2023 Annual Fatherhood Forum: The Evolution of Fatherhood
Friday, April 7, 2023 | 8:30am-12:00pm | Hannah Community Center, East Lansing, MI
The Fatherhood Forum is a FREE annual collaborative event sponsored by the WorkLife Office, Student Parent Resource Center, and the Employee Assistance Program. Supported by MSUFCU.org
The Fatherhood Forum is for fathers who want to enhance their greatness as parents, their loved ones and supporters. Enjoy breakout sessions exploring fatherhood, child development, healthy parenting, self-care and more.
Who should attend? Fathers, father figures, and caregivers of all ages and experiences, mothers, expectant parents, guardians, MSU faculty, staff and students, professionals, community partners, educators, community members and anyone interested in parenting.
- 8:30am-9:00am – Doors Open & Continental Breakfast
- 9:00am-10:00am – Keynote Speaker
- 10:00am-11:00am – Breakout Session A (Choice of 2 Topics Described Below)
- 11:00am-12:00pm – Breakout Session B (Choice of 2 Topics Described Below)
An annual collaborative event sponsored by the WorkLife Office, Student Parent Resource Center, and the local community.
2023 Fatherhood Forum Photo Contest!
Do you love taking cool photos with your kids? Why not show them off? Submit a touching or heartfelt photo of you with your kids to the Fatherhood Forum Photo Contest for a chance to win a prize! Registrants must attend the 2023 Fatherhood Forum to win. Winners will be determined based on the photo that best captures the theme of this year’s Fatherhood Forum – The Evolution of Fatherhood.
Photos will be voted on by the participants at the Fatherhood Forum and the winner will be announced at the Forum on April 7, 2023. The submission must be a good quality photo in a JPEG format. Photos may be enhanced using photo filters and apps.
Submission Due Date: 11:59pm on Wednesday, April 5, 2023.
By submitting photos to this contest, artists grant permission to reproduce their work for print and electronic media promotion during the conference and for future conferences or media use. There is no charge for entering the competition.
Keynote and Breakout Session Topics & Descriptions
The Evolution of Fatherhood
Learning how to communicate effectively, with other adults, can help build thriving and supportive relationships in the lives of children. This workshop will help participants learn strategies to effectively communicate with childcare providers, teachers, and other important adults in the child’s life. We will spend time discussing and exploring ways to handle different perspectives and problem solve some common communication challenges.
Relationships matter. And for many fathers, their relationship with their partner matters as much, if not more than their relationship with their child. The relationships we model for our children lay the foundation and set the script for their relationships later in life. This workshop is designed to help fathers be more conscious and more deliberate about how their role as a partner is an essential element of their role as a father.
Learning how to Co-parent in a healthy way!
This session will explore how a learner mindset, mental health, spirituality, and physical interaction can have a positive, lasting effect on those we care for. During this session we will discuss how we, as fathers, have sought to incorporate these parts of life into our parenting journey and how it has shaped and reshaped our own ideas of fatherhood.
Keynote Speaker: Dr. Marvin Williams
Marvin Williams is the Lead Pastor of Trinity Church, serving there for the past thirteen years. Pastor Marvin Williams specializes in communication and leadership development and leads the teaching and preaching at Trinity. Since Pastor Williams has been at Trinity, he has established a team of preachers and teachers. He is a certified coach with GiANT Worldwide and Managing Leadership Anxiety. Pastor Williams loves people and uses his positive attitude and tireless energy to encourage others to know themselves in order to lead themselves and be the calmest ones in the room. He has degrees from Bishop College, Trinity Evangelical Divinity School, and Grand Rapids Theological Seminary. Pastor Williams has traveled to and done ministry in over 20 countries and is a regular writer for Our Daily Bread Ministries. Pastor Marvin is He is inspired daily by his wife and their four children. In his free time, Pastor Williams runs, blogs, and is finishing his doctorate.
Kevin Zoromski
Kevin received his Bachelor of Science Degree from Oakland University focusing in Psychology and completed a Master’s of Science Degree focusing in Counseling and School Psychology from the University of Nebraska. He is recognized as a Certified Lekotek Play Specialist through the National Lekotek Center of Chicago, Illinois.
Kevin currently works in the Preparing Michigan’s Children and Youth Institute where he focuses on child and family development. He has a background in early childhood development and in developmental evaluation. As part of the Child and Family Development Team for MSU Extension, Kevin focuses on providing information to parents, and professionals, in areas such as early childhood literacy, social emotional development, positive discipline and the purpose of play.
Dr. Jonathan Blair
Dedicated to the belief that healthy relationships matter, Dr. Blair has focused his education, clinical training, and professional practice on helping couples love better and stay together. A native of Lansing, Michigan, Dr. Blair attended the University of Michigan where he obtained his Bachelors Degree in Psychology. From there he attended Clark University in Worcester, Massachusetts where he obtained both his Masters Degree and his Doctorate in Clinical Psychology.
In addition to his work at Blair Psychology, Dr. Blair is a Senior Staff Psychologist at the University of Michigan’s MARI Adult Psychological Clinic where he is responsible for the couples therapy component of their training program. He also holds an adjunct faculty position at Michigan State University where he provides clinical supervision to doctoral candidates working in the Psychological Clinic. Dr. Blair is a Gottman certified Bringing Baby Home educator and works closely with the Sparrow Expectant Parents Organization to provide relationship education to couples making the transition to parenthood. He is also a member of the LifeCouple advisory board.
Quintin Baptiste, BBA
Quintin Baptiste is the current Strong Start | Healthy Start Fatherhood Facilitator. Quintin participates in the case management, engagement, and development of African-American and Hispanic fathers in the community. He also develops and hosts a number of community events and workshops designed to connect, educate, and engage fathers. As a graduate of Davenport University, and certified Project Manager, Quintin puts his skills to work to create a healthy and welcoming culture for dads for the Ingham County Health Department Strong Start | Healthy Start Program.
Samuel Saldivar, Ph.D.
