Stepfamilies Program:
Linda Skogrand, Family Life Specialist;
Brian Higginbotham, Family Life Specialist; and,
Scot Allgood, Director of the Marriage, Family Therapy Program
Stepfamilies are becoming increasingly common in Utah and throughout the United States. Census figures project that 30% of all children are likely to spend some time in a stepfamily. There are, however, very few educational programs that help couples prepare for remarriage and/or enhance their relationships in the context of stepfamily-living. There are even fewer programs that provide these services for ethnically diverse, low-income couples in stepfamilies. To meet this need, USU Extension began providing Stepfamily Education in 2006 under the direction of Dr. Brian Higginbotham (Family-Life Extension Specialist) and with the financial support of two multi-year, multi-million dollar grants from the federal government. Additional details can be found at http://extension.usu.edu/stepfamily.
The program utilizes the Smart Steps curriculum a 12-hour, research-based program for adults and children in stepfamilies. The curriculum focuses on communication, conflict management, commitment, and other essential relationship skills. The Spanish version of Smart Steps is used at sites with predominantly Hispanic populations. Booster sessions and quarterly newsletters reinforce the skills learned in the classes.
The program is cutting-edge and innovative in that it targets an underserved and under-researched population (low-income, ethnically-diverse stepfamilies). The implementation design builds on established partnerships with community-based family service agencies that have a history of working with low-income families. Currently, twelve different agencies throughout the state are partners in offering classes in English and Spanish. These agencies include Head Start centers, a migrant family-service agency, Granite School District, and Community Action Partnerships. Twelve county FCS agents have also been trained in the Stepfamily Education program. As of January 2008, 52 classes have been completed. Another 31 classes will be offered in 2009. To date, over 500 families have participated including 1,218 children.
One of the original purposes of the program was to disseminate best practices in the field by researching what works and what does not work in building and sustaining healthy marriages for underserved families in our state. Now in the beginning of the 3rd programmatic year, already there have been 5 national presentations, 2 international presentations, 2 invited presentations in Washington D.C. for the federal government, 1 published peer-reviewed article, 2 articles in-press, 4 articles under-review, and 4 more in preparation. Almost all of these presentations and publications have student co-authors. A series of factsheets has also been developed as part of the program. The fact sheets have been produced in Spanish and English and are all available on the USU Extension website.