Parent Program – People Achieving Responsibility Through Education, Nurturing and Training

PARENT (People Achieving Responsibility Through Education, Nurturing and Training) was initiated by the Larimer County Department of Human Services in 1996 to help unemployed and underemployed noncustodial parents (NCPs) better meet their financial and emotional responsibilities as parents through the provision of parenting classes, employment assistance, case management services, and referral to community agencies. In 1999, with the award of a grant from the federal Office of Child Support Enforcement (OCSE), Larimer County added a child support assurance component to the PARENT program that paid monthly child support obligations for compliant, project participants for up to 12 months in order to free them up to improve  their earning abilities and strengthen their relationships with their children.

The three-year, qualitative and quantitative evaluation included: Information on the characteristics and participation patterns of 136 parents who enrolled in PARENT; Follow-up telephone interviews with 68 participants on parent-child contact patterns and client reactions to the program; A review of automated child support records for all clients in the two quarters prior to and 12 months following their enrollment; and A review of quarterly wage reports for all clients in the two quarters prior to and following their enrollment, with some clients monitored for up to 24 months following enrollment.