Forming Strong Families
Happier parents mean better family relationships, happier children and increased educational success
What does the Forming Strong Families Program do?
Our Formando Familias Fuertes (FFF) (Forming Strong Families) Program provides Spanish-speaking Latino/a/x parents with empowering opportunities for personal growth and skill-building to help them support the emotional and mental health and well-being of their children and families. Classes, gatherings (called Charlas) and mentoring groups that focus on communication, generational and cultural trauma and adverse childhood experiences support parents and families in their journey to becoming healthy families.
Many families live with trauma from experiences in their lives, and also carry trauma from previous generations. This is especially true for our Latino/a/x Spanish speaking parents with immigrant backgrounds.
These traumas can result in dysfunctional family relationships, communication difficulties and mental illness of all kinds, from simple depression to mood disorders. They contribute to domestic violence, substance abuse, behavior problems at school and even suicide.
Research shows that people are not meant to be solitary, and grow in relationships. We believe parents grow healthy and empowered in relationships with their peers who are on the same journey.
Healthy parents can support the emotional health and well-being of their children, which directly impacts their educational success. Forming Strong Families is a year-round program that includes:
Programs included
in FFF are:
Difficult Conversations Made Easier
Conversaciones Difíciles Mas Fáciles (Difficult Conversations Made Easier)
is a 10-week course developed by SKCE staff and parents, with the assistance of a consultant. The curriculum incorporates Crucial Conversations, Restorative Justice and other concepts based on psychology and self-awareness. The result is a culturally specific life-changing experience for small groups of 8 parents. The course contributes to the same goals of Strengthening Families below.
Strengthening Families Class
Fortalecimiento Familiar (Strengthening Families)
is an evidence-based program. It builds protective factors in families by bringing parents and their children together to increase healthy communication, develop happier family relationships, improve mental health outcomes, and decrease substance abuse and violence.
This program is based on building 5 key Protective Factors about Strengthening Families Research.
- Parental Resilience
- Social Connections
- Knowledge of parenting and child development
- Concrete support in times of need
- Social and Emotional Competence of Children
Mentoring and Support
SKCE also provides mentoring and support in phone calls and group meetings for parents and families in need of extra support.
Charlas (Gatherings)
In addition, gatherings (Charlas) are held once per month on Saturday mornings during the school year to bring professionals to speak on subjects that parents have asked for, such as mental health in both teens and adults, suicide, substance abuse, teen risky behavior and delinquency, and more.