Fathers for Change
Breaking the Cycle of Violence Through Fatherhood
Domestic violence impacts every member of a family. Fathers for Change is an innovative, evidence-informed, research-supported intervention that helps carefully selected fathers who have used violence build healthier relationships, strengthen their parenting, and create safer futures for their children.
Newhouse is proud to partner with the Kansas City Municipal Domestic Violence Court to pilot Fathers for Change—the first municipal court in the nation to implement this innovative model. Through court referrals and individualized therapy, the program promotes accountability, healing, and long-term family safety.
What is Fathers for Change?
Developed by Dr. Carla Stover at Yale University, Fathers for Change is a therapeutic intervention that addresses the underlying causes of intimate partner violence while recognizing the profound impact violence has on the entire family.
Unlike traditional batterer intervention programs, Fathers for Change combines individual therapy, parenting support, and family-centered healing to help fathers:
- end violent and abusive behaviors,
- build healthy coping skills,
- improve co-parenting,
- decrease negative parenting behaviors, and
- increase positive parenting behaviors.
A Different Approach to Ending Domestic Violence
At Newhouse, survivors will always remain at the center of our work. Fathers for Change expands that work by addressing the behaviors that cause harm in the first place.
Rather than only responding after violence occurs, this program seeks to prevent future violence by helping fathers make lasting changes that benefit themselves, their children, their partners, and future generations.
How the program works
Participants engage in a minimum of 18–24 individualized therapy sessions with a trained clinician. Because domestic violence affects the entire family, therapeutic support is also available for children and survivors. Survivors may choose to participate in family-focused interventions when appropriate and desired.
Throughout the program, fathers work to:
- Take accountability for past behavior
- Strengthen parenting and father-child relationships
- Build healthy emotional regulation and coping skills
- Improve co-parenting relationships
- Address trauma and its impact
- Develop life and employment skills
- Create safer, healthier family dynamics
Program treatment phases
Is Fathers for Change right for everyone?
Fathers for Change is not appropriate for every individual who has used violence. Every referral goes through a thorough screening and assessment process to determine whether the program is a safe and appropriate fit.
Before someone is accepted into the program, Newhouse clinicians carefully evaluate factors such as the nature and severity of the violence, family safety, emotional regulation, mental health, parenting relationships, and the father’s ability to take accountability and engage in treatment.
The safety and well-being of survivors and children always come first. Mothers are invited to participate only if they choose to do so, and their consent is required before any joint or family sessions take place. The program can be completed without survivor or child participation when that is the safest and most appropriate option.
Treatment planning includes individual assessments, a review of relevant records, and age-appropriate evaluations of parent-child interactions to ensure services are tailored to each family’s unique circumstances.
Who can participate?
Fathers for Change is designed for carefully screened fathers who:
- Have a history of intimate partner violence
- Are appropriate for individualized therapeutic intervention
- Are committed to building healthier relationships and becoming safer parents
- Are referred through the Kansas City Municipal Domestic Violence Court or other approved referral partners
Evidence that it works
Fathers for Change is grounded in research and continues to demonstrate promising outcomes for families.
In one study, researchers compared 297 families who participated in Fathers for Change with 297 similar families who did not receive the program. The results showed that families whose fathers completed Fathers for Change were significantly less likely to experience another reported incident of violence within the following year.
In fact, the comparison group was 2.4 times more likely to have a new report of family violence within one year than families whose fathers completed the program.*
*Beebe et al., 2023
Referrals
Newhouse is currently accepting referrals for Fathers for Change.
If you work with fathers who may be appropriate candidates for the program, please complete our referral form. For more information about the program or if you are interested in participating, please contact Newhouse.
Courtney Thomas, Newhouse President + CEO, joins Nephateri Hill, Kansas City Municipal Court Offender Accountability Coordinator, to share about Fathers for Change on KCTV’s MyKC Live on July 9, 2026.
