NMSC to evaluate program that supports formerly incarcerated dads
June 23, 2014 - Institute for Social Research
Fathers Building Futures (FBF) is an economic development initiative of PB & J Family Services designed to support formerly incarcerated men in gaining job skills and becoming more effective parents. The Albuquerque Journal recently featured the program as part of its father’s day coverage. (Read the article here). The New Mexico Sentencing Commission, in conjunction with the New Mexico Statistical Analysis Center, will evaluate the degree to which the FBF program increases employment, reduces recidivism and improves participants’ relationships with their children. Outcomes for FBF dads will be compared with outcomes for similar fathers who were not eligible for the program because they do not live in Bernalillo County.
A recent National Academy of Sciences report has highlighted the tremendous growth of the prison population in the United States. A consequence of this growth is the large number of children whose mothers or fathers are incarcerated. In 2007, the most recent year for which data are available, 1.7 million children (representing 2.3 percent of the under 18 population) had a parent in state or federal prison. (See the Bureau of Justice report about incarcerated parents here.) This is a nine-fold increase in the proportion of children with parents in prison over the last 30 years.
