Past Summits
2022: Wide World of Fathering (Part 2)
May 17 - 19, 2022
Emcee Terrance Grantham
Plenary - The Work, Worries & Wonder of Fatherhood: The Power of Cultural Rituals & Routines to Build Bonds Through Talk, Touch & Listening While Combing Hair! - Dr. Marva Lewis
Social work CEUs
Workshop - The Routine of Hair Combing Interaction: A Tool to Strengthen Fathers' Connection to Children, Culture & Community - Dr. Marva Lewis & Dr. Afyia Mbilishaka
Social work CEUs
OCS customer service training credit
Entertainment: Spoken Word and Comedy - Talesha Wright; Horace H. B. Sanders
Workshop - Girl Dad vs Boy Dad - Shon Hart & Cole Williams
OCS customer service training credit
Plenary - Antiblackness: A New Analytical Perspective on Black Fathers and the Parenting of Black Children - Dr. Bakari Wallace
Fatherhood Motivation - Terrance Grantham
Workshop - Engaged Fathers: The Best Playmakers - Reginald Day
OCS customer service training credit
Entertainment: Spoken Word, Instrumental Music & Comedy - Brittini Ward; Lydia Carey; Michael McDaniel
Workshop - Black Fathers: How Do We Build Legacies? - Paul Osbourne & Kofi Morris
Workshop - The "It Factor" of Fatherhood - Civi Mahdi
OCS customer service training credit
Panel Discussion - Michigan Voices of Dads: Fathers of Children with Special Health Needs - Facilitated by Bomani Gray; featuring Ben Hughes, Michael Aaron Jr., and Richard Kloeckner
OCS customer service training credit
Workshop - Fathers & Family Court - Damon Pitt, Amy Lindholm
Panel - Ask the Experts Your Family Court Questions - Facilitated by Shon Hart; featuring Amy Lindholm, Jillian Fitzgerald, Tony McDowell, Jason Walker, Traci Schenkel, Jeremy Hogue
OCS customer service training credit
2021: Wide World of Fathering
June 15 - 17, 2021
Plenary 1: A Practical View of Fatherhood from the Bench (w/ Q&A)
Judge Gregory Pittman
The idea of being a party to a court case can be very intimidating. When the future of your relationship with your child(ren) is at stake, it creates an even higher level of stress and uncertainty. Hear “real talk” from the decision-maker’s perspective, how fatherhood is viewed & ask that decision-maker questions about fatherhood.
Entertainment: Spoken Word
Lemarr Jackson
Workshop 1: Dispelling the Myth about Non-custodial Fathers
DeAndre Carter
Non-custodial fathers face many challenges. Fostering a relationship with the child’s mother, navigating the legal system and policies, and managing their own emotions are among the foremost challenges. Join us to be inspired, educated, and empowered to address these challenges with innovative strategies for success.
Workshop 2: Mental Health & Fatherhood - You Cannot Quit Fatherhood!
Jonathan Lawrence
Fathers will leave with the understanding of how to manage the pressures of fatherhood, as well as how to identify their challenges as a father and how to address them from a place of healing.
Workshop 3: Government Intervention and the Generational Effect on Native Parenting (w/ Q&A)
Jason Cross
The effects of historical trauma as a result of the boarding school and adoption project experiences on Native American parenting, specific to fatherhood. Jason will present Native American history and trauma from a personal perspective as it relates to his grandmothers’ experiences at the Mt. Pleasant Indian Industrial Boarding School.
Plenary 2: Fatherhood Representation in the School System & Implicit Bias
Kwame Simmons
Entertainment: Solo Artist
Gerard Brooks
Workshop 4: Kingz Table Panel Discussion
Facilitated by Cole Williams
Workshop 5: State-Level Policies Affecting Fathers
Dwayne Barnes
This interactive presentation will teach participants how to research, frame, and advocate issues with lawmakers, media, and community. We will brainstorm issues and build an action plan to address them. In addition, you will learn more about Michigan League for Public Policy (MLPP) and how to access our research, data, and network.
Workshop 6: Co-Parenting (w/ Q&A)
Norman Young and Dr. Shayla Young
One Love, Two Homes is an interactive learning experience based on the emerging parenting style: co-parenting from two separate homes. As experts of experience, we encourage co-parents to positively engage while keeping a child focus and understanding the role of C.A.S.H. (Communication, Accountability, Setting Boundaries, and Healing).
Plenary 3: Fathers and Vaccination Hesitancy (w/ Q&A)
Dr. Kwame Francis
A general overview of how vaccines work, an introduction to our body's natural immune system, and how we combat infections.
Workshop 7: Best Practices from Michigan Fatherhood Programs
Dr. Maria Muzik & Mike Acosta, Fraternity of Fathers
Adnoris "Bo" Torres, Strong Beginnings - Strong Fathers
We will show how to use motivational interviewing, trust building, and culturally appropriate practices to successfully engage with fathers, father figures, and community men and will share relevant materials and resources.
Shon Hart, InvolvedDad
Workshop 8: Fatherhood Programs Panel
Moderated by Matt Haviland
Join fatherhood experts from across the state of Michigan for a live and interactive panel discussion. We will learn more about how to put best practices to everyday use when supporting fathers and families.
2020: Resilience in Uncertain Times
July 28 - 30, 2020
Highlight Reels
The Kingz Table - "Hidden Consequences of Incarceration"
Day 3 Plenary session, recorded Thursday, July 30, 2020, 9:00 am - 10:00 am Eastern. Cole Williams facilitates a conversation about what it means to be a father with a past history of incarceration. The Kingz Table discusses the collateral effects of incarceration on Fathers, Families, and their Children. The panel discusses the socialization of men into fathers and the challenges that fathers experience when returning home from incarceration. The panelists are all fathers and speak from a range of experiences and perspectives. The intent of the discussion is to motivate, educate, and empower fathers and those who support them.
Lisa Knight - "Bias, Black and Changing Culture"
Day 2 Plenary session, recorded Wednesday, July 29, 2020, 9:00 am - 10:00 am Eastern. Speaker Lisa Knight (Owner; COO, DV Apple Logistics LLC; Public Thread) introduced participants to the concepts of Bias and how we are conditioned to see Race; how that narrative plays into our daily lives, work, community and the changing culture in America and how we can begin to shift the narrative. This session also talked about the trauma that has impacted black and brown communities and ways to move toward healing. And finally, what does all of this mean for fathers in our communities?
2019: Fatherhood think tank
May 17, 2019
Presented by Healthy Kent Dads Count! and joined by Michigan Action Plan for Father Involvement