Fatherhood Collaborative

The Ventura County Fatherhood Collaborative is composed of community organizations dedicated to providing services for families throughout Ventura County.

The collaborative brought together 20 representatives from various family service providers across the county. During the initial workshop, participants learned about our Fatherhood Initiative, which emphasizes the critical role fathers play in improving outcomes for children and families. They were introduced to the Father-Friendly Principles and encouraged to adopt them within their organizations.

Attendees completed a self-evaluation of their organization’s “father-friendliness” and developed both short- and long-term action plans to become more inclusive of fathers. The goal was for organizations to begin implementation or, at minimum, initiate conversations with leadership. Recognizing that systemic change takes time, we highlighted the importance of identifying opportunities for growth and taking the first steps toward making family services more inclusive and supportive of fathers.

Participants also explored ways that family service providers can tailor their outreach and programming to better engage fathers. A key message was the importance of ensuring that fathers see themselves represented in outreach materials and understand that family services are available to them as well.

The follow-up workshop featured special guest speaker Alberto Mora, Family Engagement Coordinator for Head Start at Child Development Resources of Ventura County. Alberto shared a firsthand account of his organization’s journey to become more inclusive of fathers, offering valuable insights into the barriers they faced and the positive outcomes of their system-wide changes.

Attendees also received training on the importance of father engagement, led by Mario Rodriguez, Manager at First 5 Ventura County. The session emphasized the vital role fathers and father figures play in child development, focusing on engagement strategies, family strengthening, and the adoption of father-friendly principles. Designed for staff who interact directly with the public, the training encouraged participating organizations to consider hosting similar sessions for their frontline staff to further promote father-inclusive practices.

Through the Fatherhood Collaborative, we reaffirmed our commitment to helping families thrive by ensuring that fathers are seen, valued, and supported in every aspect of family services. Our ongoing goal is to strengthen collaboration among community partners, share best practices, and promote the system-wide adoption of father-friendly principles. Moving forward, we aim to expand training opportunities, enhance outreach efforts, and inspire lasting cultural change within organizations so that all fathers feel empowered to play an active and positive role in their children’s lives.