Los Angeles Centers for Alcohol and Drug Abuse

• Mission: Save lives, unite families, protect the community with healthy living education and addiction counseling.

• Vision of Excellence: excellent path to recovery, excellent partnerships, excellent place to work

• Services address treatment and prevention for substance use, mental health, HIV/AIDS, and domestic violence

• Special programs for homelessness, pregnant women, families, teens.

• Founded in 1971 by Dr. Ethan Allen• 5 offices throughout L.A. County including an

HIV/AIDS clinic in West Hollywood.

WHO WE ARE

Nearly a third of all children born in the US are born to unmarried parent: The number is higher among poor and minority populations: 40% among Hispanics and 70% of

African Americans (National Center for Health)

An estimated 23 million children live away from their biological fathers (US Census Bureau)

Among US teens: 33% live away from their fathers, and 43% of urban children live away from their fathers. (Gallup

Youth Survey)

THE KIDS ARE NOT ALL RIGHT

• 71% of all high school dropouts come from fatherless homes (Source: What Can the Federal Government Do To Decrease Crime and Revitalize Communities?)

• Children with Fathers who are involved are 40% less likely to repeat a grade in school.

• Kids living in single-parent homes or in step-families report lower educational expectations on the part of their parents, less parental monitoring of school work, and less overall social supervision than children from intact families.

EDUCATION

• 80% of rapists with anger problems come from fatherless homes –14 times the average.  (Justice & Behavior, Vol 14, p. 403-26)

• Even after controlling for income, youths in father-absent households still had significantly higher odds of incarceration than those in mother-father families. Youths who never had a father in the household experienced the highest odds.

• 85% of all youths in prison come from fatherless homes – 20 times the average.  (Fulton Co. Georgia, Texas Dept. of Correction)

CRIME

Children in father-absent homes are almost four times more likely to be poor. In 2011, 12 percent of children in married-

couple families were living in poverty, compared to 44 percent of children in mother-only families.

90% of all homeless and runaway children are from fatherless homes – 32 times the average.

POVERTY

POVERTY PART 2

DRUGS AND ALCOHOL

• 70% of youths in state-operated institutions come from fatherless homes – 9 times the average.  (U.S. Dept. of Justice)

• 75% of all adolescent patients in chemical abuse centers come from fatherless homes – 10 times the average.

• Boys in fatherless homes are 1.5 times more likely to abuse alcohol than boys in two parent homes

• Teens in fatherless homes have a 30% higher risk of substance abuse than those in two parent homes (Substance Abuse and Mental Health Administration)

• Encourage reforms in the criminal justice system which should treat substance abuse as a mental disorder rather than a crime.

• Encourage the courts to be equally partial to fathers as to mothers in custody cases.

• Educate people on the consequences of unprotected sex.• Encourage school districts to implement financial

literacy courses.• Support local nonprofits that serve lower income fathers

such as Project Fatherhood and the National Fatherhood Initiative.

• Support L.A. CADA’s Parenting Programs by contributing to our Miracle of Recovery fundraiser. All proceeds go to our parenting programs.

WHAT CAN WE DO?

Project Fatherhood: To address the problem of absentee fathers, Dr. Hershel Swinger created Project Fatherhood SM at Children’s Institute, Inc. in 1996 to re-engage low-income fathers, particularly in urban settings, in the care and upbringing of their children. Through therapy, support, parenting education and other services, fathers learn to be more loving, responsible parents and active participants in their children’s lives.

Mother/child therapy: 52-week parenting/child abuse prevention abuse prevention education program which addresses parenting, anger management, and coping skills development within group counseling sessions.

Financial literacy: These classes sponsored by Wells Fargo teaches skills such as budget making, balancing check books, and how to build a strong credit score. There is a strong correlation between financial literacy and not having children out of wedlock.

L.A. CADA’S FAMILY SERVICES

SAVE THE DATE