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It's Tennessee Matters on the Tennessee RadioNetwork. Welcome to Tennessee Matters. I'm
John Clark on the Tennessee Radio Network. The Tennessee Department of Human Services launches
a new grant program to make fundsavailable to support organizations serving fathers. For
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the Fatherhood Grant Program, the apartmentwill invest approximately ten million dollars to support
public, private and nonprofit organizations servingfathers. Here's Tennessee Department of Human Services
Chairman Clarence Carter go to first off, start about You've got the Tennessee Department
of Human Services. You have anew fund new for fathers. Talk about
what you're new for fathers. Sure, so, John, we are.
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We have launched just last week agrant program for direct services to help build
the capacity of Tennessee fathers to befully engaged in the lives of their children
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and their families and their communities.And if I could just drop back for
fit here and share with you whywe feel like this is important. So
we understand in the Department of HumanServices, if we want to get to
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the place where we are addressing rootcauses issues that drive people into the need
for the system of public supports.There is no root cause more dramatic than
the breakdown from our families, rightand and and and so we felt it
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necessary to begin to address that issueof trying to re establish the significance of
families in Tennessee. And and wewanted to begin with fathers because the public
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policy construct has all but ignored anddevalued the role of fathers in a in
a healthy society. And and sowe feel like it is essential to establish
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a culture in Tennessee. See.Their fathers are not a luxury, they
are not nice to have. Theyare an essential for o very healthy and
well functioning Tennessee society. They areessential to their children, they are essential
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to their families, they are essentialto their communities, and they are essential
to a healthy Tennessee. And sothat's the reason that last year we had
a statewide conference, meaning films fromall over Tennessee and also bringing in national
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experts to begin to work on thisissue of creating this culture in Tennessee.
And so this is the next stepfrom that, From from that father that
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state wise Fatherhood conference, it isto make this grant program available as again
as the next phase of our effortto weave the significance of fatherhood into the
fabric of all of Tennessee. Sohow did last year's program go? It
went on, It went wonderfully well. We had we had over three hundred
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individuals in attendance in person and anotherone hundred or so in attendance virtually from
all over the country. And andand there was a great acceptance and resonance
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of our message there. And it'swhat let us know that we were we
were on the right path and havegot to keep driving the issue right right?
When will this be this year?Okay? So this this year is
not it's not another ConfL this yearthat we've launched this grant program. That's
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right, So we are What weare doing is we are asking public and
private organizations to submit application for uh, for programs that they can design and
offer that will support fathers. Okay, so and and you know mentoring programs,
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uh uh, you know, programsto help young men, you know,
be able to grow into good fathers, all of those kinds of and
is is that can again support father'smoney, boy, is what this plant
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program is focusing on. So again, for this is just thing if you
was the next phase of our workon fatherhood this year. So how can
can you go online and and andand register and submit the grant submit the
police. Absolutely, going onto ourwebsite, you will be able to define
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all of the information attendant to submittinga grant application. We have reserved ten
million dollars and the application deadline isthe thirtieth of this month. So we
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we would encourage all organizations that havea have a heart for this work and
UH and the good idea to takeadvantage of of of this opportunity. Absolutely,
So you have until the thirtieth ofthis month, UH and UH to
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submit to submit the application to youto consat. That's correct, and and
John, we we will then oncewe're reviewing those applications, it is our
intention to make those grant awards beforeLabor Day. Okay, so it'll be
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it'll be quick, it'll be quickand good. Yeah, yes, right,
and and and John, let meshare with you one other aspect of
the second UH, the second phaseof this work. So this year,
as opposed to a statewide conference,we are doing three regional roundtables. And
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the idea is to in each ofour grand divisions in you know, East,
Central, and West, we arebringing together fifteen to twenty regional leaders,
and we are going to engage themin the development of a strategic plan
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for that region. That we havefive year strategic plan by which that region
will work to reave the significance offatherhood into the fabric of that region.
And it is our intention then totake those three strategic plans and they will
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further inform We currently have a statewidefive year strategic plan. We will use
the regional plans that get developed toupdate our our state wise strategic plan,
and then we will host a secondstate wide conference in twenty twenty six.
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Ok. Okay, what do youthink is the reason that fathers are there?
We hear that peer about this allthe time, and we hear that
your fathers they're absent, they they'vegone away. What do you think is
a reason that they do well?I would say part of it. It
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really has to do with you know, as I mentioned a little bit of
know, the public policy construct hasignored and devalued fathers and men in generally
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as being part of the problem solvingequations. Right. Uh, you know,
we are not john too far awayfrom the time when in order for
a mother and child to receive publicassistance benefits, there could not be a
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man in the hall, okay,And so literally and so literally, public
policy helps to drive men out ofthe family right. And I believe that
we are being visited by the resultsof this failed public policy. You know,
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we certainly have very much evolved asa society, and so fatherhood is
coming in all kinds of different dimensions. But the truth, though, John,
is that there still is only onechild that I know of that arrived
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on this earth without the uniqueness ofa mother and father, and that uniqueness
was intended to continue throughout the lifespanand development of that child. But yet,
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as I said, our public policy, the construct really ignored that uniqueness
of the role of the father.And so I believe that it was a
driver in in in reducing the impactwould UH and the significant of fathers in
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the problem solving equations. And Ibelieve that many of the social ills that
are currently being visited upon us growout of this devaluing of men and fathers
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and the problem solving equations, thisrise in in in maskility and suicide,
and I so relation, I feellike all of these things are drivers that
that has to do with us notvaluing the significance of fathers in the in
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the well being of our society.That's very interesting. I never even thought
about it that way. I didn't. I didn't think about it all that
way. It is. It isjust that there is a As part of
our cussile last year, we hada keynote speaker that sort of laid out
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in crystal clear terms the uniqueness whatwhat a mother brings and what a father
brings to the rich development of achild. And those are very unique,
and they don't that uniqueness doesn't endwith the connection to birth the child.
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R is that that that that uniquenesscontinues throughout the development of that child,
and that child needs both the uniquenessof that mother and father, right and
and John. What is also fundamentallyimportant to us in this is that this
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effort to focus on fatherhood is notsomething that is ant time. Mother or
woman. Okay, okay, Momwas never intended to be the sole developer
of children and and and and theway things operate in too many spheres right
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now, that is what is happening. And so it was always intended that
mother had that helpmate not only tocreate, but to develop that child and
so this is not about father asopposed to mother. This is about both
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and both mom and dad equally inbringing their unique operating perspectives in the lives
of their children. Do you seethis as being a national initiative not just
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Tennessee. I know you've focused onTennessee, but is it nationally? It's
going to go this way? Itis that that is our hope. There
are john more a pocket of thisfatherhood work that are going on in many
different places in the country. Butone of the things that we are trying
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to do because they are pockets up. We hope to use our work as
we form this foundation in Tennessee.We hope to be a beacon that can
bring those other if you would beheads together so that we can make the
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whole randomness form of its parts.Because while our focus is Tennessee, this
is an American crisis, and sowe need to bring the whole of America
to addressing and in mitigating this crisis. This is going to be ten ten
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million dollars. You have to startand to fill out and to get grants.
You need. Everybody needs to goon your website Tendessee to see the
Department of Human services website and fillthat out before the thirtieth that that that's
correct, Yes, yes, getget get us some innovative applications that that
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again will serve sort of building thecapacity of a father who will be uh
direct services that will do that.And it is it's our intention to have
a another round of these grants foods. But but yes, this uh,
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this application around is live and it'sdue by good good. I want to
touch on some other issues while Ihave you here just to talk about just
to talk about your going on forthe summer. And yeah, I know
you're doing some things with EBT cardsand you're looking you're working to get food
programs for children's or for anyone,but what are those programs? So,
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so, John, we have aa U A summer food services program where
through many sponsors in communities all acrossTennessee, were are distributing nutritious meals to
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UH to anybody that UH in inthose communities. And John, this is
an out out groom. Yeah.Yeah. What happens during the school year
is children are eligible for free andreduced lunch. So it is through the
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food and nutrition service booths that meeteligibility criterion that that is the operating through
the school systems. They are theneligible to receive a free or reduced lunch.
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And because they are not in schoolduring the summer and that is that
mechanism is not available, then wehave this summer feeding program. But in
addition to the Summer Feeding program,we are a still have this Summer Electronic
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Benefits Transfer where where we will provideagain for eligible families one hundred and twenty
dollars in the aggregate to be ableto purchase food during the course of the
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of the of the three summer months. How do they how do they get
involved with this? They go onyour website, so yes, please,
yes, the information for for SummerEBC is on our is also on our
website. And there will be somecommunities that are being automatically enrolled and in
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some instances both will have to submitapplications, but all of that information is
on our is on our website.What are some what are some of the
other programs that you have right now? One hundred in the summer months.
So uh now we we we havejust just talked about the the the principal
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difference in our service array during thesummer months. But some of the I
would say regular activities that are reallyimportant to us is our is our child
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scare John. We we know howimportant it is for parents to be able
to have a healthy, safe,and developmentally appropriate environment, to be able
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to leave their children when they haveto work, and and and so we
we are a part of we're kindof the tip of the sphere of the
effort to make sure that there isenough accessible and affordable and high quality childcare
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in Tennessee. And and so weare you know, we have our own
program which which makes the subsidy availableto income eligible families, but we are
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also working with Tennessee businesses, Okay, to say to them, this child
childre is important to your labor force, So let us work together so that
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you can also help to provide thisimportant service for your labor force. So
so we are looking to to expandthe the availability of this high quality childcare
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all across Tennessee. And we arepartnering with all sorts of entities, public
and private to do so so sothe companies can can the companies involved can
help you. They help you withhaving childcare at the facilities and so forth.
That's correct. And let me giveyou one of our one of our
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if you would gold Star examples uhout of the Humboldt, Tennessee. They
were building a new plant and theyreached out to us and said, we
have done a survey of our ofour labor force and asked them what would
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be the kinds of supports that itwould help if we provided. And the
results of the survey was very highon the list was childcare. So they
reached out to us and said,can you help us figure out how to
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make child care available. We wouldlike to make it available to our labor
force free of charge. And sowe helped them with with with construction of
a facility and also providing a serviceprovider to actually deliver the the the the
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childcare. So and it took usa while to be able to piece all
of that together, but but wewere able to help that employer and today
we have a on their site.We have a childcare center that serves the
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the the labor force needs of thattype of frouity. And in addition,
we are currently working with Ford becausethey are that they are in the process
of building the Electronic Trust plant inWest Tennessee. So we are working with
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Fords to do the very same thingto uh, make childs are available to
that labor force and the and thebroader community in that Blue Oval City region
of West Tennessee. That's great,that's great. That you've heard so much
too here cost of childcare is goingup and everything's going up. That this
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is a that is a great savingsfor the families, that helps the families
out. Really does it really is? And and and again sort of you
know, to go back to oursort of base thinking, we have to
do everything possible to strengthen family becauseyou know, families are the most important
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institute in our society. They are. And until we are very intentional about
supporting families, we're going to continueto be visited with the kind of social
decay that that that we we wecurrently see amongst us. Yeah, yeah,
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very true. And your and yourfather's your your program for fathers is
proof of proof of it right there. And again go over that and in
the last few minutes that we have, just go over that program one more
time, so everybody, So wewant people to register for this thing and
to get it, so we couldn'tgo over that one more time. Sure,
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So again this is the second phaseof a Fatherhood initiative that we began
last year with a statewide conference.We committed to in that conference to have
of a grant program that would thatthat would support all things attended to strengthening
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fathers. And so we've lost thatgrant program justice last week and applications for
that ten million dollar grant program,well, we will be receiving those until
the thirtieth of June, and youcan use the PDHS website in order to
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access the application. Those applications aredue by June thirty. It is our
intention to review all submitted applications andmake award determinations no later than late per
day of this year. Again,we want to we want to thank you
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so much and thank you for whatfor fathers and children and mothers and all
of them. I know you dogood work because we've had John before and
it was fascinating to listen to whatyou were doing. And you are doing
a great job, and I wishyou luck on this father's situation. John,
I very much appreciated. Thanks,thanks for the opportunity to share with
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your audience. Again. That's ClarenceCarter is the Commissioner of the Tennessee Department
of human Services. To find outmore about them and to apply for the
Father's grant. Visit TN dot govslash human Services, TN dot gov slash
human Services. For questions or commentsabout today's program, you can email me,
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John Clark got iHeartMedia dot com.Thanks for listening. I'll talk to
you next week on your local stationon Tennessee Matters