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| Spreading the Word! |
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The basic thrust of the National Effective Parenting Initiative is that we are all working together to make it the birthright of every child in our country to be raised effectively and humanely by loving and skillful parents who receive the best possible parenting education and support.
One of the main things that we as NEPI members do is to encourage others to become part of this movement. The two main actions that we take to spread the word is to have everyone we know who has similar values and similar goals sign the Effective Parenting Petition and become fellow members of NEPI.
By signing the Effective Parenting Petition, people are making a public statement about the importance of effective parenting and parenting education. The more people who make such statements, the higher is the likelihood that elected officials and other neighbors who occupy positions of power and influence in our communities will also work to make effective parenting and parenting education priorities.
You can help generate more petition signers by forwarding this newsletter to like-minded family members, friends, colleagues and organizations, with a note for them to click here to sign the Effective Parenting Petition.
An even more powerful action is to successfully encourage like-minded individuals and organizations to become members of NEPI. Here again you can accomplish this by forwarding this newsletter and having people and groups click on the membership category or categories of their choice which are listed below. They can learn about the benefits and responsibilities of membership and make their own decisions.
Parent Memberships
Professional Memberships
Organization Memberships
It is through these types of person-to-person actions that NEPI will be best positioned to help make our nation the best place for children to be raised.
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(If you would like to forward this newsletter to a friend, go to the end of the newsletter and click "forward email' in blue on the left-hand side.)
Welcome!
Welcome to the first edition of the newsletter of the Professional and Organization members of the National Effective Parenting Initiative!
Each quarterly issue will contain articles about important topics and issues in the fields of effective parenting and parenting education, written primarily by nationally respected authorities who are also leaders and members of NEPI.
This premiere issue begins with an article by the founder of NEPI, psychologist, Dr. Kerby T. Alvy. He addresses one of the most fundamental questions: What is Effective Parenting? Dr. Alvy's response emphasizes the importance of defining effective parenting in terms of what is known through research about what is helpful in preparing children to reach their full potential. He presents a research-derived "Productive Parenting Style" as a model worth considering, and shows how such a style can be reinforced, refined and learned through participation in modern parenting and family skill-building programs.
The second article deals with NEPI's function as an advocacy organization. It includes a report on a recent statewide parent education conference in Virginia. Dr. Alvy was a keynote presenter and spoke about Organizing America for Effective Parenting. He also led a special invited session the day following the conference which focused on how the state of Virginia could utilize the resources and projects that NEPI has been advocating at the national level for its own efforts to organize Virginia for effective parenting.
The next article is written by Dr. Karol L. Kumpfer, a member of NEPI's Advisory Board and a foremost program developer and researcher. Dr. Kumpfer's article places emphasize on the importance of effective parenting interventions for the prevention of child maltreatment and related problems: Effective Parenting Interventions for the Prevention of Child Maltreatment. It brings attention to the types of parenting and family interventions that have the most research support and what are their core components. She stresses the need for more practitioners to receive systematic training in delivering and evaluating evidenced-based programs and services, and discusses the responsibility of educational and government entities to ensure high quality preparation.
The next article addresses the practical matter of marketing parent and family programs, and what are the best ways to approach parents for participation: The Key to Marketing with Integrity - Helping, Not Selling. This is the first in a series of articles for the newsletter that are being written by another foremost program developer and member of NEPI's Board of Advisors, Jody Johnston Pawel. This first-in-a- series deals with the most basic of marketing issues: who needs to do marketing, why is it necessary, and how can you feel comfortable and skilled when marketing your programs.
The last article in this edition draws attention to one of the most important responsibilities of NEPI members, Spreading the Word. This involves both stimulating more people to sign the Effective Parenting Petition and encouraging more people and organizations to join this national movement. This article appears in the left-hand column.
NEPI's leadership encourages you to comment on these articles, as well as to suggest topics that you would like to see addressed in subsequent newsletters. You can share and suggest by writing kalvy@aol.com. |
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What is Effective Parenting?
by Kerby T. Alvy, Ph.D. |
As the founder of the National Effective Parenting Initiative, a coalition of individuals and organizations that advocates, celebrates and promotes effective parenting and parenting education, I am often asked what does "effective parenting" mean? How is it defined?
This is an extraordinarily challenging question because the job of raising children is complex and involves carrying out a wide range of responsibilities.
Parents are responsible for providing the basic resources that are needed, like a home, food and clothing. They are also responsible for taking good care of these resources, such as insuring that the home environment is safe and clean, and that foods and beverages are healthy and nutritious.
They are responsible for protecting children from physical or psychological harm, such as protecting them from predators, prejudice, and discrimination, as well as protecting them from diseases, from bullies, gangs and violence.
Within the extended family of relatives, parents are advocates for insuring that children's needs and rights are upheld and respected. This advocacy responsibility extends into the community. Parents do not only transport children back and forth from child care, school and health care settings, but they also have to be vigilant that their children are properly cared for in these out-of-home environments.
And even more encompassing, parents are responsible for guiding and nurturing all facets of children's development, including their social, emotional and thinking and educational development. Parents are their children's first and foremost teachers, guidance counselors and nurturers.
Thus, there could be definitions of effectiveness that apply to each of these areas of parental responsibilities, such as what it means to be an effective provider, protector, advocate, guide or nurturer.
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Organizing America for Effective Parenting
by Don Schilling |
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On June 13, 2007, Dr. Kerby T. Alvy was a keynote speaker at the 1st Annual Parent Education Conference held at the Virginia State University in Petersburg, VA. The conference was sponsored by a number of statewide groups, including the Virginia Department of Health, the Governor's Office of Substance Abuse Prevention, the Family and Children's Trust Fund of Virginia, Prevent Child Abuse Virginia, and Cooperative Extension of the Virginia State University.
Speaking to more than 130 people, Dr. Alvy's presentation, Organizing for Effective Parenting: A National Perspective, focused on the National Effective Parenting Initiative (NEPI) and why it was important to Virginia and the country as a whole.
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Effective Parenting Interventions for The Prevention of Child Maltreatment
by Karol L. Kumpfer, Ph.D. |
 Child maltreatment and ineffective parenting are at unacceptably high levels nationally (2.7 million children) with high costs to society. Child maltreatment is associated with a host of deleterious consequences for children, including physical injury; delayed growth; psychological problems such as aggression and depression; future substance abuse; perpetration of violence; and child death (National Research Council, 1993). These alarming statistics highlight the need to prevent child maltreatment by increased dissemination of effective parenting programs. The National Center on Child Abuse and Neglect (NCCAN, 2003) report over 80% of surveyed states found among child protective service caseloads that parental substance abuse and poverty are the two major factors associated with child maltreatment. Children of substance abusing parents are three times more likely to be abused and four times more likely to be neglected than children whose parents do not abuse alcohol and other drugs (Kumpfer & Bayes, 1995). National studies suggest that between 40% and 80% of all child maltreatment cases involve parental misuse of alcohol or drugs (CWLA, 2003).
Supporting families is the key to raising healthy, happy, productive children and preventing later adolescent problems. Developmental theories support the critical role of families in child raising. Our commercially oriented, fast-paced society appears to have forgotten this import role for parents.
For about 20 years, parents have been bombarded by messages that they do not matter and that peers are a stronger influence on children's behaviors. Longitudinal research suggests that parents have a larger impact on their teens than previously thought (Resnick, et al., 1997). Although peer influence is the major reason adolescents initiate negative behaviors, a positive family environment (e.g., family bonding, parental supervision, and communication of pro-social family values) is the major reason youth do not engage in unhealthy behaviors, such as substance abuse, delinquency, and early or unprotected sex. These protective family factors have even a stronger influence on girls (Kumpfer, Alvarado, & Whiteside, 2003).
What can be done to reduce the unacceptably high levels of harmful behaviors we see in adolescents today? Family psychologists have developed through practice and research some solutions. A number of family interventions have been found through national expert reviews to be effective in strengthening family systems and reducing childhood and adolescent problems.
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The Key to Marketing with Integrity - Helping, Not Selling
by Jody Johnston Pawel, LSW, CFLE |
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 All parenting professionals share a common goal of helping parents improve their families' lives. There are more families in need than any one program could serve, so there is no need for programs to compete. It is also impossible for one program to be all things to all families, so we each can play a role in meeting the needs of the parents we serve, in our own unique way in our corner of the world.
Because we share a common need to reachThat's where this article series can help. Each quarter I'll share with you some basic-to-intermediate marketing strategies you can use that are quick, easy to learn and do, and are either totally free or very inexpensive. I've learned these strategies through almost ten years of training with the worlds leading marketing experts and applied the strategies in my own parenting programs, in both non-profit and private practice settings. Since 2000, I've been training and coaching other parent educators in these skills through workshops and articles.
So let's get started with the most basic issues: who needs to do marketing, why is it necessary, and how you can feel more comfortable and skilled when marketing your programs?
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National Effective Parenting Initiative Newsletter for Professionals
