nnirr.org
U.S. Committee for Refugees provides
news on cmTent "hot spots," such as
Kosovo, legislative updates, stories of
individual refugees, Internet resources and
more. www.refugees.org
United Nations High Commission on
Refugees provides infonnation on the
stahts, rights, intemational protection and
resettlement of refugees. www.unhcr.ch
Additional resource listings can be found
on NCFR's website at www.ncfr.org. 1111
rs
Thank you for your excellent response to our call for topic papers or resources for subsequent topics in this
publication. We will continue to welcome your suggestions and offers to write or be willing to be interviewed
by our joumalist, Dr. Nancy Giguere.
The September issue focus is on Health Care Reform and its effects on families with copy deadline due August 1. The
December issue focus is on Professional Issues including topics such as pivotal career path issues, surviving
tenure, balancing work and family, finding jobs outside of academe. The copy deadline is November 10. The
March 2000 issue topic is on the Impact of Welfare Reform on Families with a copy deadline of February 1,
2000.
If you have data, research or practice articles for any of these topics, or !mow of outstanding persons who can be
interviewed or tapped please e-mail or call Michael Benjamin immediately at 888-781-9331 extension 21 or
mbenjamin@ncfr.org. Let us also hear from you about other topics that you would like to see published in the Report.
NCFR REPORT
29
JUNE 1999
�Association of Councils of the National Council on Famil
President's Report
PAIDE to Sponsor
Men in Families
Conference
ssociation of
ouncils
make sure that the goals set forth are met
at the local level with measurable outcomes. Attention was given to what the
he Pennsylvania Delaware Council
organization should become with input
on Family Relations Conference,
from the general membership. I am sure
focusing on the theme of Men in
some of you responded when asked what
Families, will be held on Saturday, Septemyou thought the direction should be and
ber 11, 1999 at Messiah College, Grantham
what would happen if
(near HmTisburg), Pennsylvania. Dr. Bill
NCFR were no longer in
The new governance model is very different
Doherty, Professor and Director of the
existence. As a board, we
Marriage and Family Therapy Program at
know that it's next to
from the multi-faceted, agenda setting
the University of Minnesota and President
impossible to be all things
that has occurred throughout our history.
of the National Council on Family Relato all people, as much as
tions will provide two keynote addresses:
we would like to be. The
1) Promoting Responsible Fathering and 2)
richness derived from NCFR's uniqueness
needs of the affiliates present. You'll hear
Men in Marriage: Promoting Connections
more about the activities/festivities in the
is one of the factors that both keeps the
That Work for Both Men and Women.
September newsletter.
organization vital and challenges its being
Additional workshops on the theme will be
as well. The new, smaller Board is quite
The"first board meeting using the newly
offered as well. For additional infonnation
confident that we
designed Board Govemance Policy Model
contact: Dr. Raeann Hamon, P/DCFR Presiwill be able to
was interesting, requiring much more
dent, (717) 766-2511 x2850 ore-mail:
develop stratein-depth discussion about the goals and
rhamon@messiah.edu.
gies to enhance
directions that the organization will take. I
our position in
RaeannHamon, CFLE
think the critical link will be the affiliates to
the marketplace
among professional organizations. We are in
the process of
''pARENTING PARTNERSHIPS: RELATIONSHIPS THATWORKFOR
developing futurKIDS" was the theme ofthe MCFR Spring conference on Friday, April
istic goals and
30, 1999 in St. Cloud, MN. 200 professionals attended. Bill Doherty,
ways to reach
President ofNCFR and U ofMN professor and family therapist was keynote
NORMA BURGESS, Ph.D.
them that will
speaker. In the wake of the Littleton, CO tragedy, Doherty emphasized that professtand us in good stead beyond the millensionals, families and communities are the core principles of a community partnernium. The new govemance model is very
ship model. For professionals, the core principle is to see families as primary prodifferent from the multi-faceted, agenda
ducers of support, growth, leaming, and healing for themselves and their communisetting that has occurred throughout our
ties, and only secondarily as consumers of our professional services.
history. Collectively defining the organizaThis was followed by a Public Policy Panel comp1ised of Lieutenant Govemor Mae
tion will provide much needed focus and
Shunk; District Court Judge Sharon Hall; Dick Wedell, Fonner Mayor of
success for the fuh1re and FINALLY, we' 11
Shoreview; Roxy Foster, MN Parenting Assn. Director; Ellen Shelton, MN Coaliknow what we are as an organization.
tion for Family Policy; and facilitated by Ada Alden, Eden Prairie Family EducaCareful discussion about an advocacy role
tional Services.
helped us to examine both positives and
negatives about issues associated with
Break-out sessions included sessions on "Better Partners Better Parents: Parenting
political positioning. Watch the report for
as a Team," "Coping Strategies for Blended Families," "The Parental Cooperation
the news and transition for the Executive
Taskforce," "Building Strong Lesbian & Gay Families," "Parental Relationships &
Director and join us in the excitement.
Child Development: A Resource/Resilience Perspective," "Implementing a Divorce
Have a great summer.
Education Program," and "Working with Umnarried Parents."
T
reetings! Lane and I are excited
about the program for
November's Annual Conference
in Irvine. Our call for papers generated the
sessions that we wanted so that the networking commonly taking place at the
conference is effective and fulfills the
MCFR Holds Spring Conference
Plans are underway for the Aruma! Conference held in December.
NCFR REPORT
30
Norma Burgess, Ph.D.
Association of Councils President
JUNE 1999
�ssociation of Councils
Sponsors Pre . . conference
Teleconferencing Symposium
Access NCFR's website at:
www.ncfr.org
An in-depth look at the potential of Intemet include Aaron Larson, CFLE, (University of
Termessee graduate student); Anne Stanvideo teleconferencing (IVT) will be the
berry, CFLE, (University ofMississippi);
focus of a pre-conference symposium,
Kathleen Gilbert (Indiana University); and
Thursday evening, November 11.
Lany McCallum (Augustana College).
The symposium, sponsored by the AssoCost to attend the pre-conference is
ciation of Councils, will begin at 6:30p.m.
$15, which includes the buffet. Registration
with a light buffet, followed by presentais open to any interested conference partions and demonstrations of how IVT can
ticipants.
cross boundaries of states and nations to
bring speakers and discussions together.
Lane Powell, CFLE
Ethical and legal issues ofiVT and potential Association of Councils President-elect/
problems will also be discussed. Presenters P.-ogram Chair
To access Members Only:
user: legacy
password: burgess
To reach NCFR headquarters:
ncfr3989@ncfr.org
To reach specific staff members:
Mary Jo Czaplewski
czaplewsldmj@juno.org
Michael L. Benjamin
mbenjamin@ncfr.org
Dawn Cassidy
cassidyd@ncfr.org
Doris Hareland
harelandd@ncfr.org
Jolm Pepper
pepperw@ncfr.org
GET YOUR STATE COUNCIL
NEWS ON NCFR'S WEBSITE
Jeanne Ryberg
jryberg@ncf~org
If your state council does not have a website already, NCFR will be willing to put your
news, questions, and comments on NCFR's website monthly. All you have to do is send
it to Jeanne Ryberg at jryberg@ncfr.org by the 1st of each month. It must come in electronic format either directly by e-mail, or on a disk in Microsoft Word or ASCii fonnat.
Cindy Winter
wintersc@ncfr.org
To reach NCFR President Bill Dohe1iy:
bdoherty@che2.che.umn.edu
11111
TRY THE VISION 2010 SERIES ON SALE TODAY!
Families & Adolescents
Volume2
Families & Violence, Abuse, & Neglect
Volume3
Patrick C. McKenry and Stephen M. Gavazzi, Issue Editors
Richard J. Gelles, Issue Editor
Focuses on the role families play in adolescent problem
behaviors. Each of the two-page briefs includes an overview; trends; policy, programming, and assessment issues; plus references. Expert analyses of 20 major topics.
A "must have" for policy makers. Also an exceptional
classroom supplement.
Seventeen experts in the family violence field discuss critical
issues and trends in family violence, abuse, and neglect and the
effect on the social fabric offamilies. Includes a special section on
interventions in the justice system and treatment programs.
A concise resource for policy makers and educators at all levels of
govemment and social institutions (churches, schools, agencies).
44pages. ISBN: 0-916174-43-3.Product#: 2010#2.
NCFRMember $14.95
Non-Member $19.95
$10.95
$14.95
48 pages. ISBN: 0-916174-52-2. Product#: OP95ll.
OrCier both & get an
extra 10% Cliscount!
NCFRMember $14.95 $10.95
Non-Member
$19.95 $14.95
To order, contactNCFR, 3989 Central Ave., NE, Ste. 550,Minneapolis, MN 55421. Toll-free at 888-781-9331;
Fax: 612-781-9348; E-mail: ncfr3989@ncfr.org.
NCFRREPORT
31
.JUNE 1999
�Dean of the College ofHuman Ecology
University of Minnesota
The College of Human Ecology (CHE), University of Minnesota, invites applications and nominations for the
position of Dean of the College of Human Ecology. The University of Minnesota ranlcs among the most prestigious universities in the United States; it is both a State land-grant university and major research instih1tion. CHE ranks second in colleges
of its kind in the U.S. The departments/school generally rank among the top ten in the country for their profession.
The Dean is the chief academic and administrative officer of CHE and is responsible for all academic, administrative
and financial activities of the College. The Dean is also an Associate Director of the Agricultural Experiment Station and
administers the Minnesota Extension Service funds allocated to the College.
The College of Human Ecology has four academic units: Department of Design, Housing, and Apparel; Department
ofFamily Social Science; Department of Food Science and Nutrition (jointly with College of Agricultural, Food and Environmental Sciences); and the School of Social Work. The College has US faculty, approximately 950 undergraduate and 400
graduate students.
The candidate will have a renewable administrative appointment with annual evaluations; a comprehensive administrative review will be conducted after three years. Faculty rank and tenure in a department may be conferred upon recommendation of the faculty in the department, and is· contingent upon research, teaching and outreach/service accomplishments.
Position is available January 1, 2000 or as soon thereafter as possible.
Candidates will be judged on their ability to provide dynamic and effective leadership to advance the stahis ofCHE 's
programs. The individuals selected must ensure the development of creative and excellent instructional, scholarly, and public
educational programs with state, national and intemational scope. Candidates should have a basic understanding of the
issues facing the fields ofsh1dy in the College and an infonned view about how to resolve them.
Qualifications include: Eamed doctorate from an accredited university; record of teaching excellence and scholarly
productivity that merits the rank of professor and tenure in the College. Visionary and intellech1alleadership suitable for a unit
located in a complex, decentralized system. Commitment to quality teaching, research, extension, and intemational programs;
ability to give leadership to and nurture the diversity of units, faculty, staff and shidents in the College. Ability to create an
environment that encourages and sustains innovative and productive faculty, staff and sh1dents, including such endeavors as
distance education and the use of technology in higher education. Successful administrative leadership with evidence of
planning and budget experience; reputation for integrity and using a consultative process in administrative decision-making.
Evidence of commitment to equal opporhmity/affinnative action and the recruitment, development, and retention of a diverse,
high-quality faculty, student body and staff. Excellent communication skills and the ability to relate effectively with university
administrators, staff and sh1dents. Commitment to and understanding of the role of a comprehensive land-grant university in
promotion of basic and applied research and extension programming throughout the state. Demonstrated capacity to interact
with communities extemal to the university. Evidence ofleadership in fundraising and development which directly serves the
university and College's academic mission and supports the sh1dents and programs of the deparhnents/school.
Review of applications will begin June 30, 1999 and will continue until position is filled. To apply, submit: 1) letter
indicating interest in and qualifications for the position and a statement of philosophy of leadership; 2) a cmTiculum vitae; 3)
names, addresses and telephone numbers of three references. Apply to: Janis Batt, College of Human Ecology, University of
Minnesota, 48 McNeal Hall, 1985 Buford Avenue, St. Paul, MN 55108. Phone: (612) 626-1227; fax: (612) 625-5767. For more
infonnation: http ://www.che.umn.edu/
The University of Minnesota is committed to the policy that allpersons shall have equal access to its programs,
facilities, and employment without regard to race, calm; creed, religion,
national origin, sex, age, marital status, disability, public assistance status, veteran status, or sexual orientation.
NCFR REPORT
32
.JUNE 1999
�CLASSIFIED AD
Call for Presentations
Dr. Margorie Engel, President of the Stepfamily Association of America, is leading a
delegation of professionals involved in
issues of divorce, remaiTiage and stepfamilies to China in September of 1999. For more
information about joining this unique opportunity contact SheiTy Shaver, Program
Coordinator at Ambassador Programs. She
can be reached at 800-669-7882 x 411 or by
e-mail at shenys@ambassadors.com. 1111
ead Start's 5th National Research Conference, Developmental and Contextual Transitions of Children and Families: Implications for Research,
Policy, and Practice, will be held June 28-July 1, 2000, at the Hyatt Regency Washington on Capitol Hill, Washington, DC.
H
The central theme of the conference focuses on the continuities and transitions of
. early development and the contexts in which they occur.
The Program committee invites proposals for presentations to Head Start's 5th
National Research Conference. These presentations may be either recent research,
published or tmpublished, or a synthesis of findings already in the literature. Both
symposia (two presentations withdiscussant[s]) and posters (single paper) presentations are invited. The goals of this conference continue to be to identify and
disseminate research relevant to early childhood and family issues, and to foster
partnerships among researchers, practitioners, and policy makers. All presentations will appear in a published book of proceedings.
ARHP Announces a
New Visiting
Faculty Program
Emergency Contraception: Train the
Trainer, the latest Visiting Faculty Program
sponsored by the Association of Reproductive Health Professionals (ARHP), presents
a cost effective approach to preventing
unintended pregnancy and addresses key
clinical issues. The program goal is to give
as many providers as possible the complete
information they need to consistently offer
all appropriate EC options-every time-to
their clients. Ultimately, this action can help
reduce unintended pregnancy and induced
abortion rates by increasing providers
confidence in prescribing EC.
If your institution is interested in hosting an
ARHP visiting faculty lecture in 1999 call
toll free 877-320-8995 or fax 202-466-3826 to
obtain a Lecture Request Fonn. For more
infonnation, please call202-466-3825 or visit
ARHP's Web site at: www.arhp.org. 1111
T
his volume addresses matters of
vital importance to families: to
family professionals who work in
the areas of teaching, research, intervention, and policy; and to those interested
in adolescents. It draws on research and
theoretical thinking of the authors of
23 select articles to create a valuable
resource and an exciting text. The authors
examine the intersection of adolescent
development and the family system.
280 pages. ISBN: 0-916174-51-4.
Product #: OP9508
NCFRREPORT
Abstracts must be postmarked no later than July 15, 1999 and should be mailed to
Cheryl Clark, Ellsworth Associates, Inc., 1749 Old Meadow Rd., Ste. 600, McLean,
VA22I 02. For inquiries about program content contact: Dr. Faith Lamb-Parker,
Project Director, 2 I 2-3 04-525 I or E-mail: flp 1@columbia. edu. For infonnation on
submissions or registration contact: Bethany Chidco, Ellsworth Associates, 703821-3090, ext. 233; Fax: 703-356-0472; E-mail: bchi1ico@eainet.com. Websites: http://
cpmcnet.columbia.edu/dept/sph/popfam/headstartconf.html or www.acf.dhhs.gov/
programs/hsb. 1111
Garbarino Satellite
Conference Materials Available
Materials are available from "Not in My School, Not in My Community," the satellite
video conference held on April25, 1999 and sponsored by the Col. of Human Ecology
and the Family Life Development Center at Cornell Univ. with Comell Cooperative Ext.
The conference featured James Garbarino, a leading authority on the impact of violence
on young people. For infonnation contact Josephine Swanson, Interim Asst. Dir., Comell
Coop. Ext., Col. of Human Ecol., Nl24 Mmiha Van Rensselaer Hall, Comell Univ., Ithaca,
NY 14853-4401. Phone: 607-255-2247; Fax: 607-255-3767; E-mail:jas56@comell.edu.llllll
Prices Slashed on Excellent Textbook Supplement
IN-DEPTH INFORMATION FOR GRANT AND PROPOSAL PREPARATION
-~~
"
·
-
"
-
"'
~~
Barents 00 ~Holeseent~ in ~Banging ilamilies
"¥7olume3
David H. Demo and Anne-Marie Ambert, Editors
Jay A. Mancini, Senior Editor
NCFRMember $ 7 1
Non-Member $ . 5
$27.95
$31.95
To order, contact NCFR, 3989 Central Ave., NE, Ste. 550, Minneapolis, MN 55421.
Toll-free at 888-781-9331; Fax: 612-781-9348; E-mail: ncfr3989@ndiorg.
33
JUNE 1999
�uly 14-17, 1999: The New Nursing:
Converging Conversations of Education, Research, and Practice,
Monona Terrace Community & Convention Center, 3rd Biem1ial Intemational
Nursing Conference, One John Nolen Dr.,
Madison, WI. For more infonnation contact: Gloria Barsness, Continuing Education in Nursing, at 608-263-5256 or on the
web at: www.son.wisc.edu.
J
July 17-23, 1999: The Wellness Comzection: Experience It!, 24th Annual National Wellness Conference, Univ. of
Wisconsin-Stevens Point, Stevens Point,
WI. Sponsored by the National Wellness
Institute, Inc. For infm111ation call 800243-8694 or visit their website at
www. wellnessnwi.org.
July 21-23, 1999: Role ofFamilies in
Preventing and Adapting to HIV/AIDS,
The Wmwick Hotel, 1701 Locust St.,
Philadelphia, PA. Sponsored by the Office
of AIDS Research, National Institute of
Mental Health, NIH, and Univ. of Pennsylvania. To receive conference registration infonnation, please call or write to:
Willo Pequegnat, Ph.D., Office on AIDS,
NIMH, Parklawn Bldg., fun. 18-101, 5600
Fishers Ln., Rockville, MD 20857; Phone:
301-443-6100; Fax: 301-443-9719; Email: wpequegn@nih.gov.
July 21-24, 1999: Sexual Diversity &
Human Rights: Beyond Boundaries, 2nd
International Conference, Manchester
Metropolitan Univ., Manchester, UK.
Sponsored by Intemational Association for
the Study of Sexuality, Culture & Society
(IASSCS). For infonnation contact: Gail
Hawkes, Dept. of Sociology, Manchester
Metropolitan Univ., Geoffrey Manton
Bldg., Rosamond St. West, Off Oxford
Rd., Manchester, Ml5 6LL, UK; E-mail:
g.hawkes@mmu.ac.uk; Website: http://
www.miid.net/diversity/.
August 29-Sept. 3, 1999: Victim Assistance: Moving Toward the Next Millennium, 25th Anniversary conference of the
National Organization for Victim Assistance (NOVA), Cenhuy Plaza Hotel &
Tower, Beverly Hills, CA. For infonnation
contact: NOVA, 1757 Park Rd. NW,
Washington, DC 20010; Phone: 202-2326682; Fax: 202-462-2255; E-mail:
nova@try-nova.org; Website: www.trynova.org.
Sept. 21-23, 1999: Suicide and Law
Enforcement, hosted by the Behavioral
Science Unit (BSU) of the Federal Bureau
oflnvestigations (FBI) Training Division.
For submission or attendance infonnation,
contact Supervisory Special Agent (SSA)
Donald C. Sheehan, Conference Coordinator, Behavioral Science Unit, Federal
Bureau of Investigation,
Quantico, VA 22135.
Sept. 22-26, 1999:
Keeping Children First
in the 21st Century,
The Children's Rights
Council's 12th National
Conference, Holiday
Inn Hotel & Suites, 625
First St., Alexandria,
VA. Topics include: The
growing joint custody
trend; Mediation and
parent education; Parental alienation syn-
drome; The effect of family structure on
crime, drugs and school performance; and
Welfare reform and its effect on children.
NCFR CEU's pending. For further information contact: Children's Rights Council, 300 I St. NE, Washington, DC 200024389; Phone: 202-547-6227; Fax: 202546-4272.
Sept. 22-25, 1999: Adolescent Reproductive Health '99 conference (Sept. 22-23)
will be held back-to-back with Reproductive Health '99 conference (Sept. 23-25),
Association of Reproductive Health
Professionals (ARHP), Hotel Adolphus,
Dallas, TX. Sponsored with the National
Association of Nurse Practitioners in
Reproductive Health and Planned Parenthood Federation of America. For more
infonnation or to register, contact ARHP,
2401 Pe1msylvania Ave., NW, Ste. 350,
Washington, DC 20037-1718. Phone:
877-444-ARHP; Fax: 202-466-3826; Email: conferences@arhp.org;
Web: www.ARHP.org. 1111
Marignan, Weiner-Davis. Guemey. Notarius, Miller, Olson,
Gordon, Hendrix, Doherty, Love, Glass, McManus, Parrott,
Vaughan, Stcsny, Hargrave. Popenoe, Smalley, Covey,
Vlsher, Jordan, Kobbe, MarkeY• Holman, & Gov & Mrs Leavitt, and more than 100 presenters will bring you up-to-date
on the latest resmrch and applications in the burgeoning
field m maniage and family education.
Invitation to Present
The 8th Annual Conference on Parent Education will be held February
17-19,2000. Deadline: Proposals must be postmarked by July 1,1999.
For further infonnation, please contact: Dr. Anninta Jacobson, CFLE,
Director, Center for Parent Education, P. 0. Box 31133 7, Univ. ofNorth
Texas, Denton, TX 76203-1337. Phone: 940-565-2432; Fax: 940-5654425; E-mail: jacobson@coefs.coe.unt.edu. Or check on the web site at
www.unt.edu/cpe. 111
NCFRREPORT
34
Co-sponsored by NCFR
The Coolition for Marriage, Family & Couples Education, u..c
For a conference brochure or the FREE Online Newsletter
JUNE 1999
�NOMINATIONS FOR NCFR OFFICERS
DUE AUG US"[" 1, 1999
~;
-''
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;
lrlilg~~~~l\ll~~?ti)ir()ctors
J\~ . ~GFRmember~
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you are asked to nqminate yowself, if
• rou ar~ inter~sted .ill aleadership role, or colleagues whom you
• 'd ~g~d amf~ftlie,n,oJ11ination,s·proc~ssfor natloJ1~Loffic~s. ••. . .• RonsiiJer qualified for any or one of the positions listed on this
!lPProved anew 111odel oj::
. ;J3o¥d(_iovefi1~ce\Vl#clte~t~iled the restructuring of the.
,.. • · ·. ~.~ ~h~ ~~~kif~~.~~I~e~ieasedtb 9riiell1h~rs al1'(1~ { • .· f?r;(· ~!is_fl'mn
• " ·~norri!s~&~~~()-yg~)teririirt~lhciiilkfu~·Pr~sident:.
the .li~t ofnolllinees tJ:tattheElections Council
wi beginats w9rk Bend this form with your nomination to
headquartet:s J?y Augustl, 1999. Staffwillverif)rmembership stiltt1s of your nominees, eligibility, send aJetterof
()I1fueConference.Prograll1
. ack1low}edge1nent ofreceipt to )'OU, the nominator, notiry the
;· < Go~wittee W}thallmernbers of the cOtnmittee servfu.g
·•· nomin,ee if eligible, alongwith a descripticm ofduties of office,
· •••·· ·.· . . . two,ye~terrns. · · .
. ·
. .
eleftionsreq~irements. Th~nominee will. be asked to replr no
. ;
Conference Chair Will
later than September ·1.· of intent to acceptn:omination, send
.. · • · s~~~·aiWp-yci~tenn oll. the Conferell.cePr:og;ani
biographical data and a platform statement to headquarters.
Coinmittee. ··
F~om this list of nominees and subsequentlists developed by
ieV/0 Oli
the Elections ~ouncil, a slate of qualified candidates will be
!. :. •thf:·:J36:~i:l.bfp~ectors£ortwo years. .. .
built to illchide two candidates and one alternate for each
of· office. (Note: nomillatim1d()es not illst!re inchlsion on ·fue
final ballgt. Fillalists for the slate wig be contacted by the
. .. ·:· $~eci9i§\iriits~&e a~o~year terll.i.
.c:hait of the committee .for final verification oftheir willingness ·
N ew•Professional will serve· a two.:
to rnn on the ballot.) The final list will be presented to the
·/1:e~!~rib;?~ ~eeomerence ·Progranl Committee, but NCFRBoard of Dfrectors and membership· at the Annual
· ·· ·. ·..· :will not serve on the Board:
Business· and Membership Forum Meeting at the 1999
Annual Conference.
.. ··:
elected by the. [ull 1nembershiQ
. ofNQF.R...
P~tition Method: Persons wishi1lg to add their names to the list
of candidates may do so by gatheringa minimum of 50
~~pause of the ch~ged natUre qftheNCFR. Bmrrd Go;versignatures, along with their printed name~ and addresses, on a
nance Proc{lSS, all natiqJ:}aLofficers will be expected to.
petition either while AT the conference, or later by mail but
att~~d ~n~tensiye Board9ritmtation session sometime .ill
before February .1st in order to be placed on the ballot. All
September at the h~adquarters and prior to taki1lg .office in
signatures on the petition MUST be those of ACTIVE NCFR
N~yember. T?eywillalsobe ~xpecte~ to.attend three (3)
members. The list will be verified from membership records at
in~J>e~sqn BoaJ"iJ meetings. iJ:} ~ovember,April and :Tune with
·· headquarters:
·
regular coJ?:fere11ce palls inbetwf)en.
Candidates for Section offices must have been members of the.
The N(;FR.NomillatioJ1s Connnittee becarne the Elections
section for at least two years and be current dues payillg
Cou11c~ cornprisedof6 me1nbers electe.d by the fullNCFR
members ofNCFR. Section chairs sit on the Conference
!TI~~l:Je~s~ipf()rstagg~red,te~!l.o,f 1,· 2, 3 years .. Chair of
P~ogram Committee and must attend meetings held. at the
·.~· · · · · Secti()nGha~~:serye
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·.·~~~~~n~eii~i~WJ:fu'e~tnili~~:fh[:i;~Jh~:t~ili · · ·.·conjunc~ion~t~the•. Board1lleetillg~·tl1e.~anots•.ai1dBio··· · ·. ·· · ·· · ··.· · · ·· ···· · · · ··.·· ·.· ··. . · ····· .· · · .· ·.·· · · · ·
.....
graphic~Unformation and Platforms will be sent in aseparate
I:Jeg~.theirviv?rko(devei()pinga slate oftandidates ata
~pe~ialm~et~15heldi1lSepte111~erat N(;FRhe~dquarters:
...· · · .·.
;'fh~iLJ()hwillbf(. tP solic:it 'qualified, collll11itted board.
. .·
.•. • ·i slllicli<iat~s•us~g ~·\Yiderange ofcriteriaas "'ell as criteria
gjv~il·tJ them l>.Y tile Board•
(::' ~>,;>>,,: >'
,,
-~-'
-
·
·
··
ma~ling to the entire active NQFR111embership on March 25,
2ppo. :S,allots.ofvoters I;nust b~re~med to the office post.,
.ID,arkedrlo late~ than May 1, •2000. .
For questions· confact:Jeanne Ryberw at jrybeig@6ncfr.org. or
(i12~7Sl:-933l, e:l(t Jl.
NCFR is committed to the policy that all persons shall have equal access to its programs, facilities and employment without regard
to race, religion, color, sex, national origin, handicap, age, veteran status, sexual preference, or handicap.
NCFRREPORT
35
JUNE 1999
�
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Members Adopt By-Laws
to estructure the B ard
inety-three percent of those NCFR
members who returned their December 1998 ballots voted in favor
of the changes which profoundly alter
NCFR's governance structure and policies.
These took effect immediately under the
leadership of Bill Doherty, President.
The major changes are described as follows:
• Reduction in the size of the board from
24 to 9 members, ALL elected by the full
membership, ALL, including the
President, for two year terms.
• The Board model of Governance moves
the Board out of the details of operation
of NCFR to a role of creating vision and
setting priorities for NCFR as articulated
by the general membership of NCFR.
Staff focuses on implementing priorities
of the organization.
• De-emphasizes specialized roles of
Board members in favor of holding ALL
Board members accountable for organi
zational issues.
• Reduction of Board officers to three President, President-elect, Secretary/
Treasurer.
• Vice Presidents of specific functions are
replaced by 5 at-large members from
which the Secretary/Treasurer is appointed.
• The President of the Association of
Councils and one Student New
Professional will also be elected by the
full membership and serve two year terms.
• The Board will meet more frequently 4 times per year: Spring, Summer, and
two November meetings. The Board will
also have regular conference call meetings.
• All Standing committees are sunsetted
with the exception of the Elections
Council (former nominating committee),
Conference Committee, and Fellowship
Committee - each of whose members are
elected by NCFR members except Section
chairs who are elected by Section mem
bers. New committees and task forces will
be created for special purposes as deter
mined by the Board or the staff.
• The Elections Council is reconstituted to
include 6 elected members and two nonvoting Board members. Terms are for two
years except during the transition. The
election process is changed to fit the
Board Governance Policies.
• A more prominent voice for NCFR
Members through extended Annual
Business and Membership Forum
Meetings in November, an NCFR listserv,
website questions, and NCFR Report.
Current NCFR Board members are:
William J. Doherty - President
Stephen Jorgensen- President-elect
Greer Fox- Past President (transition only)
Kathleen Gilbert- At-large member
�Honoring Family Development
Pioneer Evelyn Duvall
E
velyn Duvall was a pioneer in the field of family development and an
active member of the National Council on Fanuly Relations. Her book,
When You lvfarry, which she co-authored with Reuben Hill, was the first
functional text on marriage. Duvall's main contribution to the family development
field was the concept that family members are responsible for developing skills
during every stage of family life- including parenthood. In a 1944 article, she
wrote:
"Parents represent the last stand of the amateur. Eve1y other trade and profession has developed standards, has required study and practice and licensing
before releasing the student into his work. Before a girl can wave my hair or
tint my nails she must have gone to school a specified number of hours, she
must have apprenticed successfully under a qualified operator and she must
have passed a state examination and become duly licensed. Nursing, social
work, teaching, law, medicine, welding, mechanics, plumbers and plumber's
helpers all must come up to standards appropriate to their successful performance. Only one profession remains untutored and untrained - the bearing
and rearing of our children."
Evelyn Duvall would certainly appreciate today's emphasis on parenting education. This issue of Report is dedicated to her memory.
REPORT
of The National Council on
Family Relations
Mission Statement for the Report:
REPORT. the quarterly newsletter ofthe
National Council on Family Relations,
strives to provide timely, usefitl il!formation
td help members succeed in their roles as
researchers, educators, and practitioners.
Articles address family field issues,
programs and trends, including association nervs.
Executive .Director: Mary Jo Czaplewski
NCFRReport is published quarterly by
the National Council on Family Relations,
3989 Central Ave. N.E., Suite 550,
Mirmeapolis, MN 55421.
Third class postage permit.
Report subscription rate: $5.00/year.
Annual membership dues include newsletter subscription. $15.00 U.S. postage
per year postpaid at individual rate.
NEWS DEADLINES: February 1 for
March issue; May 1 for June issue;
August I for September issue; November 1
for December issue.
NCFR REPORT
Call in
D1: Eve()m Millis Duvall, ih the 1940s as
Professor of Sociology at the University of
Chicago. She was a charter member and worked
with the founders to develop the National Council
on Family Relations in 1938.
II
CFR's members voted overwhelmingly in favor of the new model
of Board Govemance based on the
John Carver model designed for non-profit
organizations. The Board has been restruchlred and has developed a Board Policy
Govemance Handbook which clearly
guides their actions and sets criteria for
evaluating them. In addition, it specifies
the limitations of the staff in accomplishing the priorities articulated in writing by
the Board on behalf of the members.
The most impmiant immediate task of the
Board is to set the priorities, vision, and
focus ofNCFR for the fuh1re. The Board
asks for your participation. There are two
questions listed at the end of this article.
Please let us hear from you via any of
several channels of communication,
namely, this newsletter, the new listserv at
ncfr-list@lists.ncfr.com; through the
webpage at www.ncfr.org; through the
mail, or via Fax at 612-781-9348. E-mail is
the easiest method of communicating with
NCFR. If we do not have your e-mail
address, please send it. If you have not
2
e
rs!
received any e-mail messages from NCFR
in the past month, that means we do not
have your address.
Periodically, during the year, you will
receive questions to answer. By replying,
you will be contributing in an important
way to setting NCFR's priorities and fuh1re
direction.
The first two questions below are intentionally broad. Subsequent questions will
deal with more specific issues. The Board
will use your views and those of others to
develop initial priorities. You will be kept
informed of results. Please respond to the
questions below:
• If NCFR were to disappear
from the face of the earth
tomorrow, why would we put it
back?
• In your view, how should
NCFR make a difference in the
world over the next 5 years?
We thank you for your response and look
forward to hearing from you!
MARCH 1999
�100 ears f
arenting
ducati n
by Glen Palm, Ph.D.
arenting education has existed in
some fon11 since the late 19th centmy, when mothers groups were
formed for middle and upper class women
who leamed new scientific discoveries
about child rearing, which they could then
apply in their own families. The relationship
between mother and child received special
attention since mothers had the primmy
responsibility for
In 1925, a conference
socializofprofessional parent ing their
children.
educators drew
During
the same
period,
parenting education for recent immigrants
focused on providing infommtion about.
health and child-rearing issues. This effort
often included home visits to immigrant
mothers, a practice intended to monitor the
home environment. One of the first govemment documents on parenting, a booklet on
infant care published in 1914, reflected this
concem for infant health. It stressed the
importance of breast-feeding. This was
important medical advice, since over
100,000 infants were dying each year, many
fi"om drinking unpasteurized cow's mille
some 1,500 people.
Between 1910 and 1920, important laws
were passed and new policies were developed as the govemment stepped in to address family poveiiy, infant mortality and
the need to prepare young people for the
vocation of parenthood. No clear consensus
existed about which agencies were best
suited to deal with these issues, so health,
education and labor departments at the
national level all staked out
their claims. The govemment
funded these different groups
who created parenting education programs as they saw fit.
Educators drew from many
different disciplines, including
NCFRREPORT
psychology, education and medicine.
From the ve1y begi1ming, parenting education was "embedded," with roots in
varied disciplines and instih1tions.
Behaviorism shapes parenting
Much of the parenting advice in the years
between World War I and World War II
reflected the work of the behavimists and
their founder, John Watson. They believed that all behaviors can be desc1ibed
in tem1s of physiological response to
stimuli. According to Watson, newboms
had only three
unleamed responses:
fear, love and rage. All other responses in
children were conditioned by habit and
could be leamed or unleamed.
This meant that environment became allimportant. For example, in his 1928 book,
Psychological Care ofb?fi:mt and Child,
Watson suggested that parents might put
their child "in the back yard a large part Glen Palm is a professor of Child and Family
Studies and department chair at St. Cloud State
of the day. Build a fence around the yard
University, St. Cloud, MN
so you are sure no han11 can come to it.
Do this from the time it is bom. When the
child can crawl, give it a sand pile and be
this time, the National Council on Parent
sure to dig some small holes so it has to
Education was incorporated and produced a
crawl in and out of them."
professional joumal.
Early professionalization of parent ed
Parents magazine began publishing articles
he years between 1925 and 1938
and discussion guides for parents' groups
saw dramatic progress in the
during the 1930s. Some of these were
professionalization of parenting
written especially for fathers, a practice the
education as a separate discipline. Unimagazine continued through the 1950s.
versities in 25 states offered courses in
Vocational programs that prepared young
parenting education. In 1925 a "round
people for household and parenting duties
table conference of professionals working
were also popular during the 1930s. Most
in parenting education" drew some I ,500
were directed toward girls, but boys were
people from throughout the U.S. During
sometimes included.
T
I 00 Years continued on next page
Nick Carter provides an excellent overview of parenting
education in the U.S. in See Hmv We Grow: A Report on
the Status ofParenting Education in the US. The report
was published by The Pew Charitable Trusts in 1996.
3
MARCH 1999
�100 YEARS
continued ji-om page 3
The Great Depression of the 1930s demonstrated the vulnerability of families to
larger social problems. Poverty wasn't
Dr. Spock's Baby and Child
Care had a profound effect
on American parents.
simply a condition caused by individual
failings such as laziness or alcoholism. It
could also be the result of widespread
economic conditions. During these years,
the govemment created some new services
for families, like the nursery schools that
were part of the Works Progress Administration. At the same time, however, financial support dried up for professional
development in parenting education.
New understanding
During the 1930s and '40s, Amold Gesell
brought new understanding to parents
through his careful observations of child
growth and development. His book Infant
and Child in the Culture of Today reflected a careful, scientific approach to
child rearing. He believed that the early
childhood education setting was also the
place for parenting education: "The inadequacies of the home will be steadily reduced by a direct approach through adult
education and specific guidance. Such
personalized guidance can be affected
through the nursery schools and guidance
centers."
The publication of Dr. Benjamin Spack's
Baby and Child Care in the 1940s had a
profound effect on parenting in America.
In his autobiography, Spock says he got
his inspiration from listening to the mothers' of his patients. Baby and Child Care
100 Years continued on next page
What's in a name?
s parenting education continues to evolve, its definition changes, too. In the 1930s, parenting education
was concemed with helping the parent to "become a
satisfactory person" with the willingness and knowledge to
"keep up with the times." By 1983, parenting education had
as its goal the creation of"educational activities and experiences" to help parents become more "knowledgeable, competent and confident in the parental role."
knowledge and skills relevant to living with and guiding
children." Note the use of the word "parenting" instead of
"parent." This is meant to include anyone who has made
the cmmnitment to stay with a child through childhood and
beyond. This~ incltrd~s grandparents, foster and adoptive
parei~tS ,-c in Shqrt, anyone WhO is raising a child.
In early 1990s, parenting education, in the words of one
writer, had taken on the task of "changing or enhancing the
child-rearing knowledge and skills of a family or child cm;e
system."
~
,
Parent support:
Sometimes used as a synonym for "parenting education,"
but may also refer to programs to include noneducational
actrvrtres such as health care services- that str·engthen
the family.
In Se~ ljow We Grow, Nick Carter points out that although
today 1spro~·am~for parents are often quite clear about their
purpose, their nomenclature isn't. Just what is the difference
between parenting education, parent suppoti, family life
education, family empowerment and family support? The
following definitions were drawn from See How We Grow or
suggested by other professionals. They are not meant to be
definitive indeed no standard definitions exist for these
terms.
Family support:
An approach that can include child care, job skill training, a
full range of health care services and other activities designed
to strengthen families- including parenting education. Unlike traditional "intervention" services, this approach is designed to build on a family's strengths instead of its deficits.
According to Carter, family support paradigms should be the
"essential reference point for all parenting programs."
Parenting education:
According to the National Parenting Education Network, it is
"the activity of making available resources for transferTing
NCFR REPORT
4
Family life Education:
According to the National Council on Family Relations, it
"has as its primary purpose to help individuals and families
leam about human growth, development and behavior in
the family setting and throughout the life cycle. Leaming
experiences are aimed at developing the potential of individuals in their present and future roles as family members.
The core concept is relationships, through which personality develops, about which individuals make decisions to
which they are committed, and in which they develop self
esteem."
Parent Empowerment:
Does not refer to leaming that directly impacts parenting. It
is instead the ability to be proactive in seeking information
or advocating for family and self. Parent empowennent
may be the result of parenting education or family support.
MARCH 1999
�100 YEARS
continuedfi·om page 4
was an antidote to the more prescriptive
behaviorist views on child rearing. Spock
offered common sense, physical and psychological advice. His book has remained
popular for more than half a centmy, selling over 50 million copies.
Emphasis on psychological
development
arenting education was evolving
from an emphasis on children's
physical health to concem with their
psychological development. By 1950, the
infant mortality rate had declined significantly and many childhood diseases polio
was the exception had been virtually
eliminated. Psychoanalyst John Bowlby
believed that mother-love during infancy
and childhood was as important for
children's mental health as vitamins and
proteins were for their physical health. He
suggested that
govemment,
Child abuse
social agencies
and the public
was identified
pay more attenas a critical
tion to motherissue during the child attachment. And in
fact, govemlate 1960s and
ment policies
early 1970s.
such as the G.I.
Bill and the tax
codes favored the single wage eamer family, in which father worked and mother
stayed home with the children.
Behavimism made a comeback during the
1950s as B. F. Skinner introduced his concept of "operant conditioning" in his book
Science and Human Behavior. Skinner
used the reward technique and strict environmental control to shape young children's
behavior in profound and long-tenn ways.
Today parent educators translate the concept
of operant conditioning as "Catch them
while they're good."
Parenting education makes
a comeback
The 1960s saw a resurgence of parenting
education, which was entangled with the
social movements of the time, such as civil
rights, feminism and the war on poverty.
Head Start, while aimed at ymmg children
from low-income families, had an important
family component. Parenting education was
NCFR REPORT
seen as an important means of maintaining
the children's educational gains, and home
visits to families in the program were a
connnon fonn of parenting education. At
the same time, books like Theodore
Godden's PE.T. (Parent Effectiveness
Ti·aining) and RudolfDriekor's Children:
The Challenge became popular and were
used by middle class parenting groups.
Popular parenting books included Elizabetl1
Crary's Without Spanhng or Spoiling and
Jean Clark's Self-Esteem: A Family Affair,
which have both been used as parenting
education curriculums.
During the 1990s, efforts to reach fathers especially young, unmarried fathers have intensified. Publications from Family
Resource Coalition and its 1996 conference reflect the growth and refinement of
family support. The Pew sh1dy, See How
A key figure during this period was Alene
Auerbach who in 1960 published State of
the Art ofParent Education. This report raised
By 1950 the emphasis had shifted to concern
important questions
with children psychological development.
about parenting education as a field, from
content and methods to scope and boundWe Grow, completed by Nick Carter in
aries. Many of those questions remain
1996, describes parenting education as a
unanswered today.
large, complex and rapidly growing field.
Cmier estimates that over 50,000
Addressing child abuse
parenting education programs exist in the
U.S. We don't need more programs, he
hild abuse was identified as a
critical issue during the late 1960s
says, we need an infrastruchrre to help the
and early 1970s. Abuse was attribfield move fmward.
uted to a lack of knowledge of child develOver the last cenh1ry, parenting education
opment and an inability to manage family
has faced persistent and as yet unrestress. Educating parents about realistic
solved- issues. Perhaps the most basic is
expectations for children was seen as one
the question of whether parenting educaway of addressing this issue. In addition,
tion is a distinct or "embedded" discipline.
family suppmi programs were also develOther issues include how to protect our
oped to provide both resources and support
children from exposure to sex and vioto parents.
lence, the boundaries between parenting
education and therapy, the significance of
In the 1970s, pediatrician and author Barry
Brazelton focused on individual difference
early brain development, and our ambivain children's development. His insights into
lence about social responsibility toward
family dynamics m1d sensitivity to parent
poor families. During the last 100 years,
parenting education has also moved from
needs have made him a popular parenting
experi.
an emphasis on the child's physical health
and survival to a concem with psychologiA growing field
cal growth and development. No one
knows exactly how parenting education
The decades of the 1980s and 1990s have
seen growth in state programs like
will develop in the 21st cenh1ry- but it's
Mirmesota's Early Childhood Family Edusafe to say that this rapidly growing field
cation and Missouri's Parents as Teachers,
will remain complex and challenging for
as well as pilot programs in other states.
its practitioners.
-s
1
REMINDER: Deadline for Non:rinations for 1999/2000 NCFRAwards is Aprill5,
1999. Criteria and Nomination forms were published in the December 1998 issue of
NCFR REPORT. Contact NCFR toll-free: 888-781-9331; phone: 612-781-9331;
fax: 612-781-9348; e-mail: ncfr3989@ncfr.org; website: www.ncfr.org with questions.
5
MARCH 1999
�urrent Issues in Parenting ducation
very profession grapples with
difficult issues, and parenting
education is no exception. Some of
the most impmiant issues facing today's
parent educators include:
Diversity. Although this issue is often
understood in tenns of ethnic diversity, it
goes beyond what we nonnally think of as
"cultural competence." Of course, parents
are certainly influenced by their pmiicular
ethnic background. We see this in the way
parents approach issues such as discipline,
feeding or toilet training. Many African
American parents, for example, are strict
disciplinarians. They nurture immediate
obedience- especially in public placesbecause of racial society's bias. This attitude differs from that of middle class
white parents who don't have the added
wony that their children's misbehavior
will be viewed through the lens of race.
who are parenting will have different
needs than teen parents. Divorced parents
will have somewhat different concerns
than manied parents. Families with both
parents working face different challenges
than those where a parent is at home.
Voluntary vs. mandated programs.
Currently most programs are voluntmy,
and parents can detennine the nature and
length of their involvement. But the number of mandated programs is increasing.
Divorcing parents may be required by the
court to attend a parenting program. Parents who abuse alcohol or drugs and those
who have neglected or abused their children may also be emolled in mandatory
programs. Required participation in mandated programs may change the intent and
nature of parenting education and, according to some in the field, may even violate
its basic principles.
Equity. Educated, affluent parents have
their choice of programs. If no formal
programs are available, they may
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But diversity also includes age differences
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Answers the perennial
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NCFRREPORT
Evaluation. Parent
educators are quick
to point out that
parenting education
programs are not a
solution for major
social problems.
Instead, the goal is to
help parents understand a child's development and improve
their parenting skills.
Even so, only sporadic evaluation of
parenting education
6
programs has taken place. Much ofthe
data has been collected on pilot programs
without random assignment of participants. More emphasis needs to be placed
on objective, scientific evaluation.
Coordination. The need exists to engage
in cooperative plam1ing, coordination of
service delivery and infrastructure development across program communities and
states. Too many parent educators continue reinventing the wheel.
thical issues. In the face oflimited
resources, parent educators must
ask what groups should be served.
Any decision to choose one group over
another poses a real dilemma. Other issues
include: choosing what to include in program content, when there's a finite amount
of time available; knowing how to confront a parent with care, when the educator
knows that the parent's decisions may be
harmful to the child; and determining
whether groups should be heterogeneous
or homogeneous that is, should groups
consist of all fathers? all single parents?
all recent immigrants? or should groups
include a true mix of parents?
Quality. Attempts to address program
quality are just beginning to emerge. Tools
to evaluate program quality and methods
of program accreditation are only now
being developed. Programs often do not
specify the competencies, training or credentials needed by parent educators. (See
"The well-prepared parent educator" p.7).
Based on il!formation.fi'Oin: "On Building
Parental Competence: The Nature of Contracts
and Commitments." In The Challenge of
Parenting in the '90s. Washington, DC. The
Aspen Institute. Exceipted by ERIC Digest
(ericps. ed.uiuc. edu/eece/pubs/digests/19951
kagan95.htm/).
"Parent Education: Where We've Been and
Where We're Going" by Mari(vn Martin Rossmann, Family Education Program, College of
Education and Human Development, University
ofMinnesota. In Consortium Connection, Volume 5, Number 1, Winter 1996, published by
The Children, Youth and Family Consortium.
Telephone interview ·with Karen DeBord,
Ph.D., Child Development Extension Specialist, Department of'Family and Consumer
Sciences, North Carolina State University.
MARCH 1999
�rtificati n f
eauticians and barbers need
licenses in all states, but so far only
Minnesota requires state licensure
for parent educators. As the Early Childhood Family Education (ECFE) program
expanded to all Minnesota school districts
during the mid-1980s, licensure became a
Beauticians and barbers need
licenses in all states, but so far
a rent
ducat rs
early childhood license. But leaders in the
field successfully argued that parenting
education was a separate field focusing on
the parent as Ieamer and the family as
teaming environment, not a sub-domain of
early childhood education.
opment and parent/child interaction, and
cuiTiculum development. They are also
required to do an intemship or practice
teaching. Over a dozen colleges and universities prepare students to become ECFE
practitioners.
To be licensed in Minnesota, parent educators must have a college degree, including
25 to 30 credits in child psychology and
development, adult teaming, family devel-
But even in Minnesota, not all parent
educators are licensed. Those who aren't
affiliated with ECFE need no license,
Certification continued on next page
only Minnesota requires state
licensure for parent educators.
way of ensuring qualified staff. In 1989
after statewide hearings, two new licenses
were approved. They provided specific
competencies as preparation for parent and
family educators working in ECFE programs (see "The well-prepared parent
educator," this page).
Five years later, an attempt was made to
add parenting education to an expanded
The ell- repared
Parent ducat r
hat core competencies should
a well-prepared parent educator possess? According to the
1996 Pew report, See How We Grow,
certain key practices are appearing in more
and more training programs. The report
cites a working list developed by the New
York Family Development Credential
(FDC) program as an example:
o An understanding of the empowennent
and family support approach
o Communications
Certification for Family Life Educators
o Mutual respect
e Ongoing assessment
o Home visitation
The National Council on Family Relations (NCFR) has certified family life educators since 1985. Certified Family Life Educators (CFLE) may specialize in
parenting education or combine parenting education with other responsibilities.
•
Cmmnunity building (including group
leadership)
The CFLE designation requires a combination of academic preparation, professional development and work experience in ten family life substance areas:
•
Multicultural competency
11
Referral to specialized services
1. Families in society
e Collaboration and partnerships
2. Intemal dynamics of families
3. Human growth and development
o Practitioner self-empowennent
4. Human sexuality
Minnesota is the only state which cmrently
licenses parent educators. Its standards are
similar to those of the FDC with one important difference: a stress on the understanding of adult leamers. According to the
Mim1esota Early Childhood Taskforce,
parent and family educators should:
5. Interpersonal relationships
6. Family resource management
7. Parent education and guidance
8. Family law and public policy
9: Ethics
10. Family life education methodology
Many family life education professionals feel strongly that professional parent
educators should possess knowledge in all ten areas. But others argue that this
requirement wouldprevent many skilled and effective people from becoming
parent educators. NCFR has just begun to consider creating a separate specialty
certification in parenting education.
e understand the central concepts and
tools of inquiry in (a) development of
children, (b) development of families
and (c) parent-child relationships. They
also know how to make these subjects
meaniugful for adult leamers;
Well-Prepared continued on next page
NCFRREPORT
7
MARCH 1999
�CERTIFICATION
continued fi·mn page 7
though they may be trained in parenting
education and supported in their practice
through a program such as MELD. Some
leaders in parenting education would argue
that parent educators don't necessarily
need a degree; in fact, they say, fonnal
certification like Mirmesota's eliminates
competent individuals who, though not
college-educated, have a lot of expertise to
share.
These include respected members of the
community, such as an older woman who
has successfully raised a large family or
peer facilitators, such as the 25-year-old
woman who has become a successful adult
after having a baby in her teens. No one is
suggesting that such individuals need no
training, but rather that these volunteers
and paraprofessionals can become effective
parent educators through preservice and
inservice training. According to the 1996
Pew report See How We Grow, these practitioners are often highly motivated to obtain
WELL-PREPARED
preparation and support for their work.
The report also notes that these community
members are, in many cases, "better prepared to establish a basis of cultural and
social understanding with the families the
program seeks to reach."
ome parent educators see the need
for a tiered system or continuum of
certification that would have room
for both the fom1ally trained, collegeeducated professional and knowledgeable
community member. Others insist on
professionalization over experience, believing that "just because people did something, it doesn't mean they did it right."
Another issue concerns professionals with
credentials in a field other than parenting
education. These include doctors, nurses,
therapists, social workers, and teachers.
The Pew report notes physicians don't
According to the Pew report, the fastest
segment of parenting educators are professionals in noncredentialed fields. These
practitioners may be human resources
personnel in corporations, staff members
of a welfare agency or workers in a homeless shelter. They are often exposed to
inservice training as a regular part of their
work environment, and many are now
required to get fonnal training in
parenting education.
cantinuedfinm page 7
o be sensitive to the diversity of the contemporary family, including cultural expression, socioeconomic circumstances, special
needs of family members, religion, gender and gender roles,
family stmcture and community mores;
o use instructional strategies to help parents leam in groups and
one-on-one -including home visits. These strategies include
group and individual processes and a variety of active leaming
methods;
o create a safe leaming environment through the use of individual
and group motivation and dynamics;
o use effective communication techniques to create a positive and
stimulating leaming environment;
o plan and manage instmction based on their knowledge of subject
matter, adult leamers, the community and curriculum goals. They
should focus on families' developmental needs and interests, and
know how to incorporate the parents' experiences and culhrral
and societal values;
o understand and use fonnal and informal assessment strategies to
evaluate and ensure the continuous development of individual
parents, the group process and the family education program;
be reflective practitioners who seek to improve their skills and
knowledge through professional growth oppmtunities; and
e develop ethical, caring and effective relationships with others to
support parent and family leaming and well-being.
NCFR REPORT
These professionals, however,
often work in organizations
that offer inservice training or
have other opportunities for
professional development. The
Touchpoints Project, for example, emphasizes prevention through
developing relationships between parents
and health care providers.
According to the Pew report, the fastest
segment ofparenting educators are
professionals in noncredentialed fields.
o understand how adults leam and develop;
•
study parenting in medical school,
yet 70 percent of the issues that parents
bring their pediatricians are nonmedical.
Social workers aren't required to study
parenting either, yet they, too, lead
parenting programs.
8
Courses in survey
research covering:
Smvey'Research Techniques
Statistical Research Design
Data Collection Methods in Smvey Resemch
Cognition, Communication and
SuiVey Measurement
Questionnaire Design
Qualitative Methods in Su!Vey Research
Methods of Su!Vey Sampling
Analysis of Complex Sample SuiVey Data
Analysis of Su!Vey Dolo
Computer Analysis of Su!Vey Data
Event History Analysis
Multi-level Analysis of SuiVey Data
Longitudinal SuiVey Design and Analysis
Design of Evaluation Research
Plus one-week courses covering
a variety of topics in survey
research methods
For more information
contad:
Dr. James M. Lepkowski, Director
Summer Institute, SuiVey Research Center
Institute for Social Research
P.O. Box 1248
Ann Arbor, Ml 48106-1248
Call toll-free: 877/880-9389
Fax: 734/764-8263
Email: summerS@isr.umich.edu
Website: www.isr.umich.edu/srr/sV
MARCH 1999
�------------------
HI 1n
na
1111
r. David Walsh believes that electronic niedia are "one of the most
powerful forces in the lives of our
children." Walsh, the executive director of
the National Institute on Media and the
Family, is quick to point out that "powerful" is not necessarily "bad." Children can
leam a lot fi·mn television, computer programs and the Intemet. For example, re-
a rent
th
di
Parenting education programs can play an
important role in helping parents leam
how to maximize the benefits of television
and other media while minimizing their
harm. Until recently, parent educators
haven't dealt with how the media influence family life and child development. In
large part, that's because they haven't had
the knowledge, background, tools or
resources to do it.
A nationally normed
instrument
To meet this need, Walsh
and his colleagues have
developed
MediaQuotienfrM, a computerized personal media
report. Using this nationally nonned instrument,
parents can see how their
media use compares to
the national average.
They can evaluate
whether their families
are practicing positive
media habits. They can
also leam where opporhmities exist for im'
provement.
D1: David Walsh isfowzder and Executive Director of the National
Institute on Media and the Family. He is shown with his children,
left to right Erin, Dan and Brian.
search shows that watching moderate
amounts of educational television can help
children build vocabulary, number and
letter skills. But because electronic media
are so powerful, parents need to manage
their children's exposure to them.
To detennine their media
quotient, parents fill out
a simple questionnaire
which asks them how often their children
watch television while doing homework,
want to buy products they see on TV,
watch music videos on TV, read books or
go to the library. Parents are also asked
how often they consult movie ratings or
"Media and the Mind,"
a 90-minute presentation given by Dr. David Walsh at the 1998
annual conference of the National Council ofFamily Relations, is
available on videotape for $49.95 or audio tape for $10.00.
For more information or to order a copy, contact: A YEN, 10532
GreenwoodAve. N., Seattle, WA98133. Phone: 206-4407989; Toll free: 1-800-810-TAPE; Website: www.aven.com
reviews, monitor their children's use of the
Intemet, talk to them about television
programs or read to them. Other questions
concem children's school perfonnance
and parental attitudes about various media.
The result is a colorful, personalized report containing scores in six categories:
amount and use of media, parental monitoring, consistency, effect of media on
children, parental media lmowledge and
children's involvement in activities that
don't involve electronic media.
MediaQuotientTM was field tested in the
fall of 1998 and was well received and
easily understood by parents all over the
country, including low-income and highrisk parents. The
instmment is part
Electronic
ofthe MediaWiseTM
kit for professionmedia are
als who work
not bad, but with parents.
they are
powerful.
"American children cunently
spend more time
watching television than any other activity except sleeping," Walsh says. And though 98 percent
of parents believe in the influence of the
media, they tend to underestimate the
strength of that influence.
Friends vs. Sesame Street
or example, during the first week of
October 1998, more preschoolers
watched "Friends" than any other
program. Why were they watching this
adult-rated soap opera instead of "Sesame
Street" or "Mr. Rogers"? Probably because the program is popular with young
adults, many of whom are parents of small
children. And it's on during early prime
time - after dinner. "Millions of parents
tune in with their small children along for
the ride," says Walsh, who notes twothirds of families also watch television
during at least one daily meal.
Helping Parents continued on next page
NCFR REPORT
9
MARCH 1999
�HELPING PARENTS
continued fi'om page 9
The result of all this media exposure is
falling literacy rates and a generation of
impatient kids who have trouble sticking
with activities that take time and persistence to master. "The media landscape is
changing quickly. The switch to digital TV
is more profound than people suspect,"
Walsh says. "Kids will soon be able to
switch seamlessly between TV programs,
the Intemet, video games and movies."
alsh urges all parent educators
to incorporate media education
in their work. "It's important
to deal with this issue from the time a
baby is bom because pattems are formed
early in life," he says. "In fact, this could
even be a pmi of prenatal education."
Parent educators should be clear, however.
The message is not that the electronic
media are bad, but that they are powerful.
Developing strategies
It's not enough, though, to define the
problem for parents. Walsh encourages
parent educators to
help parents develop
Whoever
strategies for managing their family's use
tells the
of electronic media.
"They need tools and
stories
doable steps," he
defines the says. A family could
begin by turning the
culture.
television off at
mealtime. Limiting
the amount of time children spend watching television and playing video games
might be the next step.
Parents might then rearrange the family
room so that the television and VCR are
not the focal point of all activity. By putting the TV in a corner and creating a
well-lit and comfortable space for reading,
parents help children to spend time in
nonmedia activities.
Walsh is fond of saying that "whoever
tells the stories defines the culture." Few
parents want their family culture defined
by TV shows or video games. Parent
educators can help prevent this from happening by showing parents how to use the
electronic media in positive ways instead
of becoming slaves to them.
NCFRREPORT
1111
I
iii
Here are some resources for pm·ent
educators who want to help fmnilies
manage the media onslaught:
parent and community groups. For more
infonnation or to schedule a seminm; call
Shari Winters at (202) 775-3629.
ational Institute on Media and
the Family, Riverside Professional Building, 606 24th Avenue South, Suite 606, Minneapolis,
MN 55454. Telephone: (612) 672-5437.
Intemet: www. mediafamily.org. This
nonprofit organization offers the
MediaWiseTM tool kit designed for parent
educators. Media WiseTM contains
Media Quotient™, a nationally
normed, compute1ized
personal media report
(see "Helping parents
manage the media," p.
9). The Institute also produces free brochures,
such as 12 Tips jar
Taming the Tube and
Safety Tips for Swjing
the Net; educational cassettes,
such as Unplug Your Kids; KidScoreTM,
a criteria-based evaluation of TV shows
m1d other media products; books and
other mate1ials.
www.limiTY.org. LimiTV is a non-profit
North Carolina corporation fonned in
1995 to educate parents, teachers m1d
children about the many ways excessive
television viewing can dmnage a child's
ability to lemn, and to recommend alternatives to excessive television viewing.
The LimiTV website offers a rationale
for limiting television viewing, offers
suggestions for weaning children
away it and provides
suggestions for
TV-fi·ee activities.
Family and Community Critical
Viewing Project, 1724 Massachusetts
Avenue, NW, Washington, DC 20036.
The project, a collaboration of the National PTA and the National Cable
Television Association (NCTA), has
published Taking Charge of Your Tv.· A
Guide to Critical Viewing for Parents
and Children. A four-minute video
featuring Rosie O'Donnell is also available. Both are free to parents, educators
and others who write to the address
listed above. Or fax your request to
(202) 775-3675. NCTAalso presents
Taldng Charge of Your TV seminars to
Parent Handouts:
"Smart TV Viewing" and "TV and You"
are both available from MELD. For
more infonnation, call 612-332-7563.
Books: Joan Anderson and Robin
Wilkins. Getting Unplugged. John
Wiley & Sons, 1998. Suggestions on
how to wean kids from television and
computer games.
LeonardA. Jason and Libby Kennedy.
Remote Control: A Sensible Approach
to Kids, TV and the New Electronic
Media. Professional Resource Exchange, 1997. Helps parents evaluate if
media is out of control at their house;
offers ways to tum the situation
around.
Milton Chen and Andy Bricky. The
Smart Parents Guide to Kids' TV.
KQED, 1994. Former program developer for "Sesame Street" shows parents how to use the educational potential of electronic media - while avoiding their pitfalls.
"Reflections on Parenting Education: Is Research a Mirror for
Practice?", a presentation given by Karen B. DeBord, Ph.D. at the
1998 annual conference of the National Council of Family Relations, is
available on videotape for $49.95 or audio tape for $10.00.
For more information or to order a copy, contact: AVEN,
10532 Greenwood Ave. N., Seattle, WA98133. Phone: 206-440-7989;
Toll free: 1-800-810-TAPE; Website: www.aven.com
10
MARCH 1999
�arentin
n estimated 50,000 parent education programs exist in the U.S. The
programs listed below are among
the most well-known and have either been
widely replicated or served as models for
other programs. For a more complete listing,
consult chapter 10 of See Hmv We Gmw.
Avance (the Spanish word for "Advance")
San Antonio, Texas 78207
Voice: (210) 270-4630 Fax: (210) 270-4612
Web page: www.salsa.net/~avance
TI1is center-based nine-month
intensive parent education
program serves low-income
families with their children
under two years. Parents
attend weeldy parenting
classes, which are divided into three onehour segments. The first hom focuses on toy
making. The second hour deals with
parenting skills and covers such topics as
child development and discipline. The third
hom covers commtmity awareness and
includes infotmation on available community services and how to access them. Nutrition classes and other ancillmy activities are
also offered during the third hour. Monthly
home visits are made to each participant to
observe parent-child interactions.
Avance also conducts research on the conditions m1d factors associated with poverty and
other sociaVeconomic problems in high-risk
cormmmities; evaluates the effectiveness of
service delivety; and operates a national
tr·aining center to share and disseminate
infmmation, material and cmTiculum to
service providers and policy makers interested in supporting high-risk Latino families.
ECFE (Early Childhood Family Education)
Minnesota Department of Children,
Families and Leaming
St. Paul, Minnesota
Voice: (651) 58:2-8402 Fax: 651-582-8494
E-mail: faye.lovell@state.nm.us
Web page: cfl.state.mn.us/ecfi
This program is designed for all Minnesota
families with children from birth through
kindergarten. ECFE is offered in 350 school
districts and the 4 tribal schools in Mitme-
NCFR REPORT
rogram
am ler
sota. These districts encompass more than 99
percent of the state's 0-4 population. Over
283,500 children ar1d parents participated i11
ECFE dming 1996-97- that's approximately
42 percent ofthe state's children, ages birth
to kindergarten.
with registration fees and
fimds from other sources.
Scholar·ships m·e usually available for
parents who can't pay
the prograr11 fees.
ECFE is based on the belief that par·ents are
their children's first and most important
teachers. Most prograrns i11clude par·ent
discussion groups, play and lear11ing activities for children, parent-child activities,
special events for the entire far1uly, home
visits, early screetung for children's health
and developmental problems, i11fommtion on
other connmmity resources, ar1d libraries of
books, toys, m1d other leami11g materials.
Programs usually offer several sessions with
specific topics to meet the needs of families
with special concems,
such as single pmenting,
teen parents, children with
special needs, etc.
According to Nick Carter, "No state has made
a more comprehensive comnutrnent to
parenting education thm1 Mitmesota. Its
model may not be viable for evety state, but
its experience cannot be overlooked."
Each prograrn has an
advisory cmmcil which helps to match services to cormmmity needs. Pmticipating
parents are a majority of the council membership. By law, all teachers working with
pments in ECFE programs must be certified
(see "Cettification ofpar·ent educators," p. 7).
ECFE is fimded with a combined local levy/
state aid formula wluch may be supplemented
High/Scope Foundation
Ypsilanti, Michigan
Voice: 734-485-2000 Fax: 734-485-0704
E-mail address: info@highscope.org
Web page: www.highscope.org
An independent nonprofit resear·ch, development, tr·ait1ing, and public advocacy orgaruzation, whose ptincipal goals are to promote
the learning and development of children
ar1d to support and train educators and parents as they help children learn. The High/
Scope Perry Preschool was a precursor of
the Head Statt program.
High/Scope trains preschool and elementaty
teachers and admitustrators; conducts resemch projects on the effectiveness of educational progrmns; develops ctmicula for
infant/toddler, preschool, elementaty,
Program Sampler continued on next page
Choosing curricula
o parenting cuniculum can possibly meet the needs and interests of all
parents. It's a challenge to find the one that will best suit a specific
·parent group. Haniet Heath, director of the Parent Centered Child
Study Institute at Btyn Mawr College, has developed a questimmaire that analyzes and compares what a cuniculum has to offer with the strengths, interests
and preferences of potential users.
The first part of the questionnaire asks about the cuniculum under review. The
second part is used by parents to identify their strengths, interests and preferences. In the third part professionals analyze the parent responses. A comparison of all three parts will indicate whether a given cuniculum is right for a
particular audience.
Heath's article "Choosing Parenting Curricula Based on the Interests, Needs,
and Preferences of the Parents Who Will Use It," can be found on the Intemet at
http://parenthood.library. wisc.edu.Heath/Heath.htm#figure2. The article contains links to the questionnaire.
11
MARCH 1999
�PROGRAM SAMPLER continuedfimn page 11
and adolescent programs; maintains an
Intemational Registry of High/Scopecertified teachers and teacher-trainers;
publishes books, videos, cmriculum materials, and assessment tools for educators and
researchers; and operates a demonstration
preschool in Ypsilanti, Michigan, that
serves children in the local community.
ccording to Nick Carter, the influence of High/Scope on early-child
hood education is "hard to underestimate, although its impact on parenting
education is still somewhat peripheral; their
interest is in the question of how teachers
can help parents raise children." The program maintains a comprehensive commitment to disciplined methodology and outcome research. Says Carter: "No other
player in this field has more solid, longitudinal evidence of its effectiveness."
HIPPY (Home Instruction Program for
Preschool Youngsters)
New York, New York
Voice: 212-678-3500 Fax: 212-678-4136
Web page: www.c3pg.com/hippy.htm
Developed in 1969 to serve the undereducated in Israel, HIPPY began in the U.S.
in 1984. HIPPY programs are designed to
help parents be better first teachers of their
three- to five-year-olds. Programs are
delivered by trained paraprofessionals
who are themselves parents. On altemate
weeks, small groups of parents meet to
share their expe1iences. This also helps to
build community.
The curriculum is highly
structured and designed
for parents with limited
education. It is cognitivebased and focuses on
language development, problem-solving,
logical thinking and perceptual discrimination skills. Both Spanish and English
versions are available.
HIPPY USA serves more than 15,000
families in urban, suburban and rural areas
across the U.S., and is being adapted for
use ~lsewhere in the world "from the
Netherlands to New Zealand, from South
African townships to Mexico."
According to Nick Carter, "A tlu·ee-year
longitudinal study showed that teachers
rated children who had been in HIPPY as
'significantly better adapted' in their early
years of school."
MELD
Minneapolis, Mim1esota
Voice: 612-332-7563 Fax: 612-344-1959
E-mail: MELDctrl@aol.com
Web page: members.aol.com/meldctrl/
program.html
The MELD program brings together
groups of parents with similar backgrounds
and whose young children are the same
age. The program relies on carefully selected and trained peer facilitators who
have had similar experiences to the parents
in the group. Groups meet for two years so
that parents have enough time to build
support systems and intemalize the information. Programs do not "teach" but build
on parents' existing knowledge and
strengths. The emphasis is on problemsolving and decision-making.
Program Sampler continued on next page
H you are missing back issues of your JMF or FRjoumals, NOW is the time to replace them! NCFR is
reducing its inventory effective immediately! This will be your LAST G-lANCE to order these back issues.
Deadline: June 30, 1999.
JOURNAL OF MARRIAGE AND THE FAMILY
JMF58/l996- 59/1997- Complete volume- $32.00 U.S. $37.00 non-U.S.
JMF54/l992- 57/1995- Complete volume- $28.00 U.S. $33.00 non-U.S.
JMF44/l982- 51/1991- Incomplete volume- $19.00 U.S. $24.00 non-U.S.
JMF singles copies 1996-97- $10.00 each
JMF singles copies 1992-95- $8.00 each
JMF singles copies 1991 & earlier- $6.00 each
FAMILY RELATIONS
FR44/1995- 46/1997- Complete volume- $30.00 U.S. $35.00 non-U.S.
FR38/1989- 43/1994- Complete volume- $25.00 U.S. $30.00 non-U.S.
FR31/198l- 45/1998- Incomplete volume- $10.00 U.S. $15.00 non-U.S.
FR single copies 1995- 1997- $8.00 each
FR single copies 1989- 1994- $6.00 each
FR single copies 1988 & earlier- $4.00 each
CALL NCFR AT (888) 781-9331.
NCIFR REPORT
12
MARCH 1999
�arenting Ed
arent educators can choose from
an almost infinite number of books,
videos, curricula and other resources. Rather than offer a list ofthe "top
ten" or the "50 finest," we present a selection oflntemet sites. Many of these sites
provide links to other Web pages that offer
more infonnation, publications and audiovisual resources as well as additional
Intemet links.
P
American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry offers "Facts for Families," a series of infonnation sheets that
n the
et
provide concise and up-to-date infonnation on issues that affect children, teenagers, and their families. The Facts for Families may be printed, duplicated and distributed free of charge as long as the Academy
is properly credited and no profit is gained
from their use. Also available in Spanish.
www.aacap.org
Boys Town, USA. A special section called
"Common Sense Parenting" offers
parenting tips, answers questions, lists
resources such as books and videos that can
be ordered through Boys Town. A free
parenting booklet, available in both English
and Spanish, can also be ordered online.
www.boystown.org
American Academy of Pediatrics offers
a series of public infonnation brochures
for parents on topics including bedwetting,
sleep problems, resisting violence, smoking, sports and many more. www.aap.org
Children, Youth and Family
Consortium's Electronic Clearinghouse
(CEC) offers infonnation from many
sources including the University of Minnesota and the University ofMi1mesota Extension Service. Dedicated "theme areas"
include families and leaming, FatherNet,
work family life interactions, families and
health, youth with disabilities, young children, parenting and families, diversity, and
more. Also contains links to many sites of
interest to parent educators.
www.cyfc.umn.edu
PROGRAM SAMPLER cantinuedfi'Oin page 12
MELD programs aim to address the needs
of parents by providing infmmation in five
subject areas: health, child development,
child guidance, family management and
personal growth. Services are flexible and
designed to meet the needs of specific populations including new parents, parents whose
children have special needs, teen mothers,
young Afiican American mothers, Latino
families and
Hmong families.
The MELD program has been
replicated at more
than 100 sites in
the U.S. The organization provides training
and on-going teclmical assistance to its
partnering agencies.
PAT (Parents as Teachers)
St. Louis, Missouri
Voice: (314) 432-4330 Fax: (314) 4328963
E-mail: patnc@patnc.org
Web page: www.patnc.org
AT's mission is to help parents give
their children the best start in life.
The program's basic assumptions are
that all families have strengths and that
parents are the experts on their child. The
program has four components: regular home
visits by PAT-certified parent educators;
group meetings for parents, some of which
include parent-child activities; annual developmental screenings, beginning at age one;
and connections with cmrununity resources,
NCFR REPORT
which may include speech and hearing
clinics, diagnostic services, leaming resources for children and parents, lending
libraries, social service agencies, etc.
The PAT program has been implemented in
more than 2,000 sites in 49 states in the
U.S., Australia, Canada, England, Malaysia,
New Zealand and the West Indies. More
than 8,000 educators have been trained and
certified by the Parents as Teachers National
Center.
The program has received significant national recognition, but according to Nick
Carter, PAT's "effectiveness with lowincome populations is stilltmclear ... supervision and update of skills is not strong
in replicated models."
Cooperative Extension
Web page: bluehen.ags.udel.edu/strength/
broadcast/index.html
Some of the nation's first
parent education programs
were started through Cooperative Extension. Today
many university extension
divisions still participate in
·· , · \
parent education and family support programs. This Website at the University of
Delaware lists model programs nominated
by Cooperative Extension staff in each state.
The programs target parents of young children, parents of adolescents, at-risk and
low-income parents, teen parents, first-time
parents and others.
13
amily Resource Coalition of
America is an alliance of people
and organizations involved with
family support. This Web site contains a
selection of essays and ariicles that include
program models, tips, descriptions of helpful
publications, intemet resources, and national
organizations. Includes links to other sites of
interest. www.frca.org
National Association for the Education of
Young Children. This site includes an
online catalogue of resources published by
the organization as well as news about conferences and workshops. www.naeyc.org
National Black Child Development Institute publishes pamphlets and magazines on
a variety of topics, including pm·enting,
public policy, and child health care.
www.nbcdi.org
National Child Care Information Center.
This ve1y rich site, which is part of ERIC,
offers information such as finding child
care, health and safety in child care, brain
development in infants and toddlers. You'll
find links to a wide variety of both federal
and nongovemmental agencies and organizations. www.nccic.org
National Council on Family Relations
publishes a collection of family resources Parenting Ed continued on next page
MARCH 1999
�PARENTING ED
continuedfi-mn page 13
books, video and audiotapes, leaming tools, and family life education materials. Sample topics include: children, adolescents and
families; diversity and families; violence and families; work and
families. You may request a free catalog online. www.ncfr.org
National Parent Information Network (NPIN) is a project sponsored by two ERIC clearinghouses: the ERIC Clearinghouse on
Urban Education at Teachers College, Colm11bia University, New
York City; and the ERIC Clearinghouse on Elementmy and Early
Childhood Education at the University of Illinois at UrbanaChampaign. The purpose ofNPIN is to provide infonnation to
parents and those who work with parents and to foster the exchange of parenting materials. Materials include full text on NPIN
have been reviewed for reliability and usefulness. www.npin.org
Family Relations
Editor Nominations
Still Open
NCFR nominations for editor of Family Relations:
Interdisciplinmy Journal of Applies Family Studies
will continue to be open through May, 1999. Please
nominate yourself or another colleague.
A Must For Every Professor's Classroom
~
Second Hand Emotions: Tneir Effect on Families
The four-year tenn of the new editor will begin with the
Order your copy of the special isstte of ]oumal of
Marriage and the Family: vol.61:1 today!
publication of January 2001 issue. Editorial responsibilities, including processing of manuscripts will
This special issue contains a series of research reports on
the emotional transmission and patterns of behavior that
effect families when outside stress and negative events
happen to spouses and children in a family.
Titles include:
• Emotional Iiansmission in the Daily Lives of Families:
A New Paradigm for Studing Family Process by Reed
Larson & David Almeida
• Ji·ansmission of Emotions in the Daily Interaction of
Single-Mother Families by Reed Larson & Sally Gillman
• Emotional Ji·ansmission in Couples Under Stress by
Anne Thompson & Niall Bolger
• Daily Ji·ansmission of Tmsion Between Mmital Dyads
and Parent-Child Dyads by David Almeida, Elaine
Wethington, & Amy Chandler
• Anger IiullSmission from Mother to ChiH A Compmison of
Mothers in Chronic Pain and Well Mothers by Geraldine
Downey, Valerie Purdie & Rebecca Shaffer-Neitz
be transfened to the new editor
around June, 2000 near the close
ofJeffrey Dwyer's tenn at
publication of the October,
2000 issue.
DEADLINE FOR
APPLICATIONS IS
For more infotmation regarding
responsibilities and application process,
call NCFR or contact at the following addresses:
NCFR Editor Search
3989 Central Ave. N.E. Suite 550
Mitmeapolis, MN 55421
Single copies of this edition are $21.00
and can be obtained from:
National Council on Family Relations
NCFR
Toll free phone: 888-781-9331 + Fax: 612-781-9348
e-mail: ncfr3989@ ncfr.org
3989 Central Avenue NE; Suite 550; Mpls, MN 55421
Phone: 612-781-9331 FA,\: 612-781-9348
E-mail: ncfr3989@ncfr.org Website: www.ncfr.org
ave you brought in a new member lately?
NCFR REPORT
14
MARCH 1999
�CFR's Future
Deciding
e have an historic decision to
make during the next year or
so, when an opportunity for
NCFR will open up for a time and then
probably close down. We must decide
whether to fully commit NCFR and its
resomces to becoming the leading organization in the emerging area of preventive,
educational work with families-specifically,
in the fields of parenting education and
marriage and couples education.
Parenting education, as Glen Palm's article
in this newsletter recmmts, has been around
as a practice area since at least the 1930's.
But it is becoming much more visible on the
national scene. Government, private agencies, and now even businesses are creating
parenting education programs to work with
families before they require therapeutic or
social services. In most states and in
Canada, there is an urgent need for credentials and standards for parenting education.
As more resources flow to parenting education, entrepreneurial agencies with few
quality standards hire any willing provider,
sometimes creating scandalously poor programs with cunicula uninfmmed by research and the best pedagogy.
In both parenting education
couples education, there are
NCFR can also offer a professional home
for parenting educators who now lack a
single professional association. Tlu·ough its
conference, journals, and specially created
continuing education services, NCFR can
help parenting educators fmther their
professional development. And NCFR can
advocate for the profession of parenting
education, promoting
the viability of the
and marriage and field across North
organizations and Ameli ca.
What can NCFR offer to parenting education? To. begin with, we have a long tenn
interest in this area- but not yet a vigorous
commitment. Through our Certified Family
Life Educator program, we can create a
specialization in
parenting education that
Special Issues of Family Relations Are
would aiiiculate the
a Must For Your Classroom or Library!
knowledge, training, and
skills needed for competent practice. We can
October 1998
offer a voluntary certifiGuest edited by EA. Vandewater and I. C. Anonucci
Articles Include:
cation credential that
• The Social Ecology of Middle Childhood: Family Support,
parenting educators can
Friendship Quality, and Self-Esteem- Franco &: Levitt
aspire to and that organi• Influences of Family Structure and Parental Conflict on
zations that hire
Childrens Well-Being- Vandewater&: Lansford
parenting educators can
• Effect of Family Stmcture, Family Process, and Father
view as evidence of
Involvement on Psychosocial Outcomes Among African
American Adolescents- Salem, Zimmerman, &: Notaro
professional compe• Parenting Alone to Multiple Caregivers: Child Care and
tence. The credential
Parenting Ammgemnts in Black and White Urban Families
should be flexible
- Hunter, Pearson, lalongo &: Kellam
enough so as not to
• Adult Attachment Styles: Relations with Emotional Wellraise unnecessmy barriBeing, Marriage, and Parenting- Volling, Notaro, &: L1rsen
ers to community-based
• Sibling Relationship Troubles and Well-Being in Middle
and Old Age- Bedford
individuals with talents
• The Good, the Bad, and the Worrisome: Emotional
in parenting education,
Complexities in Grandparents' Experiences with
but rigorous enough to
Individual Grandchildren -Fingerman
assme that only well• Supporting Families as They Adopt Children with Special
qualified individuals
Needs - Kramer and Houston
can call themselves
ct National Council on Family Relations
To order call NCFR
credentialed parenting
0 ct 3989 Central Avenue NE, Suite 550
Toll free 888-781-9331
Minneapolis, MN 55~21
educators.
~r11.
612-781-93~8
Toll free: 888-781-9331 Phone:
612-781-9331 FAX:
NCFR E-mail: ncfr3989@ncfr.org
NCFR REPORT
The second opportunity lies in the newly
revived area of marriage and couples education. NCFR members have been active in this area since the
1970s when it was known as matTiage
enrichment, and we even have had a family enrichment section in NCFR. But
NCFR as an organization has stayed on the
sidelines as man·iage and couples education has experienced a remarkable resurgence in the late 1990s. Some speculate
that this will be the fastest growing professimlal area in the family field. We have the
same
opportuIn other words, we
nity here
walk through the
as with
parenting
doors that are now
education: to
open, we will be a
create
different organization. voluntary
credentialing as a specialization within the
CFLE program, to offer professional
development opportunities, and to advocate for the profession and practice of
marriage and couples education.
leaders interested in collaborating with NCFR.
$19.00 U.S, per issue
$21.00 non-U.S. per issue
In addition to creating
credentialing standards,
15
if
n both parenting education and marriage and couples education, there are
organizations and leaders interested in
collaborating with NCFR. If we do not
move vigorously into these areas, I imagine that new membership organizations
will be created to fill the need. This would
continued on next page
I
MARCH 1999
�Should NCFR be the major credentialing and professional development
association for parent educators and marriage and couples educators?
Following are summaries of articles submitted by CFLE Focus Group Chair Lane Morris, CFLE,
and CFLE Certification Review Cmmnittee Chair Suzanne Begin, CFLE. The articles are in response to NCFR President Bill
Doherty's request for feedback regarding his proposal that NCFR provide specialty certifications for parent and marriage and couple
educators (See NCFR Report 12/98). -Dawn Cassidy, M.Ed., Certification Director
Benefits of Specialty
Certifications
Specialty Certification:
Proceed with Caution
s a CFLE, I would like to positively respond to Dr. Doherty's question, and in doing so, share some of the reasons
why I believe specialty certifications should be included in
the CFLE program's future direction.
r. Lane Morris provides detailed rationale for suppmiing
the inclusion of parenting and marriage/couple educators
in a 'tiered-certification system" in the NCFR/CFLE program. As Chair of the NCFR/CFLE Review Committee, I also
support Dr. Bill Doherty's vision, but offer reasons why I believe
(at least for parent - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
First, media reports show nationwide trends toward growing support for marriage and parenting education. This is significant, as no
clearly recognized organizational leader in the behavioral or social
science field has established itself as the governance body to credential or provide professional development opportunities for parent and marriage education professionals. Greater demands from
legislators and consumers to guarantee professional competence
and conduct will follow. Likewise, consmner demands for credible
education materials will arise. To be perceived as a leader, the
NCFR/CFLE program should step forward to accept this responsibility.
continued fimn page 15
be a loss for NCFR and the field, because
NCFR can bring unique resources stemming from our long history and our professional diversity. NCFR is especially
equipped to lead the way in researchbased preventive practice with families. If
we move decisively in this direction, it will
require special attention to maintaining the
special culture ofNCFR-our commitment to
NCFRREPORT
education practitioners may not
Competition
Second, a "tiered-certification system" would attract new members
from other professional groups with "specialist" competence, giving NCFR the critical mass in membership needed for a stronger
public voice. For many years CFLEs have expressed their desire to
see state govenunents give recognition (e.g., licensure) to CFLEs as
an occupational group of prevention-based education providers.
However, given that there are approximately 800 CFLEs nation-wide,
we do not have the "critical mass" of CFLE members to com-pel
·state legislators to take a serious look at granting such recognition
and possible licensure.
Benefits continued on next page
NCFR'S FUTURE
The critical mass ofparenting
educators) NCFR
should proceed
with CAUTION.
have the academic preparation of
Over the last five "professionals," yet they are
years I have
successfttlly selling their services.
joined my
parenting education colleagues in actively seeking a professional home. There are
numerous national, regional or local groups vying for my membership dollars. For NCFR to become the association, an investment
will need to be made to market research and design.
Academic Preparation
Parenting education practitioners vary in academic preparation as
well as content focus. The critical mass of parenting education
practitioners may not have the academic preparation of "professionals," yet they are successfully selling their services. Head
research, our bottom-up approach to creating connections among members, our
efforts to make a difference in family policy.
It will require that we rethink the CFLE
program, making it more flexible and more
advocacy-oriented. It will require that we
take family diversity and racial and ethnic
diversity more to heart than we have before, if we are to prepare professionals who
work with today's families. If we have an
influx ofbachelors degree members who
are credentialed family educators, we will
16
Caution continued on next page
have to work hard t6 maintain programs
and services that meet the needs of members with graduate degrees as well.
In other words, if we walk through the
doors that are now open, we will be a different organization. The Board and I would
like to hear from you about whether you
want us to say "yes" to these opportunities and whether you believe that the inevitable changes in NCFR are worth making.
Bill Doherty, Ph.D., NCFR President
MARCH 1999
�BENEFITS
continued fi·om page 16
Third, by including other professional
groups that also provide prevention-based
family life education (e.g., clergy, attorneys, physicians, nurses), NCFR's CFLE
program could assume the premier prevention-based education leadership role, and
thereby, potentially eliminate the need for
other organizations to compete with or
splinter the prevention-based education
profession.
O
bviously, not every practicing
family life education professional
by academic or professional development training possesses preparation
in all ten substance areas currently required
for full CFLE approval. However, these
family life education professionals will
continue to successfully practice. NCFR's
CFLE program possesses subsets of criteria that would
guarantee competence from
many interested
professionals to
seek a "specialist" cetiification. In sum, I
would rather
these practicing
specialists
achieve cetiification "in part"
LANE MORRIS, CFLE
through NCFR's
CFLE program than lose their membership
to another organization or see them fail to
pursue any certification at all. Furthermore, I would venhtre to say that most of
NCFR's CFLE members practice as specialists in a few substance areas like human sexuality, marriage education, and
parent education rather than in all ten
substance areas. I know this is tme for me!
Fomih, by granting a "specialist" certification, NCFR would elevate rather than
diminish or water-down the stahts of"traditional" CFLE. By possessing the "traditional" certification, these professionals
would be certified specialists in all ten
substance areas. This would greatly
strengthen the marketability of such professionals.
Fifth, a "tiered-cetiification system" that
granted specialist certifications would
strengthen existing NCFR-approved academic programs. A tiered system might
NCFR REPORT
encourage professionals to seek additional
continued educational training through
NCFR's approved instimtions as these
professionals seek to broaden the number
of their specializations.
affiliated with NCFR. There has always
been an academic adage that "good research infonns. good teaching." Similarly,
why shouldn't practice also be informed by
research, and in htm, research be infonned
by practice? Greater
collaboration between
A "tiered-certification system" that granted
researchers and practispecialist certifications would strengthen
tioners would strengthen
the influence of the
existing NCFR-approved academic programs. design, implementation,
and evaluation of evety
Sixth, as NCFR's CFLE program becomes family life educator's programmatic
efforts.
more entrepreneurial, greater economic
growth might become a reality. Economic
I invite dialogue with my CFLE colleagues
solvency and profits might be recognized
conceming this important question. My
through increased revenues in membership e-mail address is mmonisl@utk.edu.
dues, product development, CEU mition
Michael Lane Morris, Ph.D., CFLE
and more.
Assistant Professor, Child and Family
Finally, a large infusion of practitioners
Smdies
into the NCFR membership would enThe University of Tennessee, Knoxville
hance rather than diminish the quality of
Director ofB.E.S.T. Families
research being conducted by professionals
1999 CFLE Focus Group Chair
CAUTION
continuedji·om page 16
Start, Title One, and the National PTA
have long been producing parenting educators using a 'peer education' model. For
NCFR to become the association, a decision will need to be made regarding the
definition of parenting educator.
United States Government
unding for parenting education
comes from many federal, state and
local govemment agencies, each
with their own rules and regulations. In
Georgia, over $16 million was allocated
for parenting education activities in FY98
and no specific education or credentials
were required of practitioners. For NCFR
to become the association, an investment
will need to be made to advocacy and
public policy.
Training
Program developers are capitalizing on the
increased demand from legislators and
consumers to guarantee professional competence and produce quality products.
Training is marketed nationwide offering
certification, on-going technical assistance
and a network of colleagues. For NCFR to
become the association, an investment
will need to be made to professional devel17
opment products
and services.
Individuals
Most individuals
evaluate their
membership in
any organization
with the WIIFM
tool (what's in it
for me). If the
SUZANNE BEGIN, CFLE
membership package does not enhance
their daily life, the credential isn't required,
and the training isn't included, why should
they enroll? For NCFR to become the
association, an investment will need to be
made to demographic research.
Organizations/Employers
Each organization sets it's own standard
for parenting education. Organizations that
subscribe to a specific program require the
credential associated with that particular
program. Employers typically require field
of shtdy credentials and expect employees
to deliver parenting education. For NCFR
to be the organization, an investment will
need to be made to a public education
campaign focused on employers.
Caution continued on next page
MARCH 1999
�N FR eflects the Changing
Face of II ssociations
s I w1ite one of my
last colmm1s as
NCFR's executive director, I am
grateful for your support over these last 15
years, and especially for yom most recent
response to the changes in NCFR's By-laws.
They will help propel NCFR into the next
mille1mitm1 as a viable, mature professional
association. I am confident that NCFR's role
in our emerging infonnation society is just
as important as it was in the previous indusnial era. However, NCFR and all associations are facing unprecedented changes for
which there are NO tested models.
twas affim1ing to read the results of a
1998 Environmental Scan conducted
by the American Society of Association
Executives Fmmdation*. They concluded
that in order to remain competitive and
relevant, associations must reshape themselves. With the recent By-laws changes,
NCFR is well on its way, but there remain
many future challenges. Fourteen interrelated trends affecting all organizations were
identified.
1. LEADERSIDP'S ROLE -To move into
the 21st century, new leadership characteristics must become an association priority.
NCFR has just adopted the Carver Model of
Board Govemance radically changing the
Board and how it functions. In addition, a
new executive director will assume leaderReference: Rhea Blanken & Allen Liff,
The Changing Face of Associations. Jan. 1999,
Association Mgmt. p. 97-103.
CAUTION
ship ofNCFR on July 1, 1999.
2. FOCUS ON VALUE AND RETURN
ON INVESTMENT BY MEMBERSNCFR is responding to members requests
for elecn·onic commmlication with its new
web page and a list serve. NCFRjmm1als
will soon be on line in full text.
3. RESPONSIVENESS- Rapid response to
member and extemal needs requires that
NCFR be fast, fluid, and flexible. The
smaller board and better defined roles of
In order to remain competitive
and relevant, associations must
reshape themselves.
both the Board and staff ofNCFR will make
this possible.
4. GOVERNANCE -The NCFR stll.Icture
has to deal with increasing complexities and
a fast-paced environment. NCFR has responded, but the challenge remains to hear
fi·om members and to act upon their recommendations.
5. REVENUE SOURCES -New ilmovations and part11erships are needed to increase
the il1come somces. We can no longer rely
on the jmm1als for full support of the organization. Deficit departments such as annual
conference and CFLE will need to break
even or make a profit.
continued.fi·om page 17
NCFR Mission
Establishing professional standards is core to the NCFR mission. NCFR/CFLE must
avoid being swept away by the entreprenemial spirit. The economic solvency and profits that MIGHT be realized through increased revenues in membership dues, product
development, and CEU tuition through on/off campus leaming opportunities, should
never jeopardize the integrity of THE professional association the nation has come to
know as home to credible researchers and practitioners.
Suzanne Begin, CFLE, is a Parenting Program Specialist for Egleston Children's Health
Care System in Georgia. Her E-mail is sbegin@mail.egleston.org.
NCFRREPORT
18
6. TECHNOLOGY USE -To link members, build relationships and foster communities will be parammmt. NCFR has always
been ahead in this area as evidenced by the
fanner Family Resomces Database, but the
growth of Section list serves and linkages
with affiliates via the intemet present new
and exciting opportunities.
7. CHANGE LOOPS- NCFR's ability to
master tmplanned change and tmexpected
consequences will require a different
mindset in planning and budgeting. NCFR
has a stable reserve of over $1.5 million, but
the challenge is to keep operating expenses
in line and increase revenue somces.
8. GENERATIONAL ISSUES - NCFR is
expe1iencing generational shifts among staff,
Board and membership as matme members
(pre-1946ers) retire; the boomers look to
early retirement and the new generation
(1965-85 cohort) take on the leadership
roles. Perceptions and loyalties, preferences,
services, and degrees of volunteerism are
changing the cultme ofNCFR. We have yet
to respond.
9. WORKFORCE- NCFR will have a
greater challenge in attracting staff with a
balanced mix of business, technical, social
and professional skills.
10. OUTSOURCING AND CO-SOURCING
- Requires distinguishing between core and
non-core functions and their strategic vs.
cost-saving benefits for NCFR. Thus, the
move to outsource joumal management to
Allen Press in July 1999.
11. COMPETITION- Will increase
NCFR's vulnerability as an organization and
force us to seek new and non-traditional
allies. This is bome out in the recent discussions on parenting education, marriage and
couples education, and others.
12. CONSOLIDATIONS AND MERGERS
- Their affect on NCFR revenues, services,
NCFR Reflects continued on next page
MARCH 1999
�NCFR REFLECTS
continued ji-om page 18
and membership categories remains to be
seen as NCFR downsizes central staff by
1/3, consolidates journal management, and
closes its publications department.
13. GLOBALIZATION- NCFR began to
redefine its boundaries years ago, but it is
challenged to find better ways of finding
and keeping members abroad as global
economies affect professionals in other
countries.
14. IMAGE BUILDING- Increasing
public scrutiny and competition will force
NCFR to promote its members' credibility
and the unique value of their services and
activities. NCFR is challenged to expand
its CFLE program, its services and its
public value in the future.
ncreasingly, all leaders ofNCFRBoard, staff, members - need to see
the "big picture." This requires looking beyond the boundaries ofNCFR, out of
the box, to be pioneers - innovative in
trying new approaches, to leam by doing,
and to be willing to question our most
basic assumptions about all aspects of
NCFR.
I
111
Why do we need NCFR?
o What are our members' needs?
o Are we really meeting those needs?
o Why should we retain non-profit status?
e Will digital members replace checkbook
members?
o Can NCFR satisfy ALL of its members?
o Will specialty groups (such as sections,
focus groups) break away?
I trust that as new leadership takes the
helm, the staff and Board will demonstrate
the characteristics ofleadership- the ability to pioneer, to deal with uncertainties,
the capacity to anticipate where NCFR is
headed, and the commitment to engage
diverse members in sharing the vision for
NCFR.
The groundwork has been laid. It is now
time for building on a fim1 foundation.
NCFR will survive and thrive with bold
new leadership assisted by technology, a
caring but changing member base, and
interaction with its members and beyond.
Mary Jo Czaplewski, Ph.D., CFLE
Executive Director
NCFR REPORT
velyn Millis Duvall, a co-fmmding
member ofNCFR and our first Executive Director, died on December
13, 1998 in Sarasota, Florida. She was 92.
mental psychology, religious education,
law, educational psychology, home economics, hmnan development, sociology
were represented.
Evelyn Millis Duvall was a professor at the
University of Chicago and a colleague of
Emest W. Burgess, one ofNCFR's
founders. She was a tireless advocate of
Family Life Education, marriage preparation and enrichment, parenting education,
Intemational family studies, the role of
religion in family life, teen pregnancy
prevention, and aging. She is
most remembered for her role in
introducing the Family Development Theory.
In the early 1950's Evelyn became a tireless advocate of international family studies alliances and for several years was
NCFR's representative to the International
Union of Family Organizations. She was
the first chair of the NCFR International
Liaison Committee to recognize an emerging world movement toward strengthening
Dr. Duvall was elected Secretary/Treasurer ofNCFR, then
known as the National Conference on Family Relations, in
1941. She was formally appointed.executive director at a
salary of$1.00/year from 1944
to 1953. By 1949 NCFR had
changed its name to its present
title and boasted 2,967 members
with 19 regional and state affiliates which were encouraged
through her effmis.
She was an organizing member
of the 1st White House Conference on Families where she and
Reuben Hill presented their
landmark repmi on "The Dynamics of Family Interaction".
As a pioneer in family development theory, she authored over
30 textbooks and research volmnes, several of which were
D1: Evelyn Millis Duvall in 1986 when shefounded the
translated into 17 foreign lanDuvall Endmved Chair in Family Development at the
guages and used worldwide. At
University ofSouth Florida.
the 1949 NCFR national conference, she suggested that the loosely orgafamily life. During that time she also
nized topical committees be formed with a established NCFR's "Teacher Exchange"
permanent membership as Sections to
which highlighted special "research finds"
bring greater continuity to the organizawith practical infom1ation for teachers.
tion. This was the beginning ofNCFR's
Evelyn and her husband, Sylvanus, were
Sections. She also organized NCFR's
parents of two daughters, Jean and Joy and
National Committee on Marriage and
together they traveled the world lecturing
Family Research and directed the first
on family life. In 1963, she delivered one
interdisciplinary workshop on Marriage
ofNCFR's keynote addresses on "The
and Family Research ever held in the
United States. Eleven disciplines including
Evelyn Duvall continued on page 28
biology, anthropology, economics, experi19
MARCH 1999
�This column will feature news ofNCFRpromotions, awards, career changes of interest
to all members. Wi·ite to us and let us lazow what you are doing.
111
he following persons have contributed donations since November
i
1998. Their generosity aids NCFR
in continuing its programs and awards.
T
1111
General Fund
Daniel F. Hobbs, Jr. -Athens, GA
Gay C. Kitson"- Akron, OH
11111
John Lewis McAdoo
Dissertation Award
Rachel Ozretich- Corvallis, OR
Hattie C. Fields- Chicago, IL
Tammy L. Henderson- Corvallis, OR
Leanor B. Johnson- Scottsdale, AZ
Estella A. Martinez- Albuquerque,
Harriette McAdoo- Okemos, MI
Onida E. Westney- Silver Spring, MD
Wynona Bryant-Williams- Little
Rock,AR
Mary Jo Czaplewski Fellowship
Michael Sporakowski- Blacksburg,
David H. Olson- North Oaks, MN
Ronald & Ann Mullis -Tallahassee,
Lynda & James Walters- Athens, GA
Catherine Chilman- Washington, DC
Margaret Feldman -Washington, DC
For more information on contributing to
NCFR, contact: NCFR Executive Director,
3989 Central Ave. NE, Suite 550,
Minneapolis, MN 55421
free: 888-781-9331 ext. 17.
111
CATHERINE SOLHEIM- from Associate Professor in tl1e Department ofHmnan
Development and Family Studies, Aubum University, AL, to Associate Dean for
Extension, Office of Outreach, College ofHuman Ecology, University ofMitmesota,
St. Paul, MN.
DAVID WRIGHT- from Professor of Family Studies and Human Sciences at Kansas
State University, to Depmiment Chair of Family and Child Sciences at Florida State
University, Tallahassee, FL.
RICHARD GELLES- Jiom Professor and Director ofFamily Violence Research
Center at the University of Rhode Island, Kingston, RI, to The Joanne and Raymond
Welsh Endowed Chair of Child Welfare and Family Violence, University ofPennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA.
GRETCHEN ZUNKEL- fi"om Lectmer/Post-Doctoral Fellow in Women's Health
Research, University of Washington, to Assistant Professor in the Psychosocial/
Mental Health Nurse Practitioner Program at Arizona State University, Phoenix, AZ.
IIGnila.imm ~E)fi •me mzamlewsli
lellmwstiiim im gf.hmimisf&alimm
Ilwe am/are proud to contribute to the Mary Jo Czaplewski Fellowship Fund to help
support professionals who wish to obtain training and make a mid-career move into
administration. Enclosed is a check payable to NCFR!Czaplewski Fellowship Fund for:
0
0
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Method of Payment:
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NATIONAL BALLOT
PROCEDURE
CHANGES
NOTICE: The slates for NCFR national
officers and for Section offices will no
longer appear in tins issue ofReport.
h1stead, they will accompany the ballots
which will be sent to all active NCFR
members the first week ofApril for
retum by May 1 postmark date.
NCFRREPORT
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U.S. funds drawn on U.S. banks only.
•
MAIL TO:
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3989 CentralAve. NE, Suite#550
Minneapolis, MN 55421
20
NCFR
MARCH 1999
�eport from Wash in t n
s Congress finally settles down to
legislation, topping the list of Congressional and Presidential issues
are social security and education. In my
estimation, these, and all the other major
issues of concern are intergenerational and
family issues. We should be thinking of
them in this way and making the voice of
advocacy for families heard. The bottom
line question in Washington appears to be
WHO SHOULD BENEFIT from the federal surplus and from overhauls of social
security and education in this country? Those at the top by way of tax cuts, or
those at the bottom, the poor, by way of
entitlements?
The Third Millennium, an upper class
"advocacy group for young Americans"
invited a large number of DC officials,
policy advocates and neighborhood
people to an elegant, free sit-down lunch
in a Congressional hearing room. Findings were presented from a national random poll of 804 adults 18 and older,
sponsored by the Oppenheimer Funds.
The survey showed that about 50% overall, but more young than old, believe
social security will not be there when they
retire. Speakers included several investment professionals but also Theodore
Marmor, professor of social policy at
Yale, who has edited the book: Economic
Security and Intergenera-tional Justice;
The results of two different surveys were
and Earl Pomeroy, U.S. Congressman
presented in January here in Washington.
from North Dakota. Both discussed social
The first dealt with social security and the
security as an important family program,
second with the great income disparity in
as part of the national safety net. People
the United States and its effect on families.
forget that before social
security, children were
responsible for their
aged parents. Some
working families had
tremendous burdens
while others had none.
And Fireworks Too!!
Social security made
.My 1-4, 1999- WEIIiugkr~ DC
income in old age a
~
shared risk, a universal
program. Also, social
M.arkman. Weiner-Davis. Gue!;ney, Notarius, Miller, Olson,
security funds enabled
Gordon, Hendrix. Doherty. l&ve, Glass, McManus, Parrott,
mothers to stay home
Vaughan. Stosny, HarBrave. Popenoe, SmaUey, Covey,
and care for their chilVlsher. Jordan, Kobbe, Markey, Holman, & Gov & Mrs Leavi tt, and more than 100 pnsenters will bring you up-to-dale
dren when the breadon the latest research and applications in the burgeoniog
winner died or became
field of marriage and family education.
disabled. Social secuPeople are more interested than ever in strengthening marrity now compensates
riage. At this conference you can train and qualify to teach
for low lifetime earnpractical new practice-expandiog programs including:
ings by returning more
PREP. PAIRS. Couple Communication. Relationship Ento low income earners,
hancement. Divorce Busting, IMAGO, Bot Monogamy,
Marriage Savers:, Community Marriage Policies. Mentor
but even so, does not
·
Com
·on W:
compensate equitably
for women's different
labor patterns and their
greater longevity. The
proposed system of
investment in individual accounts would
Co-sponsored by NCFR
not meet any of the
The Coalition for Marriage, Family & ~es Education, u.c
For a oonference broclmre or the FREE Online NewSett.er
safety net safeguards.
Happy Families
NCFR REPORT
21
The second survey was delivered by the
Urban Institute, a non-profit monitoring
group concerned about the poor. In its
report, Assessing the Nerv Federalism, held
at the Press Club it presented the results of
their latest survey. They stated that "Initial
results from one of the most comprehensive surveys to date of America's families
paint a complex picture of family life.
While most
families, regardAbout 50% overall, less of income,
offer their chilbut more young
dren a supportthan old, believe
ive home envisocial security will ronment, the
new data show
not be there when that many children, especially
they retire.
in low-income
families, experience significant hardship. Moreover, unexpectedly large differences in findings
among states suggest that some states face
greater challenges then others, particularly
in providing access to health care for lowincome working age adults." Family structure matters. Many families worry about
having enough food, 30 percent have had
trouble paying the rent in the last year, and
twelve percent of children and increasing
percentages of low-income adults have no
health insurance. Massachusetts, Michigan,
Minnesota and Wisconsin have the fewest
children with no health insurance while
Mississippi and Texas have the most. See
this report at Urban Institute's
www.urban.org.
Education provides the workers of the future
who will pay the social security tax to provide retirement income for the aging. More
affluent families can provide the extras their
children need while those of lower income
are dependent on taxes only. This is a family
issue, but a policy issue as well. The Depariment of Education publishes a newsletter
regarding their Pminership for Family Involvement in Education. This can be found
on the Web: http://pfle.ed.gov. How education money is spent is clearly a family issue.
Margaret Feldman, Ph.D.
NCFR Policy Representative
MARCH 1999
�How Does NCFR's Conference Compare
to Other Association Conferences?
he August 1998 issue of Association Meetings carried an article,
"1998 Trend Report- Full Steam
Ahead for Association Meetings," which
summarized a nationwide survey sent to
associations. Let's compare NCFR's Cmlference to national trends.
T
Jl;feeting Pe1jormance is Up and Away
A. Attendance between 1996 and 1997 NCFR increased by 16.5%. Survey
results: 48.5% increased; 40.1% stayed
the same; 10.9% decreased; .5% na
B. Conference revenues between 1996 and
1997- NCFR increased by 12.4%. Smvey
results: 52.7% increased; 30.8% stayed
the same; 9.0% decreased; .5% na
C. Cmlference expenses between 1996 and
1997 - NCFR increased by 22.2%.
Survey results: 58.0% increased; 30.5%
stayed the same; 10.5% decreased;
1.0% na
National Council on Family Relations
61st Annual Conference
Between 1990 and 1996
several family associations
similar to NCFR noted a
marked decrease in attendance while NCFR's attendance continued to grow.
Keeping Jllfeetings
A.ffordable
November 12-15, 1999
Hyatt Regency Hotel, Irvine, CA
Program Chair: Katherine Allen, CFLE, Virginia Tech
Plenary Speakers
Itttergenerational Fami/y Legacies
Across Time and Space, Mary
Catherine Bateson, George
Mason U.; lnst. for
Intercultural Studies
Expenencu of Afncatt-AmencanJ
Dun"ng the RIIral to uroan
Migration in the Ear/y 20th
Century, Lou Bellamy, U. of
Minnesota; Penumbra Theatre
Co., St. Paul, MN
Contemporary Immigration Issues
Affecting Hispanic Familes, Particular/y tit Califomia, Marta
Sotomayor, Nat!. Hispanic
Coun. on Aging, Washington,
DC; former US Delegation to
HABITAT II, UN Conf. on
Human Settlements, Turkey
Research Updates for Practitioners
Methods Update; Boundary Ambiguity in Families; Helping Youth
Succeed: Bi-Cultural Parenting for Southeast Asian Families
Contact: NCFR, Toll free: 888-781-93331 Fax: 612-7819348; E-mail: ncfr3989@ncfr.org; Website: www.ncfr.org
NCFR REPORT
The survey ranked the concems of associations. Respondents were asked to rank their
concem for each item on a
scale of 1 to 6, with 6 being of
great concem. Percentages
below reflect the percent of
respondents who ranked their
concem as either five or six.
• 66.3% Keeping meetings
affordable. This is also a top
primity for NCFR.
• 62.1% Building meeting
revenues. This is major for
NCFR so that the conference
does not run in a deficit.
• 61.0% Getting preferred
dates/facilities. For NCFR this
is also related to keeping
meetings affordable.
• 50.0% Keeping up with
teclmology. NCFR is concemed with on-site costs and
serving members.
22
•
48.0% Doing more with the same/less
staff. NCFR's staff has decreased by
33% this year.
In today's booming economy, it is considered a "sellers" market for hotels. Nationwide primary actions for keeping meetings
affordable were:
•
Raising registration fees
•
Cutting back on food and beverage
prograrmmng
•
Choosing lower cost cities/hotels
NCFR has wrestled with all these issues to
make its cmlferences affordable, but meet
the needs of most attendees. As an example,
Conference joumals indicate dollars can be
saved if meeting dates are flexible. In 1998
the NCFR Conference was Saturday
through Tuesday. After talldng with attendees, we have detennined that this is one
tactic that is not feasible for NCFR, so we
are changing the dates. The 1999 Conference ends on Monday, and beginning in
2000 it will again end on Sunday.
Technology
The overwhelming response to the question:
"What is your biggest technology-related
challenge when it comes to meetings ar1d
trade shows" was managing costs of technology both intemally with staff, and
externally with attendees and suppliers. In
particular, many noted the skyrocketing cost
of audiovisual rentals, as well as the escalating cost oflnternet access at the meeting
site, and inconsistent Internet service onsite.
CFR conferences face the same
challenges as other associations.
The primmy concem of the Program Cmmnittee and staff is trying to make
the Cmlference fit the needs of most attendees. Feel free to contact me with questions:
wintersc@ncfi·.org.
Cindy Winter
Conference Coordinator
MARCH 1999
�International Section
s I write this, it is cold and snowy
here in Idaho. So my thoughts
tum to sunny southem Califomia
and the NCFR annual meeting which will be
held there in November. With its crossculhiral theme, I look forward to seeing soon
many interesting presentation proposals.
We will also be electing new section officers
this year, so please look for the ballot when
it comes out and vote. We have a number of
exciting plans for 1999, and one of them has
to do with our summer newsletter. We are
looking for a simpler and less expensive
approach and have decided to try the following:
You are all aware that NCFR has a website
(www.ncfr.com). In it is basic infom1ation
on each of the sections. We have asked the
staff to create a subdirectory that will include
additional material that the section officers
send in. By the time you read this, the section
by-laws and the minutes of our business
meeting in Milwaukee should be on line.
From time to time, we will add other items as
well.
We have found that the large majority of our
section members have access to email, so we
are also in the process of creating a list serve
for the section. More on that once we get it
up and numing, but it will be open to anyone
with multi-cultt1ral interests.
We are also working on some other exciting
things to unveil later. For now, we look forward to reading the proposals and putting
Call for Student Papers.
he Family Therapy Section has
established two awards each
valued at $400.00 that will be
given annually to two sh1dents whose
papers are selected from a blind review
process as making a significant contribution to research and scholarship in
family therapy. Any student member in
the Family Therapy Section is eligible to
submit a paper for consideration. The
work must be original and may be the
product of a thesis, dissertation, or
other independent work completed by
the student. The review process for
papers submitted for the awards is
independent of the review that is
conducted for papers submitted for
presentation at the annual conference,
although students are encouraged to
participate in both.
Papers addressing the development or
integration of marriage and family
therapy theory, research, practice, or
training are encouraged. Papers will be
judged on the following criteria:
originality, scientific merit, and importance to the field of marital and family
therapy. A letter of support from the
student's major advisor is also required.
The letter should stipulate the original
contributions of the student to the
NCFRREPORT
paper and elaborate
the contribution of
others involved in the
preparation of the
manuscript or the
research team involved in the project.
Papers should be double-spaced and a
maximum of 25 pages including references. Style and reference fonnat should
follow the Publication Manual of the
American Psychological Association
(4th edition). Additional details about
the guidelines to be followed in each
January issue of Family Relations.
Four copies of the paper and a cover
letter stipulating the author's student
membership in the NCFR Family
Therapy Section, the name of the student's' major advisor, and the names of
others involved in the project should be
submitted to: Dr. Stephen A. Anderson,
Family Therapy Section Member-atLarge, University of Connecticut, School
of Family Stt1dies, Box 2058, 348 Mansfield Rd., Sto!Ts, CT 06269. Submissions
will be reviewed blind by members of the
Family Therapy Section. The Deadline
for submission is August 1, 1999.
Stephen A. Anderson, Ph.D.
anderss@uconnvm.uconn.edu
23
together the program for this Fall.
Bron Ingo1dsby, Ph.D.,
CFLE
Chair, Intemational
Section
208-356-1344
Research and
Theory Section
he Research and Theory Section
will be organizing two sessions at
the 1999 annual meeting in Irvine
that should be of broad interest to NCFR
members. First, Professor Ruben G.
Rumbaut, Professor of Sociology at Michigan State University, will be speaking on the
children of immigrant families. Professor
Rumbaut was bom in Havana, Cuba, and
received his Ph.D. in sociology from
Brandeis University. He has published
widely on immigration and is the co-director
of the Children of Immigrants Longitudinal
Study-the largest study of immigrant children in the United States to date. His talk will
focus on factors that influence the educational
attainment of children of immigrants.
T
Second, Professor Alan Acock, from the
Department of Human Development and
Family Science at Oregon State University,
will present a "methods update" on latent
growth models. His friendly introduction to
the topic is tentatively titled, "What I really
need to know about Latent Growth Models."
This talk will focus on how to interpret
growth models as they
appear in the research
literah1re. Following the
general talk, there will be
a detailed workshop
(including software demonstrations) for interested
researchers working with
longih1dinal data. It is assumed that researchers attending the workshop will first attend the
general introduction.
We will provide more details on the presentations by Professors Rumbaut and Acock in
future newsletters.
Paul R. Amato, Ph.D.
Chair, Research and Theory Section
MARCH 1999
�Association of Councils of the National Council on Famil
President's Report
Taiwan Council on
Family Relations
Role of Councils
in New Governance
n May 16, 1998 The Intemational
Family Life Education Center
reetings! As you know by now,
directed by Alice Lee Shih Wu
NCFR members voted to accept
celebrated its 10 year anniversary with over
the Carver model of board gover400 members, service providers and supnance. The decision has implications for us
porters in attendance at the Grand Hyatt
all and I am excited! We retain our repreHotel, Taipei, Taiwan.
sentation on the Board of Directors because
Congratulations to Mrs. Wu and her staff
of the unique role we play. The AC president will now be elected by the entire
for their successful pioneering efforts to
memberbring family life education to Taiwan in
many excellent programs. This organizaThe AC will become
ship rather
than just
tion which has received support of the
increasingly important by memMinistry of the Interior of Taiwan, the
bers of the
Rotary, and other foundations has delivered
to the dissemination of council.
many services in 10 outstanding programs
Continuwhich include the following:
information and
ity will be
1. Premaniage family life education
provided
professional advice.
this year
2. Sex education for children and teens
by the cunent officers. We amended our
3. Fatherhood education
constitution during November's annual
conference business meeting to reflect both
4. Family communication and positive
the changes anticipated and some of the
expression
suggestions put forth by the Task Force of
5. Aboriginal family life education
1997. One area which deserves attention
programs in East Taiwan
this year is the development of regional
councils to ensure that all NCFR members
6. U.N. Intemational Year of the Family
are participants in the govemance process,
(1994)
not just those who are actively involved in
7. Ethical education
each council. This initiative is a holdover
from earlier recommendations which I
Taivvan Council continued on next page
think that you will agree has some merit.
The logistics of the development will
require some planning and some input
from you. Your local presidents will receive the infonnation to share with you so
that feedback can be provided.
I strongly encourage yom participation in
the govemance process. The AC is
uniquely poised to contribute in significant
ways because of the role it plays within the
organization. NCFR's presence at the local
level is enhanced by your role as an affiliate. As academia and the family profession
refine its role in assisting families, the AC
will become increasingly important to the
dissemination of infonnation and professional advice. Collaborative effmis between govemmental agencies, researchers
and practitioners will become more well
defined as the knowledge becomes essential to address
the myriad of
needs that our
families will
require.
Coordination of
project effmis
and service
delivery may be
one project in
your communities that you may
begin thinking
NORMA BURGESS
he Califomia Council on Family Relations has sent out brochures and needs
about. The diversity of membership in the
assessment surveys to increase its membership, and we are pleased with the
local councils provides many w1tapped
response. In addition, Annmaria Rousey, a research consultant in Santa Monica, resources that might not have been considhas set up a listserve through which members may share infonnation and opinions about
ered. Now is the time! You are the experts
their research. Scott Plunkett, from the Califomia State University at Northridge has set in the cmmnunity with knowledge about
up a website at http://chhd.csun.edu/ccfr. Thanks go out to both of them.
families. I will look to hear about your
efforts this fall in Irvine. If your efforts are
CCFR is planning its first conference with a student component tentatively set in June.
successful, please share. If they are not
The first student chapter of CCFR being established at San Diego State University will be
successful, please share that also. We leam
assisting, and the hope is that other universities in Califomia will' consider starting chapters on their campuses as well. CCFR will be assisting with NCFR's 1999 annual confer- from the successes as much as we do from
the efforts that are not successful.
ence to be held in Irvine from November 10-15. Before the NCFR planning meeting in
April, we would like to gather everyone interested for a meeting about both conferences.
Norma Burgess, Ph.D.
Association of Councils President
Contact: CCFR, P. 0. Box 501547, San Diego CA 92150-1547, (619) 594-6501
California Council on Family Relations
NCFRREPORT
24
MARCH 1999
�Access NCFR's website at:
www.ncfr.org
To access Members Only:
user: legacy
password: burgess
To reach NCFR headquarters:
ncfr3989@Yncf~org
To reach specific staff members:
Mary Jo Czaplewski
czaplewski@ncfr.org
Dawn Cassidy
cassidyd@Yucfr.org
Doris Hareland
harelandd@Yncfr.org
John Pepper
pepperw@Yncfr.org
Jeanne Ryberg
400 attendees at the 10 year anniversmy ofthe IFLEC listen to Vice Mayor of Taipei, D1: Chia Tsen
Lin. Left to right: D1: Chen, City Councilman, Madam Wu, Mrs. Wang, new president, Ji;fr Chiang
and Alice Lee Shih T·Vu, Director ofIFLEC.
TAIWAN COUNCIL continuedfimn page 24
8. Emotional education
jryberg@Yncf~org
9. Family Life Education professional
training programs
Cindy Winter
wintersc@Yncfr.org
10. Inter-cultural resource networking
To reach NCFR President Bill Doherty:
bdoherty@che2.che.umn.edu
Within each of these ten programs, many
services and publications were delivered
to agencies and families of Taiwan. Alice
Lee Shih Wu has been tireless in her commitment to bringing awareness of family
issues to the Taiwan govemment officials,
and the press. She is highly respected by
many legislators. The programs have
received media coverage both on radio
and television.
Alice Lee Shih Wu
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�11
Kent State University, Associate
Professor, Gerontology
Associate Professor. Kent State University
seeks applications for a 9-month tenuretrack associate professor position in Gerontology beginning in the fall semester of
1999. Requirements: Doctorate in Gerontology, established publication record, and
teaching experience. Preference will be
given to candidates who possess leadership and team building skills, and a successful and sustained record of scholarship
and extramural funding.
Responsibilities of the position include
providing leadership to an interdisciplinary
graduate program, continued research and
scholarship, graduate and undergraduate
teaching and advising, and service. Review
of applications will begin on Aprill, 1999
and will continue until the position is filled.
Submit letter of application, resume, transcripts, evidence of scholarship, and three
11
University of New Hampshire,
Assistant Professor,
Family Studies
The Family Studies Department is accepting applications for a tenure-track Assistant Professor beginning September 1999.
Responsibilities include teaching, undergraduate/graduate courses in family relations, family assessment, parenting, adolescence, human sexuality, and supervise
family intems; conduct research; advise
students; serve on committees; advocate
for children and families. Earned doctorate
in Family Studies required. Experience
working with programs for families and
children preferred. Must have demonstrated teaching and research competence.
Applications will be accepted until the
position is filled. Send cover letter, current
vitae, samples of recent publications, and
arrange to have three recommendations
sent directly to: Dr. Lany J. Hansen, Chair,
UNH, Department ofFamily Studies, Pettee
Hall, 55 College Road, Dmham, NH 03824.
Phone (603)862-2146. Wesbsite: http://
www.unh.edu/family-studies. UNH seeks
excellence through diversity among its
faculty and strongly encourages women
and minorities to apply.
BY-LAWS
continued ji-om page 1
Mark Benson- At-large member
Norma Bond Burgess- President of Association of Councils
Debra Hughes Student/New Professional
Tim Brubaker- At-large member
Karen Bogenschneider- At-large member
Cheryl Beuhler- At-large member
Members wishing to communicate with the
Board of Directors may do so on NCFR's
new listserv at ncfr-list@lists.ncfr.com.
Head, Department of Human Development
Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University
The Department of Human Development is seeking applications for the position of Department Head, to begin July 1,
2000. The ideal candidate is a dynamic individual possessmg the leadership skills to guide an energetic and enthusiastic
multidisciplinary department. The department head promotes and supports diversity and collaborative endeavors among
faculty members and among students. The department head should have strong commitments to undergraduate and graduate
education, community outreach, and ap:rlied research. Required qualifications include an eamed doctorate and a scholarly,
teaching, and outreach record that qualifies for tenure at the rank of professor in an area relevant to the department.
The mission of the Department of Human Development is to understand and improve the lives of people of all ages in
relationships, families, organizations, and communities through our education, research, and outreach activities. The 28 fulltime faculty members, 8 faculty research associates, and 9 staff members at Blacksburg and at Virginia Tech's Northern
Virginia Center in the Washington, D.C. area serve approximately 500 undergraduate students in the areas of Early Childhood
Education and Human Services and 260 graduate students in the areas of Adult Development and Aging, Adult Learning and
Human Resource Development, Child Development, Family Studies, and Marriage and Family Therapy. Department facilities
include Adult Day Services Center, Child Development Laboratory, and Family Therapy Centers.
The College of Human Resources and EducatiOn has approximately 1700 undergraduate and 1470 graduate students. It
is composed of six departments: Educational Leadership and Policy Studies; Hospitality and Tourism Management; Human
Development; Human Nutrition, Foods, and Exercise; Near Environments; and Teaching and Learning. Opportunities for
interdisciplinary collaborative research and teaching exist across campus through the Center for Gerontology and the Center
for Interdisciplmary Studies which includes Women's Studies, Black Studies, Religious Studies, and Appalachian Studies,
among others.
.
Review of applications will begin on April 16, 1999 and.continue until the position is filled. Send a cmriculum vitae and
letter of application specifying: 1) administrative philosophy, 2) leadership abilities, and 3) teaching, research, and
Extension/outreach experience to Dr. Dianne Yardley, Search Committee-HD Department Head, College of Human
Resources and Education, 103 War Memorial Hall (0317), Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, Blacksburg,
VA 24061. Questions concerning position responsibilities and qualifications should be addressed to Dr. Karen A. Roberto,
Professor and Director, Center for Gerontology, 540-231-7657; e-mail: kroberto@vt.edu. Additional information can be
found at the Internet sites for the university (www.vt.edu), colfege (www.chre.vt.edu) department
(http://www.chre.vt.edu/~/fcd/fcd.htrnl).
Virginia Tech has a strong commitment to the principle of diversity and, in that spirit, seeks a broad spectntm of candidates including
women, minorities, and people with disabilities. Individuals with disabilities desiring accommodations in the application process should
notify Dr. Dianne Yardley at 540-231-5056 or TDD-540-231-5056_ hv the annlicatinn review date.
NCFRREPORT
26
MARCH 1999
�July 21-23,1999: CALL FOR PAPERSRole ofFamilies in Preventing and Adapting to HIVIAIDS, The Warwick Hotel, 1701
Locust St., Philadelphia, PA. Sponsored by
the Office of AIDS Research, National Institute of Mental Health, NIH, and University of
News. For registration or local registered site
Permsylvania. Submission deadlines: March
infonnation contact: Hospice Foundation of
1, 1999 (paper, symposium, workshop); May
America, 2001 SSt. NW, #300, Washington,
29, 1999 (poster). To receive conference
DC 20009; Phone: 202-638-5419;
registration and abstract infonnation, please
Fax: 202-638-5312;
call or write to: Willo Pequegnat, Ph.D.,
E-mail: telecon@hospisefoundation.org;
Office on AIDS, NIMH, Parklawn Bldg., Rm.
Website: www.hospicefoundation.org.
18-101,5600 Fishers Lane, Rockville, MD
June 2-4, 1999: Imagine a Brighter Future: 20857. Phone: 301-443-6100; Fax: 301-443April 26-28, 1999: 1999 World Congress
Solutions for Children in Crisis, 2nd Na9719; E-mail: wpequegn@nih.gov.
on Child & Play Therapy, held in Toronto,
tional Forum of the Children's Institute
Ontario, Canada, is co-sponsored by Play
International (CII), Beverly Hilton Hotel, Los July 21-24, 1999: Sexual Diversity &
Therapy International/The International
Angeles, CA. Critical issues include: Diversity Human Rights: Beyond Boundaries, 2nd
Board of Examiners of Certified Play Thera- and child welfare, Early childhood origins of
International Conference, Manchester Metpists (IBECPT) and the Canadian Play
violence, Child abuse and chemical depenropolitan University, United Kingdom. SponTherapy Institute. For registration infonnadency, and Child well-being under welfare
sored by International Association for the
tion Call: 613-634-3125; Fax: 613-634refonn. For infonnation, call: 310-274-8787,
Study of Sexuality, Culture & Society
0866; or E-mail: cplayti@limestone.kosone.com. ext. 116; or visit their website at:
(IASSCS). For infonnation contact: Gail
www. childrensinsti
Hawkes, Dept. of Sociology, Manchester
tute.org.
Metropolitan University, Geoffrey Manton
MONTCLAIR STATE UNIVERSITY
Bldg., Rosamond St. W., Off Oxford Road,
June 2-5, 1999: 7th
Manchester, Ml5 6LL, United Kingdom;
College of Education and Human Services- Fa111999
National Colloquium
E-mail: g.hawkes@mmu.ac.uk; Website:
of the American ProThe Department of Human Ecology is seeking applications for the
www.miid.net/diversity.
fessional Society of the
following tenure track positions.
Abuse of Children
Assistant Professor (V-6). Teach courses in Consumer Studies,
(APSAC), Hyatt RePersonal and Family Management, and Family/Consumer Law at the
gency on the
undergraduate and graduate levels. Advise students and supervise
Delegation of
Riverwalk, San Antostudents in internships and co-operative education placements. Conduct
nio, TX. To receive
research and participate in departmental and University activities.
Professionals to China
Successful candidate will have a doctorate in Consumer Studies or
more information,
related area, knowledge of Consumer and Family Law, and at least one
contact: APSAC, 407 S. Dr. Margorie Engel, President of the Stepdegree in Home Economics, Human Ecology, Family or Consumer
family Association of America, is leading a
Dearborn, Ste. 1300,
Sciences. Demonstrated successful experience in college teaching and
Chicago, IL 60605.
delegation of professionals involved in
evidence of publications and research preferred.
Phone: 312-554-0166;
issues of divorce, remarriage and stepfamiAssistant Professor (V-6A). Teach curriculum/methodology courses in
Fax: 312-554-0919;
lies, to China in September of 1999. For
early childhood/elementary education and child development, supervise
E-mail: APSACEduc@ more infonnation contact Sherry Shaver,
student teachers and advise students. Conduct research and participate in
departmental and University activities. Assignment includes work in
aol.com; Website:
Program Coordinator at Ambassador Propublic schools through the University's Center of Pedagogy, the New
www.apsac.org.
grams. She can be reached at 800-669-7882
Jersey Network for Educational Renewal and other outreach and offx 411; E-mail: sherrys@ambassadors.com.
campus assignments. Doctorate required and at least one degree in
pril14, 1999: Living With Grief:
At Work, At School, At Workshop;
6th Annual Hospice Foundation of
America National Bereavement Teleconference, moderated by Cokie Roberis of ABC
June 1-4, 1999: NewDevelopmentsfor the
Next Millennium: Measuring What Counts
and Making It Count, 48th Annual National
Conference on Mental Health Statistics,
sponsored by the Center for Mental Health
Services and the Mental Health Statistics
Improvement Program, Renaissance Mayflower Hotel, Washington, DC. Contact: Ms.
Denise King, The 1999 Conference, Health
Management Resources, Inc., 8401 Corporate
Dr., Suite 400, Landover, MD 20785; Phone:
301-429-2300; Fax: 301-429-2314.
Home Economics/Human Ecology/Family or Consumer Sciences and
one degree in education required. Recent teaching experience in a public
or private elementary school and teaching certificate a must. Experience
with an integrated curriculum and developmentally appropriate practices
necessary. College teaching, evidence of research and publications and
commitment to educational renewal preferred. Experience with diverse
populations desirable.
CALL FOR PAPERS
UN-FFS Flagship Conference on "Partnership & FertilityA Revolution?" Based on the Fertility & Family Surveys (FFS)
project of 1992. International conference will be held May 29-31,
2000; hosted by the Population & Family Study Center in Brussels, Belgium. Submit outlines for papers to the Conference Secretariat no later than July 31, 1999. For further infonnation contact:
FFS Flagship Conference Secretariat, Room C.45, Palais des
Nations, CH-1211 Geneva 10; phone/fax: 4122 917 2477/0101;
email: erik.klizing@unece.org.
Send separate letter and resume for each position to Leslie E.
Jenkins, Assistant Dean, Montclair State University, Box C316,V#_(NCFR) Upper Montclair, NJ 07043. (Include V# and
department). The search will remain open until the position is filled.
Founded in 1908, Montclair State University serves about I 0,000
undergraduate and 3,500 graduate students with a distinguished faculty
dedicated to excellence in teaching, research and professional
achievement.
An equal opportunity/affirmative action institution.
NCFR REPORT
27
MARCH 1999
�EVELYN DUVAll
continuedfrompage 19
American Family and NCFR Since 1938". She proposed at that
time that there be a U.S. Dept. of Family Life with its Secretary a
member of the President's cabinet. In 1971, she was keynote
speaker at the White House Conference on Aging and represented NCFR by compiling a bibliography on Aging Family
Member Roles and Relationships.
he founded the Sarasota, FL Council on Aging and the
Institute for Lifetime Leam- ing in 1972. In 1986, she
established through a donation, the Endowed Duvall Chair
in Family Development at the University of South Florida. In
1987, Dr. Duvall was special guest speaker at NCFR's conference in Atlanta where she addressed, "Family Development's
First Forty Years." She was a recipient ofthe Burgess Award in
1981and continued to teach in the community far into her 80s.
She is survived by her daughter, Joy, a sister, 8 grandchildren and
12 great-grandchildren.
She will be remembered as one ofNCFR's revered and distinguished leaders.
Call for Topic Papers
A
t a special meeting last November, an advisory
panel met to approve the new mission statement
and the direction of the NCFR Report. This
publication is to contain substantive topics of interest to
members in their professional careers. Each issue will focus
on a specific topic as in this first issue on Parenting Education. The journalist is Dr. Nancy Giguere, St. Paul, MN.
The June issue is dedicated to Issues
Surrounding Immigrants and Reji1gee
Families. The copy deadline is May 1. The
September issue focus is on Health Care
Reform and Its Effects 011 Families with
copy deadline due August 1. The December
issue focus is on Professional Issues
~
including topics such as pivotal career path
issues, surviving tenure, balancing work and
Call for Papers
nternational Conference on Adoption Research: August
10-14, 1999, Minneapolis, MN, USA. Conference focuses
specifically on adoption research: What are the most important
things we have leamed about persons involved in adoption
(birthparents, adoptive parents, adopted children) and the interpersonal relationships among them? What are the special conceptual and
methodological challenges inherent in conducting research on international, transracial, & special needs adoption? How can we improve
the quality & quantity of adoption research? How can we improve the
linkages among research, theory, practice, & policy? For fmiher
infom1ation contact: Harold D. Grotevant, Dept. ofFSS, University
ofMN, (612) 624-3756, hgrotevant@che2.che.umn.edu; website:
http://fsos.che. umn. edu/mtarp/intemat.htm
I
NCFR
,,
3989 Central Ave. N.E.
Suite#550
Minneapolis, MN 55421
THIS ISSUE'S SPECIAL FOCUS:
Parenting Education
family, finding jobs outside of academe.
The copy deadline is November 10. The March 2000 issue
topic is on the Impact of Welfare Reform 011 Families with a
copy deadline of February 1, 2000.
If you have data, research or practice articles
for any of these topics, or know of outstanding
persons who can be interviewed or tapped
please e-mail or call Mary Jo Czaplewski
immediately at 888-781-9331 extension 17 or
czaplewski@ncfr.org. Let us also hear from you about other
topics you would like to see published in the Report.
Non-Profit Organization
U.S. Postage
PAID
Mpls, MN
Permit No. 2548
�
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DECEMBER 1998
The family." where the future touched now.
Volume 43, Number 4
First NCFR Fellows Named
~
Ballot
Forthcoming
At the November 12, 1998 meeting of the
Board of Directors, the Board voted unanimously to endorse the changes necessary
to the NCFR By-Laws and Constitution in
order to implement the new system of
Board Policy Governance. The By.;.Laws
ballot was sent to all members ofNCFR for
their vote in December. These will be
tallied by January 1, 1999. Because the ByLaws contain a new system for nominating
and electing the NCFR officers, the slate
which ordinarily is run in this December
issue of the Report will not appear. Instead, the complete slate of officers, their
vitas, and platforms will be sent by separate mailing to each active member of
NCFR and will include the ballot for voting
by the May 15, 1999 deadline.
_
A
committee of 5 reviewers, elected
by the full NCFR membership and
chaired by Alan Acock announced
the fIrst 12 NCFR fellows at the Annual
Conference in Milwaukee, Wisconsin in
November. The fellows were nominated by
peers and selected for their history of outstanding contributions to the fIeld of family
studies in such areas as published scholarship, innovative and influential teaching
presentations, development and implementation of signifIcant interventions of programs designed to promote healthy family
relations, development and implementation
of innovative curricula for training professionals in family studies, social policy
support for family issues, and a consistent
record of superior contributions to NCFR
overtime.
The fIrst class ofNCFR Fellows are as
follows:
professor of Family and Child Development at Virginia Tech.
Joan Aldous, a past president ofNCFR who
has pioneered in the creation of the family
development framework and its sensitivity
to intergenerational dynamics. She has
done important work in family policy, work
and family, and grandparent-grandchild
relations. She is the William R. Kenan, Jr.
Professor of Sociology at the University of
Notre Dame.
Vern Bengtson, who has contributed as a
scholar, teacher, and administrator. He is a
central figure in the development of our
understanding of intergenerational relationships and is a two time winner of the
Reuben Hill Award. He is the AARP/
University Professor of Gerontology and
Professor of Sociology at the University of
Southern California.
Felix Berardo is noted for his scholarship,
Katherine Allen, whose contributions
include feminist fanrily studies, family diver- his leadership in NCFR, and his mentoring
sity, gerontology, and pedagogy. She has
of many students who have become leadbeen a leader in NCFR. The passion with
which she has approached both teaching
The fellows were nominated
and research has influenced the current
generation of family scholars. She is a
The Worst Memory in
'My Head: Families and War
n a poignant and photographic plenary address, Dr. Atle Dyregrov,
Director ofthe Center for Crisis
Psychology in Bergen, Norway described
his personal counseling experiences and
research fIndings with families and children survivors in Uganda, Rwanda, Palestine, Iraq, and other war tom countries.
I
Modem war and battle tactics have turned
from face-to-face battlefIeld conflict to
bomb warfare directed at civilian populations and schools, hospitals, residential
and refugee centers, causing a dramatic
increase in civilian (women and children)
casualties. This is an effort by the enemy
to ruin the social fabric and lower the
morale of the country and its politicians
who control the wars. Dyregrov focused
on the role of the professional who works
with families and children of war.
He described how the functions of war
trawnatized family members dramatically,
putting children at high risk as a result of
significantly altered interpersonal family
dynanrics. Traumatized parents are unable
to fulfIll parental roles of emotional nurturing, education, and protection as they
struggle in vain to shield their offspring
from horrendously grotesque facts. Communication is usually restricted. Parents' own fears make it impossible to
comfort their fearful, trembling children.
and patterns of distrust over time set the
stage for trans generational repetition of
such dynamics.
Cultural beliefs are a factor in creating a
denial climate in the family. Holding and
touching children provides sensory stimulation and protection necessary for physical growth and survival, and comfort and
security necessary for social and emotional development. Yet, traumatized parents tend to reduce physical contact,
Dyregrov and colleagues found. This adds
to the post-traumatic symptoms in children
and to their view of their parents as angry,
sad, upset. Children consequently repress
their own needs and this is often mistaken
for resiliency as they carry their own sadness and pain behind a thin layer of
Families and War continued page 6
by peers .and selected for
their history of outstanding
contributions to the field of
family studies
ers in their own right. As a former editor of
the Journal of Marriage and the Family
and a leader in NCFR, he has still managed
to publish prolifically. He is currently
Professor of Sociology at the University of
Florida.
Alan Booth has contributed to the understanding of marital quality, the causes and
consequences of divorce, and intergenerational relations. He has served as editor of
the Journal of Marriage and the Family.
Currently he is a professor of Sociology
Fellows continued page 3
�Committing Ourselves
have come to a fundamental conclusion about our association: when we
have a clear purpose and consensus
about an activity or service, we do it extremely well; when we lack purpose and
consensus, we do things half-way and end
up dissatisfied. As President, my main goal
for this year is to set in motion a process of
helping us determine our purposes and
priorities as an association. What do we
want to be for our members and our world?
Where do we want to put our staff, member, and fiscal resources?
I
I will describe two services that have sustained excellence over many years because,
I believe, we kuow what we want from them
and we have put adequate resources into
them. First is the annual conference, which
buzzes with intellectual and personal energy, which involves over 2/3 of the participants on the program, and which, at the
Section level, serves as the grass roots of
democracy in our association. We voluntarily attend small and large meetings from
early moming until late evening! We serve
the needs of a wide range of members, from
front line practitioners to University researchers. And our registration numbers
have stayed up during years when many
associations have lost considerable numbers of attendees at annual conferences.
Second is the Journal of Marriage and the
Family, which has become the leading
family joumal in the world and the academic comerstone of family science. More
people kuow of NCFR through this joumal
than through any other channel. In addition
to having excellent editors, this joumal is
successful because we have given it a clear
mission: to publish the best basic research
about families. Although also having editorial excellence, our other journal, Family
Relations, bas been less successful in
sustaining readership and influence in
recent years because we have not defined a
clear mission for the jOlffi"Ull. For example,
how much is Family Relations a j oumal for
researchers or practitioners? How is an
applied research article different from a
basic research article? What kinds of articles best match to the purpose of the
joumal?
Executive Search Underway
The search for a new Executive Director ofNCFR is underway. An mIDouncement
describing the position appears on this page. Our CUlTent Executive Director, Mary J 0
Czaplewski, plans to retire July 1, 1999.
The best illustration of what happens when
we are ambivalent is the Certified Family
Life Educator program, which has limped
along with slow growth and financial deficits for over a decade. We launched CFLE
to provide standards for the field offamily
life education but we never decided on
NCFR's leadership role in preventive, educational family practice. While CFLE has
struggled and NCFR has attended to other
priorities, there has been a dramatic revival
of the parent education movement and the
and couples education movement
in North America. Should NCFR be the
major credentialing and professional development association for parent educators
and malTiage and couples educators? This
would seem to fit our organization'S mission and niche. But we have to decide
whether to prioritize this leadership and
what resources to put into it. We would
have to examine what a potentially large
expansion of our practitioner membership
base would mean to our balance between
research and practice. This soul sem'ching
and plamling will require the smne sustained focus, year after year and Board
after Board that we put into our annual
program and joumal publications.
My last example is public policy, where
NCFR has never decided how we want to
relate to the broader society. We have had
a hard working executive director, experi-
NCFR has hired consultant Paul Belford of JDG Associates to help with the search. He
has had extensive experience in searches for other non-profit organizations including
searches for the American Association for Marriage and Family Therapy and the
Alzheimer's Association. A search firm was hired to assist us because of the difficult
and time-consuming
nature of the search
process. As an
example of the
difficulties involved,
fifteen years ago, two
searches had failed
before Dr. Czaplewski
was successfully
recruited in the third
search.
~l
NCFA
Executive Director
Mary Jo Czaplewski
Subscription rate is $5.00, included in
annual membership dues. $15.00 U.S.
postage per year postpaid individual rate.
NEWS DEADLINES; February 1 for
March issue; May I for June issue;
August 1 for September issue; November
I for December issue.
William J. Doherty
NCFR President
POSl1"ION ANNOUNCEMENT
National Council on Family Relations Executive Director
Summary:
"Members of the NCFR Executive Director Search Committee stopped
NCFR Report is published quarterly by
the National Council on Family
Relations, 3989 Central Ave. N.E., Suite
550, Minneapolis, MN 55421. Third
class postage permit.
Having embarked on a new Board governance model that emphasizes purposes,
vision, and priority setting, this year's
Board of Directors wants to hear from yOl
about two urgent questions: What should
NCFR's priorities be in the coming years'
And what can you contribute to creating
and meeting those priorities? We will be
creating a number offonnats for member
input. Please lend your voice m1d your
energy in the coming year and beyond. W
can do better as an association if we commit ourselves.
The National Council on Family Relations is seeking an Executive Director. Founded in 1938
and headquartered in Minneapolis, MN, NCFR provides a forum for family research-ers, educators, and practitioners to share in the development and dissemination of knowledge about marriages, close relationships, and family life, establishes professional standards, and works to promote family well-being. With more than 4,000 members and over 30 state/regional/provincial
affiliates, the Council publishes the Journal ofMarriage and the Family, the leading research jourr
in the family field, as well as Family Relations, an interdisciplinary journal of applied family stud
ies. In addition to its journals, a quarterly newsletter, and a publication catalogue, NCFR has a
large annual conference and other venues to promote research and dissemination of information
on the family, as well as professional networking opportunities. The Council has also establishe(
standards and criteria for a professional credential, Certified Family Life
and has awar
ed the CFLE credential to over 900 professionals since 1985. NCFR has an annual budget of $1.:
million and staff of 10 operating in the following functional areas: finance/administration; certif
cation; membership/newsletter; conferences; and marketing.
After completing its
fi'om their work to have a photo taken. Left to right: Gay Kitsoll, Chair;
Elaine Anderson, Brent Miller, Velma McBride Murry, Sally Martill; and
preliminary work by
ex officio members: Cindy Win tel; staff liaison; Greer Fox, immediate
teleconference calls,
past NCFR Presidellt; and William Doherty, current NCFR President.
the Search Committee Missing: Edith Lewis.
(comprised of Gay
Kitson, Chair; Elaine Anderson; Edith Lewis; Sally Kees Martin; Brent Miller;
Velma McBride Murry; and ex officio members: William Doherty, President; Greer
Litton Fox, Past President; and Cindy Winter, staff liaison) met with Mr. Belford at
the annual NCFR conference in Milwaukee in November to review the guidelines
that will be followed for the search
process. Mr. Belford will help the
cOlllinittee in the initial screening and in
identifying candidates.
of The National Council on Family
Relations
enced Public Policy Vice-Presidents, and
dedicated volunteer Washington represeJ
tative and public policy committee, but I
don't believe that NCFR, as an association, has ever decided how we want to
position ourselves in public policy and
what resources to devote to these activities. For example, how much is our role
one of providing policy-relevant infolnlation for decision-makers versus advocating for specific fanlliy policies? How mud
should we focus on govemment policy
versus a widerrange offamily policies in
areas such as the workplace? How much
of our staff and fiscal resources should w
put into the policy arena? It's time for
focus.
Principal Responsibilities:
+
Work with elected President, Board of Directors, sections, and committees to promote the
needs and interests of the educators, researchers, therapists, policy makers, and practitioners in
the organization, to include developing and discharging the plans and policies of the organizatiol
Manage-ment of the national office, including hiring, supervision, evaluation and termination
of staff. Work with state, regional, and local affiliated council presidents to expand the
Council's programs. Represent NCFR in contacts with other organizations and government
agencies. Expand the CFLE program.
+
+
+
+
Requirements:
+Graduate degree in behavioral or social science discipline; professional expertise in the family
preferred. +Five or more years of experience as an administrator in an academic or non-profit
organization. +Success in budget development and management. +Strong oral and written corr
munication skills essential. +Able to develop a high degree of commitment to NCFR and its
policies, including its diversity initiative. +Familiarity with the publication process, including
The screening of applicants will begin on
January 4, 1999. After additional telephone conference calls to review resumes,
the committee will meet in late February
in Minneapolis to interview the [mal
candidates for the position. The
committee's aim is to announce the
successful appointment of a new executive director in early spring of 1999.
computer/electronic publishing, very helpful.
Resumes requested as soon as possible to Paul Belford at JDG Associates, NCFR's search firm.
Candidate screening is to begin the week of January 4, 1999.
NCFR is an equal opportunity employer; minority,
aged to apply.
If you are interested in applying for the
position or know of any possible candidates who fit the position requirements,
please contact one of the committee
members or Mr. Belford.
and disabled candidates are encour-
Contact: PAULA. BELFORD, JDG Associates, Ltd., 1700 Research Blvd., Rockville, MD 20850
Phone: 301·340·2210 - Fax: 301-762-3117· e·mail: belford@jdgsearch.com
2 ..
December 1991
�NCFR to Begin Development of
CFLE Exam - Volunteers Needed
CFR has begun
efforts to develop an examination for the Certified Family Life Educator designation. The diverse backgrounds
of our current applicants and the multidisciplinary nature of family life education
have necessitated the development of a
national exam to replace the current more
subjective review process. Certification
resulting from an examination will also
allow the CFLE designation to be better
recognized by state licensing agencies.
N
Human Sexuality
Dr. Beverly Curry, CFLE
University of Nebraska - Keamey
Interpersonal Relationships
Dr. Maxine Hammonds-Smith, CFLE
Texas Women's University
Family Resource Management
Dr. Joyce Buck, CFLE
Weber State University
Parent Education & Guidance
Dr. Arminta Jacobson, CFLE
University of North Texas
While many organizations hire professional
companies to develop their certification
examination, NCFR is in the enviable posiFamily Law & Public Policy
tion of having many members with knowlDr. Charles Dannison, CFLE
edge and experience in test development.
& Dr. Linda Dannison, CFLE
Therefore, we are involving our memberWestem Michigan University
ship in this formidable task. The final draft
Ethics
will be presented to a professional test
Dr. Shirley Barber, CFLE
development organization for [mal review.
University of Minnesota
Dr. Carol Darling, CFLE, is heading up
Family Life Education Methodology
the CFLE Exam Executive COlmnittee. The
Dr. Rick Peterson, CFLE
Executive COlmnittee will be made up of the
Virginia Tech University
chairs often subcOlmnittees each responEach Connnittee will be responsible for
sible for one of the ten family life subidentifying study and reading materials
stance areas. Dr. Darling has enlisted the
and for developing the pool of questions
help of the following people to serve as
from which the test questions will be
chairs for each subcOlmnittee:
drawn. Volunteers are needed to serve on
Families in Society
each of the ten cOlmnittees. Contact me at
to be detennined
(612) 78l-933l,x 12 or via email at
"'Intemal Dynamics a/Families
Cassidyd@ncfr.comifyou are interested
Dr. David Bredehoft, CFLE
in serving on one of these committees.
Concordia University
92 Abbreviated Applications ReceivedHuman Growth & Development
23 Schools and 28 Programs Approved!
Dr. Anne Stanberry, CFLE
A total of 25 schools representing 28
University of Southem Mississippi
FELLOWS Jrompage 1
and Human Development and Fmnily Studies at The Pennsylvania State University.
Peggye Dilworth Anderson is a leading
authority on gerontology and her research
has contributed to our understmlding of
intergenerational relations, minority families, mld life-span development. She has a
distinguished level of service for NCFR.
She is currently a professor of Hwnan
Development and Fmnily Studies at the
University of North Carolina, Greensboro.
F
rancis Fincham has been a leading
scholar on the lin.k between mm'ital
relationships and child outcomes,
and has a demonstrated commitment to
intervention. His research has built bridges
between the UK, Europe mld North
America and his publications are among
the most cited ill the social and behavioral
sciences. He is currently a professor of
Psychology at the University of Wales.
Judith Landau begml her career as a physician mld pioneered in family therapy in
South Africa. She has held several positions in the U.S. including fifteen years at
the University of Rochester conducting
research on refugee mental health, HIVI
AIDS prevention, and substance abuse.
She is a professor ofFmnily and Child
Ecology at Michigan State University.
Patricia Noller has been a leader in research and teaching of family studies in
Australia. She is fOlmding editor of the
joumal Personal Relationships, and is
President ofthe International Society for
the Study of Personal Relationships. She
is a professor of Psychology at the University of Queensland.
Graham Spanier is a past president of
NCFR. He edited the Journal afFamily
!Ysues, and his Diadic Adjustment Scale has
been one ofthe most widely used measures
offmnily studies research. He is President
of The Pelmsylvmlia State University.
Alexis Walker is a past president of
NCFR. She is a leader in the development
of feminist fmnily studies and family gerontology. She is the Jo Anne L. Petersen
Chair in Gerontology and Family Studies at
Oregon State University.
Nominations for the next year's class of
NCFR Fellows are now open. The new
Chairman is Patrick McKenry. COImruttee
members m'e Alan Acock, Harold
Grotevant, Edith Lewis, and Roger Rubin.
The committee urges nominations of outstanding candidates in service and practitiOller fields such as Extension, Therapy,
Harriette Pipes McAdoo is a past President
Fmnily Life Education, Healtll Sciences
ofNCFR. She has been a pivotal scholar in
and cOlmnunity services.
understanding of lninOlity families and has
transfonned how scholars across the world For detailed infonnation on how to nonriview families of color. She is a valued men- nate a fellow, call NCFR offices at 1-888tor to people who are now leaders in NCFR. 781-9331 or e-mail NCFR3989@ncftcom
undergraduate and graduate programs
have been CFLE-approved by the NCFR
Acadelnic Program Review Connnittee. 94
graduates have applied to date using the
abbreviated application process available
to graduates of approved programs.
and Consumer Science - Graduate program
Abbreviated Applications Received:
Congratulations to the following newlyapproved schools!
Andrews University - Family Life InternationallReligious Education - Graduate
program
University of Wisconsin - MadisonChild and Family Studies - Undergraduate program
Western Michigan University - Family
CFLE Director Dawn Cassidy (left) presents
Chloe Merrill the 1998 CFLE Special Recognition Award for her outstanding promotion
and support of the certification program.
Spring Arbor
Weber State University
Messiah College
Kansas State University
Brigham Young University
University of Wyoming
University of Southem Mississippi
University of TN - Knoxville
Aubum University
South Dakota State University
36
16
9
9
8
7
3
2
1
1
Dawn Cassidy, M.Ed.
Certification Director
•
Passing the Gavel At the conclusioll of the Annual Blisiness Nfeeting,
1997198 NCFR President Greer LittOll Fox passed
the gavel to incoming President, Bill Doherty.
Do You Have the Two Latest
S~cial Issues of Family
Rekitions on Your Bookslielt?
A. Critiqrle- of "Fmllii)~ Te~tb(i~k~: .I¥{ty
•
I
Ig9'l'-
~
,
Articles include:
• A Critique of Twenty Family and Marriage and the Family
Textbooks - Norval D. Glenn
• A Reply to Glenn: Whafs Most lmportant in a Family
Textbook? - Andrew]. Cherlin
• A Reply to Glenn: FashiOning Families and Policies for the
Future Not the Past -John Scanzoni
• A Reply to Glenn: The Battle of the Textbooks - Bringing in
the Cultural War Arlene Skolnick
• A Response to Cherlin, Scanzoni and Skolnick: Further
Discussion of Balance, Accuracy, Fairness, Coverage, and Bias in
Family Textbooks -Norval D. Glenn
13 articles including:
• Contributions to Depression in Latina Mothers With and
Without Children With Retardation .
• African American and White Mothers of Adults With
Chronic Disabilities
• Exploring the Impact of Culture and Acculturation on Older
Families Caregiving for Persons With Developmental Disabilities
• Parental Stress, Care Demands, and Use of Support Services
for ~hool-Aged Children With Disabilities and Behavior Problems
• The Differential Effects of Social Support on the PsycholOgical
Well-Being of Aging Mothers of Adults With MentalllIness
or Mental Retardation
• Siblings of Adults With Mental Retardation or Mentallllness
• Maternal and Paternal Caregiving of Persons With Mental
Retardation Across the Life Span
To order call NCFR Toll free 888-781-9331
$17.00 U.S. per issue
$19.00 non-U.S. per issue
National Council on Family Relations
3989 Central Avenue NE; Suite 550; Minneapolis, MN )5421
ToU free: 888-781-9331 Phone: 612-781-9331 FAX: 612-781-9348
E-mail: ncfr3989@ncfr.com
�Board Actions Initiate Planned
Transitions
n today's hi-speed
infonnation based
enviromnent, NCFR
can no longer simply
react to issues as they arise. The new
hallmarks for successful organizations are
the abilities to anticipate, analyze and
manage for the future. Last year in this
column, I spoke of transitions, reflection
and exploration in reporting the activities
of the 1997 Board and Staff. Now I am
pleased to report the actions taken as a
result of the reflection and exploration, by
the 1998 Board. These will have implications far into NCFR's future.
I
Actions taken at the November 12, 13, 1998
meeting of the NCFR Board of Directors:
APPROVED:
( The Treasurer's report and official
annual audit (as shown below). The
actual total revenues ofNCFR were up
14.2%, while actual expenditures were
6.7% above the projected budget.
NCFR's total revenue growth of
$1,272,140 was 4.6% for the year.
A three year contractual agreement with
Allen Press of Lawrence Kansas, for
partial editorial management, copy
editing and composition, production
and printing, distribution including all
issue fulfillment and warehousing,
worldwide marketing, electronic production and online delivery, copyrights and
permissions management, document
delivery and aggregation.
< A new Board Policy Governance model
for governing the NCFR organization.
UNANIMOUSLY ENDORSED:
( NCFR by-laws changes reflecting functional and structural changes initiated
in the board policy governance procedures and handbook. (note: These are
now arriving at all members' mailboxes
for full membership vote to be returned
by December 18,1998.
AFFIRMED AND ACCEPTED:
( The Report of the Certified Family Life
Education Task Force with recommendations for expanding the program.
Executive Director of
NCFR. I was surprised
and overwhelmed by
the outpouring of best
wishes and gifts at the
conference.
Actions taken at the November 17,1998
Meeting ofthe Board of Directors were:
I extend special gratitude and appreciation to
NCFR's past Presidents
and Board of Directors
for their special gift of
an endowed administrative fellowship in my
name. The President's
Reception elegantly
hosted by President
Greer Litton Fox and
her entire family was
most special. The beautifully engraved book of
over 150 letters from
members and former
NCFR leaders worldwide will be cherished
and re-read many times
in the future. I wish I
could answer each and
every one of them.
APPROVAL:
( Of the recommendations of the Fellowship Committee to accept the first class
of twelve NCFR Fellowship nominees
(see page 1 for details.)
Additional statements to the by-laws
revisions regarding the Elections Council duties, and petition method for
nominating candidates for Board offices.
All of these Board actions will have a
significant impact on NCFR as an association for the 21 st Century. For example, outsourcing the management ofNCFR's two
premier jomnals will require downsizing
staff at headquarters and reducing the
overhead costs for total production and
marketing of the journals while concurrently ensuring editorial control of content
and quality, and overall profitability of the
journals as NCFR's major asset.
It has been a genuine
The adoption of new board policy governance principles will require radical
changes in how the Board and staff function in the future, but it frees both to act
purposefully in achieving a well articulated
vision for NCFR while being much more
effective stewards ofNCFR for its members. (See President s Report)
pleasure to serve NCFR
and you, the members,
over the past 15 years.
The staff of NCFR have
also been unique and
wonderful to work with. NCFR has been and will continue to be the professional haver
that brings together a diverse group of scholars and practitioners to research, discuss
and advocate for the world's most precious resource its diverse families.
HEARTFELT THANKS!
Thank you.
Although my actual retirement date is June
30,1999, the November 1998 conference
was my last in the official capacity as
Mary Jo Czaplewski, Ph.D., CFLE, Executive Director
Czaplewski@ncfr.com
Fellowship in Administration
Established to Honor Mary Jo Czaplewski
uring the 1998 Annual Conference, Lynda Henley Walters
announced the establishment of
the Mary Jo Czaplewski Fellowship in
Administration. Walters worked with the
past presidents ofNCFR to propose a
fitting honor for retiring NCFR Executive
Director Czaplewski. This Fellowship was
chosen because during all of her years as
an administrator, Czaplewski has studied
and involved herself in activities to improve her effectiveness as an administrator. She has been committed to thoughtful,
caring, effective administration. From her
own experience and from talking with
administrator colleagues, Mary Jo has
understood that typical graduate education does not prepare one for leadership
through administration; neither does the
experience that most of us have as practitioners, teachers, and researchers. She
commented often on the importance of
scholars in our field who have an interest
D
NCFR REPORT
in administration to have access to excellent training.
tllOse wishing to make a mid-career move
into administration. The Czaplewski Fellowship will offer individuals resources to
help pay the expenses of such training.
rather than being nominated by someon!
else.
The purpose of the Fellowship is to proWatch the March 1999 NCFR Report for
vide funding to support the efforts of
more infonnation. We are accepting dom
family scholars who wish to obtain training The NCFR Board of Directors has aptions to build an endowment of approxi- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - mately $11,000 - $12,000 to ti
and make a mid-career
this award. If you wish to
move into administraThe purpose . .. is to support the efforts of
honor Mary Jo and contribu
tion. One of the past
presidents noted that
family scholars who wish to obtain training and to the Fellowship, fill out tllt:
form on page 13 and return t
"it is becoming inmake a mid-career move into administration.
the NCFR Office. Make chec
creasingly difficult to
payable to National Council
find individuals with
Family Relations, and mark "Czaplewsk
administrative skills and experience to .fill proved the concept of the award. The
Fellowship Fund" on the memo line.
university positions such as department
proposed plan is for the Fellowship to be
chair and dean. It is important that NCFR awarded only when there is a request for
In addition to the Fellowship, many NCF
recognize the need for professionals in our the support, but no more often than once
members have contributed letters and ot
field to sharpen administrative skills
every other year. The criteria for this Felmementos to be included in a book oftril
before taking such a position. "
lowship will be different from other NCFR
utes to Mary Jo. If you have not sent yo
awards, and will be announced as 800n as
yet, and you wish to, materials can be
There are numerous institutions, such as
tlley are formally approved by the Board,
mailed to Cindy Winter at the NCFR offie
Harvard, and associations, such as the
but it is appropriate to say at this point that
American Society of Association ExecuLynda Henley Walters
individuals would apply for the award
tives, where excellent training is offered for
4
December 19~
,
".'
�Reach Higher: New Members for
a New Millennium
A
s most of you
know, NCFR is
in the middle of
the 1999 membership
campaign, Reach Higher: New Members
for a New Millennium. This program
focuses on current members recruiting
new members. In general, personal recruitment is one of the most effective strategies for recruiting and retaining new members. Those of us who are successful
recruiters will be eligible for a number of
prizes including a free trip to Orlando,
Florida. You will earn one point for each
member recruited from October I, 1998
through March 31, 1999.
Current membership as of November 20 is
3,838 compared with 3,970 members as of
October 31, 1997. These figures lnay under
represent our actual membership because
the notices that remind each of us to
renew our membership were mailed two
months later than usual this falL Accordingly, we expect a higher than average
renewal rate November through January.
The information the central office is collecting on recruitment indicates that the
NCFR web page and professors recruiting
students and others bring in the largest
numbers of new members. These strategies
are followed by brochures and CFLE-based
information. Given this information and
because we know that personal recruiting
helps retention, please request membership
brochures from headquarters to distribute
to your students and colleagues. In addition, a "Dear Professor" letter will be coming your way soon. One of the strategies
recently suggested for membership recruitment is to include a brochure each time
you send a reprint or report to a colleague
who is not a member ofNCFR. This is just
one of many recruitment strategies we each
could use that would not be time consuming. If you have other recruitment tips,
please contact me at cbuehler@utk.edu.
Cheryl Beuhler
Activity for Diversity
Committee Survey Results
Continuing a Tradition of
Interviews -
hank you to everyone who took the hltemational Sections. As individuals, the
the time to respond to the NCFR
respondents identified tbemselves as AfriAction for Diversity Conunittee
can American, Asian Indian, Feminist, Gay,
Survey, which was included in the Septem- Hispanic, Jewish, Lesbian, and Mexican
ber Report. The respondents identified
American.
themselves as belonging to the following
Overall, the respondents indicate that as
under represented groups in NCFR: Ethnic
members ofNCFR, they only feel connected
Minorities, Feminism & Family Studii
with the context of the above sections with
which they identify. These members think
that inclusive efforts are being made by
NCFR, but that the efforts are in the "infancy stage." They encourage NCFR to be
consistent in its mission to embrace cultural
diversity in all aspects of the organization.
T
Gerhard Neubeck (left) has
interviewed NCFR members for
over 20 years. This year he
interviewed NCFR Past
President Pauline Boss, Ulliv.
of lvlillllesota, about her career
in family studies.
New Melnbers for a New M
In these days of higher stress and higher costs, NCFR has found a way to lower your vacation expenses: Recruit just one
new member in NCFR's second annual membership recruitment campaign and be eligible for a free vacation trip!
National Council on Family Relations
Airfare and hotel
accommodations in
Orlando, Florida.
Hotel accommodations in:
• Irvine, California next door to Disneyland
• Phoenix, Arizona - overlooking dle Valley of the Sun
• Arlington, Virginia - just outside Washington, DC
Hotel accommodations provided by Hyatt Hotels and Resorts.)
The contest runs Jrom October 1 through March 31.
Contact Kathy at headqualiers Jormore inJormation.
fhl.
NCFR
New Members for a New MHlennium
National Council on Family Relations
3989 Central Ave. NE, Suite 550, Minneapolis, MN 55421
Toll Free: 888-781-9331 • Phone: 612-781-9331 • Fax: 612-781-9348· E-mail: ncfr3989@ncfr.com • Web:www.ncfr.com
NCFRREPORT
5
Suggestions made for improving diversity
in NCFR include expand opportunities for
student members of under represented
groups, and make an effort to retain them as
members. More special issues of journals
focused on diversity should be published.
Include more people of color as plenary or
RUPS speakers at annual conferences.
Involve local community organizations that
serve families of color to participate in the
annual conferences. Various aspects of the
annual conference should reflect diversity.
Clearly, lnany members ofNCFR would like
to see it become a more inclusive and diverse organization. As chair of the Action
for Diversity Committee, I have observed
that all facets of the organization must
assume the tasks associated with diversity.
Committee members have also felt frustrated about not being able see more
progress in issues of diversity within
NCFR. It is in this spirit, that I ask that you
read my letter to you concerning the future
ofNCFR.
Estella A. Martinez
Chair, NCFRAction for Diversity Conunittee
December 1998
�Annual Activities Reported
ctivities in Washington have
continued to involve close work
with individual advocacy coalitions advocating for issues which fall
under the guidelines ofNCFR's Policy
Initiatives. These have included Generations United, the National Partnership for
Women and Families (formerly Women's
Defense League), The National Council on
Aging, The Children's Defense Fund Child
Care Coalition, Friends ofNICHD, Consortium of Social Science Associations, and
the Federation of Cognitive and Behavioral
Scientists. I also regularly attend meetings
of federal agency groups such as the Na-
A
Support of public charities nationwide
to speak out on public policy matters.
tional Clearinghouse on Child Abuse and
Neglect, the open part of quarterly meetings of the Advisory Board of the National
Institute on Child Health and Development
and the Interagency Task Force on Family
Statistics.
< Support of Child Development Block
Grants.
Support of the passage of the minimum wage increase bill.
These meetings bring NCFR to the attention of other participants and bring NCFR
experts to the attention of the Agencies.
< Opposing mandates bill which would
We have signed on letters this past
year with:
As always, I enjoy my work for N CFR as
its representative in Washington D.C. on
family policy issues.
have cut out safeguards to the enviroument.
Senator Kennedy in support of good
quality day and after school care for
children.
Margaret Feldman, Ph.D.
NCFR Policy Representative
UN Activities Reported
FAMILIES AND WAR continuedfrompage 1
smiles. They often cease talking because of reduce feelings of helplessness and guilt
in the events they produce (for example,
the pain it causes. This only deepens the
the U.S. bombing of an Iraq refugee cenpost-traumatic stress.
ter). Professionals often unintentionally
Among refugee families, children often
produce the ideological backgrOlmd for
become "parentified" as they become the
widespread denial of trauma in children
caregivers of depressed, traumatized parfollowing war. Their policy-making
ents who are mourning the loss offamily
often prevents adults from taking responmembers and their homelands. Children
sibility for promoting physical and psyoften master the language of the host
chological recovery and social re-integracountry better than their parents, and thus
tion of child victims of
armed conflict as proclaimed in Article 39 of
the UN Convention on
the Rights ofthe Child.
If the international community can say that
children are not traumatized, that natural healing
systems within their
culture and children's'
own inborn resiliency
heals their emotional
wounds, then we don't
have to assume responsibility, and we can do
away with our own guilt
feelings. As professionals, we must constantly
face the reality of, "What happened
slip into the role of interpreter and breadreally happened!"
winner through begging or prostitution.
yregrov illustrated through photos that though we tend to think
and practice in terms of "family," in
many conflicts there is no family left and
children are left to cope with their "orphan"
situation (e.g. Rwanda). In many cases, this
becomes an institution or strangers. He
described fourteen year old Mukanoheli,
whom he interviewed at N garami, Rwanda
Orphanage. She escaped the killing of her
entire family with her 3-year-old sister on
her back. She stumbled as she ran and her
sister fell off, but she had to keep nmning
to save herself. She now takes full blame
for her sister's horrible death and doesn't
want to continue living. Only when she
was able to talk about what happened to
trained professionals, could she go on.
D
Dyregrov related that exacerbating the
family dynamics and work of the front line
humanitarians, is also the denial of trauma
among the administrative levels of humanitarian agencies such as the UN, private,
political and media communities. "Societies
lack the capacity to deal with the ramifications of the traumatic events they produce." Thus, it becomes important to
NCFR REPORT
..
..
...
".'t~'~; f' ·~I;.~,,,,,Y '\~" ".:.-:;'~'
urillg 1998 I attended the Department of Public lnfonnation brief
ings weeldy and monthly meetings of the following UNNGO committees:
The Family, Aging, Mental Health, The
Status ofWomell.
NGO Committee on UNICEF. I served on
the Executive COlmnittee for the N GO Co
mittee on the Family.
< Communicate directly with war trauma-
The Intematiollal Day of Families, May I
was celebrated on two consecutive days
with an NGO Committee on the Family
program held in collaboration with the Ul
Department of Public Infonnation. It was
entitled: "The Family at the Millennium:
New Hopes, New Images. "Keynoter wat
Ellen Galinsky, President and co-founder
Fmnilies and Work Institute. The Family
unit of the UN also celebrated the day wi
a program, "Families: Educators and
Providers ofHuman Righ ts, " at which tlJ
Deputy High Commissioner for Human
Rights, Mr. Enrique Ter Horst, spoke.
D
This year marked the 50th armiversary 0
the Universal Declaration ofHuman
Rights. This served as the over-riding
I have become increasingly active in the
theme for many meetings ofNGO commi
Population Consultations and the working
tees and it was the theme of the 51 st am
group on the Rights of the Child of the
DPIINGO Conference held September 14
16. The committees were concemed abo
those aspects of the Declaration, and su
raw meat in a grocery after wituessing mas- sequent Declarations, such as the Declal
sacre); changing one's assumptions, and
tion ofthe Right ofthe Child, and Wome
continuing relationships; by explaining and rights declarations put forth at the Beijin
interpreting reactions, emotions, trauma,
Conference on Women.
grief; teaching strategies for relaxation,
October 1st, the International Day of Old
coping, self-help.
Persons was marked by a symposium
< Handling tramnatic reminders by helping launching the Intematiollal Year of Older
families face tllem, talk about tllem by first
Persons 1999, entitled: "Towards a Soci<
preparing them for entering a situation,
ofAll Ages. " Secretary General Kofi Am
accompanying them, controlling the tempo was feamed speaker. The local agenda \,
of the approach, and always following-up.
emphasize neighborhoods, families and
individuals to SUppOIt family integration
< Use prayer and rituals to help families
and solidarity through dialogue in schoo
make concrete farewells with lost loved
cOlmnunity forums and local media.
ones.
tized children by allowing them to give
words to what happened and to express
their tllOughts, impressions and reactions.
The tllerapist must listen, convey interest,
take breaks, and acknowledge the child's
expressions of hOlTor, guilt and anxiety.
Strategies used to assist families and
children affected by war include:
< Demonstration and awareness raising
through use of photos, child interviews,
hearing and docunlenting their experiences, memories, artwork and learning
their cultm-al traditions.
The human capacity for caring outweighs
the survival of war. Studies illustrate that
children not only become pupils of war,
they are helpers. As professionals, our
responsibility is to foster caring and empathy in tllOse who survive, to help them
establish a meaningful life ofloving and
caring. To the extent that we (the community and nation) do NOT help, we fID1 the
risk that" ... these children become
tomOlTOW's soldiers, who tlnive on hatred,
violence, massacres and war."
< Mass outreach, and training the helpers by building local and regional capacity; training health professionals, teachers,
religious leaders in the war area about
children and trauma, usi.ng radio and video
when possible.
< Help the helpers and caretakers who
are themselves traumatized by the horrors
surrounding tllem.
As helpers, our role is to help families of
war live in the present, not being overwhelmed by the past, and to build positive
expectations of the future. "We should
tread carefully into a family's landscape of
war, be humble about what we are doing,
and sensitive in the way in which we help."
( Use trauma/psychological first aid by
encouraging victims to draw, color, write
or talk about their worst experiences.
< Help parents talk about their feelings
and experiences by preparing for therapy
by accepting emotions, thoughts, behaviors that may come; participating in retreats and returning to painful places,
confronting traumatic reminders (seeing
Audio and Video copies of Dr. Dyregrov's
presentation are available fromAVEN (Audio Visual Education Network Inc.
1-800-810-TAPE).
6
TIle NGO Conunittees were also actively
involved in presenting statements and
lobbying for their respective causes at th
sessions of the Conunission on Social
Development and the Conunission on the
Status of Women. NCFR sigued a statement 011 behalf ofthe Family Conunittee f
the Commission on Social Development.
With the increasing number ofNCFR inte
national members, the leadership ofNCFJ
may wish to consider applying for ECOS(
status. TIns gives NCFR a better recogni·
tion internationally, but is a long and COlI
plicated process.
Marilyn Bensman, Ph.D.
UN Representative for NCFR
December 199
�1998 Conference Wrap-Up
The Program was outstanding! It was
because ofthe efforts of MANY people
spending numerous hours planning the
program, executing logistical details and
seeing to attendees needs. THANKS to
the following for their contributions:
• JudithMyers-WaUs,CFLE,program
vice-president for her fresh, innovative
ideas to bring many creative sessions and the courage to carry them out! She
headed the programming, selected the
excellent plenary speakers, Research
Update for Practitioners speakers, and
other speakers who elaborated on the
theme - Families in Global Context:
Media, Environment, and Peace. She
worked side by side with NCFR staff to
ensure that the program met the needs
of attendees.
•
Section Chairs planned the excellent,
innovative paper, symposia, poster and
round table sessions.
•
Thanks to the friendly, efficient, Hyatt
Hotel staff who did a yeoman's job making
quick turns of rooms in a short amount of
time. We also acknowledge their generous
donation to the Saturday evening
President's Welcoming Reception in honor
of Greer Litton Fox and Mary Jo
Czaplewsld. Their staff also donated blood
for the ''NCFR Blood Drive."
There are many others who also worked
behind the scenes. As you can see, it
requires a tremendous number of people to
orchestrate a conference, and each person
and task is vital. Thank you one and aU.
., .. '.. '.-":'-";.H.'H>'.n':-:'H:'.H'H:':H .• H.-' .•• ':.;.
Award Presentations Above left: Joan Aldous (center) presented the first Ruth JewSOll Dissertation Award for outstanding
research proposal to Bethany Letiecq. Univ. of MaJylalld. A check for $2,500 is given in honor of
NCFR s second Executive Direct01; Ruth Jewson, to help with expenses related to the research project.
Above /'ight: David Klein presented the NCFR/Sage Student/New Professional Book Award to Angela .!.
Hattery, Wake Forest University.
.",_;"",":;':";_'_;_':""
CQnfe,r:~nceStiltistiCS\' .
,,998 RegiStrants:
W~l,kin Itegistra.nt~:
1,117.
117
StUdents: .....
Jacqueline Haessly, CFLE, local arrangements chair, and committees did a
phenomenal job of making attendees
feel welcome in the Hospitality Cafe, at
the President's Welcoming Reception.
Above left: A World of Sesame Street Families • Anna GlIenina
(left) and Charlotte Cole (right), both fi'om Children?s Television
Workshop of Moscow, Russia, and New York City, respectively,
insights into the selection of programming for Sesame Street.
audience received a treat as they were shown clips of Sesame Street
programs fi-om around the world.A Peace Plan for the 21st CelltlllJ'.
• NCFR staff worked numerous hours
behind the scenes making sure that
everything ran smoothly. They also
attended meetings, provided infonnation, staffed the registration desk and
NCFR Exhibit booth, and met with the
press.
•
More than 40 Student Aides assisted in
registration, employment service, exhibits, and general assistance. Through
their efforts, the conference ran
smoothly.
Other people who were important to the
success of the conference:
• •• Coordinators ofthe Pre-Conference
Workshops. These sessions provided
'hands-on' tools based on the latest techniques and research for family professionals.
· •. Carl Williams, our AV coordinator for
more than 20 years, worked many hours
seeing to the needs of program speakers to
ensure great presentations.
•• . Eunjee Joo, our photographer, who
made sure that the important events were
recorded for immediate publicity use, and
for our archives.
• .• Program presenters, discussants,
presiders, recorders.
· .. And most of aU, to Conference attendees. Without you, the Conference would
not take place.
Give Gifts
to Colleagues that
Keep on Giving!
Purchase Video and
Audio Tapes
SEE INSERT TO THIS ISSUE!
NCFR REPORT
Above right: Lane Powell (background) fi'01ll Lubbock, TX and Tamil'
Rotman, a student member fi'om Clark University, donate blood in honor
of Edith Lewis (article this page)
Right: Barbara Adams, Deputy Coordinator, UN Non-Governmental
Liaison Service, spoke about Sustainable Development: A Peace Plan
for the 21st Century.
Conference Attendees Left a Bit
of Themselves in Milwaukee
1999 Annual Conference
NCFR attendees were very generous during the conference.
W
e've just returned from the
wonderful N CFR conference in
Milwaukee. Many thanks to
Judy Myers-Walls for arranging an excellent program and Cindy Winter for her
superior organizational skills. The NCFR
conference for 1999 will be meeting in
Irvine, California,
November 10 to 15. I
look forward to
reading your innovative proposals for
papers, posters,
round tables, symposia, and workshops .
• Program Vice-president Judy MyersWalls felt that in keeping with the global theme, conference attendees would
perhaps like to respond to victims of
Hurricane Mitch in Honduras. This was
announced, and attendees gave a total
of$215 which was sent to World Vision.
• At the Brigham Young University Ice
Cream Social donations of $240 were
given to the Hunger Task Force of
Milwaukee.
• On the last day of the Conference the
Blood Center of Greater Milwaukee set
up a Blood Bank at the Hotel. Several
NCFR members and Hyatt Hotel staff
donated blood. Although this had been
phumed before the Conference, it became very personal! Edith Lewis, Univ.
of Michigan, one of our attendees
became seriously ill during the Conference, and was taken to the hospital. She
had to have surgery for a brain aneurysm. Attendees then donated blood in
the name of our beloved Edie. (Note:
Edie is recovering from her surgery and
will hopefully be returning home to Ann
Arbor soon. At this point we are suggesting that rather than calling, you
send cards to Edie and her husband,
Jon Swanson, 1811 Coronada, Ann
Arbor 48103 Edie needs to
a lot of
rest now, so the cards would be appreciated. She is grateful for your prayers,
cards, and concern.)
our scholarship can be excellent and still
be creative.
Three excitingplenaries are:
Mary Catherine Bateson who will speak
about intergenerationallegacies. Dr.
Bateson, is a distinguished professor of
The conference
theme is Borders,
Boundaries, and
Beacons: Diverse
Families in Dynamic
Societies. Thanks to
the 1998 program
committee for helpPreparing for the 1999 Conference· Some of the 1999 Conference
ing to hone the
Local Arrangements Committee members met with Cindy Winter alld MaiJi
theme and message! .10 Czplewsld last spring. LeJi to right: Fumilco Hosaka,!'a, Nancy Rybski,
Cindy Willtel; lvfarcia Lasswell, Mwy .10 Czaplewski.
My vision for the
conference is to
English and Anthropology at George
feature experiences and voices we are less
Mason University and the President of the
likely to hear in everyday life as family
Institute for Intercultural Studies. She has
scholars and practitioners. As you prepare
abstracts for submission, remember that
1999 Conference continued next page
•·•· • · ·•.·'$HARE .• y(1)cl~,wcriRf(.~• ·~·~BMr-r:~ • . Pf{(JPPSAL'
..
·.·FOR:THS··1999.CONFERENCEI' .
. o,.)
Cindy Winter, CMP
Conference Coordinator
SEE INSERT TO THIS ISSUE!
7
December 1998
�1999 CONFERENCE continuedfrompage 7
written best selling and deeply personal
narratives about women's lives. She is
also known for communicating with
intelligence and respect about her intriguing, famous, and brilliant parents,
Margaret Mead and Gregory Bateson.
Dr. Bateson's many books include Composing a Life, Peripheral Visions, and
With a Daughter's Eye. She is writing a
new book about family diversity that we
hope will be ready in time for the conference. Dr. Bateson is a world traveler, an
engaging speaker, and passionate
teacher. We welcome her to NCFR!
~
ofessor Louis Bellamy, Professor of Theatre Arts and Dance at
the University of Minnesota, is
the Founder and Artistic Director of the
Penumbra Theatre Company, a renowned
African American regional theatre. The
recipient of numerous awards for his
theatrical contributions and scholarly
achievements, Professor Bellamy will
create a dramatic presentation of the
migration of African Americans from the
South to the North in the first part of the
20th century. A splendid storyteller and
performer, Professor Bellamy has written
critically on the "colonization ofbIack
theatre." He will weave analyses of
African American family life into his
portrayal of this migration experience.
We look forward to his exciting and
informative session.
Dr. Marta Sotomayor, has an impressive
list of credentials in academe as well as
on the intemational scene. As President
and CEO of the National Hispanic Coun-
cil on Aging, Dr. Sotomayor is in a unique
position to inform NCFR about intersections
associated with race, class, gender, and age.
Dr. Sotomayor's plenary coincides with the
International
Year of the
Older Person.
We are delighted that
she will share
her research
and activism
on behalf of
Hispanic
families,
Chicana
women,and
adults.
Dr. Sotomayor
has represented the
United States
at numerous
international summits, including the United
Nations Women's Conference in Nairobi
Kenya and the UN Conference on Human
Settlements in Istanbul, Turkey. She will
present fmdings from her recent book on
Hispanic Families as well.
,JMF Reviewer-in-Training
Program
ongratulations are due to the third
graduating class of the JMF Reviewer-in-Training Program. This
program is designed to provide advanced
graduate students and new professionals
the opportunity to participate in the peer
review of manuscripts submitted to the
Journal and receive training in the review
process.
Having completed several reviews of quality and well within the allocated deadlines,
the following new professionals are hereby
awarded advanced degrees in advanced
reviewing: Aine Humble and Barbara
Mitchell. My personal thanks to each of
you for your obvious dedication and
hard work.
Advanced graduate students and new
professionals who would like to participate
in our Reviewer-in-Training program
should contact the journal for guidelines
and application materials, including a very
useful document on "How to review a
journal article" by Professors Vern
Bengtson and Shelley MacDerrnid.
Robert M. Milardo, Editor
Journal of Marriage and the Family
17 Melrill Hall, University of Maine, Orono,
ME 04469
e-mail: Milardo@Maine.Maine.Edu
On behalf of the 1999 Program Committee, we
look forward to hearing from all of you with
your proposals for innovative and educational sessions.
Katherine R. Allen, CFLE, Professor of
Family and Child Development, 307 Wallace
Hall, Virginia Polytechnic Inst. and State
Univ. Blacksburg, VA24061-0416; Phone:
540-231-6526; E-mail: kallen@vt.edu
.MEET THE PLENUM FAMlLY OF lASTINGVALUE*
HANDBOOK OF MARRIAGE
AND TIIE FANllLY
HANDBOOK OF SOCIAL
SUPPORT AND TIIE FAMILY
Second Edition
edited by Gregory R. Pierce, Barbara R.
Sarason, and Irwin G. Sarason
edited by Marvin B. Sussman, Suzanne K.
Steinmetz, and Gary W. Peterson
From a review of the First Edition:
"Welcomed by family scholars everywhere... rich, varied, and substantial... lt should be the cornerstone of
library collections in marriage and
family literature. "
- Choice
Explores such topics as • family diversity • theoretical and methodological
issues • changing patterns and roles •
the family and other institutions • family dynamics and processes • and more.
'~
first-of.its-kind... many thoughtful
and stimulating analyses.... well-referenced and up-to-date.... of lasting
value... should be on the shelves of all
relevant libraries. "
-Child & Family Behavior Therapy·
"Valuable to anyone· who is concerned
with the study of families... significan t
work. "
-Choice
Avolume in The Plenum Series on Stress and Coping
0-306-152324/500 pp./iIl./1996j$85.00
1m adoption price on onIers of six or IIIIll'e copies: $44.50 each
TIIE AMERICAN FATIIER
SEXUALITY IN MID-LIFE
Biocultural and Developmental Aspects
by Wade C. Mackey
by Stephen B. Levine
with a Foreword by William T. Bailey
'~ comprehensive look at fatherhood...
interesting and thought.provoking. "
- Human Ethology Bulletin
"Mackey's theoretical framework and
large-scale method of assessing the motivations of falherhood means that the
study of 'father-as-caregiver' has
arrived." - Journal of Adult Development
Avolume in the Plenum Series In Adult Development
and Aging
0-306-15337-1/278 pp.jill./1996/U2.511
1m adoption price on omen of six or more copies: $24.95
each
1J.3tJ6-15754-7/192 pp.+indexjill./1999j$forthcomlng
Describes in extraordinary depth such
topics as psychological intimacy and
development, sexual desire, the six
eras of sexual life, extramarital affairs,
menopause, sexual impairments due to
new antidepressants, sexual decline in
the fifties, and other topics important
to people at mid-life. This unusually
frank, clear, and compelling volume
also includes a unique chapter on
being a middle-aged therapist.
0-306-15742-3/212 pp./1I1./1998/$35.00
SOlJRCEBOOK OF FAMILY
TIIEORIES AND METHODS
A Contextual Approach
mE WHOLE PARENT
TIlE DIVORCED DAD'S
How to Become a Terrific Parent Even if
You Didn't Have One
by Debra Wesselmann
SURVIVAL BOOK
"Addresses the part of each one of us
that prevents us ._. from being the parent we want to be ... Offers concrete
exercises to work on so we can
overcome the obstacles we have to
becoming terrific parents. "
- Debra Combs, L.e.S.W., Founder,
Attachment and Bonding Center of
Nebraska, Omaha
1J.306-15993-0/366 pp./1998/$27.95
How to Stay Connected with Your Kids
by David Knox, Ph.D. with Kermit leggett
'~ goldmine of useful
information...Every divorced or
divorcing man needs to read this
book from cover to cover - the
health and welfare of his children may
very well depend upon it "
- Wisconsin Bookwatch
().306-1579!J.7/312 pp./i1l./1998/$26.95
edited by Pauline G. Boss, William J.
Doherty, Ralph LaRossa, Walter R.
Schumm, Suzanne K. Steinmetz
'1n no other single source can one find
as extensive and thorough an
overview... excellent. " -ISSPR Bulletin
'~ godsend... Everyone involved in any
way with the academic study of the family needs to get this Sourcebook...lt is the
reference volume on the family. "
- Journal ofPsychology and Theology
1J.:J06-14264-7m4 pp./iII./1993j$95.00
text adoption price on omen! of six or more copies:
$54.50 each
Book prices are 20% higher outside US & Canada.
�•••
Al.
Sections Conduct Conference Conduct and Business
ach year, the Education & Enrichment Section selects three student
members ofNCFR to receive
awards of up to $200.00 to cover expenses
for participating in the annual conference. This year's
winners not only received
,
the highest ratings in the
•
Section's blind review of
proposals, but also conducted workshops,
based on their proposals, during NCFR's
1998 conference. At the E&E Section business meeting the following award winners
were announced: Jacqueline Haessly,
author of "Imaging Peace: A Pedagogical
Challenge for Family Life Educators" and
Kathleen Shibley and Victoria Warner,
co-authors of "GEMS (Gender Equity Modules): Group Activities for Development of
a Positive Self Concept, Interpersonal
Skills, and Improving Vocational Skills and
Attitudes. "
rn
CO
Jackie has been a Certified Family Life
Educator since 1992 and has worked in the
area of peace and social justice for 25
years. She is currently pursuing a doctoral
degree in Peace Studies at the Union Institute. She is the founder and president of
PEACEMAK.ING ASSOCIATES (a training
and consulting company) and PEACE
TALKS (a specialty press publishing company). She has authored several books and
produced a video series related to peace.
She lives in the Milwaukee area and served
as chair ofthe Local Arrangements committee for the 1998 NCFR coIlference. '
athleen Shibley is a Ph.D. candidate in Human Development and
amily Science at Ohio State
University. While pursuing her doctorate,
she has served as the Coordinator for the
Gender Equity Project, a collaborative
effort between the Family & Consumer
Science Department and the Ohio Department of Education. One of the purposes of
the project's research has been to develop
teaching tools to support teachers and
group leaders in encouraging the attainment of gender equity competencies and
the development of gender bias-free individuals. This objective resulted in the
GEMS workshop presented at the 1998
NCFR conference. Kathleen has been a
parent educator for 30 years and has
founded two educational agencies to promote education for healthy families.
Victoria Warner is also a Ph.D. student in
Human Development and Family Science at
Ohio State University. She is majoring in
Family and Consumer Sciences/Family Life
Education and minoring in Human and
Community Resource Development (Exten:.'
,."- ' .. ": .:'.'
','• •
,", ..
--"-',:-'
.-: :'!.'
:>: :'.', ,--"
::::-..,'><.':
lighted during our section
business meeting: GET
INVOLVED, BECAUSE
YOU CAN MAKE A
DIFFERENCE ... by
becoming an active member, exercising your right
to nominate and vote in
various elections, becoming knowledgeable ofthe
new governance structure
ofNCFR, being proactive
rather than reactive, continuing to mentor our
students and young proAward Winners (I to r) Kathleen Shibley and Victoria Wamel;
fessionals for future leadco-authors of "GEMS: Group Activities for Development of a
Positive Self Concept, Interpersonal Skills, and Improving Vocational ership positions, and,
Skills and Attitudes, " alld Jacqueline Haessly, author of "Imaging
most importantly, by
Peace: A Pedagogical Challenge for Family Life Educators"
supporting each other and
knowing the power of colleagueship,
sion Education). The modules (GEMS)
friendship, and support.
which she and Kathleen presented at the
1998 NCFR coIlference are designed to
Best wishes to each of your for a safe,
provide hands-on activities for secondary
rewarding, and peaceful Holiday Season.
students to assist in the development of
gender bias-free individuals. She is investi- Velma McBride Murry
gating the influences of professional devel- Chair, Ethnic Minorities Section
opment on the choices of a teacher's learn- The University of Georgia-Athens
ing/teaching strategies in a critical science/ vmurry@fcs.uga.edu
706-542-4855 or 542-4792
problem based learning environment.
Carol E. Mertens, CFLE
cmertens@blue.weeg.uiowa.edu
) .' dedicate my last report as Chair ofthe
, Ethnic Minorities Section to a most
JI# faithful and inspiring leader of our
section, Dr. Edith Lewis and
well wishes for a speedy
recovery. We missed your
presence in our section
meeting but felt your spiritual presence in our midst. Our prayers are
being forwarded your way. To my colleagues in the Ethnic Minorities Section, it
has been a pleasure to have served as your
Chair.
As I reflect back on my tenure, we accomplished many of the goals established over
my two-year appointment. To name a few,
we established and launched a funding
campaign for the John McAdoo Dissertation Award, increased membership to reflect multi-ethnic, multi-racial groups, increased visibility of our section throughout the NCFR Annual CoIlference Program,
and co-sponsored numerous sessions with
other sections. As I leave our section in
the hands of a very capable Chair, Francisco Villarruel, I restate the charge high-
;; i;:, .-,:", :;~': :-;-~j~~:r-~~,: ~_:; ~'.:.:':-_ :', :';~.: i
IOti~~.:·• · • ·.·.··+
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. s~arch~ropo~alfromaFeministPer., . '
·spectlve;in~l~d~s, $75Qt0fuIldIe. '.' .' Te~~arch.(]rad\late.studel1tsandne.\v '.' •
.professiOllals withuptofi.ve years post-doctoralworkareeligibletoapply. ....
Fortheeomplete ¢allforslibmissiQns, se~lda request t6 Shel1eyMacDepllidat
~Prltey@pllidue:edu"Qrc~765-&-~.4"6Q26.,:,
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NCFRREPORT
If you have any questions about proposals
or conference issues, please contact me.
Leslie Koepke
Koepke l@uwstout.edu
or phone (715)232-2237
G
tl
reetings to everyone, and thanks
to those of you
who played such
a significant role in making
the 1998 coIlference so
successful.
•
L
,;':-;';.-'"':,,,-;;
fe~s~iT~e~6 . . . .
ntri"u~~~t~,ti~.billlsti>·
·.~tl1Q.~~rship Pape)." AWal'~amtddpyagiftdfcol1lpli111entaryBo(jkscWd': .'
a$250caSl1award;Tl1eOutst~
IncOlning Vice President of Public Policy,
Karen Bogenschneider, discussed her
plans and encouraged members to contact
her with ideas for symposia. She also presented the 1999-2001 slate of officers.
Thanks Karen and committee for your
work. Thanks also to Jackie Kirby (S/NP)
who volunteered to develop a Family
Policy list serve. Look for it soon!
Thank you to Joan Jurich for organizing
the symposium on The Use ofPower in
Academic Relationships: Feminist Reflections; to Katherine Allen, Kaitilin O'Shea,
Family Policy Section
Karen Wilcox, and Karla Soukup for the
Sponsors 5th Workshop
workshop on cooperative learning; to
e fifth and final
Shelley MacDermid and Brenda Seery, for
.. public,policy Advothe feminist mentoring roundtables; to the
cacy Skills Training Pre-CoIlference
discussants for all of our sessions: Karen
was held on Friday, November 13, 1998 at
Blaisure, Lee Ann DeReus, Renate Houts,
the Hyatt Regency Milwaukee Hotel.
Leigh Leslie, Stephen Marks, and Karen
Thanks to the 33 participants and to those
Wilcox; and finally to Shelley MacDermid
who presented workshops! The past four
and her committee who reviewed papers
pre-coIlferences have helped teach and
and proposals to select this year's awards
reinforce public policy advocacy skills to
winners.
many NCFR members. Special thanks to
Congratulations to Susan C. Harris as
Pamela Monroe for her vision in getting
winner of the Outstanding Research Proboard approval for 5 years of policy preposal from a Feminist Perspective, and to
conferences.
Susan Freedman and Hilary Lips as winThe Family Policy Section meeting was
ners of Outstanding Contribution to F emiheld in conjunction with the Public Policy
nist Scholarship Paper Award.
meeting. About 50 students listened as
'he new Feminism and Family StudBarbara Settles and Elaine Anderson
ies Course Syllabi packet is now
discussed training and career opportunities
I":, available. It contains syllabi, annoin family policy. Bill Doherty, NCFR Presitated bibliography offeminist teaching
dent-elect was a guest of the section and
spoke to the group about the proposed by- materials, reviews of media resources and a
list of Internet listservs related to gender.
laws changes. He reassured the section
Proceeds from the sales of the packets will
that Margaret Feldman would continue to
go to the Jessie Bernard Endowment. The
serve as NCFR's Public Policy representapackets cost $20.00; to purchase one (or
tive in Washington and that she would
more!), contact Joan at 1267 CDFS, Purdue
continue to select an advisory committee.
University, W. Lafayette, IN 42957 -1267;
eslie Koepke, Chair, noted that
765-494-2956; jurichj@cfs.purdue.edu.
conference proposals decreased
The fIrst meeting of the Gay and Lesbian
this past year and encouraged
Issues Focus Group had 24 people in attensection members to develop proposals
related to the 1999 conference theme which dance. A major emphasis was on fostering
connections, and the proposed new name
has particular relevance for those interof Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, Transgendered,
ested in policy. Anyone with questions,
and Straight Alliance captures that emphaideas or wishing to be a proposal reviewer
sis. Ideas were generated related to goals
should contact Leslie Koepke.
of interweaving LBTS issues throughout
The highlight of the section meeting was
NCFR and our section.
distribution of the long awaited Margaret
The section business meeting focused on
Feldman Intem Award Applications.
discussion of the changes occurring in the
These are awards to students/new profesgovernance policies of the NCFR Board of
sionals who plan on internships in family
Directors (BOD), and the resulting depolicy and will cany a stipend of up to
crease in the size of the Board. An impor$1,500. Applications are due to Susan
Bowers by January 15, 1999. Questions
continued next page
CONGRATULKilONSTOEACHOFTHESE
E&E STIJDENT AWARD WINNERS !
··Nt)~i~:···:·········:····· ···h~ijfjr:2·····
hl!1~~~~r
about the application process should be
directed to Susan at (815) 753-8537 or Email:
rzospb1@com.cso.niu.edu Awards will be
announced by April, 1999.
9
December 1998
�SECTION NEWS continuedfrompage9
tant dimension of the re-stmcturing is that
the principle work for the next year will be a
large scale consultation with all NCFR
members to dialogue on where we want
NCFR to go: what we stand for, what we
want to accomplish, what are our goals and
priorities? The emphasis will be on the
future, and it is the responsibility of all of
us to think seriously and creatively about
what NCFR's future will be. The re-stmcturing provides us with a framework to do
so. I hope that you voted affinnatively
when your ballot arrived. Take advantage
of all opportunities to let your voice be
heard as we move toward the next
millenium! "Never doubt that a small group
of thoughtful, conunitted citizens can
change the world. Indeed, it's the only
thing that ever has." - Margaret Mead, in
The Utne Reader, 1992.
A
lso at issue was the question of
whether the title of the Journal of
Marriage and the Family adequately reflects the diversity ofthe NCFR
membership, the readers of the joumal, the
topics covered in the joumal and the missions of NCFR and the j oumal? We voted
to fonn a committee, chaired by Stephen
Marks, to discuss this topic. The upcoming survey of the NCFRmembership will
provide another important outlet for raising
these issues, and demonstrating how many
people are committed to diversity.
The theme of next year's aImual conference, "Borders, Boundaries, and Beacons:
Diverse Families in Dynamic Societies,"
provides us with a terrific opportunity to
accentuate feminist scholarship: By drawattention to our increasingly diverse
culture, as well as to diversity in close
relationships and families, increased focus
is brought to the need to examine the ways
that factors such as gender, race, class,
ethnicity, and sexuality impact the wellbeing of women, men, and children. I am
particularlY interested in proposals that
offer new ways for us to think about the
ways that we can leam to relate to each
other. I welcome your suggestions for
panels or debates and other types of innovative sessions. I'm also interested in your
, Research and Theory Section
ideas for invited speakers who can offer
diverse perspectives on felninist issues
related to the conference theme.
he Research and Theory Section sponsors several awards each year. Two
of these the Burgess Award for lifetime contributions to faInily studies
and the Reuben Hill Award for the best published articles to combine
theory and research on the family - are mentioned elsewhere in this newletter. The
sections sponsors another award, the Student Proposal Award, which began in
1996. The purpose of this award is to recognize outstanding student contributions
to family reseaI'ch and theory, and to encourage student participation in the almual
conference. This award goes to the graduate student who submits the highestrated proposal for a submission to the aImual NCFR conference. Graduate students must be the sole author or tlle first author of the submission.
T
One of the reasons that our section is so
vital is the enthusiasm that the members
bring to all aspects of the section - so
please stay in touch with me and share
your ideas aIld suggestions for the section.
Also, please encourage others to join our
section. You can reach me at
dsollie@hnmsci.auburn.edu, or call 334844-3230.
This year the R & T section gave the aWaI'd to Theodore Futris, a student in Human Development and Family Studies at the University of North Carolina, Greensboro. His paper is entitled, "The effects of work and parental identy prominence on behavior and life satisfacton of
fathers." Kay Pasley, Jennifer Kerpehnan and Roger
Goodman are co-authors of the paper. The award was presented at the armual R&T business meeting in Milwaukee,
Donna L. Sollie
Feminism and FaInily Studies Section
embers of the International
Section who were in attendance
at the NCFR Conference in
Milwaukee were very pleased witll the
conference program and other events. The
theme, Families III a Global Context, was
particularly relevant for our section. Sessions sponsored by the
Intemational Section (e.g.,
"
Marital Adjustment Issues;
Challenges in Parenting;
Dealing with Stresses in
Latin American F alnilies) were infonnative
and well attended. Our business meeting
was especially enjoyable this year since our
reception included time with one of our
plenary speakers, Barbara Adams, and a
sampling of Wisconsin foods and root beer.
I would like to extend a special thanks to
Dr. Bron In goldsby, our section chair, for
fme plarming.
M
Paul Amato, Chair
lQJ T
.:1'
We would like people to consider submitting papers to the International Section for
next year's conference in Irvine, California.
The theme is Borders, Boundaries, and
Beacons: Diverse Families in Dynamic
Societies.
he purpose of the Family Science
Section is to expand, strengthen,
and enhaI1Ce the FaInily Science
discipline and profession. As such, our
section has given leadership to several
recent initiatives of broader interest to
NCFRmembers. First, we have completed
the process of developing
and approving a set of
Ethical Guidelines. With a
focus on professional and
disciplinary concems, section members worked over
the past several years to develop a set of
ethical guidelines for use by Family Science professionals. Upon obtaining section approval, the guidelines were pre-
sented and unanimously approved at the
Spring 1998 Board of Director 's meeting.
Members agreed at the November 1998
section meeting to make the guidelines
pennanently available to all NCFR members on the section website,
In addition, the Family Science Section
hosted a fomm at the aunual conference
on the topic "Whither Family Science?"
Despite the late evening hour, the discussion attracted a large and lively group to
debate such issues as the extent to which
Family Science qualifies as a separate
academic discipline, and the dominant
theoretical paradigms that currently infonn
Family Science continued page 16
....---_ _ THE SIMP LE-----.
Any items for the Intemational Section newsletter, which will come out in early summer,
should be sent to me at the address below.
NECESSITIES
RaeannBamon
e-mail: rhanlOn@messiah.edu
Messiah College
hat a great conference we've just had! Our section made some outstanding
contributions. The symposium and paper sessions highlighted some
of the scholarly family and spirituality work currently underway, and the
discussants' remarks challenged us to further our knowledge and methodology. The
round table presentations were also clearly relevant, as were the many
~
poster presentations. Thanks to Belle Yaffe for leading a Native Ameri:I:
can meditation, and to Katherine Allen for leading a yoga meditation,
.,.,
Also a big thanks to our own StudentslNew Professionals representative Curtis Fox, who graciously filled in for Edie Lewis at the inspirational worship service. (Our prayers and wishes for a speedy recovery are with Edie
and her family.) Congratulations to each of you who presented in some fonn at the
conference and who added to our understanding of religion/spliituality and family life.
W
CareNotes
(Over 50 million sold!)
The addition to our knowledge base of spirituality and families is a perfect introduction
to two exciting developments from our section meeting. First, plans are now underway
to develop an annotated bibliography ofReligionlSpirituality and Fmnilies. Copies will
be available in print form aIld on disk, BUT we need your contributions. Send them to
Dr. Carla Dahl, Bethel Seminary, 3949 Bethel Dr" S1. Paul, MN 55112; fax: 651-638-6002;
e-mail c-dahl@bethel.edu.Second.alist-serve of our section members is now being
configured. Please check the NCFR website under our section. Watch for further developments and how you can subscribe,
CareNotes
for Teens and Kids
Finally, congratulations to B.J. McMichael, recipient ofthe Best Student Paper Award.
He and co-author Scott Plunkett presented their poster, "Adolescent Perceptions of
Religious Coping & FaInily Life satisfaction." Please encourage your students and
colleagues to SUblnit papers through our section so we can continue to build the quality of presentations. Next year's theme lends itselfto creative expressions of Religion &
Family Life, so let's have a record number of submissions!
(Indispensable!)
Now provided at over 10,000 caring places like yours
f"l~I' CalLorwritefor oUr FREE! ttCar~Var;~tY PaCk fi267t6i.
Judy Watson Tiesel, Chair
tiese003@tc.unm.edu
612-822-8238612-822-8238
NCFRREPORT
Talking with
Your Kids (New!)
>\ARING >
1.a.OO..32'.2!i11.·... ... .... . >
.....••.•.•••
.
• ..•...••.
PLACE ' ;\bbeyPreS$;P~pt.P6)(X~.:?tMeinra9i I~4757J'
10
..
December 1998
�Start Your Job Search Here!
•
California State University
amily Studies: Entry-level, tenure~ack ~sistant Professor position
m Fannly and Consumer Sciences
Department beginning Fall 1999. Doctorate
in appropriate field completed by August
23,1999 preferred. (Applicants in fmal
stages of doctorate may be considered for
appointment; degree must be completed by
January 26, 2000.) Responsibilities include
teaching undergraduate courses in Family
Studies; participating in Center for Family
Studies projects; department, university,
and connnunity service; academic advising; interdisciplinary collaboration. Review
of applications will begin October 30, 1998,
and continue until position is filled.
F
Submit letter of application, vitae, transcripts
and names and telephone number of three
professional references to: Dr. Sallie Corley,
Chair, Search Committee, Family and ConSLUner Sciences, CSU, Sacramento, 6000 J St.,
Sacramento, CA 95819-6053. Phone: 916-2786393. FAX: 916-278-7520. E-mail:
scorley@csus.edu. Visit the CSU Electronic
Bulletin Board for ihll position description:
http://csueb.sfsu.edu. AAlEOE.
•
Family Research Consortium III
Penn State University
Postdoctoral Training in Research on
Family Processes and Child/Adolescent
Mental Health in Diverse Populations:
Family Res€lITch Consortium III, an NIMH-~
sponsored program, announces the availability of six, three-year postdoctoral positions begiIming June 1, 1999. The program
provides research h'aining in theoretical,
methodological, and substantive issues
concerning family processes and childl
adolescent mental health in ethnic/racial
and socioeconomically diverse populations. The training is multi-disciplinary in
content, involves mentoring from a diverse
faculty across the United States, and emphasizes multiple levels of investigation
from the biological correlates of individual
adjustment to the social context of family
functioning. Each trainee will have a primary appointment at one of twelve universities represented by Family Research
Consortium faculty. In addition, trainees
will work with at least two faculty members
on a multi-site, collaborative research
project. Trainees also will be involved in
SUlmner workshops and research institutes,
seminars, and course work consistent with
their professional objectives.
Program faculty are: Mark AppelbaUln, U
ofCalifomia, San Diego; Linda Burton,
Penn State; Ana Mari Cauce, U of Washington; Felton Earls, Harvard; Marion
Forgatch, Oregon Social Learning Center;
E. Michael Foster, Georgia State; Xiaojia
Ge, U of California; Donald Hernandez,
SUNY, Albany; Robin Jarrett, U of Illinois,
Urbana/Champaigu; Spero Manson, U of
Colorado, Denver; Vonnie McLoyd, U of
Michigan; David Takcuchi, U of Indiana,
Bloomington. To apply: Applicants must
have completed all requirements for the
Ph.D., including the dissertation defense,
by the time of appointment and must be US
citizens or permanent residents.
For application fonns and information write
to Dee Frisque, Research Center Coordinator, Center for Human Development and
NCFR REPORT
Family Research in Diverse Contexts, 106
PosmON RESPONSIBILITIES: Provide
Henderson Building, Penn State University, statewide leadership for Family Life proUniversity Park, PA 16802. Call (814) 863grams within University of Illinois Exten71 06. E-mail: dmr 1O@psu.edu. Applications sion. Develop an applied research program
close January 15, 1999. An Affrrmative Ac- on a high-priority issue related to families
tionlEqual Opportunity Employer. Women
and disseminate the findings in refereed
journals, educational materials, and publiand minorities encouraged to apply.
cations for general audiences. Provide
training and resources for field-based
• Lorna Linda University
staff. Consult with and assist field staff in
Tenure track position as Director of Ph.D.
developing and evaluating educational
program in Marital and Family Therapyl
programs. Help identify and develop
Doctorate in Marital and Family Therapy,
sources of funding for programs and
Associate or Professor rank to be determaterials. Develop networking at the state
mined. Position avaiiableJanuary 1,1999.
and national level.
QUALIFICATIONS: Preference of doctorate in Marriage and Family Therapy or
Family Studies. Licensure, or eligibility to
be licensed as a MFCC in the State of California is required. AAMFT Approved
Supervisor or eligibility to become an Approved Supervisor-in-training is required.
Consideration given to candidates with a
broad range of experience with doctoral
programs, qualitative research emphasized.
Experienced teaching at the graduate level
with demonstrated commihnent to scholarly
publication and willinguess to be engaged
in developing a Ph.D. program required.
SALARY: COlmnensurate with qualifications and experience.
CLOSING DATE: To receive full consideration, application must be received by
January 15,1999.
APPLICATIONS: Send letter of application, including a statement of outreach,
research, and teaching interests, curriculUln vitae, and three letters of referenc-e to:
Department ofHUlnan and Community
Development, University of Illinois at
Urbana-Champaign, Family Life Search,
attn: C. Shapiro - #6333,274 Bevier Hall,
905 S. Goodwill Ave., Urbana,IL61801.
Compensation is dependent on training and
For additional infonnation, contact Dr.
experience. Benefits include health, dental,
Aaron Ebata at 217-333-2912. E-mail: adisability, and retirement programs. Moving
ebata@Uiuc.edu
expenses provided.
APPLICATION DEADLINE: Until position
is filled. Application includes an official
LLU application fonn, a faith statement of
approximately one page, and SuppOliing
documents e.g. course syllabi, shldent
evaluations, and tirree references. All inquiries and requests for applications
should be addressed to: Mary E. Moline,
Ph.D., Chair, Dept. Counseling and Family
Sciences, Loma Linda University, Graduate
School, Griggs Hall, Rm209, LomaLinda,
CA, 92350. Phone: 909-558-4547 ext.4700L
E-mail: bjones@ccmail.llu.edu
•
University of Illinois at UrbanaChampaign
A
ssistant (tenure track) or Associate
Professor (tenured) of Applied
Family Studies, Extension Specialist in Family Life. Full-time, nine- month
position, 65% Extension, 35% Research.
AVAILABLE: On or before August 21, 1999
QUALIFICATIONS: Earned doctorate in
human development, family studies or
related field with emphasis on family relationships or human development in tile
context of families. Evidence of ability to
develop community-based outreach and
edncation to address issues facing diverse
rural and urban families. Ability to conduct
applied research andlor evaluation studies
in cOlmmmity settings. Excellent written
and oral communication skills, familiarity
with computer technology and applications. Experience or familiarity with Extension is desirable. Experience providing
shared leadership in collaborative projects
is desirable. Areas of specialization might
include parenting, caregiving, marriage and
family relations, families in transition,
intergenerational relationships, prevention
of family violence, etc.
11
The University of Illinois is all Affmnative
Action Equal Opportunity Employer;
minorities, women, and other designated
class members ellcomaged to apply.
•
Anderson University
S
ocial Work: Tenure-track position
beginning August 1999. CSWE
accredited BSW program housed in
the Department of Sociology, Social Work,
CriInillal Justice and Family Science. Position requires teaching Human Behavior
and Social Environment and Human Sexuality and advising departmental majors.
Additional course load will be negotiated
based on candidate's strengths and departmental needs. Qualifications: MSW +
2 years post-MSW practice experience
required. Teaching experience and eamed
doctorate in social work or related area
preferred. Anderson University is a comprehensive institution with a strong liberal
arts tradition affiliated with the church of
God. We are seeking faculty who possess
a maturing Christian faith and are cOlmnitted to the mission of higher Christian
education.
Direct inquiries to: Dean Blake Ianutolo,
Anderson University, Anderson, IN 460123495. Position will be open until filled.
AA/EOE.
continued next page
_
Dean
College of Health & Human Performance
University of Maryland, College Park
The University of Maryland invites applications and nominations for the
position of Dean of the College of Health & Human Performance. The College is
composed of the Departments of Family Studies, Health Education, and Kinesiology.
The College houses a Well ness Research Lab for Faculty and Staff and the Family
Service Center for area families.
The Dean has responsibility for approximately 65 faculty, 920 undergraduate
students, and 233 graduate students in the three departments. Health Education offers
bachelor's, master's, and doctoral degrees and a Gerontology Certificate through the
Center on Aging housed within that department. Kinesiology, which has been
consistently ranked in the top 20 programs nationally since 1930, offers bachelor's,
master's and doctoral degrees. Family Studies offers a bachelor's degree and two master's
degree programs, a program in Family Studies and an accredited Marriage and Family
Therapy program. The College has an annual budget of approximately $5.1 million and
has experienced substantial growth in research productivity over the past several years,
with currently $4 million per year in research support. The College is housed in modern
facilities and possesses state-of-the-art experimental laboratories and facilities.
The Dean is expected to provide innovative leadership to build upon the
excellent research and educational activities within the College. The primary
responsibilities of the position include academic leadership, maintaining and enhancing
relations with alumni and government and industrial partners, and administrative
oversight and direction. Candidates should have qualifications for a tenured full
professorship in one of the College's departments, a distinguished record of scholarly
achievement, a strong commitment to excellence in teaching, research, and service,
demonstrated administrative ability, a demonstrated record of promoting diversity, and
excellent interpersonal and communications skills. The Dean reports directly to the Vice
President for Academic Affairs and Provost, the chief academic officer for the University.
College Park is the flagship campus of the University System of Maryland with
over 2,000 faculty, 24,000 undergraduates and 9,000 graduate students and has a proud
tradition of academic excellence. The University is located in College Park, Maryland
approximately 8 miles from the U.S. CapitoL
The preferred starting date for this position is July 1, 1999. Review of
applications will continue until the position is filled. For best consideration, applications
should be received by December 15, 1998. Applications and nominations, including a
cover letter, curriculum vitae, and the names of at least three references should be sent
to: Search Committee, Dean for Health and Human Performance, 1119 Main
Administration Building, University of Maryland, College Park, MD 20742.
For more information about the College, please visit their web site at:
[www.inform.umd.edulHLHPI].
The University of Maryland is an equal opportunity employer, and women and
U N I V E R SlY 0 F
minorities are encouraged to apply.
MARYLAND
December 1998
�JOB OPENINGS continuedfrompage 11
•
Southwest Texas State
University
S
outhwest Texas State University
invites applications for tenure track
Assistant!Association Professor in
the department of Family and Consumer
Sciences. Applicants should possess a
doctorate in family and child development
or closely related field. Responsibilities
include teaching undergraduate/graduate
courses in all areas offamily and child
development; conducting and publishing
research; participating in curriculum development; advising undergraduate and
students; and performing other services
for the Department and University.
Submit a letter of intent outlining professional experiences, a vita, and a list of
three references to Dr. BJ. Friedman, Dept.
of Family and Consumer Science, Southwest TX State University, San Marcos, TX
78666. Phone: (512)245-2155, FAX (5 12)
245-3829, E-mail: BF04@swt.edu(This
information may be sent vial E-mail with
hard copy following.) review of applications will begin February I, 1999 and continue until position is filled. SWT is an
AAlEOE and is a member ofTSUS. View
our Webpage at http://www.fcs.swt.edu!
fcs _ deptiindex.htmL
•
Washington State University
Human Development Chair
he College of Agriculture and
Home Economics at Washington
State University, Pullman, WA, is
seeking applications for the position of
Chair, Human Development Department.
The Chair will have a record of scholarly
accomplishment suitable to qualify for
tenure at the rank of professor. Required:
Earned doctoral degree inHuman Development, ChildIYouth Development, Child
and Family Studies, Early Childhood Education, Family and Consumer Sciences, or
related Social Sciences; attainment of
tenured status and Associate Professor
academic rank (or equivalent) at a college
or university. Highly Desired: Effectiveness in teaching, research, and outreach;
ability to provide leadership and visioll;
work with faculty from diverse subject
matter disciplines; high level of administrative, management and interpersonal skills.
Desired: Strong commitment to distance
education and technological advances;
ability to work with diverse groups and
commitment to promoting diversity; national reputation in Human Development,
or related areas; commitment to the integrated mission teaching-research-extension) of a land-grant institution; success
in developing and administering programs
funded by extramural sources.
T
Screening of applications will begin on
F ebrumy 15, 1999 and will continue until
the position is filled. Send a letter of application; curriculum vitae and the name,
address, phone/fax llumber and e-mail
address of five professional references
qualified to comment on academic achievements and leadership ability to: Dr. C.
Richard Shumway, PO Box 646230, Pulhnan
WA, 99164-6230, 509-335-2822, 509-3352959 (FAX), m1TIstro@mail.wsu.edu (email).EEO/AAIADA
•
West Virginia University
West Virginia University Extension Service, an AAlEEO institution, seeks an
Extension Specialist-Family Life to provide
NCFR REPORT
statewide leadership mId coordination of
extension programs in the area of fanlily
life including strengthening existing programming, collaborating with faculty to
plan, implement, and evaluate initiative,
and identify needs and resources for
professional development. Demonstrated
ability to develop and evaluate progranlS,
a minimum of three years demonstrated
leadership experience, working knowledge
of research in specific area relating to
position, and computer skills are required.
Required earned Ph.D. or Ed.D in relevant
field. 12 Month; Tenure track position at
the assistant, association or professor
level. To apply, submit letter of application
with personal philosophy offamily life
education; resume; and names and addresses of three references to WVU Extension Service, Kim Suder, P.O. Box 6031,
Morgantown, WV 26506-5693 or Fax: 304293-7163. Screening will begin 1115/99.
Visit our website at: http!/www.wvu.edu!
-extenl.
•
information contact Dr. Joel Wells.
Applicants should submit a letter outlining
teaching and research experience; a resume; brief statements of research interests, philosophy of undergraduate teaching and anticipated future trends in the
family studies field; and the names, telephone numbers, and e-mail addresses of at
least three references to: Dr. Joel W. Wells,
Search Committee Chair, Department of
Design, Family and Consumer Sciences,
University of Northern Iowa, Cedar Falls,
IA 50614-0332(319)273-2814,FAX(319)
273-7096, e-mail: Joe1.Wells@uni.edu. UNI
is an equal opportunity educator and employer with a comprehensive plan for afflfmative action.
University of Utah
A;
SISTANTPROFESSOR OF
HUMAN DEVELOPMENT AND
AMILYSTUDIES,anine-month,
tenure-track position in the Department of
Fmnily and Consumer Studies (FCS) at the
University of Utah beginning August 15,
1999. Applicants should have a social
science Ph.D. and an interdisciplinary
perspective on family relationships with
teaching and research interests in diversity and! or fmnily policy. Preference will
be given to those candidates with a lifecourse and!or ecological perspective. The
position carries a two-comse teaching
load per semester with one cburse each
semester taught for FCS and one course
each semester taught for the Department
of Sociology. Application receipt deadline
is December 3 I, 1998.
•
Assistant Professor in Quantitative
Methods
University of Texas at Austin. The Division
of Child Development and Fmnily Relationships, within the Department of Human
Ecology, seeks applicants for a tenure-track
faculty position in methods related to
Send statement of interest, vitae, representative publications, evidence of teaching
competence, and a minimum of 3 letters of
recommendation to Theodore Dix, Chair,
Methodology Search Committee. Department of Human Ecology. University of
Texas, Austin, TX, 78712-1097. The University of Texas at Austin is an Equal Opportunity/Affmnative Action Employer.
continued next page
FACULTV POSITION
UNIVERSITY OF CONNECTICUT
The University of Connecticut School of Family Studies is seeking an experienced Assistant
or Associate Professor for its Masters and Doctoral Maniage and Family Therapy Programs.
The position begins August, 1999.
Submit vita, copies of recent publications,
reaching evaluation materials, and three
letters of reference to: Russ Isabella,
Search Committee Chair, University of
Utah, Department of Family and Consumer
Studies,225 South 1400 East, RlD. 228, Salt
Lake City, Utah 84112-0080. The University of Utah is an Equal Opportunity!
AffirnlativeActionEmployer. We encourage applications from women and minorities, and we provide reasonable accommodations for the known disabilities of applicants and employees.
•
University of Texas
research on human development relationships and interactions. Applicants can be
either methodologists or child and family
scholars with expertise in methodology.
Although we do not require knowledge of
any particular method, we have some preference for scholars with expertise in the
analysis of developmental change, face-toface sequential interaction, and family or
multi-level data. A Ph.D. and a record of
excellence in teaching and research are
required. Review of applications will begin
on January 5, 1999, and will continue until
the position is filled. The position begins ir
August, 1999. Applications from members
of historically underrepresented groups are
especially welcome.
This pOSition combines graduate and undergraduate teaching in the general and clinical
areas of family systems, family interaction, family therapy, and clinical assessment, as well
as clinical supervision of graduate students of marriage and family therapy. In addition, the
successful candidate is expected to develop and pursue a scholarly research agenda.
Candidates must hold a Ph.D. in Family Studies, Psychology, SoCiology, or an equivalent
field, and qualify for clinical membership in the American Association for Marriage and
Family Therapy (AAMFT), as well as for MFT State Ucensing in Connecticut The candidate
also should be working toward or have achieved AAMFT supervisory status.
University of Northern Iowa
Three tenure track, 9-month, Assistant
Professor positions in Fmnily Services,
starting August, 1999. Responsibilities:
teach, including supervision of experiential
education and student research; advise
students and student organizations; conduct and publish research. Successful
candidates will teach in one or more ofthe
following areas: f31nily relationships, fmnilies in later life, aging, falnily diversity,
f31nily life education, hmnan development,
humml sexuality, interpersonal relationships, long-term care, family resource
management, fanlily issues (crisis,
parenting, etc.), professional practices &
intemship supervision. Requires a Ph.D. in
f31nily services, fmnily studies or family
and consumer sciences. Candidates for the
family life education position must be
Certified F31nily Life Educators or willing
3lIdqualified to become certified. Applications must be received by January 15, 1999
to be given full considemtion. For more
12
Candidates must demonstrate evidence of teaching experience, scholarly production and
potential, and sound clinical practice. Candidates must be well versed in a culturally
heterogeneous approach to the study of family issues and dynamiCS, as well as family
assessment and treatment. Additionally, they should be sensitive to the interrelationship of
gender, other issues of diversity, and family process. Minorities and women are encouraged
to apply and to so identify themselves.
The Marriage and Family Therapy Programs are part of the Human Development and Family
Relations Program of the School of Family Studies. These are comprised of four clinical
faculty in tenure-track positions. A fifth staff member, who holds a full time professional
position, administers the on-site Center for Marital and Family Therapy and also teaches
and supervises in the Program. The school offers the M.A. and Ph.D. degrees with a
specialization in marriage and family therapy. Both the Master's and Doctoral Programs are
accredited by the Commission on Accreditation for Marriage and Family Therapy Education.
The University of Connecticut is the State's flagship public university with approximately
26,000 students, 3100 acres in and around the Storrs community, three professional
schools, and four regional campuses in other parts of the State. The Storrs main campus is
approximately twenty miles east of Hartford. The Human Development and Family Relations
Program in the School of Family Studies has a total of nineteen faculty from a variety of
disciplines, who teach and carry out scholarship in such areas as human development,
family social science, gerontology, early childhood education, family public policy, and
marital and family therapy. Two University-wide graduate certificates - in Gerontology, and
in Culture, Health, and Human Development -- are administered by the School.
Approximately 60 graduate and 450 undergraduate students are enrolled in the School.
Applicants should send a cover letter, curriculum vitae, representative publications, and
three letters of recommendation to Dr. Sandra A. Rigazio-DiGilio, Chair· Faculty Search
Committee; University of· Connecticut; School of Family Studies; Box U-58, Storrs,
Connecticut 06269·2058.
December 1998
�JOB OPENINGS continuedfi'ompage 12
•
East Carolina University
A
ssistant Professor, tenure-track
position beginning Fall 1999. Ph.D.
in Marriage and Family Therapy;
eligibility for clinical membership in
AAMFT and NC licensure; graduation
from AAMFT approved program required.
Teaching and research experience, AAMFT
approved supervisor, and background in
medical family therapy preferred.
Responsibilities: Graduate and undergraduate teaching and advising. Clinical
supervision, securing external funding,
conducting research and professional
service is expected. Send letter of application, vita, transcripts, and three letters of
reference to: Department of Child Development and Family Relations, East Carolina
University, Greenville, NC 27858. Screening
begins January 15,1999. Minorities and
women particularly encouraged to apply.
An equal Opportunity/AffIrmative Action
University. ECU accommodates individuals
with disabilities. Applicant must comply
with the Inunigration Reform and Control
Act. Official transcripts required upon
employment. Web page: http://www/
ecu.edu.
•
for the position of Editor of
Family Relations: Interdisciplinary Journal
of Applied Family Studies
The National Council on Family Relations is seeking nominations and applications for the position of Editor of Family Relations: Interdisciplinary Journal
ofApplied Family Studies. The term of the current editor, Dr. Jeffrey W. Dwyer
will be completed with the publication of the October, 2000 issue.
University of Missouri-Columbia
he Department of Human Development and Family Studies at the
University of Missouri-Columbia is
recruiting for the endowed Millsap Professorship of Family Diversity and
Multicultural Studies. The department has
identified multiculturalism and family diversity as its foci and seeks an individual with
expertise in African-American issues in
human development and/or family studies.
The starting date for the 9-month position
is Aug., 1999 or sooner. Preferred rank is
advanced Associate or Full Professor.
Duties include teaching undergraduate and
graduate courses; advising undergraduate,
masters and doctoral students; conducting
an active program of research; participating
in the department's Center for Family Policy
and Research; and engaging in university
and community service. Women and minori• Mississippi University for Women
ties are especially encouraged to apply.
First public college for women, admitting
The University of Missouri-Columbia does
men since 1982, and ranked # 1 public renot discriminate on the basis of race, color,
gionalliberal arts college in the South by
religion, national
ancestry, sex, age,
u.s. News and World Report for the secdisability, status as disabled veteran or
ond consecutive year, invites applications
veteran of the Vietnam era, or sexual orienfor an assistant professor (tenure track)
tation. Review of applications will begin
faculty position in Family Studies to begin immediately and will continue until the
August, 1999. An earned doctorate in
position is fIlled.
family studies with evidence of teaching
Send a cover letter addressing qualifIcaexcellence and scholarly productivity is
T
PENN STATE
•
Call for Nominations and Applications
required. The review of applications will
start immediately and continue until the
position is fIlled. Send letters of application,
vita, transcripts, and the names, addresses,
and phone numbers of at least fIve references to Mississippi University for
Women, Office of Personnel, P.O. Box W1609, Columbus, MS 39701. AAJEOE
Altoona
FACULTY POSITION
HUMAN DEVELOPMENT AND FAMILY STUDIES
Penn State Altoona, which recently achieved senior college status within the
Pennsylvania State University system, is seeking a tenure track faculty member for
a new associate and baccalaureate degree program in human development and
family studies. The successful applicant will have an earned doctorate in human
development, developmental psychology, social work, or a closely related field,
teaching experience at the college level, a record of scholarly res~arch, as well as
service to the college and community. The position requires an ability to teach
undergraduate courses in human development and family studies aimed at developing individual and collaborative human services skills essential for the aspiring
human services professional. Evidence of experience and strong interest in undergraduate teaching and research skills is required. The department is especially
interested in candidates who have human service agency experience, counseling
skills, and an ability and willingness to supervise undergraduate internships. Penn
State Altoona offers a competitive salary, depending on background and experience,
and an attractive benefIts package.
Nestled in the mountains of south-central Pennsylvania, the 115 acre campus is
located in suburban Altoona, 45 minutes from the University Park campus. Established in 1939, Penn State Altoona enjoys strong support from the surrounding
county, which has a population of over 130,000. Altoona is a two-hour drive from
Pittsburgh and three hours from Washington, DC. The approximately 3500 students
at Penn State Altoona can complete their first two years of undergraduate study, or
enroll in one of eight associate or four baccalaureate degree programs. Additional
two- and four-year degree programs are being planned.
Applicants should submit: a formal letter of application establishing their qualifications; a current curriculum vitae; a description of teaching philosophy and experience; a description of research agenda as well as representative publications;
placement service credentials, if available; and a minimum of three letters of
recommendation. All inquiries and applications should be sent to: Chair, Search
Committee for Human Development and Family Studies, Penn State Altoona,
3000 Ivyside Park, Altoona, PA 16601-3760. Review of applications will begin
mid-December, 1998, and continue until a suitable candidate is found.
Penn State is committed to affirmative action, equal opportunity and the diversity of
its workforce.
The four-year term of the new editor will begin with the publication ofthe
January 2001 issue. However, editorial responsibilities, including processing
of manuscripts will be transferred to the new editor beginning approximately
June 2000. NCFR anticipates making the selection of the new editor at the
annual conference in November 1999.
A detailed description of the editor's responsibilities may be obtained from:
Search Committee for Editor of Family Relations, National Council on Family
Relations, 3989 Central Ave. N.E. Suite 550, Minneapolis, MN USA55421.
Toll free 888-781-9331; FAX 612-781-9348; E-mail, ncfr3989@ncfr.com
Nominations and applications including a letter of application and curriculum
vitae should be sent to the above address by June 15, 1999. The new editor must
be a member of the National Council on Family Relations.
tions and interests, vitae, reprints, and 3
letters of reference to: Jean Ispa, Ph.D.,
Chair, Search Committee, Dept. of Human
Development and Family Studies, 31
Stanley Hall, University of Missouri-Columbia, Columbia, MO 65211. E-mail:
ispa@showme.missouri.edu. Phone: 573882-2796.
•
grams in family fInancial management,
family resources, public policy, health and
safety, hmnan development and family
systems. The School includes more than 50
faculty, 140 graduate students, and 435
undergraduate students.
Kansas State University
Director and Professor
School of Family Studies and Human SerVIces
The School of Family Studies and Human
Services in the College of Human Ecology
at Kansas State University has an opening
for Director. This 12-month position begins
June 1999. Qualifications include: an earned
Ph.D.; accomplishments equal to full professor; ability to lead a diverse faculty;
fIscal management; and, coordination of
hmnan resources and service programs.
Responsibilities include: providing leadership to promote excellence in instruction,
research, and extension; working cooperatively with faculty, students, administrators, alumni, and the public; and, managing
the School's resources.
The School offers undergraduate and
graduate programs in adolescence and
youth, early childhood education/special
education, communication sciences and
disorders, family and consmner economics,
family life education and community services, a dual degree with social work, life
span human development, and marriage
and family therapy. The School includes
extension specialists who provide pro-
Application reviews begin January 15,
1999. Send letter of interest; vitae; names
and contacts for three references to Robert
H. Poresky, Ph.D. Search Committee
Cbair. School of Family Studies and Human Services, 303 Justin Hall, College of
Human Ecology, Kansas State University,
Manhattan, KS 66506-1403. Kansas State
University is an affirmative action/equal
opportunity employer which actively seeks
diversity among its employees.
•
Messiah College
ontinuing full-time faculty position
in family studies. Teach family
related courses which may include:
introduction to marriage and family, child
development, adult development, human
sexuality and interpersonal relationships.
Also some general education courses.
C
Department services majors in family studies, psychology, social work and sociology.
Ph.D. in Family Studies or related field.
Demonstrated excellence in teaching.
Messiah College is a Christian college of
the liberal and applied arts and sciences,
committed to an embracing evangelical
spirit rooted in the Anabaptist, Pietist, and
Wesleyan traditions.
Send letter of inquiry and vita to Dr.
Raeann Hamon. Cahir, Messiah College,
Grantham, PA 17027. AAEOE
Donation for the Czaplewski Fellowship in Administration
I1we am/are proud to contribute to the Mary Jo Czaplewski Fellowship Fund to help
support professionals who wish to obtain training and maIce a mid-career move into adlninistration. Enclosed is a check payable to NCFRlCzaplewski Fellowship Fund for:
0$1,000
0 $500
0 $250
0
0
Method of Payment:
Check
0 $100
Money Order
0
o Other $,_ __
Visa
0
MasterCard
Credit Card Number _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ Exp.Date._ __
If you do not enclose the entire amount now, please indicate when you would
would like a reminder about your pledge: 0 Quarterly 0 Semi-annually
MAIL TO:
National Council
on Family Relations
3989 Central Ave. NE
Suite #550
Minneapolis, MN
55421
yourName_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ Phone,_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ E-mail_ _ _ _ _ _ _ __
Your employer-if your company matches gifls,_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ __
Ali donations are tax deductible, as allowed by law.
13
U.S. funds drawn on U.s. banks only.
December 1998
�NCFR Staff Changes
.
ominate Them for 1999/2000 Awards!
he National COllncil on Family
Relations, its Sections and Affiliated Cmmciis present several
awards to recognize excellence in the
Family field The DEADLINE FORAPPLICATIONSISAPRILI5,1999(exceptions are noted below). Please contact the
appropriate Award COlmnittee Chair for
specific questions about criteria on which
the awardees are selected.
Dr. Harold Feldman. If the recipient is in a
health field, it is in honor of Dr. Fred
Bozett.
foundation, research methods, and potential contribution to feminist scholarship;
and c) a half-page budget.
Who may be nominated: National leaders in
the family field, political figures, entertainers, volunteers who have played significant
roles in helping families. Nominees need
not be NCFR members to be eligible. A
check for $1,000 and a plaque are awarded.
Outstandillg COlltribution to F emillist
Scholarship (1999)
Cormnittee Co-chairs: Lane Powell, CFLE,
Ernest Osborne Award (1999) ...
Recognizes excellence in the teaching of
family relations. The award is given in
memory of Ernest Osborne, 3 time NCFR
President, and professor at Teachers
College, Columbia Univ., who excelled in
teaching family studies. A check for
$1,000 and a plaque are awarded to the
wilmer.
Connnittee Chair: Gladys J. Hildreth,
CFLE, Dept. of Family Sciences, Texas
Woman's Univ., PO Box 425769, Denton,
TX 76205-1029. Phone: 940-898-2694. Fax:
940-898-2676. E-mail: hildreth@twu.edu
Distinguished Service to Families
Award (1999) ...
Given in recognition of exceptional leadership and/or service to improve falnily
living. The contributions in "action"
programs represent the importance of
family relationships in the future rather
than the past. If the award winner is in the
policy field, the award is given in honor of
6213 IndianaAve., Lubbock, TX 79413.
Phone: 806-797-0197. E-mail:
powellb@LLano.net; and Linda Dannison,
CFLE, Family and Consumer Sciences,
Western Michigan Univ., Kalamazoo, Ml
49008. Phone: 5 19-8244120, Ext. 3345. Fax:
It
cognizes a graduate student/new
professional who has demon
trated excellence for feminist
scholarship. A plaque and chcck for $250
are awarded amllJally. Proposals are evaluated for potential contribution to feminist
scho larship and use of feminist frameworks. A summary of the recipient's research results will be published in the
Section newsletter.
Both awards are open to all graduate students/new professionals (with up to 5
years post-doctoral work).
616-387-3353. E-mail:
Linda.Dannison@wmu.edu
Jessie Bernard Awards ...
Outstalldillg Research Proposal from a
Feminist Perspective (1999)
Recognizes a graduate student/new professional who has demonstrated excellence in
research for potential contribution to feminist scholarship. A plaque and check for
$750 is presented to the winner. The award
recipient will present a report of the project
and findings at the next NCFR arumal
conference.
Applications should include: a) an abstract
of 100 words or less; b) a 5 page (maximum)
proposal outlining the project's theoretical
Please submit 6 copies ofthe application
and supporting documents for these
awards BY APRIL 1,1999, to Shelley M.
MacDermid, Family Research Institute,
1267 CDFS Building, Room 105, Purdue
Univ., West Lafayette, IN 47907-1267.
Phone: 765-494-6026; Fax: 765-496-1144/ Email: shelley@vm.cc.purdue.edu
NCFR Student Award (1999) " " "
Given to an NCFR graduate student member who has demonstrated excellence as a
student with high potential for contribution
to the field of family studies. A plaque and
check for $1 ,000 are presented arumally.
fter 16 years as NCFR's
Membership/Subscriptions
Manager, Kathy Collins
Royce has accepted a position as
COlmnunications Manager with Midwest
Benefit Advisors, Inc.,
in Mirmeapolis. She
will be working primarily with Midwest's
long-term care insurance program.
Her responsibilities include newsletter development, writing, and editing; project communications; and
general marketing for the program.
A
Royce joined NCFR in March, 1982.
She directed the membership, JMF
and FR departments, including the
recruitment and retention programs;
produced the NCFR REPORT and
section newsletters; served as the
staff liaison for affiliated councils;
coordinated copyrights and permissions for the journals; and managed
NCFR's Paradox-platform databases.
Chad Prenzlow,
NCFR's mailroom
and inventory manager for the last four
years, left NCFR in
October to take a
new position with
United Postal Service. He was mstrunlental 1n computerizing the NCFR mailroom fimctions
and tracking the inventOlY of books
and journals.
Nominate continued page 16
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Decembe-rt199&
�•
OnneCIOn
December 1998 Volume 6, No.4
President's Report
Strengthening the
Councils' Role
reetings! We have just completed
a very successful NCFR meeting
in Milwaukee. I am excited about
the coming year and I know that you will
be too as we gear up to meet next fall in
Irvine. Please begin to think very clearly
and pointedly about the cOlmnunity based
activities in which your councils participate. Part of this will be the focus for our
program next year. Congratulations to the
Califomia Council on Family Relations for
its brand
new start.
For those of
you contemplating your
perceived
and actual
positions of
strength,
please know
that I will
offer assistance and
suggestions
on how to
make your councils what you think they
should be and to begin/continue to serve
as they were designed.
G
I reviewed the task force charge that was
conducted several administrations ago and
the projects can be accomplished. I will
forward copies ofthis infonnation to you
shortly so that we are on the same page.
Generally, the task force agreed that much
could be done to strengthen the state, local
and regional affiliates as well as at the
Northwest Council on Family Relations
ew officers were elected in the fall ofthis year. Elected were Kip Jenkins,
president; Suzanne Smith, vice president; Anisa Zvonkovic, secretary/treasurer.
The new presidency are pleased to be of service to the council, and will be
meeting together soon to set agendas, make goals and begin planning for the NWCFR
convention to be held somewhere in the Northwest in the year 2000.
N
A big "Thank you" to the out-going NWCFR President, Gretchen Zunkel and her fellow
officers. The work you did is greatly appreciated, and improvements made to the operation of the NWCFR has been great. Again, thank you!
national level. The underlying theme that
resonates from the report is strong support! Our strength lies in our ability to
help the general membership understand
the importance of the role that the councils play. This is significantly enhanced
following much discussion about the
proposed changes in the board governance structure.
New officers of the NWCFR will be investigating opportunities in the following areas:
L Increasing awareness
of the benefits of
NCFRandNWCFR
membership to interested faculty, graduate
students, undergraduate students, and
interested non-academic oriented professionals.
2. Finding better ways to
recruit new members.
3. Discovering methods
and enticements for
retaining members.
4. Exploring ways and
NWCFR Meeting, 6/98 - top left to right: GaJy Bowen, Greer
Littoll Fox, Jim Ponzetti, membel; Hilary Rose, David Klein; front:
means of improving
GretchenZunkel - President, Terri Heath, Jim White, BrOil Ingoldsby
conventions
5. Advancing uses of e-mail list servers and other technologies to promote intra-organizational communication.
6. Establishing some long-tenn organizatioual goals and expectations.
I continue to be excited about the Association of Councils and the relationship
with the National Council on Family Relations. Together, this year,
things
await us and are ours for the taking. I
strongly encourage those of you who are
members ofthe academic cOlllinunity to
work with students in your departments
to develop student affiliates. Our students
are our future and they require significant
support to grow and develop, just as we
do. Given the talent located within our
ranks, I have full confidence that your
projects and your councils will be more
successful this year than ever!
Expect to see more infonnation in the mail
and electroJ?ic mail in the coming months
designed to enhance your position as a
council which further enriches the communities in which we live. I look forward
to working with you this year and beyond. Please respond positively to the
call for papers, as I know many of you
have wonderful ideas to share with the
rest of the group.
Norma Burgess, Ph.D.
Association of Councils President
The Southeastern Council on Family Relations
The new NWCFR officers look forward to suggestions and expressions of concerns. You
can reach Kip Jenkins at the following addresses: Jenk@idaho.tds.net(home e-mail);
Kipj@juno.com(business office computer)_or P.O. Box 218, Troy, ID 83871 .
California Council on Family Relations
T
he Califomia Council on Family
Relations held a meeting at the
almual NCFR conference in
Milwaukee. Student members attended the
conference for the first time and are currently working on qualifying a student
organization based in San Diego State
University for NCFR recognition. Those in
attendance at the meeting generated ideas
about the functions that the reinstated
Council will serve. The hope is to start a
listserve and a homepage so that members
he Southeastem Council on Family Relations will be holding its annual meeting
at the Renaissance Midtown Hotel in Atlanta, GA on F ebrnary 25-27, 1999. This
year's conference theme is "Strengthening Families Through Policy, Prevention,
and Programs." Dr. Paula Dressel, fonner
Associate Provost at Georgia State University and current fellow with the Annie B.
Casey Foundation will deliver the plenary
address. Plamled activities include student
paper competitions, a banquet honoring
past SCFR and NCFR presidents from the
Southeastern region, and a post-banquet
party featuring the GSU Jazz Band. This
year's program includes paper sessions,
workshops, round tables, and posters on a
variety ofthemes. For more infonnation on
the conference, contact Dr. Denise
Donnelly, SCFR President, Department of
Sociology, Georgia State University, Atlanta,
GA 30303, phone (404) 651-1852 or e-mail at
socdad@gsu.edu. Conference Registration
and Hotel Infonnation will be mailed out at
Thanks for Your Service to NCFR
the end of December to all current NCFR
James Ponzetti, Association of Councils President presents an award to
members in the Southeast Region.
Anne Stanberry. for her tireless work with Affiliated Councils and
T
Certified Family Life Educators.
15
may share infonnation and opinions about
research. In addition, the CCFR is working
on increasing its membership. The Board
has developed a membership brochure
and a needs assessment survey.
CCFR will be assisting with NCFR's 1999
annual conference to be held in Irvine
from November 10-15.
Questions and suggestions regarding
membership may be sent to: CCFR, P.O.
Box 501547, San Diego CA92150-1547.
Family Researchers, Practitioners and Legislators Discuss Working
Together - The last day of the Conference a panel discussed Eyes on the World:
The Relationship Between Governments and Families. Panelists from left were:
Johnnie Morris-Tatum, and Martin Reynolds, both Wisconsin legislators; Karen
Bogenschneidel; Univ. of Wisconsin- Madison Extension, and Family Impact
Seminars; and John Red Horse, Professor, American Indian Studies, Univ. of
Minnesota-Duluth.
December 1998
�PAIDE Council on Family Relations
Texas Council on Family Relations
am pleased to report that the PAIDE
Council on Family Relations Conference in September was well-received
by the 89 family professionals, students,
and academics in attendance. Workshops
on our theme, "Evaluating the Effectiveness of Family and Community-Based
Programs: How to Measure Outcomes,"
helped to develop some very pertinent
skills for those providing human services
today. We are grateful to Dr. Barbara H.
Settles, Professor in the Department of
Individual and Family Studies at the University of Delaware, and Dr. John M.
Pierce, Consultant and former Executive
Director ofthe Pennsylvania Council of
Children's Services, for offering these
workshops. Four student poster awards
were given for outstanding research papers. They included: "College Students'
Definition of Rape" by Caren Kaiser &
Constance Hall (Mansfield University);
"The Effects of Ministry on Marriage from
the Perspective of the Minister's Spouse"
by Dwan Gilmore (Messiah College);
"Marital Attitudes of Young Adults from
Divorced Families" by Sara Foshee &
Michael Sturm (Messiah College); and
"College Students' Views on Cohabitation"
by Hillary Campbell & Melissa Stock
(Mansfield University).
he 1999 Texas Council on Family Relations Annual Conference will be held in
Lubbock. The April 8 Preconference will feature "Character Counts" training.
The Keynote Speaker and Research Update leader during the April 9-10 confer
ence will be Dr. Froma Walsh speaking on "Strengthening Family Resilience". The
conference will feature workshops, poster sessions, student posters, and networking
opportunities.
The PIDCFR Board has already begun to
plan the conference for next year. It will
most likely occur on a Saturday in September 1999, and will be held on the Messiah
College campus. We are contemplating
themes on "motherhood and fatherhood,"
"family violence," or "ties that bind." We
have a tentative agreement with Dr. Bill
Doherty, incoming President ofNCFR and
Professor and MFT Director at the University of Minnesota's Department of Family
and Social Science, to provide our keynote
address. We are hoping to offer a variety of
additional sessions from which to choose.
The Texas Council on Family Relations is collaborating with the Texas Head Start Collaboration Project to identify core knowledge and skills for family support professional
in early childhood education.
I
NOMINATE
continued from page 14
Criteria for selection: 1) A student currently enrolled in a Graduate Program
whose work shows promise of significant
contribution to family studies. Research
projects or other work need not be completed at the time of nomination; 2) Membership in NCFR for at least 2 years. Qualified students who are nominated will need
to supply other supporting credentials: a)
Three additional letters of support; b) brief
statement defining an impOl Lant problem
they see in the family studies field and outlining possible steps towards solution; c)
brief summary of a personal program, research project, publication representing the
quality of their work and area of interest.
RaeannR. Hamon, Ph.D., CFLE
President, PIDCFR
Rhamon@messiah.edu
(717) 755-2511 x2850
focus group within the Research and
Theory Section ofNCFR. The award is
named for Anselm Strauss, whose life work
was to develop and practice qualitative
methodologies.
Nominations for this award should be
qualitative family journal articles and book
chapters published during tlle 1997 calendar year. The focus must be on qualitative
family research, although the work can be
data-based andlor methodologic, andlor
theoretical in purpose. High-quality submissions of all types of qualitative work are
welcome, with no one method havmg advantage over others.
Guidelines used to assess submissions
include: • completion of its purpose.
richness and grab of the ideas. originality
• organization. clarity. Each submission
Committee Chair: Debra Hughes, CFLE,
will be appraised in terms of what it purDept. of Family Studies/Social Work, 153A ports to be, including, but not limited to, an
ethnographic, feminist, grounded theory or
McGuffey Hall, Miami Univ., Oxford, OH
phenomenlogic work. If submissions are
45056. Phone: 513-529-2339. E-mail:
research, also assessed will be the rigor of
hughesdk@muohio.edu
the research process, the clarity of the
Anselm Strauss Annual Award for
findings, the representation of the inforQualitative Family Research (1999) •••
mants' views and (if appropriate) represenRecognizes outstanding qualitative family
tation of the researcher's views.
research. The award is sponsored by the
Nominations by self or another must be
Qualitative Family Research Network, a
submitted by Aprill, 1999. Submissions
FAMILY SCIENCE
T
ASSOCIATION OF COUNCILS:
During the 1998 NCFR Conference Anne Stanberry, Ph.D., CFLE, of Mississippi received an award for efforts to enhance the cOIinections between NCFR Affiliated Coun
cils and the Certified Family Life Educator Program.
Illinois Council on Family Relations
he illinois Council on Family Relations will host its Annual Spring Conference
focusing on the theme of "Building Family Commitment in a Changing World
on March 26 - 27, 1999 at Allerton Park. For registration details contact: President Elect, Jill Finn at (309) 752-1691, Fax: (309) 752-1692 or e-mail her at
Jfinn@riroe.k12.il.us. For membership information contact Laura Smart at (815) 7536342, Fax: (815) 753-1321 or e-maillsmart@niu.edu. Be sure to reserve those dates on
your calendars!
T
must be accompanied by a letter outlining
the reasons for the nomination. Six copies
of the submission and letter should be
mailed.
- - - - - - -I ~ t.l t'J II ~ tTl' t" ~ II.);} ~'J t-- - - - _.
1999/2000 NATIONAL COUNCIL ON FAMILY RELATIONS AWARDS
Deadline for Nominations: April 15, 1999 (exceptions are noted in the descriptions).
Check the Award for which you are nominating a candidate:
o Emest Osbome Award
0 NCFR Student Award
o Distinguished Service to Families Award o Anselm Strauss Award
Name of Nominee _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ __
Employer
lans are progressing nicely for the
1999 Conference Program in Irvine,
CA. on family diversity. Among
other things, the Family Science Section is
developing a symposium on ways that
Family Scientists and Family Science departments might enhance their cultural
sensitivity in relating to international students. In addition, we invite proposals that
_----,==-=======-:--__
(IF STUDENT, INDICATE PROGRAM AND INSTITUTION.}
Address _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ __
Phone ' - ) _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ __
E·mail _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ __
Names, addresses and phone numbers of 3 additional persons to document nominee's qualifications (include documentation with this form).
•i
lri~tr~cti~~~;1J,se~q~~f()rnitotel1cb·
; p~rsoll!'orgilniza:ti()~.you. wish to ....... /
.;l.l;6mina.fe: Attachalldocumen~?ri .
including le~e[sofrecOIn,men!lation
... ·im~ oilier. SllPPO~~g~aierla1swiili this
appU"atioILfciIlll,~SendJo NCFR
.A:ward~,)98~CenfraIAve: NE, #550,
• •. Minneap~lis,¥N•. 55421 by April'·. \ 5,
'.19C)9:p~plic~tethis~f(}pn:jf):0ll; .wish.·.•.
: . tOn£lIninate.mQre . thanqneperson; .
:. Contact:NGFR.tolI"ftee:·888~78;t.:
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[website:;
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_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ E·mail _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ __
---------------------------
continuedfrompage 10
the discipline. Additional points of discussion included professional identity issues
vis-a-vis students, colleagues in the Academy, and our external publics. Concern was
further expressed that some states have
moved to revise parameters for certification
in work with families. Participants acknowledged the need to be pro-active in advocating for state-level recognition of certified family scientists. Further details about
the forum discourse will be available in the
Section newsletter.
Award chair: Elizabeth Church, Associat
Professor, Counselling Centre, Memorial
University, S1. John's, NF, CanadaAIC
5S7. E-mail: echurch@morgan.ucs.mun.ca
explore the interface between academic
and professional concerns in Family Science and the conference theme of family
and cultural diversity. Examples might
include such topics as, what trajectories of
professional and career development best
enable Family Scientists to deal comfortably and competently with issues offamily
diversity? What pedagogical techniques
are most effective in enhancing student
self-awareness and self-examination with
regard to racial, ethnic, and gender privilege? In addition to papers relating directly
to this year's conference theme, proposals
are also welcomed which explore general
career or disciplinary issues with implications for family science researchers, educators and practitioners.
Mary Ann Hollinger
Family Science Section Chair
16
(_~
udents/New Professionals Snippets
brough the hard work of many conference presenters, the SINP Skills Exchange Sessions and Development Forum drew in large crowds and were
helpful to many participants. Thanks to those of you who presented and participated. If you have not heard yet, one of the most entertaining new developments at this
year's conference was the launching of "Kareoke" at the party hosted by SlNPs and
sponsored by Sage Publications. Initial doubts that anyone would participate were
quickly replaced by fears that party-goers would not let the DJ leave. The party appeared to be a great success. Please contact Hilary A. Rose with ideas or questions you
may have for the next conference, including the party, at brose@rnail.wsu.edu.
We urge all of you to vote on the upcoming ratification of changes to the Board GoverAdditionnance Policy. A copy of the policy may be found on the NCFR website.
ally, check the website for a copy of the new NCFR ethical guidelines already in place.
The conference in Milwaukee signaled the beginning of a several new changes to
conference programming, one of which we especially want to promote for the future.
The Council of Sages was initiated at this year's conference and was enjoyed by those
who attended, however, we need for the word to get out that "young" NCFR members
should reap the benefits of this experience at the next conference. Next year we hope
you will attend this session, in which NCFR members who have made significant
contributions to the field will tell us about their joumey through the profession and
experiences that have led to their current positions.
Please contact me if you have any questions or concerns regarding SINP issues: Debra
K. Hughes, Dept. of Family Studies, Miami University, Oxford, OH45056, 513-5292339, hughesdk@muohio.edu.
�
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NCFR Newsletters
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ncfr-newsletters
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12/1/1998
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December 1998 NCFR Report
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december-1998-ncfr-report
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December 1998
-
https://archive.ncfr.org/files/original/0740f478dd9b90c19478d6f09d09d483.pdf
e38b133f368a71b06ece0a9c1bb45c6c
PDF Text
Text
I
.1
National
Council on Family Relations
SEPTEMBER 1998,
The family...where the future touches now.
Volume 43, Number 3
Conference Sessions Address Global Issues
(RUPs) feature Karen DeBord Ph.D.,
"Reflections on Parenting Education: Is
Research a Mirror for Practice?"; Daniel
Kmitta Ed.D. on "Conflict Management
and Dispute Resolution;" David Walsh
Ph.D. speaking on "Media and the
Mind;" and Constance Flanagan Ph.D.,
"Families and Communities as Educators
for Global Citizenship."
"
Families in Global
Context: Media,
Environment, and
Peace," theme of NCFR's 1998 annual
conference, features sessions on topics
.ranging from Sesame Street to global
I conflicts and peace plans tei media
·behavior surveys. The conference meets
:November 14-17 in at the Hyatt Regency
Hotel in Milwaukee, WI.
NCFR President Greer Litton Fox
Plenary speakers include Charlotte Ph.D. will deliver her presidential
F. Cole Ph.D. and Anna Guenina
address on "Families in the Media:
Ph.D., addressing "A World of Sesame
Thoughts on the Public Scrutiny of
Private Lives."
Street Families;" Barbara Adams on
"Sustainable Development: A Peace Plan
for the 21 st Century;" and Atle
A World of Sesame Street Families
Dyregrov Ph.D., addressing "'The
Worst Memory in My Head': Families
and War."
Research Updates for Practitioners
Awards Presented
During Conference
P
our major NCFR awards will
be presented during the
annual conference in
Milwaukee in November.
Ernest W. Burgess Award
Receiving the Ernest W. Burgess
Award for outstanding career
achievement in family research is Vern
L. Bengtson. He is the AARP/University
Professor of Gerontology and Sociology
at the University of Southern CA, and
past president of the Gerontological
Society of America. A plaque and cash
award of $1,000 will be presented at the
conference.
For 25 years, he has directed the
Longitudinal Study of Four Generation
Families which has been the source of
pathbreaking research on ;
intergenerational relations i
and aging. He has pub- .
lished 10 books, includiltlgl
the most recent The
Changing Contract
Between Generations
(with Andrew Achenbaum, Bengtson
1993), mdden Connections;
Intergenerational Linkages in
American Society (with R. Harootyan,
1994), and Intergenerational Issues in
Aging (with Warner Schaie and Linda
Burton, 1995).
Bengtson has produced 150 papers
in professional journals and books and
has twice won NCFR's Reuben Hill
Cole
Award for outstanding research and
theory on the family. He is the recipient
of a MERIT award from the National
Institute on Aging, and in 1995, he was
presented the Distinguished Scholar
Award by the American Sociological
Association's Section on Aging.
Charlotte F. Cole is vice-president
for International Research at Children's
Television Workshop in New York, and
Anna Guenina is the director in the
department of Research and Content for
Ilitsa Sezam (Russian adaptation of
Sesame Street). Their plenary session
begins at 10:30 a.m. on Saturday,
November 14.
His work over the last 30 years has
had a strong influence on the field. His
achievements are consistent with the
goals of the Burgess Award said Alan
Booth, chair of the selection committee.
Other committee members were Paul
Amato, Marilyn Coleman, Scott
Coltrane, Jan Hogan, Steven Small, and
Ouida Westney.
The Burgess Award was established
in 1952 in honor of the Ernest W.
Burgess, one of NCFR's founders and its
fourth president. He was the first editor
of Journal of Marriage and the Family
and a distinguished professor of
sociology at the University of Chicago.
Guenina
They note that "family life has
always been at the heart of Sesame
Street. Our aim has been to help children
learn what a fan-illy is and what families
do and to help children understand that
there many kinds offamilies."
The plenary address will introduce
attendees "to the images of family life
portrayed on Sesame Street, both in the
U.S. and in our 19 international
adaptations of the program including our
projects in Russia, China, Israeli and the
l~
____________--~
Reuben mil Award
The recipients of the 1998 Reuben
Hill Award recognizing the outstanding
article, book, or monograph that best
combines theory and methodology in the
analysis and interpretation of a significant
family issue are Benjamin Karney and
Thomas Bradbury. This is the second time
they have received the award. Their
See Awards on Page 2
Carver MOdef • • -2,4,t2
7
Dh,~rsityf:lep()rt
Mentori,,9· ,
9
Leg8cy'CircleJobOpenings •... 13
Affi nat$col'll1e¢tion 15
Palestinian Territories, Mexico, and
Canada." (Editor's note: See the June
1998 REPORT, page 10, for more
detailed information on this plenary.)
Sustainable Development:
A Peace Plan for the 21st Century
Barbara Adams is deputy
coordiltlator, United Nations Nongovernmental Liaison
at
headquarters in New
York. While she was
associate director,
Quaker United National
Office, she worked with
UN delegates, staff, and,
NGOs on issues of
\,
economic and social jusAdams
tice, women, peace, and human rights.
She will deliver her plenary address at
10:30 a.m. on Sunday, November 15.
Adams explains that Principle 1, Rio
Declaration on Environment and
Development from Agenda 21: UN
Programme of Action for Sustainable
Development notes, "human beings are at
the centre of concerns for sustainable
development. They are entitled to a
healthy and productive life in harmony
with nature."
Agenda 21 also states that "No
nation can achieve this on its own; but
together we can--in a global partnership
for sustainable development."
See Speakers on Page 11
�1------..1
D
Hopes, Plans for a New Way of Operating
ear NCFR Members What a summer it has
been! Around the
country and from coast to coast, against
the backdrop of sizzling southwestern
temperatures for some and chilly,
torrential rains for others. All the
members of the NCFR Board have been
engaged in a thorough review of the fIrst
draft of the policy governance document,
"Reinventing Our Board: A New NCFR
Paradigm of Governance 1998." The 34page document was written during an
extended working weekend by the small
group empowered by the Board to take
the next steps toward implementation of
the policy governance model which was
adopted in principle by the Board at its
meeting in April 1998.
Director may NOT do), and
.Board/Executive Director Linkage
Policies (how organizational authority is
transferred from the Board to the
Executive Director). The working group
drafted the latter three policy sections
fairly completely; by contrast, the Ends
Policies section is necessarily unfinished.
Ends Policies are an outcome of the
thoughtful, continuous, and informed
deliberation of the responsible governing
Board.
After the small group met
together June 26-28 to draft the
, governance document, we met again via a
lengthy conference call to proofread the
draft which was then sent in mid-July to
the full board for review. Board members
were asked to respond to a series of openIn my June column, I outlined
ended questions and to make written
the reasons a change in Board functioning comments and suggestions on the
was deemed necessary and provided an
document itself. In addition, each board
overview of the policy governance model member was contacted by one of the
toward which the Board is working. This small-group members for direct one-oncolumn describes the steps we have taken one conversation. All the feedback from
so far, the work that lies ahead, and our
the board was collated, reviewed by the
hopes and plans for the transition to a new small group in a conference call, and
way of operating.
considered for incorporation into a second
draft of the NCFR policy governance
Members of the working group
included Katherine Allen, Bill Doherty,
Janie Long, Jim Ponzetti, and me. Carol
Matusicky, BC Council for Famillies, was
our external facilitator and Mary Jo
article is "Neroticism, Marital
Czaplewski did yeoman service as our
Interaction, and the Trajectory of Marital
recorder. Steve Jorgensen, although
Satisfaction," published in Volume 72 of
unable to attend the weekend drafting
the Journal of Personality and Social
session, has participated in all other
Psychology. The A ward carries a prize
phases of the work. To prepare ourselves
of $1,000.
for the working retreat, the small group
read both of J obo Carver's books on
Karney joined the facu1ty in the
policy governance, along with the NCFR
Dept. of Psychology at the University of
policy documents and bylaws. Our goal
FL in 1997, after receiving his doctorate
was not simply a wholesale adoption of
in social psychology
"the Carver model," but rather the
from UCLA. His
tailoring of general principles of policy
research examines stagovernance to the needs and special
bility and change in
character of NCFR.
strongly held beliefs,
especially the initially
The governance document is
positive beliefs of
organized into four policy sections:
newlywed couples.
Karney
.Organizational Ends Policies (What is
He was the recipient of the 1996 New
the purpose of NCFR? Why does it exist? Scholar Award from the International
What results should it have, for whom,
Network on Personal Relationships.
and at what cost? What evidence will be
used to show that the ends are being
Bradbury received his doctorate in
met?). Board Governance Process
clinical psychology in 1990 from the
Policies (what the Board expects of itself
University of IL-UrbanalChampaign. He
and how it will behave). Executive
then joined the facu1ty in the Dept. of
Limitations Policies (what the Executive
Psychology at UCLA
document. It is this second draft that will
be discussed and voted on by the Board at
the November Board meeting.
We are enthusiastic about the
work that has been done so far and invite
you to read the document for yourself.
We would welcome your review and
thoughtful reactions to it. In fact, we
need you to be as informed about it as
possible because there are several bylaws
changes that are necessary to the
implementation of the proposed model,
and they need to be voted upon by an
informed membership. The draft
document will be available in the
"Members Only" website section by
September 11. Or you can contact the
NCFR office for a hard copy. We will
use every possible opportunity at the
NCFR annual conference to talk about the
new NCFR policy governance model,
including the business sessions of the
sections and the annual Membership
Forum and Business Meeting.
Additionally, closed circuit showings of a
video outlining the major principles of
policy governance will be available
throughout the conference.
Remember that the Board has
already decided to change to a policy
governance model. This was done by its
vote at the April 1998 meeting of the
Board. The Board now is deliberating the
details - the specifIc blueprint that will
carry the organization into a new way of
operating. The November meeting will
affirm (or not) the document of policies
drafted this summer. If the Board votes
to afflIID the document, the transition
schedule will begin immediately,
including a vote on bylaws changes by the
general membership.
Your Board is committed to
acting in the best interests of the members
of NCFR. I hope it's not a pipedream to
believe that acting together in good faith
and with due diligence, we can all Board, the staff, and NCFR members
alike - help endow the organization with
a form of governance that nurtures and
uses fully the talents and gifts that so
many NCFR members and staff have
offered to NCFR over these 60 years.
Greer Litton Fox Ph.D.
NCFR President
Awards from Page 1 - - - - Ruth Jewson Award
Student Award
The fIrst recipient of the Ruth
Hathaway Jewson Award for the best
dissertation proposal submitted by a
doctoral candidate (who is a member of
NCFR) is Bethany L. Letiecq in the
Dept. of Family Studies at the University
of MD-College Park. She has been a
member of NCFR since 1993.
This year's winner of the NCFR
Student Award is Melody Ga:ye Stone
from the University of TN-Knoxville.
She joined NCFR in 1995. The award is
presented to a graduate student who is a
member of NCFR and has demonstrated
excellence as a student with high
potential for contribution to the fIeld of
family studies. A plaque and cash award
For her dissertation, Letiecq is
of $1,000 will be presented at the
researching the strategies used by African ! conference.
American fathers and
.
other significant males
to help young children
cope with community
violence. Her research
will inform a larger
~.
study conducted by
_
Drs. Suzanne Randolph
Letiecq
and Sally Koblinsky in the Dept. of
Family Studies althe University of MD.
They are developing a violence
prevention intervention for Head Start.
Meet -I ng
FamilY and Consumer
Sciences in Higher
Education--An Open
Summit on the Future," is the theme of (
conference February 3-6, 1999, at the
Radisson Suite Hotel in Arlington, TX.
"
The event is sponsored through a
partnership of the Board of Human
Letiecq completed her undergraduate Sciences/Council of Administrators of
degree in psychology at the University of Family and Consumer Sciences, 1890
. . . _ - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - , where he is a professor.
His research focuses on
Council of Administrators, Higher
Rhode Island in 1991. She then worked
· understanding and
Education Unit of the American
as a research assistant at Brown
altering the longitudinal
Association of Family and Consumer
University's Center for Alcohol and
course of marriage, with
Addiction Studies. In 1993, she received Sciences, Kappa Omicron Nu, National
: particu1ar emphasis on
a graduate fellowship from the University Association of Teacher Educators of
how marriages develop
of MD where she completed her master's Family and Consumer Sciences, and Phi
· and change over the first several years.
Upsilon Omicron.
degree in 1995. Her master's thesis
of The National Council
Bradbury is the recipient of the 1997
examined the social support of homeless
on Family Relations
· Distinguished ScientifIc Award for Early and housed mothers of young children.
For more information contact
Executive Director;
Mary 10 Czaplewski
, Career Contributions to Psychology from
Summit Steering Committee, 4990
, the American Psychological Association.
The award carries a prize of $2,500 Northwind Dr., Suite 140, E. Lansing,
NCFR Report is published quarterly by the National
MI 48823; 517-351-8335; www.kon.org.
to upgrade doctoral research in some
Council on Family Relations, 3989 Central Ave, N.B..
The Hill Award was established in
aspect of family studies or family
Suite 550, Minneapolis. MN 55421. Third class
· honor of Reuben ml, one of the nation's practice, plus $750 to attend the NCFR
postage pennit.
most distinguished 'family theorists and
annual conference.
SUbscription rate is $5.00. included in annual
researchers on marriage and the family.
membership dues. $15.00 U,S. postage per year
Hill was a recipient of NCFR's Burgess
The award is presented in honor of
postpaid individual rate.
ather Adrien Theoret, M.A
Award and a Regent's Professor of
Dr. Ruth Hathaway Jewson, NCFR's
Jesuit, TIe Bizard, PQ,
NEWS DEADLINES: February 1 for March issue; May Family Sociology at the University of
chief executive officer from 1956 to
F
Canada, died on March 20 at
1 for June issue; August 1 for Septemher issue;
MN. He was considered the father of
1984.
the age of 70. He joined NCFR in 1965.
November 1 for December issue.
L......_ _...,..."...-...,..._ _ _ _ _ _ _...J family studies.
In Memoriam
�Recognition of Value of Prevention Education Increases
N
early 1,000 people
representing 16 countries
attended the recent Coalition
for Marriage, Family and Couples
Education (CMFCE) conference in
Washington D.C. NCFR was a cosponsor of the conference.
education by offering discounts on
marriage licenses for those completing
courses.
Divorce attorneys are working
together to make divorce more difficult in
hopes of encouraging people to try to
work it out before dissolving the
marriage.
A number of NCFR members
including NCFR president-elect Bill
Doherty and several CFLEs, were among
Many people visited the NCFR
the presenters and attendees. They
exhibit, expressing interest in
represented marriage and family
membership and in becoming a Certified
therapists, family life educators, religious Family Life Educator. Therapists and
leaders, social workers, divorce lawyers, social workers especially asked about the
social scientists, researchers and even a
CFLE requirements recognizing the value
judge and a mayor.
of the designation as they move their
efforts to a more educational approach.
The second annual conference
focused on a new "movement" in
I found it especially interesting that,
marriage preparation and education.
when reviewing the ten CFLE substance
Research shows that marriage is in
areas, many with therapy and social work
decline as a social, political, and moral
backgrounds said they did not have any
institution, and the impact is devastating
preparation in the area of Family
for society. Both children and adnlts
Resource Management. Yet, throughout
suffer as a result of divorce. While
the conference, speakers repeatedly
traditional therapy can work for some, its mentioned that money and financial
overall track record is not promising.
issues were a leading cause of divorce-further reinforcement for the value of the
Diane Sollee, CMFCE director and
CFLE designation when looking for
organizer of the conference, created the
qualified family professionals!
Coalition in 1996 to increase awareness
of a preventive and educational approach
Attending this conference reinforced
my belief and commitment to family life
to marriage and relationships. The
conference featured a number of
education. More and more people are
marriage preparation and enrichment
recognizing the fact that there are tools
programs as wen as curric~a for
and skills available to help people lead
teaching communication and conflict
more effective and satisfying lives. With
resolution skills in high schools.
this recognition comes an increased value
for qualified practitioners. I was
Florida recently passed legislation
encouraged by the enthusiasm and
requiring that relationship and
support for a preventative approach and
communication skills be taught in all high am all the more convinced that the future
schools. A number of proponents would
of the Certified Family Life Educator
like to see this kind of legislation across
program is full of promise!
the country. Likewise many religious
institutions are combining efforts to
require premarital education before
performing weddings, and some states
are trying to encourage premarital
59 Abbreviated Applications Received . University of Wyoming
7
19 Schools - 24 programs
Kansas State University
6
CFLE-Approved
Messiah College
5
University of Southern Mississippi
2
A total of 19 schools representing 24 University of Tennessee- Knoxville
2
undergraduate and graduate programs
Brigham Young University
2
have been CFLE-approved by the NCFR Auburn University
1
Academic Program Review Committee.
South Dakota State University
1
Since the first school was approved in.
November of 19%,59 applications have
September 3, 1998
been received using the abbreviated
Next A lication Deadline
application process available to graduates
of approved programs. This number
The November CFLE review is your
promises to increase as more students
last chance to apply for the CFLE
have the opportunity to complete the predesignation before the application fee is
approved course work. Spring Arbor
increased from $175 to $200 for NCFR
leads the way!
members. The application fee has not
been raised since 1992! Order your
Abbreviated Applications Received:
application packet today if you have not
already done so.
Spring Arbor
20 Dawn Cassidy
Weber State University
13 Certification Director
T
Contributions
he following persons have
contributed donations since
June 1998. Their generosity
aids NCFR in continuing its programs
and awards.
General Fund
Marion Hill - Minneapolis, MN;
Kim Myung Cha - Seoul, Korea;
Designstein - Minneapolis, MN; Dr.
Shirley Zimmerman - Minneapolis,
MN.
Jessie Bernard Award
Karen R. Blaisure - Kalamazoo,
MI.
John Lewis McAdoo
Dissertation Award
Velma McBride Murry - Athens,
GA.
For more information on
contributing to NCFR, contact: Mary Jo
Czaplewski, NCFR Executive Director,
3989 Central Ave. NE, Suite 550,
Minneapolis, MN 55421; toll free: 888781-9331 ext. 17.
On the Net
Access NCFR's website at:
www.ncfr.com
To access Members Only:
NOTE NEW PASSWORD
BEGINS IN SEPTEMBER
Ruth Jewson Student
Scholarship Fund
Dr. Jane F. Gilgun - Minneapolis,
MN.
24 ACADEMIC PROGRAMS APPROVED BY NCFR COMMITTEE!
The Academic Program Review Committee has now approved twenty schools representing 25 undergraduate and graduate programs. The Committee reviewed the course offerings and determined that
they covered the content needed for the Provisional CFLE designation. Additional applications are currently under review. Graduates of these approved programs qualify to complete an abbreviated application process for Provisional certification and pay a reduced application fee. Congratulations to these
CONGRATULATIONS TO THE MOST RECENTLY APPROVED SCHOOL:
schools!
1998:
user: legacy
password: burgess
To reach NCFR headquarters:
ncfr3989@ncfr.com
To reach specific staff members:
Mary Jo Czaplewski
czaplewski@ncfr.com
University of New Hampshire - Family Studies - undergraduate
Anderson University - Family Science undergraduate
Andrews University - Family Life - undergraduate
Auburn University - Human Dev. & Family Studies - undergraduate & graduate
Brigham Young University - Family Sciences
- undergraduate. Family Sciences & Human Dev. &
Marriage & Family Therapy - graduate
California State University- Long Beach Family and
Consumer Sciences - Child Development and Family Studies
Option - undergraduate
Indiana University of PA - Child Dev. & Family
Relations undergraduate
Kansas State University - Family Life & Community
Service undergraduate
Kent State University - Individual/Family Studies undergraduate and graduate
Messiah College Family Studies - undergraduate
Miami University Individual & Family Studies undergraduate & graduate
South Dakota State University - Human Dev. & Family
Studies - undergraduate
Spring Arbor College - Family Life Education undergraduate
University of Nebraska - Kearney - Family &
Consumer Sciences - undergraduate
University of New Hampshire - Family Studies
- undergraduate
University of North Texas - ChildlHuman Development
and Family Studies - undergraduate and graduate
University of Southern Mississippi Child & Family
Studies - undergraduate
University of Tennessee - Knoxville - Family Studies
- undergraduate
University of Wyoming - Child & Family Studies
undergraduate
Warner Pacific College - Human Development and
Family Studies - undergraduate
Weber State University - Child and Family Studiesundergraduate
'
Dawn Cassidy
cassidyd@ncfr.com
Doris Hareland
HareiandD@ncfr.com
Brenda Hoffman
HoffmanBJ@ncfr.com
John Pepper
Pepperw@ncfr.com
Kathy Collins Royce
kcroyce@ncfr.com
Cindy Winter
wintersc@ncfr.com
�NCFR REPORT, September 1998, Page 4
The New Work of the Board
I
n her June President's column to
all NCFR members, Greer
Litton Fox described the new
work of the NCFR Board. She
introduced the basic concepts of Board
policy governance, asked your support
and assistance in three ways. First, by
becoming informed about a policy
governance model as described in John
Carver's book Boards That Make A
Difference. Secondly, by understanding
that in the future, NCFR's Board must
function from an effective systems
approach to represent NCFR's
constituents, and third, that each of you
become invested in the process of
reinvigorating NCFR by lending your
voices and suggestions during this change
process.
In the midst of a historically
devastating Minnesota June storm, an
inspiring but intense two and a half day
working session of the Board Committee
produced a new document on Board
Governance for NCFR, which will
ensure highboard and staff performance
and thus add a tangible value to NCFR's
future. It is currently being reviewed by
every member of the Board and will be
the major focus of discussion at the
Business Meeting and Membership
Forum on Sunday, November 15 at the
conference. Please see Greer's column
on Page 2 for additional details.
My purpose here is to share
information on the principles of Board
Policy Governance which guided this
committee as it accomplished its task and
to describe the enthusiasm for this new
model of board governance which I
found in interviewing nine other national
organizations which are using it.
These principles are further explained on
pages 21 to 36 in Boards That Make a
Difference. A videotape on the model of
Board Policy Governance will also be
shown throughout the conference in the
exhibits and on closed circuit television at
specified times.
Basic Principles of Board Policy
Governance:
mOn!tored only· against policy
criteria. (1)
These 10 principles represent a
radical change in the way NCFR thinks
about and uses its Board of Directors and
paid staff. But if used well, these
principles create an environment for the
association that will carry it forward
through strategic leadership and vision.
In preparation for the Board
discussion last April, I interviewed nine
executive directors of large and small
national organizations who are using this
model. Two were family science
organizations closely related to NCFR.
The overwhelming response of all of
them is that the model WORKS! The
organization and its members benefit by
having a growing and forward moving
organization.
A few of the comments included
such things as, "it allows staff to be
innovative, the Council to be visionary. "
"It allows the organization to affect
beneficial change by focusing on the
goals of the organization and the big
picture of how it fits into the societal
whole." "It is empowering for both
board and staff." "Board members enjoy
being board members." "It creates a real
team between Board and staff." "It frees
the staff to have flexibility in
Graduate Study in
Child
These executives were also willing
to offer some precautions. "Full Board
support is necessary and must be insured
from one term to another by careful
orientation and self-examination ."
"Keep your members informed along the
way." "Staff need to be involved and
understand the model." "Board selection
and training is a constant given." "Ends
are constantly being evaluated and
revised which makes for a dynamic
organization." "The longer we have used
it the more we love it. "
I cannot think of a more appropriate
time than now, barely one year away
from a transition to new executive
TUFTS UNIVERSITY
Where Theory and
K
atherine R.ose "Kate"
Funder, a member of
NCFR since 1991, died June
13 in North Carlton, Victoria, Australia.
She was 56 years old.
Funder was a principal research
fellow at the Australian Institute of
Family Studies, where she had worked
since 1983. She had been a teacher and
educational psychologist and was a
member of the Victorian Psychologists
Registration Board and a previous chair
of the Victorian branch of the Australian
Psychological Society. She was also
involved with the Family Law Council.
,
Practice Meet
~
~
(1) Carver, John, and MM Carver.
Carver Guide 1: Basic Principle
Policy Governance. 1996, JOSSe
Bass Publishers, San Francisco,
She was recognized in Australi:
internationally for the quality and pc
relevance of her research in the fielc
family studies, her numerous
pUblications, and her commitment tc
scholarship.
Funder wrote about foregoing
prejudices against single mothers an
children of separated parents, and hi
research had direct practical implica
She is survived by her husband
years, John, and their chlldIen: Ann
Hugh, and Joshua;
Comlng·,4 ttractions for Fall
.
.
September
Is That All There Is?
We offer:
~
director leadership, to implement thi
new model. It will be crucial to info
CEO candidates about it in advance,
it is so empowering. that a new lead
will embrace it and facilitate its
implementation. We are most anxim:
hear from you. Your questions,
comments and support are important
Watch for more information about tl:
transformation of NCFR in this and
subsequent issues of the REPORT, 11
contact us or any of the Board mem
with your thoughts.
Mary Jo Czaplewski Ph.D. CFLE
Executive Director
In Memoriam
Developmell1
~
+-The primary role of the Board is to
govern the organization on behalf of
those who own the organization namely its members.
+-The Board speaks with one voice or not
at all.
+-Board decisions should predominantly
be policy decisions. (Address the
ends of the organization)
+-The Board formulates policy by
determining the broadest values
before progressing to those which
are more narrow.
+-The Board should define and delegate
rather than react and ratify.
+-Ends determination is the highest
calling of the trustee leaders - the
Board.
+-The Board's best control over the staff
means is to limit, rather than to
prescribe.
+-The Board must explicitly design its
own products and process.
+-The Board must forge a linkage with
management that is both
empowering and safe.
+-The Performance of the CEO must be
implementing the ends goals of the
board."
Balancing Expectation lJt Disappointment
in Your Life
Integration of child development theory
and effective practice
Interdisdplinary and interdepartmental
studies, including education and
public policy
Diverse opportunities for working with
and studying children
Preparation for careers in research,
teaching, social policy, and much more
David Brandt, Ph.D.
SoftcofJer: $15.95
256pp.
What's wrong? Why are so many people depressed, so
unhappy in their personal lives? This book offers an
antidote for those whose hopes and expectations exceec
reality. Explains the psychology of disappointment socia
influences contributing to it and a variety of ways to deal
with it to convert it to a positive force for growth.
November
~_~_.
Sex, Drugs, Gambling 8f Chocolate
Generous Financial Support
~
~
~
I>
~
Teaching assistantships
Employment in our lab school and day
((Ire center
Scholarships and stipends
Faculty research grants
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�Profiles in Membership
I
n this edition of the
Membership Memo, I introduce
you to some members
of NCFR at different stages of their
career development, who have belonged
for varying amounts of time and derive
numerous benefits from their
membership. I offer their comments to
prompt your thinking about people
around you whom you might invite to
join NCFR. Perhaps these profiles will
give you some ideas for approaching
colleagues and students who could
similarly reap the advantages of
belonging to the premier family studies
professional society.
Jennifer: "/ am an assistant professor
with a research and teaching
appointment. NCFR offers many things to
me as a professional, including
opportunities to present my research, a
means of gathering current information in
research related to mine, networking with
a diverse group of professionals, and
facilitating the growth of others (for
example, my own students, my work with
mentoring efforts). "
Anne: "As an Assistant Professor and
Assistant Director of the School of Family
and Consumer Sciences, my NCFR work
has been of great benefit. Recently, /
duplicated my notes from the NCFR
For this installment, the featured
session on The Future of Family Science
members are all pursuing academic
for faCUlty in my area to refer to as we
careers. Meet Anne Stanberry from
plan for our future. / have used the
videotapes from RUPs and plenaries in
University of Southern Mississippi,
my classes with great results. They bring
Jennifer Kerpelman of University of
experts who are up-to-date on many
North Carolina at Greensboro, Maxine
Hammonds-Smith who teaches at Texas different topics into the classroom. The
students see what professionals do at
Southern University, Libby Blume, on
conferences and realize our profession is
the faculty at University of Detroit
serious about improving the quality of life
Mercy, and Kathy Piercy, who is at
for families. / use the NCFRjournals in
Utah State University.
preparing to teach and require students
1. When and why did you join NCFR? to read from them, also. / also improve
and update my knowledge through NCFR
Did anyone encourage you to join
functions such as the annual conference
(who)?
and the Black Mountain conference. / am
a CFLE and encourage my students to
Anne (re-joined in 1989), Maxine
become CFLEs which shows that they are
(1983), Libby (1991), Jennifer (1990)
competent to conduct family life
and Kathy (1992), all reported that they
education programs and serve as
joined when in college or graduate
school, encouraged by faculty to become knowledgeable sources for information. "
research section, Membership Committee Anne: "/ enjoy the annual conference
where / can discuss current issues with
representative, Chair of the Mentoring
people who work in similar arenas and
Subcommittee. / read the newsletter,
attend annual conferences, participate in learn what other professionals are doing
in the field. / renew my membership each
the Research and Theory and the
year because of the many benefits /
Feminism and Family Studies sections,
access the web site, read JMF and FR,
receive including journals, newsletter,
use membership list in my roles as S/NP professional dialogue, CFLE, and local
representative and Chair of the
and regional conferences. "
Mentoring subcommittee, and serve as an
officer and on committees."
Kathy: "/ renew each year because /
enjoy both the conference and the
Maxine: "/ have served as the
journals, as well as professional
Association of Councils Secretary and
networking opportunities. / enjoy the
two terms as a State President as well as conferences the most. "
Ethnic Minority Section Secretary and
Education and Enrichment Section
Jennifer: "/ appreciate the supportive
Secretary. / have also been a member of network, opportunities at the annual
the CFLE Review Committee,
meeting, the journals, and connecting
Membership Committee, and Continuing
students at my university with other
Education Committee. / attend
students and with faculty and applied
the NCFR annual conferences and
professionals who can offer them
participate in section activities. "
mentoring and connections into the job
market. Also, / see NCFR as providing
Libby: "/ have been President of the
good support for my short and long-term
Michigan Council on Family Relations
.
professional goals. "
andfounding editor of the MCFR
journal, the Michigan Family Review. At Maxine: "/ believe in this organization.
the national level, / have served on the
The professional journals, web page,
NCFR Board of Directors as President of newsletters, and being able to network
the Association of Councils and as Chair with family professionals nationally
of the Task Force on the Affiliated
and internationally are some of the
Councils. / belong to Research and
reasons that / will not miss paying my
Theory, Ethnic Minorities, and Feminism annual membership. All of these are
and Families Sections. / have served as
MOST important to me as a member of
Co-Chair of the Lifespan Development
NCFR."
Focus Group of the Research and Theory
Section. / am currently on the NCFR
5. Is there anything you dislike about
Long Range Planning Committee. "
NCFR?
involved in the national and state levels.
Kathy: "/ am an Assistant Professor in
Anne's commitment to professional
the Department of Family & Human
Anne: "/ have been involved at the state
development continued through changes
level with our affiliate, serving as
in her career pathway, as she indicates in Development. NCFR membership and
service to the organization are considered president and past president and at the
this quote:
part of meeting the service requirement in regional level by presenting a
"/ first joined NCFR while in college. /
don't remember if my professor
encouraged me to join or if / wanted to
begin 'living into my profession. ' When
/ went overseas with my husband /
dropped my career and my NCFR
membership. When / came back into my
career, / rejoined NCFR. "
2. What is your main line of work?
Does NCFR benefit your career
development? If so, how?
The respondents range from
assistant professors to professors ..They
all agree that belonging to NCFR
enhances their career development, but
they highlighted different features of
membership in these comments:
Maxine: "/ am a college professor.
Being a member of NCFR benefits me by
contributing to my professional
development. / take pride in letting
people know that / am affiliated with an
organization that continues to provide an
avenue for professional growth at its
annual meetings. Also, being a Certified
Family Life Educator validates me as a
family professional. "
Libby: "/ am Associate Professor of
Psychology and teach child development
andfamily classes. NCFR, the journals,
and the Famlysci listserve all greatly
benefit my teaching and research. "
Although these members did not
dislike any features of NCFR, they did
offer a few suggestions to improve the
organization, including the following:
my faculty role statement. "
research paper. At the national level, /
have served on the Board of Directors,
3. In what ways have you been
attended the annual meeting for the
involved in NCFR?
last 4 or 5 years. / attended the Black
Mountain conference and grew
These five members are quite active professionally and personally through the
work we did and the friendships / made. /
in multiple levels of NCFR, serving
am currently working with the Education
in numerous leadership positions and
taking advantage of the many benefits
and Enrichment section as a reviewer and
that the organization has to offer. Here
presider. With the Association of
are their comments.
Councils, / have been an active member,
President, Past president, and presider of
Kathy: "/ have been involved on several RUPs sessions. The work and the
levels. Nationally, / have served on
professional, and personal friendships
the Nominating Committee of the Family that / have made through my association
Health section and on the Membership
with the A C have been gratifying. / read
Committee. / was a member of the
the newsletter from cover to cover soon
Southeastern Council on Family Relations after it arrives because, / have found,
until my move to Utah. / recently joined
there are things that / want to respond to
the Utah Council on Family Relations
that have deadlines. "
and will serve as Program Chair for next
year's annual meeting. / have presented 4. What do you like most about
papers at both NCFR and SCFR. /
NCFR? Why do you renew your
subscribe to both journals and read them membership each year?
faithfully (at least some of each journal).
/ have also published a manuscript in
The answers to this question show a
JMF."
variety of perspectives on the advantages
Jennifer: "/ have been involved at all
levels: locally: Membership Chair of the
Family Council of North Carolina;
regionally: Student/New professional
representative for the Southeastern
Council of Family Relations; nationally:
Student/New professional member of the
Finance Committee, Student/New
professional representative for theory and
of NCFR membership. They illustrate the
fact that NCFR speaks to many
professional needs in the family arena.
Libby: "/ like the professional colleagues
and networking opportunities, the
journals, and annual conference. NCFR
is an interdisciplinary group where /
feel at home as a Ph.D. hybrid in Human
Development and Family Studies."
(1) Start a Leadership Development
Program for those who would like to
move up in the profession to have an
opportunity to shadow those who have
made it to the top.
(2) bnprove the extent to which
NCFR is known among developmental
psychologists .
(3) Hold the annual conference in
more interesting cities.
The five members featured in this
column are actively involved in their
careers. Uniformly, they view ongoing
participation and leadership in NCFR as
crucial to their own advancement as well
as that of their students. Won't you
take a few moments to think of people
around you who could derive similar
advantages for professional development
from NCFR? Contact Kathy Royce at
NCFR headquarters (kcroyce@ncfr.com
or toll free 888-781-9331 ext 21) for
membership brochures to distribute in
your area.
Rosemary Blieszner
NCFR Membership Vice-president
October is the 24th
observance of
National Family
Sexuality Education Month.
�Women·s Issues Updated for 21 at Century
I
n the middle of July, I am off to
the week-long celebration of the
150th anniversary of the First
Women's Rights Convention in Seneca
Falls. One of the events will be a
reading of the "Declaration of
Sentiments", drawn up by Elizabeth
Cady Stanton in 1848, spelling out
women's grievances of that time. Many
of those issues, such as the right to
credit, education, and voting have been
taken care of. Today's women are
drawing up a list of the issues that still
need to be addressed as we move into the
21st Century. The new list will be
presented at Seneca Falls.
In the mean time, the Congressional
Women's Caucus has submitted their list
of seven legislative priorities for the
coming year. This list reflects the
tremendous increase in technology and
science, but still the great need to take
the special needs of women into
consideration. Here is their list:
QUALITY HEALTH CARE
then adjourn in October to allow
legislators to get back to their home
districts to campaign. All of this leaves
the number of legislative days short and
the amount of unfmished business large.
0687. E-mail: paffairs@uLurban.org
http://www.urban.org
Child Care
The Children's Defense Fund has
been the lead agency in a large coalition
worldng toward more and better child
There may, or may not be a
care and after-school activities. They
comprehensive consumer oriented bill
point out that in 1997, 65 percent of
passed by this Congress. The Patients'
mothers with children under age six and
Bill of Rights Act (S. 1890 and H.R.
78 percent of mothers of school-age
3605) is a comprehensive legislative
children were in the work force. The
answer to the many complaints of
rates should go higher as more welfare
consumers around the country. This bill women reach the end of the time they can
is supported by all sorts of groups,
be a recipient. Over half of America's
including the American Medical
families with young children earn less
Association. The Republicans have put
than $35,000 per year and therefore are
out their bill but it is much less consumer unable to pay for adequate child care.
oriented, and may include the Medical
The Child Care Now! campaign is
Savings Accounts.
worldng to get a Child Care and
Development Block Grant.
Bankruptcy
into the current budget bill.
Managed Care
The Consumer Bankruptcy Reform
Act (S 1301lHR 3150) bill has been
passed by the House and sent to the
Senate. No action has been taken as I
write this. This bill would reverse nearly
100 years of giving child support and
spousal support "debt collection priority"
over credit card debt after bankruptcy.
State of the Cities
"The State of the Cities", HUD's
1998 report on the cities of America was
I. Re-authorization of
presented the first week of July at a
Mammography Quality Standards
convocation attended by about 1000
Act.
people. The theme was "safety in the
cities" as a major necessity for city
II. Federal Employees Health
revival. In New York and Boston a
This information comes from the
Benefits Plan Coverage of Full
policy of community policing, zero
Women's Network for Change. Their
Range of Contraception.
tolerance of even minor infractions. ~nrl
info is that: "Women trying to collect
attention to "broken windows," which
m. Genetic Discrimination.
money from former spouses will find that lead to further vandalism and decline, is
1. Genetic Information
their child support and alimony would no creating safer cities. A minister from
Nondiscrimination in
longer be paid before credit card debt.
Boston told how he had met with gang
Health Insurance Act of Women will be hard pressed to compete
leaders and as a result, his church and
1997 (H.R. 306)
with banks and other creditors for limited other black churches were seeing their
2. Family Genetic Privacy and
funds.
role as sanctuaries of hope for those
Protection Act (H.E.
whose hopes have been shattered by the
3299)
"In the past three years, more than a realities of inner city living.
3. Genetic Employment Protection
million women heading their own
Act (H.R. 2275)
households have filed for bankruptcy.
Church people have become partners
Women who file for bankruptcy after
with the police and are getting children
ECONOMIC OPPORTUNITY
having been recently divorced often do so sentenced to the church where mentors
in an effort to stabilize their income.
help with literacy, go to court with the
IV. Women-owned Businesses
Traditional bankruptcy legislation enables young people and instill a sense of order
(H.Con.Res. 313)
these women to pay rent and buy food for in their lives. The churches are
their families by postponing or erasing
becoming missionaries in the community.
V. "Commission on the
credit card and other debt payments they
He called for the de-racializing of the
Advancement of Women in the
cannot make. The Consumer Bankruptcy police. Police should remember their old
Fields of Science, Engineering, and Reform Act will force these women to
role of protector, rather than instrument
Technology Development Act (H.R. choose credit card debt over their
of control. He urged action to deal with
3007)
family's well-being". For more
"insane gun laws".
information call 800-608-5286.
CHILD CARE ASSISTANCE
Cornel West, the last speaker, said
Welfare and Child Care
it is difficult to bring forth a loving
VI. Principles For Child Care
community and family with America's
Legislation. Increases funding for
The Urban Institute has a major
dominant myth of frontier and revolution.
low income families under the Child study, Assessing the New Federalism. as Slavery was violent, maintained by fear
Care and Development Block Grant, part of their "Program to Assess
and violence. Serious talk has to go
lowers taxes for working families
Changing Social Policies". This week
beyond money making and should start
and stay-at-home-spouses, promotes they presented a panel summarizing
with the family. There is a dangerous
quality child care. Women want a
erosion of nurturing and caring in our
findings from their new: "One Year
comprehensive bill brought to the
social policies and business climate. We
after Federal Welfare Reform: a
floor for vote.
need new social responsibility among all
Description of State Temporary
sectors and parents must be supported.
Assistance for Needy Families (TANF)
VIOLENCE AGAINST WOMEN ACT Decisions as of October 1997":
Research Opportunity
VII. Reauthorize Expiring
Under the new rules. the welfare
Provisions and Strengthen the
The Impact of media on
rolls have gone down 25% to 40% in
Violence Against Women Act.
adolescents' sexual behavior is the
several states and even 50% in one.
subject of a new program at NIH.
Tracldng efforts are going forward to
Congressional Issues
determine what is happening, but the one Review of the literature has shown that
there is little research on the effect of
sure finding is that child care is a major
Whether these, or other issues of
media with high sexual content and little
need as more mothers go to work.
great importance to families, will be
responsible sexual behavior. Now, the
For a copy of the Urban Institute
addressed will have to be seen.
publication, Occasional Paper Number 6, new program calls for basic research in
Congress will have an August break and
three areas: (1) What sexual content do
phone: 202-833-7200, fax: 202-429-
youth pay attention to, and how do tl
interpret what they see and hear?; (2
Does that media content affect their
sexual beliefs and behavior?; (3) HOl
could the mass media be used to pro]
responsible sexual behavior among
youth? Contact: Susan F. Newcomt
Ph.D. at NIH, 3011496-1174 or enu
Snewcomer@nih.gov. Deadlines arl
October, February and June 1st.
Margaret Feldman
NCFR Washington representative
Calling All Candidates
All nominations for NCFR
officer elections are due at
headquarters by September 25
1998. A form was inserted in t
June REPORT listing all office
that will be open for the Sprine
1999 election.
To request another form, or
for more information, contact
Jeanne at headquarters toll free
888-781-9331 or
ncfr3989@ncfr.com.
All NEW
Recruitment
Campaign!
It's Easier Than Ever
to WIN PRIZES in NCFR'
Second Annual
Membership Recruitmer
Campaign:
"Reach Higher: New
Members for a New
Millennium"
Recruit JUST ONE New
Member and be Eligible f
the Grand Prize:
1!'lAirfare and hotel
accommodations in
Orlando, Florida
Second, Third,
and Fourth Prizes:
Hotel accommodations iI
1!'lIrvine, California
next door to
Disneyland
1!'lPhoenix, Arizona,
favorite sun and
vacation spot
1!'lArlington, Virgini.
just outside
Washington, DC
Hotel accommodations
donated by Hyatt Hotel~
and Resorts.
The contest begins in
October. Watch your
mailbox for details!
�NCFR REPORT, September 1998, Page 7
Plan Ahead to Get Most From Conference
T
he NCFR annual conference
is a great way to stay on the
cutting edge of family
professionalism as well as to meet
colleagues in the field. NCFR places
high value on its student members and is
an especially welcoming place for new
professionals. Below are some tips for
getting the most out of attending the
conference.
1. Before the conference read the
conference bulletin. Read the article by
Cindy Winter, conference coordinator, to
complement the tips provided here. As
you read the conference bulletin, mark
the sessions you want to attend. Several
sessions occur concurrently so marking
your selections will force you to make
choices ahead of time about how you
wish to use your conference time. If
there are people you want to spend time
with while you are at the conference,
write out a schedule of where you will be
each day of the conference and distribute
it to others so that they can fmd you.
2. Bring clothes and shoes that have
a professional appearance and will be
comfortable for long days. If you
purchase new clothes especially for the
conference it is a good idea to "test
wear" them before the conference. Also
pack business cards or pre-printed
address labels to give to colleagues.
Leave room in your luggage to bring
back papers, books, and l?ther souvenirs.
3. Be assertive to benefit from
networking with other professionals.
Feel free to introduce yourself to
conference presenters at the end of
sessions and to initiate conversations with
NCFR members in informal gathering
spots like the hotel lobby . You may wish
to read others' work ahead of time so you
can ask relevant questions. NCFR
members are interested in your work as
well, so bring copies of your work
and/or vita and practice describing your
interests in 30 seconds.
and new professionals each morning of
8. The Counsel of Sages (Sunday, 8
the conference from 7:30 to 8:15 a.m.
to 9 p.m) is a special feature this
Light breakfast items will be available for year. Come and listen to some of
purchase on the first floor of the hoteL
NCFR's most veteran members share
their thoughts on the history of family
2. If this is your first NCFR
science and their predictions for the
conference, don't miss the newcomers
future directions of our discipline.
reception on Saturday from 9 to 10:15
a.m. You'll meet members of the NCFR
9. The receptions sponsored by
board of directors and leaders in the
universities and allied associations
field. You'll also learn all about the
is a wonderful way to fmish Sunday
history of NCFR as well as how its
evening 9 to 11 p.m. Everyone is
current structure operates. Light
welcome to enjoy refreshments, mingle
refreshments will be served.
with other professionals, and learn about
various programs in family studies.
3. The Students/New Professionals
Skills Exchange is a series of 13
10. Back by popular demand, this
roundtable discussions on various topics
year the Student/New Professional
including professional writing and
Development Forum features Dr. Sharon
grantsmanship, graduate teaching
J. Price. Dr. Price promises to share
strategies, preparing job applications,
inside tips for students and new
transitioning from student to new
professionals on preparing applications
professional, and managing mentoring
and interviewing for jobs in the family
relationships with faculty. Discussions
science labor market. Get a step above
are led by students and new professionals the competition by attending this unique
as well as seasoned professionals. They
all promise to be interesting and thought
provoking. You will have the opportunity
to participate in 3 roundtable discussions
during the 9O-minute period. The session
occurs on Saturday from 4 to 5:30 p.m.
Caregiving Can
Be Hazardous
4. For publishing tips, attend the
"How to publish in NCFR journals"
session on Saturday from 7:30 to 8:45
p.m. The editors of Journal of
Marriage and the Family, Family
Relations, and Journal of Family Issues
will lead a program on how to submit
your work (and get it accepted!) in these
high quality publications. Questions also
will be taken from the audience.
5. To develop a special mentoring
relationship with another NCFR
member, attend the mentoring open
house on Saturday from 7:30 to 8:45 p.m
(note this session occurs concurrently
with the "how to publish" session
highlighted above) . You will learn about
the mentoring process and have the
opportunity to be matched with a mentor
4. The combination of early morning or mentee. Although you may feel like
and later evening meetings lends itself to you're just "learning the ropes" yourself,
keep in mind that advanced students and
fatigue. Get proper rest, nutrition, and
new professionals may make great
exercise while at the conference. I like
to pack a box of granola bars for snacks. mentors for others.
If you walk in the city you can also give
them to homeless people.
6. All conference attendees are
invited to enjoy the President's reception
Saturday night from 9 to 10:30 p.m.
5. Get a look behind the scenes of
Meet this year's NCFR president Greer
NCFR by volunteering to work as a
Litton Fox and say goodbye to retiring
student aide. It's a great deal because
NCFR executive director Mary Jo
you get to know other NCFR members,
Czaplewski. Mingle with other NCFR
plus your registration fee will be
reimbursed after you complete the work. members, eat, drink, and relax!
Applications can be found in a separate
7. The Student/New Professional
mailing for the conference and are due
September 1. Don't delay because this is Business Meeting occurs Sunday from
a limited opportunity.
8:30 to 10 a.m. This is an important
session in which you will learn about
Highlights of the Conference
important issues affecting the future of
students and new professionals in NCFR.·
1. Special opportunities have been
We especially welcome your thoughts
arranged to facilitate networking
and ideas regarding how the student/new
among students and new professionals.
professional group can best serve you.
These chances provide a relaxed setting
Likewise, participation in other NCFR
in which you can gain informal
section business meetings is a great way
information about academic programs
to become more involved in NCFR.
throughout the nation and join with others Please plan to attend.
who may study topics in your interest
area. You are invited to join students
I
f you're a caregiver, who takes
care of YOU? Several recent
research projects have studied
the short and long term effects of caring
for a chronically ill spouse, parent, child,
or other loved one. The data show that
caregiving can be hazardous to your
health.
The Center for Advancement of
Health in Washington, DC dedicated its
July-August 1998 Issue Brieimg for
Health Reporters to "Taking Care of the
Caregivers. "
Typical caregiver:
• 46-year-old employed woman
• About 18 hours a week
• Caring for her mother who lives
nearby
(National Alliance for Caregiving, and
American Association of Retired Persons
(1997) "Family Caregiving in the U.S.:
Findings from a National Study.")
Ethnicity of caregivers:
•
•
•
•
Asian
African-American
Hispanic
White
32%
29%
27%
24%
Percentage of female caregivers:
• African-American
77%
• White
74%
• Hispanic
67%
• Asian
52%
Average Number of Hours per Week:
• African-American
20.6
• Hispanic
19.8
• White
17.5
• Asian
15.1
Types of stress reported:
• 55%Less time for other family
members; give up vacations,
hobbies, personal activities
• 15 % Physical or mental health
problems
• 7% Financial hardship
session on Monday from 2:15 to 3:45
p.m.
11. Check out the exhibits and
displays for books and services related to
teaching, research, and practice. This
year, we are hoping to have a special
display with information on various
graduate programs.
12. Party! Everyone is invited to
attend the party hosted by students/new
professionals and sponsored by Sage and
the NCFR sections (Monday 9 p.m to 1
a.m). The party is an NCFR tradition in
celebration. Enjoy refreshments and great
music and dance the night away.
Housing Reminder
Applications for student housing are
sent in a separate conference mailing.
Organize with others with whom you want
to share a room and send your student
housing application directly to the
conference hotel. Availability for
reduced-price rooms is limited so act
now. If you are having difficulty
identifying a roommate, contact me via
email and I will send you a list of others
who also need a roommate.
Pamela Choice
SINP Representative
Diversity Report
s we prepare for another
conference and the
beginning of new NCFR
year, I want to share a few thoughts from
the Action for Diversity Committee.
First, although we have been relatively
quiet recently, rest assured that we have
been very active behind the scenes helping
NCFR to be more aware of the diversity
of family life. We have been discussing
real structural actions that NCFR can
make in the future to show it's
appreciation for diversity. As you come
to this year's conference, remember that
the global theme touches every country
around the globe in different ways, and
there are different worlds and nations in
this country.
If you are interested in helping
NCFR take "Action for Diversity", by
changing the way it conducts its conferences, journals, and other components
please contact me or any of the, other
members of the Committee.
Committee members include
Estella Martinez (chair), 505-277-8932
estella@UNM.EDU
Katherine Allen, 540-231-6526
kallen@vt.edu
C. Anne Broussard, 513-529-4907
brousca@muchio.edu
Francisco Villarruel, 517-353-4505
fvilla@pilot.msu.edu
Edith Lewis, 313-763-6257
editbl@umich.edu
Janelle Von Bargen, 215-739-3742
jubinpa@juno.com
Aaron Thompson, 573-882-3632
hofsat@mizzoul.missouri.edu
Ambika Krisnakumar, 410-706-4139
akrisool@vmabnet.ab.um.edu.
Walter T. Kawamoto
Sacramento State University
Family and Consumer Sciences Dept.
916-278-5339
kawamotw@saclink.csus.edu
�NCFR REPORT, September 1998, Page 8
Why Should I Attend NCFR's Conference?
It's getting so expensive to come to a
Conference, with the horrendous hotel
rates, so many conferences and so little
time that I can break away. All our
travel for conventions has been
depleted. Why should I come to the
NCFR Conference above all others?
Here are some reasons to come to
NCFR?
1. NCFR offers NEW research
for researchers, educators,
and practitioners in varied
formats to maximize different
adult learning styles, plus a
balance of sessions.
• Papers and Symposia, in a
more traditional setting
• Posters which take advantage of
the visual learning, and
generates interaction between
presenter and participants. This
year we are nearly doubling the
number of poster sessions.
There are fewer posters at each
session which allows attendees
the freedom to spend more time
with each presenter. Conference
etiquette allows you to listen to
a paper in a session, then you
can leave and go to the poster
session.
• Round Tables where discussion
occurs between presenter and
participants
• New this year - an ongoing
discussion on the question,
"Whither Family Science'!"
There will be a poster board in
the Ballroom Foyer where
attendees can write their
"answers" to the question of the
day. This will spur a discussion
at a special session with that title
on Monday evening, Nov. 16.
2. Great networking -- meet the
leaders in the Family Science
field.
• Exhibits where you can network
with publisher representatives
and look at the newest materials.
• Receptions and a dance
• Newcomers Reception
3. Opportunities to become
more involved in NCFR.
• Counsel of Sages on Sunday
evening, Nov. 15. Discusses the
history of NCFR and the Family
Science field and makes
predictions of the future of the
field.
• Annual Business Meeting and
Membership Forum on Sunday
afternoon, Nov. 15. Discuss the
structure of NCFR and the
proposed new governance
model.
• Section membership meetings
• Focus Groups sessions
• "How to Sessions" - How to
Publish in NCFR Journals; How
to Review Manuscripts,' How to
Submit a Proposal at the NCFR
Annual Conference; How to
Become a Certified Family Life
Educator.
• Mentoring Session and Open
House on Saturday evening,
Nov. 14.
4.
NCFR has low Conference
rates compared with other
state, local, and national
professional conferences. Here
is a sample of some average fees
for other 3-1/2 day conferences.
NCFR's is $145 compared with:
• $295 - includes exhibitor
reception and 2 box lunches
• $260 - includes reception and 1
meal
• $165
• $170
• $195
• $190 (2 day conference)
• $395 (3 day conference)
• $85 (1 day state conference)
5. NCFR supports students.
• Discounted Conference rate of
$65 for NCFR Student
members; $95 for non-member
students.
• Student Aide positions offered
to. offset registration fees.
• Discounted sleeping room rates
for students. Many
organizations do not offer these
services.
6. The Hyatt Regency Hotel and
the Milwaukee Convention
and Visitors Bureau have
some special services for
NCFR attendees. They are
providing services that other hotels
and cities generally do not offer:
• Closed circuit television in
your the room for NCFR.
Times will be scheduled when
you can sit in your room and
view some of the winning
videos of the Media Awards
Competition. On Friday
evening, Nov. 13, and Monday
evening, Nov. 16, you may
view a video by John Carver on
a new governance system for
PLA'NFOR FUTURE
NCFRCONFERENCES "
NCFR. Watch your packet and
the tv set in your room at the
Conference for specific times.
• Staff from the Milwaukee
Convention and Visitors Bureau
will be in the Hospitality Cafe to
answer your questions on where
to go and what to do while
you're at the Conference. _
• Great shopping and dining in the
Grand Avenue Shops, and you
don't have to go out-of-doors to
get to it.
We will miss YOU if you are not
there!
Cindy Winter, CMP
Conference Coordinator
Meeting
August 27-28, 1998: "Strengthening Families Through Public/Private
Partnerships: Connecting Fathers,"
Oakland Marriott City Center, Oakland,
CA. Convenors: U.S. Dept. of Health
and Human Services-Region IX, Vicepresident Gore's National Partnership for
Reinventing Government, National
Center for Strategic Nonprofit Planning
and Community Leadership (NPCL).
Contact: NPCL, 1133-2Oth St., NW,
Suite 210, Washington, DC 20036; 202822-6725.
Theme: Families In Global
Context:' Media, Environment,
and Peace
Program Vice-president: Judith
Myers-Walls,CFlE; Purdue Univ.
• 1999 - November 10-15
Hyatt Regency Irvirie·(Los Angeles,
CA)
ProgramVke-president: Katherine
R. Allen, CHE, Virginia Tech
Purchase video and
audio tapes from
NCFRAnnual
Conference sessions.
Adolescents
94-V4. Working With Adolescents in Crisis,
Anthony Jurich, Kansas State U.
Diversity
95-V5. Celebrating the Strengths of
Diversity: Meeting the Challenges of
20th Century Families, Constance
Ahrons, U. of Southern California
Divorce and Remarriage
93-V7. Remarried Families, B. Kay
Pasley, U. of North Carolina-Greensboro
Family Health
93-V2. Families and HeaUh, WilliamJ.
Doherty, U. of Minnesota
95-V4. Families in Later Life: Dilemmas
and the Decisions, Vickie Schmall,
CFLE, Emeritus, Oregon State U.
Family Life Education
95-V9. Family Life Education: What
Works? Margaret Arcus, CFLE, U. of
British Columbia
Marriage Preparation
93-V3. Marriage Preparation, Benjamin
Silliman, CFLE, U. of Wyoming
.2000 - November 9-14
Minneapolis Hilton &Towers,
Minneapolis, MN
.2001 - November -8-13
Hyatt'Regency Hotel and Riverside
Convention Center
Rochester t NY
Check Your Mail
. The complete Conference Program
will be sent to all members the last
week in August. Read it carefully - it
is the only copy you will receive.
Register early and save dollars on
your Conference fee. See you in
Milwaukee.
Meetings
October 15, 1998: Deadline for
Radcliffe Research Support Program
for postdoctoral investigators for research
drawing on the center's data resources.
Contact: Murray Research Center,
Radcliffe College, 10 Garden St.,
Cambridge, MA 02138; 617-495-8140;
mrc@radcliffe.edu.
February 18-20, 1999: Seventh
annual conference on Parent
Education, University of North TX,
Denton, TX. Website: www.unt.edu/cpe.
Contact: Arminta Jacobson, Center for
Parent Education, P.O. Box 311337,
Denton, TX 76203-1337; 940-369-7246.
Look to N CFR for Best Selling Media Resources!
• 1998 - November '12-17
Hyatt RegenCy Milwaukeej ,
Milwaukee, WI
PR----------~~
Order From: National Council on Family
R.elations (NCFR.)
3989 Central Ave. NE, #550
Minneapolis, MN 55421. Toll
Free: 888-781-9331. Phone: 612781-9331. FAX: 612-781-9348
NCFR
• E-mail: cfr3989@ncfr.com
•
Excellent supplemental
materials!
Parenthood
94-V1. Constructing a Futurefor the
Next Generation of Fathers, William
Doherty, U. of Minnesota
97-V4. Producing the Mothers of the
Nation: Race, Class, and u.s. Public
Policy, Patricia Hill Collins, U. of
Cincinnati
97-Vl. Daddy Strategiesfor the 21"
Century: Involving Men in Children's
Lives, James Levine, Fatherhood Project,
Families and Work lnst.
97-V7. Looking Back, Moving Forward:
Attachment From One Generation to
the Next, Martha Farrell Erickson,
Children, Youth, and Family Consortium,
U. of Minnesota
97-V8. Corporal Punishment in the
Discipline of Children in the Home,
R.onald Pitter, U. of Minnesota
Violence
96-V3.ITltimate and Interpersonal
Violence: Politics, Policy, and Practice,
Richard Gelles, U. of Pennsylvania
�NCFR REPORT, September 1998, Page 9
What's a RUP and Why Should I Attend One?
everal years ago (when he was
Program Vice-president) Bill
Doherty initiated a new
program format for NCFR and coined a
new word: RUP. Although the invention
caught o~ remarkably well within the
organization, the word "RUP" is not yet
in most dictionaries, so those new to the
organization may have difficulty
deciphering the term. The word is
actually an acronym that stands for
Research Update for Practitioners.
on Media and the Family in Minnesota,
will present "Media and the Mind."
David, who became of a member of
NCFR a couple of years ago, is
especially interested in how media
impacts children. He will tie research
on that topic together with research on
the brain's early development (another
hot topic currently) to demonstrate the
power and importance of mass media on
developing children's attitudes and
behavior. He also will discuss the results
of a computerized national survey called
MediaQuotient.
simple purch~es to family size influence
the global environment.
charming, dynamic woman who is very
knowledgeable and has a way of
translating serious subjects into language
The global environment also
that can easily be understood by people
constantly impacts families. Water
unfamiliar with the topic. After spending
pollution, overpopulation, fuel shortages, her childhood and schooling years in
deforestation, and deteriorating air
England, she has spent most of her adult
quality contribute to illnesses, birth
years in Canada and the U.S. She holds
defects, financial stress, and loss of
citizenship in both Great Britain and
shelter and income to families. The
Canada. She has worked on international
relationship between families and the
issues in several employment and
environment is clearly a reciprocal one.
volunteer positions, including being the
Many children seem to have realized this. associate director of the Quaker United
As a child from Ukraine has said,
It brings together the two primary
Nations Office, a consultant to UNICEF,
"people must treat nature as they treat
strengths of the NCFR organization:
the executive director of the Manitoba
themselves because that's how it is,
research and practice. It is a chance
Council for International Cooperation
On the last day of the conference is
people are part of it and if they destroy it (MCIC), and a member of the board of
for practitioners to catch up on the latest
a RUP that addresses this year's
research fmdings and to build a strong
directors of the Canadian Council for
conference theme directly: "Families and they will perish" (from Dear World,
Random House, p. 23).
knowledge base. At the same time, it is
International Cooperation (CCIC). She
Communities as Educators for Global
has focused on issues of economic and
a chance for researchers to examine the
Citizenship." Connie Flanagan from
practical implications of completed
In spite of this interactive
social justice, women, peace, and human
Pennsylvania State University will
relationship, the environment has not
research and the needs for further
rights. She also has undertaken
discuss both research Ishe has conducted
often been a topic addressed by family
development work in Latin America.
research so that they can better support
in six countries and the research of
scholars, and environmentalists have
those who work directly with
others. She is especially interested in
rarely considered families. Barbara
Some of Barbara's publications
families.
how youth perceive citizenship in their
Adams will point out, however, that
include "Putting Gender on the Agenda:
own country and in the world. How do
"Human beings are at the center of
A Guide to Participating in UN World
This fall there will be four RUPs
young people in a number of different
concerns for sustainable development, "
Conferences," "Accounting for Africa at
offered at the annual conference in
countries develop civic values? What
Milwaukee. The speakers are experts
the United Nations: A Guide for Nonrole do parents play in that development? and, as NCFR would point out, human
beings exist in families.
who all have experience with reviewing
Governmental Organizations," "Ours by
What does it mean to be a citizen in the
. Right: Women I s Rights as Human
research findings and translating
current increasingly global society?
Rights," and "Challenges to the United
Ms. Adams will describe some of
them for the people who can use the
What about youth who decide to opt out
the current global conditions such as
information best. Some of them are
Nations: Building a Safer World."
in one way or another?
economic disparities between and among
familiar faces at NCFR, and others are
NCFR is privileged to have the
new to the gathering, but they are all
opportunity to hear the thoughts and
When you come to Milwaukee, plan nations and worsening poverty, hunger,
ill health, and illiteracy. The continuing
excited about the possibilities inherent in to attend one or more of these
insights of Barbara Adams, and we are
the RUP format.
very grateful for her willingness to
stimulating, down-to-earth sessions. Get deterioration of the ecosystem threatens
the well-being of the citizens of all
step in and fill the space left by Julie
ideas for programming, for teaching, or
On Saturday, November 14 (the
nations. In order to overcome these
Thompson. Julie, also of the U.N., had
for applied research. Discuss your ideas
problems it is critical to address issues of agreed to deliver a plenary but was
opening day of the conference), Karen
with others. If you are not able to attend
development and the environment
DeBord from North Carolina will give
forced to cancel due to a change in her
the conference or one of these sessions
together. The role of families in this
an overview of the recent history of
employment assignment. Thank
and even if you are able to attend, keep
process will be an important focus of the
parenting education and childrearing
you, Barbara, for picking up where Julie
in mind that RUPs are some of the
address.
left off.
advice. Her session is titled "Reflections sessions that are available for purchase
Judy Myers-Walls
on Parenting Education: Is Research a on videotape after the conference.
Barbara Adams is trained as an
1998 NCFR Conference
Mirror for Practice?" This session was Buy the tape and use it in a classroom or
economist. She has been described as a
Program Vice-president
at a meeting of your affiliate council.
inspired in part by the death this year of
RUPs are a great idea. Thanks for
Dr. Benjamin Spock, the guru of
inventing them, Bill!
childrearing advice directed toward the
general pUblic. Karen is a Cooperative
Development, Peace, and the Color
Extension Specialist who has been active
with the National Parent Education
Green: A Combination for
he Mentoring subcommittee
conference for a conference buddy. You
N~twork. She will put a special emphasis
the 21st Century
has continued to perfect the
can learn more about this at the
on how research and parenting education
NCFR mentoring
Newcomers reception and the Mentoring
Plenaries at NCFR are not usually
have impacted each other during the past
network. Several new ways to take
Open House.
identified by their color, but there will be
20 years.
advantage of mentoring have been
one plenary at the 1998 meeting in
established:
Conference buddies can connect at
Milwaukee that defmitely will be green.
This session complements a day
these events or can connect via the
Barbara Adams, deputy coordinator of
during which efforts were made to
1. Request Mentoring Assistance: Hospitality Room. If you are interested in
schedule sessions of interest to parenting the United Nations Non-Governmental
serving as a conference buddy for a new
You can request assistance for your
Liaison Service, will give an address
educators. If such practitioners are able
member, please contact Jennifer
mentoring needs via the Famlysci
to attend only one day of the conference, titled "Sustainable Development: A
Kerpelman (see contact information
listserv. Your request can be small, such
Saturday would be an ideal day for them. Peace Plan for the 21st Century." She
as help fmding sources on a certain topic, below). The role of conference buddy
will focus on issues growing out of the
to large, such as requesting an ongoing
can be defmed by you and the person you
The RUP for Sunday, November 15, Rio Declaration on Environment and
mentoring relationship with a person in
are assisting, and can include: having a
"Conflict Management and Dispute
Development.
your area of interest. Should you be
meal together, looking over the itinerary
Resolution," will be delivered by
interested in the latter, please ask
and making suggestions, introducing the
Daniel Kmitta of Miami University in
The green movement has explained
interested mentors to respond to your
new member to other members,
Ohio. He is co-chair of the Research and over and over that everything individuals
private e-mail address, not the entire list.
answering questions about NCFR, etc.
Evaluation committee for the Conflict
and families do has an impact on the
Resolution Education Network of the
world and its future. For example, it has
If you need to subscribe to the
3. Shadowing: One of the
National Institute for Dispute Resolution. been estimated that the average U.S.
listserv, address a message to:
suggestions made last year was to
Conflict resolution, anger management,
citizen discards his or her own weight in LISTSERV@LSV.UKY.EDU. In the
establish a shadowing opportunity for
peer mediation, and dispute education
packaging each month. It takes 20 trees body of the message type:
members interested in holding offices in
programs are appearing across the
to make enough disposable diapers for
SUBSCRIBE FAMLYSCI [FirstName)
NCFR. Shadowing would involve
country in schools, youth programs, and
one child for two years. If an individual
[LastName). This procedure should add
having the interested persons spend time
communities. What has research
and her or his offspring each have two
you to the listserv. If you have any
observing officers in their roles during
concluded about these programs? For
children, and generations are
problems or questions about the
the annual meeting. The officer and
whom are the programs effective and
approximately 25 years apart, in 100
listserv, you can e-mail Greg Brock
shadower will discuss in advance when
under what conditions? How can
years the original couple will have 16
directly:
and how the shadowing is to take place.
practitioners choose among the many
progeny. If an individual and her
GWBROCK@UKCC.UKY.EDU.
Letters have been sent to officers to find
available (and heavily marketed)
or his offspring each have three children,
out who is interested in being shadowed.
programs to find a promising curriculum? and generations are approximately 20
2. Conference Buddies: For those
years apart, in 100 years the original
of you who are new members or feel
On Monday, November 16, David
couple will have 243 progeny. So family
See Mentoring on Page 11
you are on the sidelines and want to be
Walsh, founder of the National Institute
actions and decisions ranging from
more involved, you can sign up at the
New Mentoring Ideas
T
�NCFR REPORT, September 1998, Page 10
Legacy Circ[e
~
National Council on Family Relations proudly announces the second annual Legacy Circle, recognizing active status members wit!
or more years of membership. Invitations to a special annual conference reception will be mailed to the persons listed below. If your bE
ning membership year is incorrect or if your name is not included and your records indicate you joined NCFR in 1973 or earlier, please I
tact Kathy at NCFR headquarters: toll free 888-781-9331 ext. 21 or kcroyce@ncfr.com.
1938
Wakil, S.P.
Mc Candless, B.J.
Russell, Candyce
Freund, Rev. John
Duvall, Evelyn Millis
1961
1941
Glick, Paul C.
Sheerer, Elizabeth T.
1946
Appell l Clara T.
1947
Anderson, Roberta F.
Rimel, Evelyn G.
Rockwood, Catherine A.
Belli Patricia
Bollman, Stephan R.
Epstein, Nathan B.
Eshleman, J. Ross
Fields, Hattie C.
Glasser, Paul
Heltsley, Mary E.
Keating, Barry John
Lundh, Rev. Sverrer H.
Vayhinger, Rev. John M.
1962
1948
Goldberg, Stella R.
Berardo, Felix M.
Fisher, Susanne G.
Heer, David M.
Henton, June M.
Hoover, Helene M.
Johnson, Lydia M.
Kelley, Robert K.
Mc Hugh, Most Rev.
James T.
Nelson, Linda
Schvaneveldt, Jay D.
Settles, Barbara
Smith, Thomas Ewin
Westlake, Helen G.
1952
1963
Chandler, Barbara A.
Fleckl Stephen
Kauffman, J. Howard
Barber, Kenneth
Bergerl Eugenia H.
Bert, Virginia
Czaplewski, Mary Jo
Pocs, Ollie
Relationships Australia
Rossi, Alice S.
Sporakowski, Michael
Stricklin, Ernest
Trost, Jan
Turner, Joseph G.
De Lissovoy, Vladimir
1949
Neubeck, Gerhard
i
1950
Chilman,C~therine S.
Kerckhoff, Richard K.
Moss, J. Joel
Porter, Blaine R.
1951
1953
Cannon, Nona H.
Martinson, Floyd M.
1954
Kenkel, William F.
O'Neill, Sylvia T.
1955
1964
Bayerl Helen T.M.
Kahn, Alfred J.
Nye l F. Ivan
Adams, Bert N.
Bliss, Russell L.
Emerge Ministries
Hanlon, Fr. Capistran J.
Larson, Lyle E.
Lewis, Robert A.
Lieberman, E. James
Marotz-Baden, Ramona
Mason, Terrence L.
Olson, David H.
Thomas, Darwin L.
Walla Walla College
1956
Axelson, Leland J.
Bauer, E. Theodore
Hansen, Thelma Dunn
Jewson, Ruth
Lasswell, Thomas
Lasswell, Marcia
Rodgers, Roy
1957
1965
Harper, Glenn A.
Hobbs Jr., Daniel F.
Mailloux, Fr. Noel
Reiss, Ira L.
Rice, F. Philip
Schaefer, Leah C.
Schlesinger, Benjamin
Stevens, Doris
Walters, James
Anderson, Virginia
Batra, Gretchen R.
Bengtson, Vern L.
Birch, William Lloyd
Bodin, Arthur M.
Croake, James W.
Dumon, Wilfried A.
Edwards, John N.
Falk, Laurence L.
Firebaugh, Francille M.
Hampe, Gary D.
Kieren, Dianne K.
Rich, Robert O.
Rodman, Hyman
Rubin, Roger H.
Ruppel, Howard J.
Slingerlend, Margaret
Staples, Robert
1958
Beck, Dorothy Fahs
Freeman, Erika Padan
Purcell, Mary Lou G.
1959
Bubolz, Margaret
Johnson, Rev. John J.
Price, Dorothy Z.
1966
1960
Evans, T. Quentin
Gavin, Jeanine H.
Howell, John C.
Murstein, Bernard I.
Pitzer, Ronald
Sprey, Jetse
Straus, Murray A.
Baker, Carolyn R.
Balswick, Jack
Bigner, Jerry J.
Danish National Institute
Hogan, M. Janice
James, Barbara E.
Juffer, Virginia
Keim, Robert E.
Minor, Hal W.
Nunn, Helen Robinson
Price, Sharon J.
Roth, Robert H.
Scanzoni, John
Udry, J. Richard
Van Horn, James
1967
Barber, Betty L.
Boettcher, Barbara S.
Brock, Gregory
Cohler, Bertram J.
Coufal, Jeanette
Cox, Frank D.
Dill, Jane R.
Fasick, Frank A.
Gotwald l Charlotte K.
Krain, Mark
Lingren, Herbert G.
Lopata l Helena Z.
Lupri, Eugen
Olson, Terrance D.
Rettig, Kathryn
Ridley, Carl
Rooks-Weir, Evelyn
Schacht, Caroline
Vail, Alfred
Voege, Janis M.
Williams, Arthur
Wise, George W.
1968
Aldous, Joan
Arcus/ Margaret E.
Bruce, John A.
Buss, Sarah Hicks
Cole, Charles Lee
Cole, Anna
Confer III, Harlan P.
Dempster-Mc Clain,
Donna I.
Dominian, J.
Draughn, Peggy
Harvey, Carol D.
Heffernan, Virginia
Imig/ David
Keating/ Norah C.
Klein, David M.
Knaub, Patricia Kain
Lee, Irene K.
Maddock, James
Miller, Sherod
Neal, Arthur G.
Nunnally, Elam
Perlman, Daniel
Pickett, Ethel
Steffensmeier, Renee
Story, Norman L.
Story, Marilyn
Turner, Barbara F.
Weishaus, Sylvia
Whitaker, Bruce E.
Yorburg, Betty
1969
Ade-Ridder, Linda
Anderson, Carol L.
Bahr, Stephen J.
Baptiste, David A.
Blood, Linda L.
Campbell, Kathleen M.
Davidson Sr., J. Kenneth
Davis, Keith E.
Fox, Greer Litton
Ginsberg/ Barry G.
Herold, Edward S.
Jimenez, Tristan C.N.
Kammeyer, Kenneth C.
Knafl, Kathleen A.
Lory, Marie L.
Mace, Vera C.
Martinson, Patricia
Pace-Nichols, Mary Anne
Rosenblatt, Paul C.
Ryder, Robert G.
Spanier, Graham B.
Strouse, Jeremiah
Warmbrod, Mary T
1970
Boss, Pauline G.
Butts, Robert
Cunningham/ Jo Lynn
Cunningham l Eliza
Del Campol Robert
Doty, Ruth F.
Driskilll Jackie
Engel, John W.
Flick, Marilyn
Franken, Mary L.
Gaylin, Ned L.
Gershenfeld, Matti
Gilgun, Jane F.
Gloverl Lillie Beasle
Goebel/ Karen P.
Hennon/ Charles B.
Jurich, Anthony P.
Kennedy, Carroll E.
Lambertsl Martha
Laube, Herbert H.
Lee, Gary R.
Petty, Charles V.
Pitsiou-Darrough, E
Skelton, Gail J.
Smart, Laura S.
Sorenson, John D.
Sorenson, Ruth
Sprenkle, Douglas
Staytoni William R.
Surra, Catherine A.
Tamaki l Takao
Taylor, Dorthy
Touliatos, John
Troost, Kay Michael
Vanier Institute
of the Family
Wheeler, Sr. Madel
Wilson, Anne K.
Wood, Mary Lee
1971
Arms, Karen G.
Boikel Dennis E.
Dorfman, Lorraine
Dyer/ Genie H.
Dyer, Preston M.
Family and Child
Policy Cent
Fischer, Judith L.
Frazier, Billie Harris
Gagnon, John H.
Gelles, Richard J.
Gigrich, John P.
Hendrix, Lewellyn
Hetherington, E. M
Johnson l Leanor B
Johnson l Michael P.
Law, Patricia B.
Macklin, Eleanor D.
Meyers/ Susan S.
Orthner, Dennis K.
Panar/ Michael A.
Pasley, B. Kay
Pauley, Billie W.
Schmall, Vicki L.
Seward, Rudy R.
Shaw, Barbara R.
Townsend, Darlene
Troll, Lillian
1972
Adlerl Emily Stier
Avery, Arthur W.
Barber, Clifton E.
Bergen, M. Betsy
Bond Jr., John B.
Brown, Stephen D.
Budd, Linda S.
Dohner, Rev. Stephen
Gecas, Viktor
Haavio-Mannila, Elina
Hampton, Robert L.
Hildreth, Gladys J.
Jaisinghani, Vijay T.
Jenson, Glen
L'abate, Luciano
Larzelere, Robert
Leonard Jr., J. H.
Miller, Brent C.
Norris/ Norma Catherinl
Ramu, G.N.
Ransom, Donald C.
Skeen/ Patsy
Skinner, Denise
Sodei, Takako
Stahmann, Robert F.
Targ, Dena B.
Tyson, David
Vinick, Barbara H.
Visscherl Fr. A.
West Jr' l Marcus F.
Williams, John M.
1973
Anderson, Elaine A.
Bagby, Beatrice H.
Bel/-Scott, Patricia
Bower, Donald W.
Cate, Rodney M.
Coady, Susan
CPD/HCX
Darling, Carol A.
De Lamater, John D.
Del Campo, Salustiano
Doering, Susan G.
Doherty/ William J.
Family Service of GreatE
New Orleans
Fiorito, Basil A.
Ganong, Lawrence H.
George, Linda K.
Giles-Sims, Jean
Groat, Theodore
Hagner, Beverly S.
Hayner, Norman S.
Holley, Philip
Houseknecht, Sharon K.
Hyde, James A.
Jedlicka l Davor
Kleinman, Sidney H.
La Rossa, Ralph
Lamanna, Mary Ann
Long Island University
Library
Mancini, Jay A.
Mattessich, Paul
Mays, Sharon Ann
Mc Cubbin, Hamilton
Mc Kenry, Patrick C.
Mc Millin, J. Daniel
MelbYI Janet Nieuwsma
Miller, Kathleen
New England School
of Law
North American Baptist
College
Peters, Margaret
Petty, Janis
Pleck, Joseph H.
Plesa, Zuzana
Reichle, Peter C.
Reiss, David
Rindfuss, Ronald R.
Schmid, Karen
Shimizu, Shinji
Sibbison, Virginia H.
Skolnick, Arlene
Stanton l M. Duncan
Stein, Peter J.
Walters, Lynda Henley
�NCFR REPORT, September 1998. Page 11
Speakers from Page 1 - - - - "The Worst Memory in My Head"
AtIe Dyregrov, director of the
Center for Crisis Psychology in Bergen,
Norway, has examined and taught about
families' crises for 20
years in Uganda,
.
Mozambique, Rwanda,
Kenya, Iraq, Jordan,
Egypt, Palestine,
Lebanon, and Europe. '
His plenary address
is scheduled for
Dyregrov
10:30 a.m. on Monday, November 16.
He notes that "children and their
institutions (schools) are being targeted in
modem warfare, hitting the fabric of
society and seeking to destroy hopes for
the future. "
He will describe consequences of
conflict for children and their families,
plus interventions to help them.
(Editor's note: See the March 1998
REPORT, page 1. for more detailed
information on this plenary.)
Reflections on Parenting Education
resolution programs."
Kmitta earned a master's degree
from Harvard Graduate School of
Education, and a doctorate from the
Dept. of Educational Studies at the
University of Cincinnati. His major
concentration is in social foundations of
education with supporting concentrations
in research methods and peace studies.
He is an adjunct professor at the
University of Cincinnati, and presently is
a visiting assistant professor at Miami
University .
He is co-chair of the Research and
Evaluation committee for the Conflict
Resolution Education Network for the
National Institute for Dispute Resolution.
He consults on program evaluation for
several organizations, including the OH
Commission on Dispute Resolution and
Conflict Management, Macro
International, Shephard Pratt Hospitals of
Baltimore, and the office of Sen. Edward
M. Kennedy.
Media and the Mind
Agricultural and Extension Education,
and Women's Studies at the PA State
University. She completed her doctorate
in developmental psychology at the
University of MI and conducts
comparative research on adolescent
development in the context of social
change.
Currently Flanagan is working on
"Adolescents and the Social Contract"
concerning the factors in families,
schools, and communities that promote
the development of civic values and those
that compromise the social integration of
young people. She has directed a sixnation study on this topic, as well as a
study of intergroup relations and beliefs
about justice among youth from different
racial/ethnic backgrounds in the U.S.
She has comparative interests in
Eastern and Central Europe and South
Africa, and her work has appeared in
Child Development, Educational
Psychologist, Journal of Youth and
Adolescence, and the Journal of Social
Issues.
David Walsh, president and founder
Presidential Address
of the National Institute on Media and the
Family in Minneapolis, MN, will present
NCFR President Greer Litton Fox
his RUP at 4 p.m. on Monday,
will deliver her Presidential Address at
November 16.
4 p.m. on Sunday, November 15.
"Families in the Media: Thoughts on the
Walsh founded the National Institute Public Scrutiny of
on Media and the Family through his
Private Lives, " will
commitment to the belief that parents,
focus on "the social
teachers, health care
uses of public exposure
professionals, corporand its intended and
ations, advertisers,
unintended impacts on
and the media must
families today." She
address the issue of
notes that "two social
Litton Fox
violence in the media..
processes--socialization and social
His award winning
control--are at work when private
Walsh
book, Selling Out
behaviors are held up for public scrutinyAmerica's Children (Fairview Press,
-or are they?"
1994), was widely hailed as the first book
to identify the full scope of media's
Litton Fox is a professor of family
"With a 20-year progression of
influence on children as a major public
studies at the University of TNeconomic, social, and technological
health issue. Walsh also is the author of Knoxville, and winner of that institution's
changes, families have been presented
Chancellor's Award for Research and
with a challenging web of options in child the American Medical Associations,
Physician Guide to Media Violence
Creative Achievement. She is a member
rearing," DeBord explains. "I will
of the American Sociological
discuss how research-based fmdings and (AMA, 1996).
Association, Population Association of
media influences have informed parent
Walsh received the 1992 Harriet
America, Sociologists for Women in
practices and parenting education. "
Burns Award presented annually to the
Society ,Groves Conference on Marriage
outstanding MN psychologist, the 1995
and the Family, and the Southern
DeBord is recognized for her
Community Service Award presented by Sociological Society.
leadership with the National Extension
the Jewish Community Center, and the
Network for Child Care, the National
1995 MN Medical Association's "Stop
Extension Network for Family
the Violence" Award.
Resiliency, and the National Parent
Education Network. She earned bachelor
Families and Communities as
of science and doctoral degrees from V A
Educators
Polytechnic Institute and State University
for Global Citizenship
in family and child development. She
earned her master's degree in education
Constance Flanagan, a William T,
from V A Commonwealth University.
Grant faculty scholar at PA State
University, will present her RUP at
iConflict Management and
10:15 a.m. on Tuesday, November 17.
Dispute Resolution
Karen DeBord has nearly 25 years
of Extension experience including field
experience and state specialist
responsibilities in Virginia and Missouri.
She will present her
RUP at 2:15 p.m. on
Saturday, Novem·
ber 14. DeBord currently is with the North
Carolina Cooperative
Extension and conducts
applied research and
develops educational programs for quality
child care, child development,
recruitment and training of child care
providers, community coalitions for child
care, community acceptance of diversity,
and parent education.
DEADLINE
for the
next REpORT
Don't Sit There:
Get Up, Out
And Exercise!
A
range of exercise options
exist for attendees at this
year's NCFR annual
conference:
Sunrise Walks--Walk from the hotel
to Milwaukee's spectacular lakefront, a
distance of two miles, round trip. Maps
for shorter and longer walks will be
available in the Hospitality Cafe. Sign up
to walk with others and meet new
friends, enjoy the invigorating fall air,
and watch the sunrise.
Rainy Weather Walks--Take a hike
through the hotel skywalk to the Grand
Avenue Shopping Mall between 8 and 10
a.m. Stop for a refreshing drink and stay
to shop when the stores open at 10 a.m.
The Grand Avenue features two major
department stores, nationally recognized
brand shops, an array of specialty shops,
as well as several restaurants and a food
court.
Exercise Room--The Hyatt
Regency, site of the conference, has an
exercise room when opens at 6 a.m. and
closes at 9 p.m. It includes exercise
bikes, a weight machine, treadmill, free
weights, and aerobic tapes. Swimming is
not available. There are several public
pools and a nearby YMCA which offer
swimming.
Jacqueline Haessly Ms.Ed., CFLE
1998 Conference
Local Arrangements Chair
Mentoring
from Page 9
If you are interested in shadowing an
officer, please contact Jennifer
Kerpelman (see contact information
below).
4. Mentoring Open House: For the
third year in a row, special time for
a mentoring open house will be offered.
The purpose will be to provide interested
mentors and mentees with up-to-date
information about establishing successful
mentoring relationships, to assist with
connecting conference buddies, and to
answer questions that you may have
about rnentoring network opportunities.
5. "Get to know Alexis Walker lf
roundtable: In this session, a high
profile NCFR member will share with
other members (especially students and
Daniel Kmitta, visiting professor at
Flanagan notes that her presentation . - - - - - - - - - - - - - .
new professionals) his or her experiences
will "draw from an international body of
Miami University, Oxford, OH, will
in getting started as a professional, and
research on the factors
present his RUP at 2:15 p.m. on
how he or she has benefited from
in families and comSunday, November 15. He notes that
involvement in NCFR.
munities that promote
there "is a growing
November 20, 1998
ATTENTION MEMBERS!
body of evidence
regarding the efficacy
of conflict resolution
programs." He will
"focus primarily on
research emanating
from school-based
Kmitta
conflict education programs," and
"address recent findings from research
projects examining community,
environmental, and family conflict
the social integration
and the development
of civic values in youth.
It will address the
A' • ; /I ~.
,I
changing nature of
Flanagan
citizenship in a global environment and
will raise concerns about disaffected
youth ...
She is an associate professor of
Comparative/International Education,
Now you can reach
NCFR
on a Toll-free Line:
1-888-781.. 9331
U.S. and Canadian Calls Only.
If you have any questions or
comments about NCFR mentoring, you
can contact Jennifer Kerpelman, chair of
the mentoring subconunittee, at
jennifer_kerpelman@uncg,edu; or by
phone: 336-334-5307.
�NCFR REPORT, September 1998, Page 12
Milwaukee Agency Tours
P
lans for the 1998 NCFR
annual conference in
Milwaukee November 12-17
are moving forward with great
enthusiasm. Bill Jeynes and his
committee report that student volunteer
positions are filling quickly, assuring that
the nuts and bolts of this conference will
.run smoothly.
Members of the University of WIMadison Student Council on Family
Relations are hard at work to assure that
Employment Services will benefit
students and new professionals.
Jane Bock and her committee are
working with NCFR conference
coordinator Cindy Winter to assure travel
arrangements for the international
speakers. Karen Goebel is busy tracking
down audio-visual equipment, and
Maureen O'Brien and Jane Leske are
taking care of emergency preparations.
Mary Kay Madsen and members of
the Hospitality/Local Information
committee are compiling data about local
events and places to visit to assure all
attendees a fun and enriching experience.
The highlight of the work of the
Local Arrangements committee is always
the President's Reception. This year's
event takes on added significance because
it will honor President Greer Litton Fox
and Mary Jo Czaplewski. Dr.
Czaplewski is retiring in July, 1999.
Connie Wilsnack and her committee have
been working diligently to plan the
President's Reception for Saturday
evening, November 14. There will be a
receiving line to honor both women. A
harpist will entertain attendees as they
gather to share fond memories and
delicious desserts. We hope to see you
there.
Members of the Local Arrangements
committee also are planning two preconferences. The first, "Creating
Communities of Care: An
Intergenerational Dialogue Approach
to Community Problem-Solving," will
take place Thursday, November 12, from
9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Workshop facilitators
include Dr. James Gambone,creator of
the Intergenerational Dialogue tool and
Jacqueline Haessly, MS.ED, CFLE,
author, and Intergenerational Trainer.
The workshop is sponsored by the
Peace Focus Group of NCFR's
Education and Enrichment Section and by
NCFR's Association of Councils.
Participants will have an opportunity to
join with Milwaukee area staff of local
family serving agencies, elders, youth,
and interested community leaders to
examine the issues and identify actions
needed to address the growing problem
of community violence from an
intergenerational perspective.
,Thoughts on Board Policy Governance:
community's homeless women, men, and .Initiating the Carver Model
children and empower them to help
themselves.
W
hen I first heard about the
Carver Model of
In the morning participants will tour
Governance for NonSt. Ben's Catholic Church which
Profit Boards, I was skeptical. I thought,
sponsors a nightly meal program, a
"It has taken many years for the board
Health Clinic for the Homeless, a Jail
to represent the NCFR membership to the
Ministry program, and the Benedict
extent it does now, particularly in
Institute (a legislative analysis and action terms of the Sections, so why reduce it?"
program). Guest House emergency
housing for the homeless, Open Gate
Without feminists, ethnic minorities,
transitional living center, and Repairers
researchers, policy advocates, and all the
of the Breech self-advocacy center.
other constituencies now represented by
the Sections, how could we guarantee a
November 13 marks the 28 th
seat at the table for all NCFR members?
anniversary of St. Ben's meal service,
I was also concerned about students and
one of the first and largest of the meal
new professionals. What would happen to
programs for the homeless in Milwaukee. this absolutely essential group in NCFR,
which comprises a substantial portion of
In the afternoon participants may
our membership?
choose between the conference Public
Policy Workshop, or the Education and
Privately I was thinking, "I've been
Enrichment Section's session on Media. a Student/New Professional
over meals. The size was manageable,
and contrary to my fear that voices woul
be silenced, everyone looked out for onf
another to be sure that we didn't move
forward until everyone had spoken and
voiced their concerns.
The Carver principle, "Deliberatt:
in many voices, but govern in one"
began to make sense to me. This style 0:
governance is possible because of
related policies we considered, such as,
"there shall be respectful, balanced, and
inclusive public dialogue about the
important issues that affect families. "
Now, as a member of several
minority constituencies myself, I've ofteJ
had to fight for issues about which I care
passionately to be put on the table. But i1
we adopt the policy of on-going,
educated dialogue about issues facing
Representative, a Section chair, and now families, I don't just have to hope that
The afternoon events are coProgram Vice-president-elect--how can I my colleagues will represent my diversit:
sponsored by NCFR's 1998 Local
vote to "eliminate" these positions from
in their interactions as leaders.
Arrangements committee and the Peace
the board? Wouldn't that be hypocritical,
Focus Group of NCFR's Education and especially since I'm so invested in
As a member of NCFR, if we adopt
Enrichment Section. Several members of ensuring that multiple voices are heard?"
this governance philosophy, I am assure(
the Local Arrangements committee are
that all members are accounted for and
hard at work to plan the bus tour.
Then I thought about the bulkiness
all Board members are accountable.
of the Board and the fact that our
Indeed, it will be standard operating
A bus will leave the Hyatt Regency meetings often get bogged down in
procedure.
Hotel at 8:30 a.m. on Friday. After the
formalities. And, I had to admit, having
morning tour, lunch will be served at St. 24 members on the Board doesn't ensure
Another feature of this governance
Ben's at 11:30 a.m. The bus will return that every voice gets heard, either. In my
style that is very exciting to me as a
to the conference hotel in time for the 1 experience, mere physical representation lifelong learner is that being on the Boar,
p.m. sessions.
is not sufficient to raise and deal with the is about being educated in the issues
.
multitude of issues confronting our
affecting families today. This model
Fees for the mornmg bus tour are
organization.
requires that all board members be wel1$35 for NCFR members and $45 for noninformed about the range of issues
mem~ers. Those attending ~th th~
In my three terms on the Board, I
impacting the field-that means there will
mor:ung and ~fternoon seSSIOns will
knew that the primary business is done
be education about family theory,
receIve a $5 discount.
by the President, the Executive
method, policy, practice, service, and
Committee, and the central office. As the governance. As we met together, it was
More details are included in the
S/NP representative, a Section chair, and evident that groups with a purpose of
NCFR conference program which will be Program Vice-president-elect, my actual
responsible and responsive leadership do
sent to members in August.
involvement occurred more on the
need education in order to be more
Jacqueline Haessly
Program Committee than it did on the
accountable to members.
1998 NCFR Conference
Board of Directors. The argument that
Local Arrangements Chair
I began this process not being able t
we need a more efficient and accountable
visualize different ways to do business
way to run our organization began to
than the status quo. After all, the familia
make sense. But how can we ensure
can be very comfortable. Reluctantly, I
representation from all of our
had to admit that NCFR governance
marketing tips, contact me toll free at 888- constituents?
would benefit from some changes. At ou
781-9331 extension 18.
retreat, I experienced the efficiency,
At the Board Governance retreat in
Brenda Hortman
exhilaration, and opportunities for true
June, we discussed these questions and
NCFR Marketing Director
dialogue by interacting with a more
more. I saw what a group of seven
streamlined group of individuals
References
committed members, who had all read
committed to a common purpose. I foun,
the textbook we were assigned and had
American Express Small Business
myself surprised at how much easier it
Services (1997). Trade Show Planning.
watched the video with the entire Board
was to listen, pay attention, and
www.americanexpress.comlsmallbusiness at the Spring Board meeting, could
participate in the conversations. We
/resources/expandinglshowplan.shtml
accomplish. I kept getting flashes of
worked hard, and we accomplished a
Chapman, Edward A., Jr. (1987). Exhibit Margaret Mead's famous quote as we
lot.
Marketing: A Survival Guide for
talked: "Never doub~ that ~ ~mall group
Katherine Allen
Managers. New York: McGraw-Hill Book. of thoughtful, COmmItted CItiZens can
Member of Board Policy Governance
Company, pp. 201 - 225.
change the world."
Taskforce
In other words, we were staying on
Siskind, Barry (1993). The Successful
task, and no one was dosing off or
Exhibitor's Handbook: Trade Show
running out to make phone calls.
Techniques for Beginners and Pros.
Everyone was paying attention, listening
North Vancouver: Self Counsel Press, pp.
CFR member Paul Glick
to the others speak, and waiting their tum
81 - 97, 139-213.
recently was awarded a
to share, in rather civilized tones, their
Doctor of Humane Letters
opinion. This much smaller group, with a degree from Pennsylvania State
Weisgal, Margit B. (1997). Show and
specified agenda, actually worked well!
Sell:133 Business Building Ways to
University. He also was the spring
Tips, from Page 13·
The second event, an educational
tour of agencies providing services to
Milwaukee's homeless population, will
take place Friday, November 13 from
8:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. "Serving and
Promote Your Trade Show Exhibit. New
Empowering the Homeless: A
York: American Management
Collaborative Community Approach," Association, pp. 43, 44.
provides an opportunity for conference
attendees to learn how a number of
nonprofit agencies have joined together in
a creative collaborative effort to both
meet the immediate needs of one
Merrlber News
N
We got through our assignment to
initiate the process of writing the policies
for a new governance structure, by using
pre-assigned materials and our own
creative process and ingenuity. We were
invigorated at the end of discussions and
continued to dialogue about the issues
commencement speaker. Glick has been
member of NCFR since 1941, and serve
as NCFR's president ill 1978-79. He no·
lives in Phoenix, AZ.
�NCFR REPORT, September 1998, Page 13
Job Openings
A
ssistant professbF of
Human Development and
Famlly Studies, a ninemonth, tenure-track position in the
Department of Family and Consumer
Studies (FCS) at the University of Utah
beginning August 15, 1999. Applicants
should have a social science Ph.D. and
an interdisciplinary perspective on family
relationships with teaching and research
interests in diversity and/or family
policy. Preference will be given to those
candidates with a life-course and/or
ecological perspective. The position
carries a two-course teaching load per
semester with one course each semester
taught for FCS and one course each
semester taught for the Department of
Sociology. Application receipt deadline is
December 31, 1998. Submit vita, copies
of recent publications, teaching
evaluation materials, and three'letters of
reference to: Russ Isabella, Search
Committee Chair, University of Utah,
Department of Family and Consumer
Studies, 225 South 1400 East, Room
228, Salt Lake City, UT 84112-0080.
The University of Utah is an Equal
Opportunity!Affirmative Action
Employer. We encourage applications
from women and minorities and we
provide reasonable accommoqations for
the known disabilities of applicants and
employees.
C
Marketing, from Page 16
yellow pages for
premiUm/novelty companies.
.Your organization brochure and
your business card are also
reminder pieces. All
brochures and business cards
need to include your
organization's name,
address, telephone, fax, email, and web site.
hairperson and professor,
. Department of Human
Development and Family
Studies, Texas Tech University. The
Department of Human Development and
Family Studies at Texas Tech University
invites applications for the position of
Chairperson beginning in August, 1999.
Applicants should provide evidence of
Follow-up Strategy
outstanding accomplishments in teaching,
research, and outreach that qualify for a
The time to plan your follow-up
tenured appointment at the rank of
strategy is before the show begins. That
Professor. The Chairperson provides
way, you can reach prospects with your
direction in developing high quality
follow-up message while the show is still
academic programs; fostering personnel
fresh in their minds.
development; promoting unity within the
Department; managing resources
Rank your show leads by level of
effectively; and working cooperatively
importance to your organization and base
with faculty and staff in establishing an
your post-show efforts on these priorities.
environment conducive to productivity.
Phone your hottest prospects within a
Application deadline is October 15, 1998,
week after the show ends. Send everyone
or until position is ftIled. Texas Tech
else a follow-up mailing.
University is an Equal
Opportunity / Affirmative Action
Your post-show mailing can be as
Employer and we strongly encourage
simple as a thank-you note or brochure
applications from under represented
with a cover note.
groups. Send curriculum vita; statement
of administrative philosophy and
Be sure that you keep any promises
professional goals; and names, phone
you made at your booth and have enough
numbers, and addresses of at least three
brochures and product sheets on hand so
references to Dr. Stephen R. Jorgensen,
Chair, HDFS Search Committee, College you can send requested information.
of Human Sciences, Texas Tech
Promoting Your Booth
University, Lubbock, TX 79409-1162.
Phone: 806-742-3031; FAX 806-742The opportunities for advertising and
1849; or e-mail TSSRJ@HS.TTU.EDU;
promotion in connection with the show are
website WWW.HS.TTU.EDU.
endless.
Department of
Family Relations
and Applied Nutrition
The Department of Family Relations and Applied Nutrition invites
applications for a tenure track Assistant Professor position in
Family Relations and Human Development. Applicants should
hold a Ph.D. or equivalent in Family Sciences, Marriage and
Family Therapy, or a related field. The successful candidate will
hold or be eligible for clinical membership and approved supervisor
status in the American Association for Marriage and Family
Therapy. Responsibilities include teaching at the undergraduate
and graduate level, teaching and supervising Marriage and Family
Therapy clinical training, participating in strong M.Sc. and Ph.D,
programs in Family Relations and Human Development (with
M.Sc. specialization in MFT), and establishing a vigorous research
program. Appointment will be as of January 1, 1999 or as
negotiated.
Applications should include curriculum vitae and names of three
referees and should be submitted no later than October 1, 1998
to: Dr. D. Woolcott, Chair, Department of Family Relations and
Applied Nutrition, University of Guelph, Guelph, ON N1 G 2W1 ;
Tel: (519) 824-4120, Ext. 6321; Fax: (519) 766-0691. More
information about the Department can be found at website:
www.uoguelph.calFAMILYlfirstpag.html
Six weeks before the show, call your
top customers and other prospects to set
up meetings. Many people arrive at a
show with a firm schedule and have no
time for other booths, so it's important to
get on schedules as early as you can.
Confmn all meetings a week before the
show.
The show's management will often let
you purchase a mailing list of preregistered attendees. Try a pre-show
mailing focusing on one or two benefits of
dropping by your booth. Be sure the
mailing includes show contact
information, including hours and your
booth number and location.
Issue press releases to trade
publications and local media that will be
covering the show. Your release should
highlight something newsworthy about
your exhibit like a new product or a
special demonstration. You'll also want to
prepare plenty of press kits for the show,
and drop the kits by the pressroom (if
available),
Additional advertising avenues
include the special pre-show issues of
business and trade publications,
billboards, telemarketing, hospitality
suites, handouts in the trade show hotel,
and the show guide, like the NCFR
conference program.
If you are interested in additional
See Tips on Page 12
Department of
Family Relations
and Applied Nutrition
The Department of Family Relations and Applied Nutrition invites
applications for a tenure track Assistant or Associate Professor position
in Family Relations and Human Development. Applicants should hold
a Ph.D. or equivalent in Family Sciences or a single social science
discipline with some aspect of family as a specialization. The candidate
must have a strong background in the use of quantitative techniques,
and show an interest in collaborating with other faculty on a variety of
interdisciplinary research projects. Candidates should have research
interests in the later parts of the lifespan with specific expertise in one
or more of the following areas: aging and adult development; family
relations (e.g. work/family, gender, ethnicity, diversity); or health
promotion and family well-being. Responsibilities include teaching at
the undergraduate and graduate level, participation in strong M.Sc.
and Ph.D. programs in both Family Relations and Human Development
(with M.Sc. specialization hi Marriage and Family Therapy) and Applied
Human Nutrition, and establishment of a vigorous research program.
Appointment as of January 1, 1999 or as negotiated.
Applications should include curriculum vitae and names ofthree referees
and should be submitted no later than October 1,1998 to: Dr. D. Woolcott,
Chair, Department of Family Relations and Applied Nutrition, University
of Guelph, Guelph, ON N1G 2W1; Tel: (519) 824-4120, Ext. 6321;
Fax: (519) 766-0691. More information about the Department can be
found at website: www.uoguelph.calFAMILYlfirstpag.html
The University of Guelph is committed to an employment equity
program that includes special measures to achieve diversity among
its faculty and staff.
The University of Guelph is committed to an employment equityprogram
that includes special measures to achieve diversity among its faculty
and staff. We therefore particularly encourage applications from qualified
aboriginal Canadians, persons with disabilities, members of visible
minorities and women.
In accordance with Canadian Immigration requirements, this
advertisement is directed to Canadian citizens and permanent
residents of Canada. This appOintment is subject to final budgetary
approval.
In accordance with Canadian Immigration requirements, priority will be
given to Canadian citizens and permanent residents of Canada. The
appointment is subject to final budgetary approval.
UNIVERSITY
g/GUELPH
UNIVERSITY
g/GUELPH
�_ "I OJ
_
Pre-conference Events, List Serves Planned
r------ '·1
.
.. :
".
.
.
gister now for the
Education and Enrichment
ection pre-conference
workshop. "Making the Most of Media:
A Resourceful Workshop for Parent
Educators, College Teachers, and
Family Practitioners," on Friday,
November 13 from 1 to 8 p.m. You will
receive a free copy of The Role of tbe
Mass Media in Parenting Education
(1997) provided by the author, Rae
Simpson. You may register on the NCFR
annual conference form.
~
members; $20 for students; and $40 for
non-members.
Sally Martin Ph.D. CFLE
Section Chair
Dept. of Human Development
and Family Studies
University of NY-Reno
Reno, NY 89557-0131
702-784-6490
smartin@scs.unr.edu
work by all Section members who
submitted abstracts to be reviewed for the
conference. Your fine work helps assure
the excellence of our scientific sessions at
the conference in November.
S
ince late June the Family
Therapy Section has a new
listserv for its members. It is
managed by Volker Thomas at Purdue
University. The listserv allows Section
members who have access to the Internet
t? communicate with each other at any
time.
The co-editors of our Section
newsletter, Marsha Heims and Barbara
Elliot, also deserve special thanks for
their work in helping the Section network
over the past two years. New co-editors
will be selected in Milwaukee. If you are
interested, please contact me before
The list's goal is to increase
November. It is a great experience and a
interactions and collaboration of the
wonderful addition to your curriculum
ne of the first signs of
membership beyond the annual
vita.
approaching fall is not those
~nference. If you have questions or
first crisp mornings that
Ideas you would like to share with other
Finally, I thank the Section members
herald a subtle change from the long dog
The purpose of the workshop is to
for the opportunity to serve as your chair Family Therapy researchers and seek
days of summer, but the call for Section
feedback, the list will provide the
examine access, ethical issues, and
for the past two years.
chairs to submit articles for the
o~po~ty to contact many colleagues
practical uses of television, film, and
Patricia Short Tomlinson
September REPORT issue.
WIth similar interests at the same time. If
~ternet offerings for families and family
tomIiOO1@tc.umn.edu
you are looking for collaborators on
bfe educators. Participants willieam
University of MN School of Nursing
Serving as the Family and Health
research projects or co-presenters for the
about numerous resources and how to use
6-101 Weaver Densford Hall
Section chair has been an eye opener to
annual conference in your specialty area,
them in the college classroom and
308 Harvard St. SE
all the work that goes into the whole of
you may find them via the list.
community programs.
the organization, and especially into each Minneapolis, MN 55455
612-624-6684
annual conference. The upcoming
As of July IS, 1998 more than 81
Kelly McCoy and Ben Silliman will
conference in Milwaukee is no exception.
members have subscribed to the list.
lead.a discussion of Simpson's book.
However, the Family Therapy Section
Mark Elliott will conduct an online
One of the most important outcomes
has over 400 members and almost 300
session featuring the Family Track
of all is the opportunity conferences
Website with 400 links to evaluated
ountdown to the 1998 NCFR have e-mail addresses. There are many
~ro~id~ to help us move beyond our
people out there who have not yet
conference has begun! The
resources on the Internet. Silliman will
mstItutlOnal lives and deal with the
subscribed. Here is how to subscribe:
Family Policy Section has
discuss strategies for the safe and
important intellectual and human issues
productive use of the Internet and will
tlrree thought-provoking symposia
that inform our work. I am very excited
Send a message to:
demonstrate the National Cooperative
scheduled, 13 posters, and one round
about this year's conference theme
Extension Networks and state home
table.
"Fa:nilies in Global Context: Medi~,
LISTSERV@VM.CC.PURDUE.EDU
pages. Sue Murray will describe an
EnVIronment, and Peace," which focuses
Our section meeting will be on
innovative virtual caregiving project and
on global concerns of environment and
Type in the body of the text (not the
Satlrrday night, followed by the Public
demonstrate how the Internet and other
conflict that increasingly influences
Subject line):
Policy Open Forum. This "combination
me~ are changing family support,
family life, not just in the U.S., but
particularly for grandparents raising their
meeting: will allow newcomers to meet
around the world.
SUBSCRIBE NCFRFT-L <Your
Section members and gain information
grandchildren.
Name> (without the < > signs)
about policy issues. Please invite students
Our Section has the great privilege
and colleagues to attend.
Vivian Murphy and Carol
of co-sponsoring one of the international
You will receive messages from the
Mertenmeyer-Ryan will share
speakers-Dr. Atle Dyregrov--at the
listserv to confirm your subscription and
information about their warmline for
On Friday, November 13, our final
plenary and in an open forum following
helpful hints on how to operate the list.
parents as well as "parental comers" and
Public Policy Advocacy Skills Workshop
that presentation. His work and the work
Once you are subscribed you may send
the web-based application of their
will be held from 1:30 to 9 p.m. The
of his interdisciplinary team from
me~sag~s to all members of the list by
. "Conununity Connection" database of
goal is to provide information and skill
Bergen, Norway, are widely known in
typmg m the TO line: NCFRFTresources for children and families.
b~din~ experiences related to family
Europe, the Middle East, and Africa for
L@vm.cc.purdue.edu
polIcy Issues. Some topics include
helping families manage the stress of
teaching family policy; family policy
Interested in educational
crises. associated with trauma, war, and
Please take advantage of this new
opportunities provided by film and
research; building effective advocacy
terronsm.
opportunity and subscribe today.
skills; and international family policy.
television? Kelly McCoy will share ways
Volker Thomas
that he uses segments from movies,
The open forum especially is a rare
Karen Bogenschneider will begin the Purdue University
television dramas and comedies, talk
opportunity for members of our Section
Dept. of Child Development
eve?t with.a presentation on "Informing
shows, and investigative programs to
to engage in a dialogue with a person
and Family Studies
Pohcymaking Through Wisconsin Family
enhance college classes. Anne Robertson whose commitment to families and
Marriage and Family Therapy
Impact Seminars." It is designed for
will discuss the evaluation of "I Am
individuals whose lives have been
Program
persons interested in learning about
Your Child" that included the toll free
interrupted by the stress of global health
1269 Fowler House, Room 202
.family impact seminars. Clara Pratt will
number for ERIC's National Parent
and political events, is extraordinary. My
W. Lafayette, IN 47907-U69
conclude the workshop with "Evaluating
Information Network and ASKERIC.
own wo~k with Atle during and following
765-494-7859
Family Policy: Integrating Benchmarks
a sabbatical leave provided me with a
thomasv@cfs.purdue.edu
for Progress."
After a dinner break (you are on
close up opportunity to fully appreciate
your own for the meal), participants will the importance to family scientists on this
The $35 fee includes dinner and
be ab~e to visit two presenters for guided side of the Atlantic of the relevance of
coffee breaks . You may register on the
expenences on the Internet and small
both his clinical and his scientific work.
NCFR annual conference registration
group discussions. Dana Murphy, the
I urge members to make this plenary and form that will be mailed with your
y the time you read this, you
pre-conference chair, and her committee open forum one of the "musts" in your
should have received your
conference programs in August. E-mail
have done an excellent job of planning
conference scheduling.
copy of the International
me if you have questions.
the program. Fees collected in excess of
Section newsletter. It is full of
the workshop expenseS will be donated to
On behalf of the outgoing officers of
information about the Section and our
Our Section's Focus Groups-support the CFLE program.
our Section, let me also congratulate our Adoption, Rural Families, and Work and participation in the November NCFR
inc~ming officers: Vivian Gedaly-Duff,
annual conference.
Family--also will meet during the
CFLE credit for the workshop will
charr-elect; Glenna Boyce, vice-chair;
conference. Check your program and
be 6 contact hours or .6 CEUs.
Barbara Mandleco, secretary-treasurer
Special thanks to Raeann Hamon
attend those that interest you.
and Curtis Fox, student/new professio~ Leslie A. Koepke
our newsletter editor, and Kathy Roy~e,
Cost for the workshop is $30 for
representative.
715-232-2237
--..jl &1----O
....1......-----~11i-II- -
C
It~I~-
B
My personal thanks for all the hard
koepkel@uwstout.edu .
See Sections on Page 1E
�NCFR REPORT, September 1998, Page 15
September 1998 Volume 6, No.3
President~s
Report
Leadership Training Links
Affiliates, CFLEs
l
am looking forward to seeing
you all once again in Milwaukee
at the annual conference. Please
plan now to attend
the Association of
Councils' (AC) officers' meeting and
leadership training
workshop on Friday,
November 13, from
2-9 p.m. Connie
Steele has done a great job putting
together a fabulous program focusing on
linking the AC with the CFLEs in areas
where local councils are active.
I am excited about this event and the
opportunity it provides to reconnect and
hear about the great things others in the
AC are doing for families!
I can still remember when I became
active in the AC events several years
back because Connie had planned that
first event I attended, and now I am an
AC officer. Let me tell you that Connie
does not "cut comers" when she plans a
program: It is done right! I think you
will fmd the AC meeting is always
informative, helpful, and lots of fun-don't miss it.
We will also have our annual
business meeting on Sunday, November
15 at 8:30 a.m. to review our plans for
the upcoming year. Now, I can imagine
you are probably thinking, "Come on, do
you really expect me to get up at 8:30 in
the morning on a Sunday to go to a
business meeting?" I will offer a
resounding YES! Remember you are the
AC! Your voice and involvement set the
course of things to come, and we never
seem to have enough time together--let's
take advantage of this opportunity.
Please mark your calendars now for
these two events. I also want to stress
that everyone is invited and welcome at
AC meetings. You do not need to be an
officer to come; just be interested in the
AC. We encourage your presence.
I want to reinforce previous
comments by Greer Litton Fox (See
Page 2), Katherine Allen (See Page 12),
and Mary Jo Czaplewski (See Page 4)
about the work this summer regarding
NCFR's transition to policy governance.
I was privileged to participate on the
committee that developed a draft of
Board policies for the consideration of
the full Board this fall. This move to
policy governance is an exciting one. I
hope all of you take time to familiarize
yourselves with what this new
governance structure will mean for the
AC and NCFR. In my opinion, we
should have done this years ago. I am
firmly convinced that it will propel
NCFR into the 21st century as the
primary association interested in families.
If you have any questions regarding
policy governance, please do not hesitate
to ask me. We live in exciting times!
See you in Milwaukee.
James Ponzetti Jr. Ph.D. CFLE
Association or Councils President
503-697-7435
ponzetti@cunw.net
Texas
Pennsylvania/Delaware
he Texas Council on Family
Relations is collaborating
with the Texas Head Start
Collaboration Project to develop core
knowledge and skills to identify a career
ladder for family support professionals in
Early Care and Education in Texas.
he Board of Directors of the
PennsylvanialDelaware
Council on Family
Relations decided on the theme,
"Qualitative and Evaluative Family
Research" for its annual conference
September 19, 1998, at Messiah College
near Harrisburg, PA.
The purpose of the TX Career
Development System for Early Care and
Education is to provide an avenue for
early childhood practitioners and
administrators to pursue professional
development along a continuum of
increasingly complex education and skill
level. Training will provide instruction in
Powell Elected
to Lead Afflllil-ates t,h~ identified Core Kno,;ledge an~ the
Skills, and the system will recognIZe
Dr. Barbara Settles, professor in the
Dept. of Individual and Family Studies at
the University of DE, will deliver the
keynote address on "It's More Than an
Anecdote: Qualitative and Evaluative
Family Research in a World of Policy
Making." She will also provide a halfday workshop on using qualitative
research in learning more about families.
acquistion of professional training.
L
ane Powell Ph.D. CFLE is
the new president-elect of
NCFR's Association of
Councils. She will take office during the
annual conference in November in
Milwaukee.
TCFR is organizing committees
around the state to develop the core
knowledge and skills and career ladder.
Contact Arminta Jacobson at 904-5652432 or jacobson@coefs.coe.unt.edu for
more information.
Also elected were Arminta
. Recent award winners named at the
Jacobson Ph.D., CFLE,
1998 TCFR annual conference included
secretary/treasurer; Megan A. Keller,
Student/New Professional representative; Maxine Hammonds-Smith Ph.D. CFLE,
recipient of the Meritorious Service
and Aaron Larson, B.S., Provisional
Award, who was described as "a doer
CFLE, Section liaison.
who has set an excellent model of •going
the second mile' as a Board member and
In her platform, Powell notes that
member of TCFR." She served as
she will "work closely with the current
president for two years, providing "the
president to continue carrying out the
recommendations made by the 1997 Task spark of enthusiasm and support that has
Force on Association of Councils," and helped (TCFR) begin to build our
membership. "
that she supports "the formation of
regional councils where state councils are
not viable/active."
Hammonds-Smith also has been an
officer of NCFR's Ethnic Minorities
and Education and Enrichment Sections,
chair of the Family Life Certification
Review Committee, and currently is
secretary/treasurer of the Association of
Councils.
Dr. John Pierce, executive director
of the PA Council of Children's Services
from 1976 to 1996 and a consultant, will
provide a half-day workshop on
"Outcomes as a Management TooI--Be
Accountable and Improve Service
Performance." This workshop will be of
major interest to service providers and
agency professionals because it will
emphasize applied aspects of outcomes,
how to identify the appropriate outcomes
to fit the level of interventions being
considered, how to develop outcome
measures, what outcomes should be
used, how outcomes can be used
internally to improve services, and how
outcomes can be used positively with
external sources. Several other
workshops will teach skills andlor
techniques in qualitative or evaluative
research.
Four awards ($25 each) will be
offered for outstanding student poster
presentations at the conference. Posters
can reflect theoretical ideas, internship
experiences or original research, as long
as they are on a family-related topic.
Graduate and undergraduate students in
Powell is a writer and consultant in
Receiving the 1998 Moore-Bowman
Pennsylvania and Delaware are
family life in Lubbock, TX. She
Award was Marianna Rasco. She has
encouraged to submit their work for
previously was a professor in human
been president (1992-93), secretary
presentation and award consideration.
development and family studies and
(1985-86), program vice-president
Contact Dr. Debra Berke at
coordinator of planning and development
(1987-88), and a committee chair (1987- dberke@messiah.edu for more
for Children's Learning Center at
88) and Board member (1988-94) of
information. Please encourage students
Samford University in Birmingham, AL.
TCFR.
to participate. Student registration fees at
the conference are nominal.
She was president of the AL Council
The 1999 TCFR annual conference
on Family Relations.
will be April 9-10 in Lubbock with the
Council members are asked to
theme, "Character Building for
consider ways to become more involved
Managers of Young Children." Contact with P/DCFR. The September
Wilma Kirk-Lee, program viceconference offers an excellent
president, at 713-988-4550 or
opportunity. If you are interested in
wlmalee@ibm.net for more information. joining the Council, contact Cynthia
Drenovsky at the Dept. of
SociologyIAnthropology, Shippensburg
University, Shippensburg, PA 17257;
Featured speakers included Greer
"
Families in the West:
717-532-5646; ckdren@ark.sbip.edu.
Culture and
Litton Fox Ph.D., NCFR president,
Raeann R. Hamon Ph.D., CFLE
Diversity," was the
University of TN; David Klein Ph.D.,
P/DCFR President
theme of the June conference of the
University of Notre Dame; and Gary
rhamon@messiah.edu
Northwest Council on Family
Bowen Ph.D., University ofNC.
717-755·2511 ext. 2850
Relations held at the University of OREugene.
She will also "encourage an officer
orientation workshop for local/regional
councilleadersbip during the NCFR
annual conference. "
Northwest Council
�NCFR REPORT, September 1998, Page 16
Exhibits: To be Successful-, Work the Show
o.
nce you have established
your goals, checked the
demographics and facilities,
and created a budget, it's time to create
your exhibit booth management program
(see the June REPORT for the initial
exhibit booth planning stages).
Don't go overboard with booth
graphics. One large picture or graphic will
usually have greater impact than many
small ones. A catchy slogan that describes
your business is more likely to be
remembered than long blocks of text.
Make sure that attendees visiting your
booth can experience your product or
service. Let them touch, see, feel, hear, or
A casual request to help at a booth
taste it. Are you selling books? Display
will be treated casually. If you prepare a
the books in an appropriate setting and
package that displays sound business
have samples that buyers can look
judgement, you'll get a professional
through. Have you developed new
response. The elements in the recruitment software? Be sure to have computer
package might include:
terminals available for software display
and testing.
.Basic information about the showwhat, where, when.
Additional points to consider before
• Your organization's primary goal(s) purchasing or designing your exhibit:
for the show, quantified.
.How many times will the exhibit be
.Overview of the audience expected.
used?
.Outline of promotion activities
.Is shipping to a tradeshow(s)
.An exhibit floor plan with your
allowed?
organization's booth
.What are your tradeshow goals highlighted.
product display, demonstration,
.Booth hours and booth assignments
service selling?
including set up and tear down
.How easy is it to setup the exhibit?
.Dress code, if appropriate.
.How much time does the tradeshow
.Description and/or listing of
allow for booth setup?
products to be displayed/sold.
.Are exhibit sales a primary or
.Overview of sales techniques.
secondary marketing technique
for your organization?
Designing Your Booth to
.Where and how often do your
Achieve Your Goals
competitors exhibit?
Trade Show Personnel Recruitment
The same principles that apply to the
design of effective advertisements should
be applied to the design of your show
exhibition booth. An advertisement has to
grab attention quickly before the page is
turned. You only have a few seconds to
grab attention at a show.
Booth Staff
An attractive booth may interest an
attendee, but it is the actions of you and
your booth staff that determine whether
the attendee stops for a closer look or just
walks by.
provide you with about OUI
.Look interested. To be successful,
latest publication?"
you have to "work" the show.
.Ask for an expression of buyin
Good booth staffers are always
interest within 5 minutes.
on their feet, looking for buyers
Don't allow buying custOl
and presenting a friendly,
to wait while you spend tir
professional image.
talking to someone who ha
.Enjoy yourself. Have some fun,
intention of buying your
put some sparkle into the
product. Give the mildly
serious business of
interested customer your
selling/displaying. A little light
business card or a promise
hearted banter will often help
call back with more
build rapport with a customer.
information following the
.Pace yourself. Shows can be
- and then do so.
grueling. The maximum booth
shift length for efficient
Booth Premiums
performance is four hours. The
ideal time is two hours. If such
Once visitors have found your be
shifts are not possible, schedule
you need to do something to capture t
short breaks whenever
attention.
possible.
The best way to make a lasting
impression is with your personal sale!
approach. But memories are short, so
Think about the last time you bought a good idea to give attendees somethi:
something from someone you liked doing tangible such as a letter opener or a pI
business with. What did you like most
remind them of your organization in t
about the interaction?
months ahead. Here are some guideli
for premiums:
The need to develop rapport is just as
.Print your organization's name
strong in a show as it is in any place that
address, phone number,
you do business, the difference is that
mail, and web site on tht
tradeshow attentions are short, most
premium.
people will leave if they can't get help in
.The premium should fit your
60 seconds.
company's image, tie inl
your products, and suit 1
Two common sales techniques can
sensibilities of your clie
increase your sales:
.Select a premium that does not
.Never introduce yourself to a
a great deal, but is uniq\:
potential customer by asking
Look in your telephone
yes or no questions such as
"Can I Help You?" Instead,
ask open-ended questions like,
See Exhibiting on Pag
"What information can I
Selling Techniques
Sections, from Page 14
NCFR membership manager, for putting
it together.
We hope to see you all at our
Section business meeting during the
conference. The NCFR leadership is
proposing some dramatic changes in how
future Boards of Directors will be
composed, and how they will govern
(See the President's column on Page 2
and the Executive Director's column on
Page 4 for more information.) Important
streamlining and representation issues
may result in Section chairs no longer
serving on the Board, although they will
continue to form the committee which
plans the conference. Since this could
affect how international members are
represented in NCFR, I will seek your
input on how I should respond.
Bron Ingoldsby CFLE
Section Chair
Dept. of Family Science
Ricks College
Rexburg, ID 83460-0605
208-356-1344
ingoldsbyb@ricks.edu
Numerous posters representing a wide
range of issues relevant to religion and
family studies also are planned.
Such a wide range of interests
reflects the religious/spiritual diversity
that characterizes our Section's
membership. Although I've waxed
enthusiastic about the conference
program, I'm well aware that a great
many of our Section's members are not
able to attend every (or any) conference.
+A listserve for our Section's
members which could facilitate all of
the ahove suggestions.
If any of these ideas, and more,
could be valuable to you, would you let
me know? If you have ideas on how to
implement these suggestions PLEASE
contact me! Look for more information
on these items in your fall Section
newsletter.
sponsors.
Judy Watson Tiesel
621 W. Lake St., Suite 203
MinneapoUs, MN 55408
612-822-8238
tieseOO3@tc.umn.edu
-[!f--\-
his year's winner of the
Research and Theory
Section's Student Propl
We have important agenda items to
How can our Section be of value to
Award is Theodore Futris, a studer
discuss during our Section business
our membership at-large, independent of meeting at the annual conference, but we Human Development and Family S
the annual conference? Some of the
will also have some fun. The meeting is a at the University of NC-Greensbof<
inquiries I've received over the past few
great way to network and get to know
months suggest we could make a
His paper, "The Effects of We
other members. We also will award the
contribution to each other and the larger
and Parental Identity Prominence 0:
best student paper submission. Your
community:
Behavior and Life Satisfaction of F
Section officers promise to keep the
meeting from getting "stuffy," and if that was co-authored with Kay Pasley,
+ A central (annotated) bibliography doesn't entice you, come for the
Jennifer Kerpelman, and Roger
of extant research on families and
Goodman. The award will be prese
refreshments!
spirituality .
during the annual conference in
November in Milwaukee.
This year's conference worship
+A resource list of available
Paul Amato
service is particularly exciting with the
methods to measure aspects of
Dept. of Sociology
unusual presentation by our own Edith
religiosity and/or spirituality.
Oldfather HaIl
Lewis who will describe her spiritual
University of NE
pilgrimage-of-sorts to Ghana for the
+ A resource exchange, perhaps with meaningful renaming ceremony.
Lincoln, NE 68588-0324
the Family Therapy Section, of
402-472-6002
therapists around the country who
pamato@unlinfo.unl.edu
Music is being planned to
he Religion and FamUy Life
are identified.with a specific religion complement the service and the
Section has two conference
to whom clergy and other helping
conference theme. We are delighted to
symposia and a round table
professionals could refer for
have the Ethnic Minorities and Feminism
presentation which are relevant,
counseling.
and Family Studies Sections as coscholarly, and practical in application.
. . -.(\ 'i--T
�
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NCFR Newsletters
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ncfr-newsletters
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9/1/1998
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September 1998 NCFR Report
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september-1998-ncfr-report
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September 1998