Leadership from several St. Petersburg community organizations and the University of South Florida came together to study the enduring positive impacts of coparenting interventions in unmarried African American families.
After a decade of planning, recruitment, and volunteer work, the preeminent Infant Mental Health Journal published the results in its December 2022 issue. The report details how a meticulously curated program called “Figuring it Out for the Child (FIOC)” led to more emotionally and physically healthy babies and improved relationship dynamics in unwed parents.
USF St. Petersburg’s Family Study Center (FSC) led the initiative – but it was only made possible through ongoing partnerships with several local organizations, such as the Next STEPP Pregnancy Center.
“There are many families in our city now with infants and small children who have benefitted from our having successfully completed the work,” said James McHale, director of the FSC. Read more
