Left to right: RA Sawyer, Dr. Rufus Sylvester Lynch, Mayor Gainey, and Lori A. Mizgorski
On May 17, 2024, the Administration for Children and Families (ACF) Regional Administrator (RA) Chad Sawyer, Program Specialists Dr. Wanda Miles and Darlene Tart-Scott, and external partners Allegheny Family Network (AFN), Erie Family Network, and The Strong Families Commission executed a listening session at AFN’s office in Pittsburgh, PA. The event aimed to help ACF learn more about the people, assets, and challenges of rural communities. Speakers and guest included Ruth Fox, Chief Executive Officer, (AFN); Tracy Robison-Chandler, M.Ed, Operations Manager, Erie Family Center; Honorable Ed Gainey, Mayor of Pittsburgh; Lori A. Mizgorski, former Pennsylvania State Representative; and Seth Chamberlain, ACF Office of Family Assistance Division Director (DD).
The four learning questions were:
- How does living in PA’s rural and surrounding communities affect the human services experience of fathers?
- How does living in PA’s rural and surrounding communities affect parenting?
- How does working in PA’s rural and surrounding communities affect providers who serve fathers and parents?
- What are the best ways to communicate with and involve fathers living in PA’s rural and surrounding communities?
RA Sawyer facilitated listening sessions for 1.5 hours with four different groups and a total of 47 participants, including fathers (22), fatherhood service providers (8), mothers (10), and parents/caregivers of children with special needs (7). RA Sawyer and staff will be conducting a second listening session in Harrisburg on June 27, 2024. ACF intends to use the information from these listening sessions, in conjunction with information from other efforts to inform approaches to providing grants, services, and technical assistance to meet the needs of rural communities and to increase father involvement in ACF programs. Findings will be reported in a qualitative summary, which will be compiled in fall 2024.