THE FATHERHOOD PROGRAM OF THE EAST BOSTON
DISTRICT COURT PROBATION DEPARTMENT
TEACHES FATHERS RESPONSIBILITY

          A group of 14 probationers, who have children ranging in age from infants to teenagers, recently graduated from the Fatherhood Program of the East Boston District Court Probation Department during a courthouse ceremony.

          East Boston District Probation Officer Anh Vu manages the 12-week program. The program featured workshops on Recognizing signals and gang involvement followed with a question and answer session with Police Captain James Claiborne and Police Officer Donny Stone. It also included a discussion on custody and child support issues with Probate and Family Probation Officers; a pediatrics and child safety course; child protective issues seminar; a presentation on domestic violence and anger management; a talk on signs, symptoms and treatment of substance abuse, and information provided on social activities for children.

          The Fatherhood Program is the "brainchild" of Norfolk Juvenile Court Chief Probation Officer Thomas Mitchell who started the program ten years ago when he discovered a common thread among the male probationers under supervision. “An overwhelming majority had little or no contact with their own fathers,” Mitchell said. There are Fatherhood Programs in nearly each of the 110 courts throughout the Commonwealth. The Fatherhood Program is based on the following five principles:

          1. As a father, it is my responsibility to give affection to my children.

          2. As a father, it is my responsibility to give gentle guidance to my children.

          3. As a father, it is my responsibility to give financial support to my children and to the mother of my children.

          4. As a father, it is my responsibility to demonstrate respect at all times to the mother of my children.

          5. As a father, it is my responsibility to set a proud example for my children by living within the law and without the taint of alcohol and drug abuse.

          The Massachusetts Probation Service is a department of the Massachusetts Trial Court. There are 12 Superior Court, 70 District Court, and 12 Probate and Family Court probation offices throughout the Commonwealth. Probation's Juvenile Court system includes 11 divisions which represent every county in the state. There are more than 20 Community Corrections Centers. The Office of the Commissioner of Probation (OCP) serves as the central administrative office for the state Probation Service and the Office of Community Corrections.