Strategies

Support fathers’ active involvement in child rearing via various father-focused or family-focused interventions

Offer kindergarten programs for 4 to 6-year-old children, five days per week for at least five hours per day

Provide employment-based services for non-custodial fathers who pay child support and experience a job loss or a decrease in income

Increase green space through new parks or open spaces, renovation or enhancement of under-used recreation areas, rehabilitation of vacant lots, brownfields, etc.

Teach parenting skills in a group setting using a standardized curriculum, often based on behavioral or cognitive-behavioral approaches and focused on parents of at-risk children

Assign homework or extra credit activities for physical education (PE) or health classes that require students to be physically active outside of school

Change state-level school finance systems to increase funding for school districts serving large populations of students from low income backgrounds, students of color, and students with disabilities, special needs, or limited English skills

Emphasize high expectations for all students, parent and student commitment, empowered principals, and regular student assessments that inform continuous improvement in a lengthened school-year and school-day

Delay school start times for middle and high schools to better align with adolescent sleep-wake cycles; often until 8:30 a.m. or later

Support a combination of land uses (e.g., residential, commercial, recreational) in development initiatives, often through zoning regulations or Smart Growth initiatives