Skills taught to fathers who pay support

For more information For information about the Alice program or to donate computers needing repair to the program, call Rene Raymond at (361) 664-3858.

A teen-age father flipping burgers for minimum wage can't possibly make child support payments.
   That is the issue a new pilot program in Alice will attempt to address.
   The program, called the Early Headstart Fatherhood Demonstration Project, is a collaborative effort between the Community Action Corporation of South Texas in Alice and Coastal Bend College, made possible by a $125,000 federal grant benefiting the Alice agency and San Marcos Community Action Inc.
   In all, 20 fathers - 10 in Alice and 10 in San Marcos - will be chosen to participate in a micro-computer business enterprise. They'll be taught not only the technical skills to refurbish computers and laptops, but also the business skills to market their products and resell them to the public.
   To qualify, fathers must be non-custodial parents whose children are enrolled in Early Headstart.
   "We're committed to working with parenting education programs because we realize we don't just have deadbeats on our caseloads," said Ann Costilow, outreach programs manager for the Child Support Division with the state Attorney General's Office.
   "We have fathers who are just dead broke for whatever reason and who would be responsible if they were given some help. And we're trying to do what we can so that they get it."
   The three-year venture is expected to begin in May. Applications are now being accepted.
   The Community Action Corporation of South Texas, which serves Jim Wells, Kleberg and Brooks counties, along with the college will donate computers needing repairs to the Alice micro-business program, said Rene Raymond, fatherhood specialist with the corporation.
   The agency is also accepting donations of computers needing repair for the Alice program, Raymond said.
   The Community Action Corporation of South Texas hopes to eventually create similar programs in the other two counties it serves - Kleberg and Brooks. In addition to helping fathers better meet their financial responsibilities, the project also emphasizes parenting classes.
   "We're encouraging them to be more involved in their children's lives through planned activities that foster bonding, trust and development," Raymond said.
   For Alice participants, computer and business classes will be taught at Coastal Bend College's extension campus in Alice. Participants will receive college credit for the program courses they take.
   Books, tuition and training will be paid for by the grant.
   Once these fathers complete the program, their advanced technical skills should help make them more marketable in the workforce and enable them to attain good-paying jobs in order to support their families, Raymond said.