Finding Fatherhood in Incarceration

Rethinking Fatherhood, Even in Difficult Places

Most likely, the last word you associate with a jail setting is “nurturing” but the Suffolk County House of Correction’s South Bay Correctional Facility is trying to change that. Its Family matters model provides programming and supports for incarcerated young men ages 18-24. The goal is to help these young men and their families overcome the challenges of incarceration and the circumstances that led down this path so that they can develop stronger families and raise their children in supportive households.

The Children’s Trust partnered with South Bay to bring the Nurturing Fathers curriculum to the program as part of our Fatherhood Initiative. The Nurturing Father’s program is a 13-week evidence-based curriculum that helps fathers build and strengthen positive parenting attitudes and behaviors. The men spend time reflecting on their own childhood and how they have parented their children, culminating in an affirmation about the kind of the father they want to be. At the of the program, the men invite their families to a ceremony recognizing their accomplishment in completing the program and sharing their affirmations to their families.

About the 30 for 30 Fatherhood Series

This story is part of 30 Stories for 30 Years, marking 30 years of the Children’s Trust Fatherhood Initiative. The series highlights how professionals and organizations across Massachusetts support father involvement, healthy co-parenting, and stronger parenting partnerships as part of upstream prevention.