Introduction
The Strengthening the Implementation of Responsible Fatherhood Programs (SIRF) project used an iterative learning approach, or learning cycles, to build evidence on promising practices to increasing participation in fatherhood programs. Fatherhood programs participating in the SIRF study implemented promising approaches to increase fathers’ participation, worked with the study team to assess how the approaches could be strengthened, and applied what they learned from those assessments to the next cycle. Each program tested one of three broad approaches to improving fathers’ enrollment, engagement, and retention in services:
- Coaching techniques used in case management
- Enhanced outreach to potential program participants
- Alumni peer mentoring
Purpose
The videos linked on this page feature program staff members and mentors describing in their own words both the SIRF approaches tested and how the participants responded to those approaches. Each approach has two corresponding videos. The first video describes the approach being tested and the program staff’s experience implementing it, and the second video explores participants’ experience of the approach.
Methods
Participating SIRF programs used rapid learning cycles to prepare and implement each new program approach and reflect on whether it was working as intended, as well as what changes might be beneficial in the next learning cycle. These videos were recorded remotely at the end of the study period as program staff members and participating mentors looked back on their experiences participating in SIRF.
Peer Mentorship: The SIRF Program Experience
In this three-minute video, fatherhood program staff members describe their experience of implementing peer mentoring in their program during the SIRF study, reflecting on why peer mentoring is so important for the populations their programs serve.
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Participant Experiences of Peer Mentorship: “Things Will Work Out”
This three-minute video features a peer mentor from a SIRF fatherhood program outlining his responsibilities as a mentor and describing a time he supported a father.
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Participant Outreach: The SIRF Program Experience
In this three-minute video, fatherhood program staff members describe their experience of implementing enhanced outreach techniques in their program, and the lasting benefits of these techniques for both programs and participants.
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Participant Experiences of Outreach: “We’re Here for You”
This three-minute video features an outreach coordinator from a SIRF fatherhood program describing the importance of personalized outreach in the community his program serves, exploring the meaning of outreach as a “warm embrace.”
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Coaching in Case Management: The SIRF Program Experience
In this three-minute video, fatherhood program staff members describe their experience of implementing coaching-style case management techniques in their program. They outline some of the initial challenges that implementing staff overcame and some positive experiences of program participants.
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Participant Experiences of Coaching: “You All Have Lifted My Confidence”
This three-minute video features a coaching coordinator from a SIRF fatherhood program describing how coaching-style case management encouraged a participant to find his voice through the course of the program.
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