By Fathers Incorporated
This year, the National Responsible Fatherhood Clearinghouse (NRFC) kept its promise to meet dads where they are, give them what they can use, and keep the lights on — day and night — so help is there when it’s needed. On behalf of the Office of Family Assistance, our team at Fathers Incorporated focused NRFC activities on developing clear guidance, stronger platforms, and real pathways for dads and the people who serve them.
Fatherhood.gov drew a broad audience and held it. Over the period, 206,036 people visited the website, logging 242,298 sessions and 434,688 pageviews. Since nearly 62% of visits came from mobile devices, we tightened page speed and navigation to make late-night lookups quick and straightforward. Our “For Dads” section continued to attract the most traffic, while the Dad Talk Blog and evergreen how-to pages kept readers engaged, and email updates guided subscribers to new guides and videos.
Behind the scenes, the NRFC Virtual Collaborative Community (VCC) matured into a working grid of programs and people who do the day-to-day work with families. The VCC closed the year at 1,947 verified providers (up +157), with the most active threads zeroing in on practical problem-solving — serving specific family situations, sharpening program design, and sharing templates that save time for small fatherhood program teams. In addition, we simplified member onboarding, improved search, and strengthened the platform so answers surface faster.
We also shipped what the field requested: eight new or updated resources ready for immediate use. This slate included father-friendly tip sheets, rural-dad supplements, two state spotlights that show how agencies fund fatherhood work, an updated curricula compendium, leadership guidance for program leads, and a follow-on brief to help teams strengthen child-outcome tracking. Each informational piece was designed to be downloaded or printed, handed to a dad, dropped into a staff training, or posted on a program site.
“When a dad needs a straight answer at 10 p.m., fatherhood.gov has to be there — simple, solid, and ready,” says Kenneth Braswell, NRFC Project Director. “That’s why we keep investing in the basics: speed, clarity, and reliability. If you can find the right guidance in two clicks, you’re more likely to try it with your child tomorrow.”
“From the website to the community platform to the Call Center, everything points to one goal — getting usable help to fathers faster,” Braswell adds. “That’s how children feel the difference, not in theory but at the dinner table, the school pickup line, and the weekend routine.”
Our webinars for fatherhood practitioners stayed focused and useful, as well. A December 2024 session on grief and loss around the holidays resonated deeply, drawing 120 unique attendees and top-tier satisfaction scores. Two funding-readiness sessions in September helped programs prepare their next applications and tighten internal processes. The Q&A exchanges of both were direct and immediately usable — exactly what busy teams need.
The NRFC Call Center — 1-877-4DAD411 — handling 306 calls and emails from October through August. Most of these contacts were fathers looking for help with parenting time and other co-parenting tensions or seeking a path to local services. When appropriate, we made warm handoffs to Parent Help and similar partners, with 41% of all contacts receiving step-by-step support so families could reset conversations and build plans that keep kids’ well-being at the center.
Our national media campaign, in partnership with the Ad Council, covered every market in the nation. Through August, donated media placements exceeded $35 million with 1.4 billion impressions, reaching 100% of U.S. DMAs. The refreshed “Be a Good Dad Today” spots kept momentum high, and a new rural-dads roundtable filmed in August will power the next wave of PSAs and serve as the foundation for a longer feature. The takeaway is simple: When dads see real fathers telling true stories, they lean in, and many take a next step to learn more, find a program, or try a new approach at home.
In the past year, the NRFC direct subscriber base continued to grow as well. The listserv reached 11,241 subscribers by the end of August, with steady open and click performance that kept readers moving toward the newest tools and announcements.
How Our NRFC Work Aligns With the Local Efforts of Fathers Incorporated
Fathers Incorporated exists to help dads show up and stay steady for their children. The NRFC is a national expression of that mission. It turns lived experience and research into everyday tools, connects programs that may otherwise never meet, and keeps a dependable doorway open for any dad who types a question into a search bar.
This national reach feeds our local service in three important ways. First, it sharpens our curriculum and coaching because we’re constantly listening to what dads and practitioners are actually asking. Second, it widens our referral pathways; a father who finds us online can move straight into a cohort, a class, or a one-to-one connection. Third, it raises the floor for the whole field; when any program improves its materials or approach using NRFC tools, entire families and communities benefit.
