The University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences (UAMS) Office of Community Heath & Research partnered with Returning Home, Inc., to graduate 33 men from the Fatherhood FIRE program over the last several months.
Fatherhood FIRE is a free program that provides dads, moms, partners and families with education, resources and support through services in community settings and one-on-one phone calls. Returning Home works with clients in Northwest Arkansas who are exiting incarceration to help them successfully transition back into society, focusing on stable housing, food security, and more
“Our partnership with Returning Home has allowed us to reach a wonderful group of fathers who are committed to creating healthier lives for themselves and their families,” said Hershell West, a research program director in the Office of Community Heath & Research. “We’re incredibly proud of the work these men put in over the last several months so they can return home and be the best dads they can be.”
Participants in Fatherhood FIRE are required to complete 24 hours of education that focuses on how to strengthen relationships with their children, partners and families. Participants learn skills related to showing and handling emotions, physical health, child development and more.
“Our men desire to be the fathers their children need,” said Nick Robbins, Chief Executive Officer at Returning Home. “The thing is, being a good father takes more than desire. It takes people willing to invest in the father to teach him what it is to be a good father. UAMS has gone above and beyond with the Fatherhood class at Returning Home. Starting a new cohort every six weeks has taken the desire and turned it into an understanding. We are grateful to our partners at UAMS and their wiliness to invest in the fathers at the Returning Home Center.”
To enroll or to find more information about Fatherhood FIRE or any of the Office of Community Health & Research Family Wellness programs, visit nwa.uams.edu/chr/familywellness. Learn more about Returning Home at returninghomenwa.com.
The UAMS Office of Community Health and Research is committed to creating a better state of health for all. We seek to identify and understand health needs through research and programs, and work to create an environment where every person has access to their best health. We do this through community-engaged research and programs focused on reducing health disparities through healthy food systems, food equity, family programs, diabetes and cardiometabolic disease prevention and management, community-based health programs and evaluation. For more information about the UAMS Office of Community Health and Research, visit nwa.uams.edu/chr.