EHE News
Center for Family Research officially opens COSI office
Center co-directors Steve Gavazzi, professor of human development and family science, and Scott Scheer, associate professor of human and community resource development, admitted the ribbon-cutting was long in coming: They've been conducting family-related programs and research from their program's offices at COSI since 2005 while working through the process to achieve official university "center" status. That landmark was achieved in February with a resolution passed by the university's Board of Trustees.
"The Center for Family Research began with the idea of promoting a strong research-grant funded entity that was connected to real people, children, youth, programs, communities and ultimately families," said Scheer, who is also a youth development specialist for the 4-H program with Ohio State University Extension. "Almost three years ago, a meeting occurred between the two deans of our colleges (Bobby D. Moser, vice president and dean of the College of Food, Agricultural, and Environmental Sciences, and David Andrews, dean of the College of Education and Human Ecology), who had the courage to give us the green light to proceed with the process of making the CFR a center at Ohio State."
It was soon after that when Gavazzi had a chance meeting with Kim Whaley, who had served on the faculty at Ohio State for 10 years before becoming COSI's vice president for Education and Guest Operations, and the idea of housing the center at COSI was born.
The center enables faculty from across Ohio State to collaborate in family-oriented research not only for the academic community, but for families and the agencies that serve them.
One project CFR has undertaken is the evaluation of the FAST$ (Family and System Teams) initiative. FAST$ is an Ohio Family and Children First initiative funded by the Ohio departments of Mental Health, Job and Family Services, Youth Services, and Alcohol and Drug Addiction Services. The agencies provide services to families experiencing problems without forcing parents to give up custody of their children. They contracted with CFR to evaluate how well they were meeting their goals of inter-agency collaboration, enhancement of services, and empowerment of families.
Initial findings indicate the FAST$ funding stream was successful in helping parent advocates keep families together or gain custody of their children; help families receive needed services; and establish effective education plans.
At the ceremony, Gavazzi said the center has strong ties with the various state departments, as well as more regional organizations such as Franklin County's Justice Programs Unit and Juvenile Court System. Additionally, he expressed hope that the center could enhance some of the linkages that more recently have been fostered at the local level with such youth-serving systems as the Columbus Public Schools.
Andrews added the center's home at COSI is just one example of how the university is expanding its partnerships within the community. "A major part of our outreach efforts is to locate in key areas of the community, assuring that the work we do here is public work," he said. Moser, who is also the university's vice president of outreach and engagement, said the center is a prime example of strong collaborations among faculty from many colleges that are also embedded in the community at large.
Other topics of the center's focus include suicide prevention, family strengths, and positive parenting strategies that work with at-risk adolescents, especially regarding illegal behaviors, chemical dependency, and mental health issues. The center's Web site contains research findings and links to more information.
Writer: Martha Filipic, OSU Extension
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