Parenting
Fathering Issues
Because male and female experiences in our society differ in many important ways, mothers and fathers often have very different experiences of parenting. These may translate into different goals for their children’s education. Many fathers support the mother’s decision about how to educate the children without having the same level of commitment to it. Over time, this often leads to a situation in which the father feels disconnected from his children’s education.
Other issues that fathers frequently face are differing styles of discipline, the challenges of rising above poor patterns of parenting that they learned from their own fathers, and the heartache of missing their children’s early years because of the demands of work.
As a father of three grown children, David is a valuable resource for fathers who want to discuss their children’s education, their family dynamics, and/or take up new activities to renew their connection with their children. To learn more, contact David.
Working With At-Risk Children
Here are two troubling facts about the criminal justice system in Texas: first, the annual cost of incarcerating a juvenile is roughly equivalent to the annual cost of tuition at an Ivy League college; second, Texas uses the number of boys who are not reading at the end of second grade to project the prison population twenty years in the future.
Add to these figures the 25% drop-out rate that has been widely publicized in the media. The massive waste of resources and human potential is staggering.
David worked for a year (June 2005 to May 2006) with Interfaith Housing Coalition in Dallas, a privately funded non-profit that serves homeless families. He helped transform the Children’s Program, wrote a curriculum for their after-school program, and helped train their teachers. The program now uses a wide variety of artistic activities to hasten emotional healing and build resilience, and uses games and movement activities to strengthen the children’s academic abilities.
David is committed to continuing his work with at-risk children, and invites anyone who is open to innovative approaches to contact him about this.
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