Home Program

Parent Connectors Program

Topic Areas
Scientific Rating
Child Welfare Relevance
Motivation and Engagement Programs
3  — Promising Research Evidence
Medium

About This Program

Target Population: Parents/caregivers of children or adolescents (ages 6 to18) at-risk for or having a serious emotional disorder.

For parents/caregivers of children ages: 6 – 18

Program Overview

The Parent Connectors Program is a parent-to-parent support program delivered through weekly telephone calls to families of youth with emotional disturbance (ED) or at risk for emotional disturbance with the aim of improving academic and emotional functioning in youth.

Veteran peers are parents who have a child who has ED and who have had a history of relative success in negotiating the school and mental health systems, Veteran peers are recruited to serve as Parent Connectors (PCs). Once recruited, the PCs participate in a 16-hour training program consisting of didactic sessions, role playing, and sharing of experiences. Each PC is assigned approximately ten families to contact for about an hour each week by telephone and the PCs meet as a group weekly with a mental health professional (called a PC Coach) for supervision, support and to share experiences. The intervention is limited to 9 months.

Program Goals

The goals of the Parent Connectors Program are:

  • Become fully engaged as partners with their children's education and social service systems
  • Increase perceived benefit of engaging with the school
  • Increase engagement in the services their child receives
  • Increase positive social support
  • Decrease caregiving strain
  • Increase the level of empowerment
  • Increase engagement of their youth in mental health services
  • Increase attendance of their youth in school

Logic Model

View the Logic Model for Parent Connectors Program.

Essential Components

The essential components of the Parent Connectors Program include:

  • Provision of emotional support, informational support, and increasing positive attitude toward engagement in services using components of the theory of planned behavior
  • Offered by veteran (peer) parents called a Parent Connector (PC) who carries a case-load of about 10 families
  • No direct contact by the Parent Connectors (PCs) with providers that are serving the parents/caregivers assigned to them
  • Delivered weekly on the telephone for approximately one hour at a time at the convenience of the target parent
  • Weekly face-to-face group supervision of PCs by a trained supervisor with clinical skills, called a Parent Connector Coach
  • Completion of a Family Contact Log describing the date, length, and content of every call a PC has with each family
  • Competed Family Contact Logs used in supervision by the Parent Connector Coach and subsequently entered into a computer program to monitor fidelity

Program Delivery

Parent/Caregiver Services

Parent Connectors Program directly provides services to parents/caregivers and addresses the following:

  • Have a child at-risk for or who has been placed in a school program for children who have emotional disabilities, are disruptive and possibly two or more grade levels behind in math and reading; may experience high levels of caregiver strain, blame, and social isolation; may experience little emotional support in their social environment; may feel they have little control over their lives and that of their children; may perceive little or no benefit in engaging with their child's teachers or mental health providers; may be overwhelmed by the school and community service provision process and have little understanding of how to navigate the special education process (e.g., IEPs)

Recommended Intensity:

One-hour phone call once a week

Recommended Duration:

9 months

Delivery Setting

This program is typically conducted in a(n):

  • Virtual (Online, Smartphone, Zoom, Telephone, Video, etc.)

Homework

This program does not include a homework component.

Resources Needed to Run Program

The typical resources for implementing the program are:

  • A Parent Connector Coach to work about 15 hours a week supervising Parent Connectors (PCs)
  • A room where the PC Coach can meet with PCs on a weekly basis.
  • Parents willing to be PCs
  • Phones and phone plans to make weekly calls by PCs
  • Printed "Family Contact Logs" for PCs
  • Access to a computer and staff member to enter fidelity data weekly into provided tracking program

Manuals and Training

Prerequisite/Minimum Provider Qualifications

The PC Coach should have clinical experience with parents/caregivers of youth with or at risk for emotional challenges and be "family friendly."

PCs should have a child that has been in the social services and relatively successful in navigating the service system.

Manual Information

There is a manual that describes how to deliver this program.

Program Manual(s)

Manual details:

  • Duchnowski, A. & Kutash (2018). Parent Connectors: PC training guide. University of South Florida.
  • Duchnowski, A. & Kutash (2018). Parent Connectors: PC coach manual. University of South Florida.
  • Duchnowski, A. & Kutash (2018). Parent Connectors: PC agency administrator manual. University of South Florida.

Program manuals can be obtained via a program contact.

Training Information

There is training available for this program.

Training Contacts:
Training Type/Location:

Training is typically held onsite at the trainees' organization, or in a location convenient to the trainees.

Number of days/hours:

Parent Connectors lesson-based curriculum for PC Coaches and PCs, provided by program developers or certified trainers, in face-to-face training to trainees, which includes:

  • 5-hour PC Coach training course delivered in person or by phone prior to PC training course
  • 16-hour PC training course
  • Written assessment of PCs before and after training
  • 6-hour PC booster session about five months following the initial training

Implementation Information

Pre-Implementation Materials

There are pre-implementation materials to measure organizational or provider readiness for Parent Connectors Program as listed below:

A pre-implementation planning document with over 30 items is utilized to help facilitate the conversation between potential agencies considering implementation of the intervention and the Parent Connectors training team. Please contact Kristin Duppong Hurley (see bottom of page) to receive a copy of the Agency Readiness to Implement Parent Connectors Planning Document.

Formal Support for Implementation

There is formal support available for implementation of Parent Connectors Program as listed below:

Formal support is required via quarterly teleconferencing and email, with a scheduled booster session 6 months after the initial training. The booster can be conducted virtually, if needed. The role of this ongoing support is to provide assistance to provide high quality implementation, with a focus on fidelity monitoring and coaching agency staff.

Fidelity Measures

There are fidelity measures for Parent Connectors Program as listed below:

A fidelity log that is a self-report checklist is provided and expected to be competed online following each phone call by the Parent Connector. This is a required activity of all participating agencies and is only available after contracting for Parent Connectors training, as training is required to use the log and accompanying fidelity reports. Surveying families on service delivery is recommended for implementing agencies as well as recording sessions to monitor implementation fidelity, if possible.

This manuscript describes the fidelity measures associated with Parent Connectors:

  • Duppong Hurley, K., Farley, J. & Huscroft D’Angelo, J. (2022). Assessing treatment integrity of parent-to-parent phone support for families of students with emotional and behavioral disturbance. School Mental Health, 14, 35–48. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12310-021-09448-4

Fidelity Measure Requirements:

Fidelity measures are required to be used as part of program implementation.

Implementation Guides or Manuals

There are implementation guides or manuals for Parent Connectors Program as listed below:

There are three implementation training manuals: one for the agencies, one for the supervisor, and one for the Parent Connectors. The guides for the administration and supervisors include more information about the agency considerations for implementing services. The implementation guides are obtained after requesting Parent Connectors training.

Implementation Cost

There have been studies of the costs of implementing Parent Connectors Program which are listed below:

A detailed cost-analysis was obtained as part of the IES funded study. Several different scenarios for different intervention outcomes effect sizes were calculated. More details can be found in this report, available from Kristin Duppong Hurley.

  • Duppong Hurley, K., Synhorst, L., Lambert, M. C., Farley, J., Trout, A., & Huscroft-D’Angelo, J. (2020). Parent Connectors: An efficacy study of peer-support for parents of middle school youth with emotional disturbance. IES Final Report.

Research on How to Implement the Program

Research has been conducted on how to implement Parent Connectors Program as listed below:

Cervantes, P. E., Gendler, C., Markowitz, L., Rose, M., Shorter, P., Mason, S., Hernandez, T., & Hoagwood, K. E. (2024). Adapting the Parent Connector program for caregivers of adults with SMI: The Family Connector experience. NPJ Mental Health Research, 3, Article 40. https://doi.org/10.1038/s44184-024-00079-6

Duppong Hurley, K., Farley, J. & Huscroft D’Angelo, J. (2022). Assessing treatment integrity of parent-to-parent phone support for families of students with emotional and behavioral disturbance. School Mental Health, 14, 35–48. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12310-021-09448-4

Duppong Hurley, K., Synhorst, L., Lambert, M. C., Farley, J., Trout, A., & Huscroft-D’Angelo, J. (2021). Parent Connectors: An efficacy study of peer-support for parents of middle school youth with emotional disturbance. IES Final Report.

Kutash, K., Cross, B., Madias, A., & Duchnowski, A., & Green, A. (2012). Description of a fidelity implementation system: An example from a community-based children’s mental health program. Journal of Child and Family Studies, 21, 1028–1040. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10826-012-9565-5

Relevant Published, Peer-Reviewed Research

Child Welfare Outcome: Child/Family Well-Being

"What is included in the Relevant Published, Peer-Reviewed Research section?"

Kutash, K., Duchnowski, A. J., Green, A. L., & Ferron, J. M. (2011). Supporting parents who have youth with emotional disturbances through a parent-to-parent support program: A proof of concept study using random assignment. Administration and Policy in Mental Health and Mental Health Services Research, 38(5), 412–427. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10488-010-0329-5

Type of Study: Randomized controlled trial
Number of Participants: 115

Population:

  • Age — PC: Mean=14.43 years; Comparison: Mean=14.82 years
  • Race/Ethnicity — PC – 47% Black/Non-Hispanic, 28% White/Non- Hispanic, 12% Hispanic, 12% Other, and 2% Native American; Comparison: 67% Black/Non-Hispanic, 20% White/Non-Hispanic, 9% Hispanic, and 4% Other
  • Gender — PC: 79% Male; Comparison: 73% Male
  • Status — Participants were parent and youth dyads recruited from two public schools that served only youth identified as emotionally disturbed (ED) and in need of a special education.

Location/Institution: Not Specified

Summary: (To include basic study design, measures, results, and notable limitations)
The purpose of the study was to evaluate the feasibility of implementing Parent Connectors Program for families of youth with emotional disturbance (ED) who are served in special education programs. Participants were randomly assigned to one of two groups: the Parent Connectors Program group (i.e., intervention group) or the Comparison group (i.e., control group). Measures utilized include the Vanderbilt Mental Health Services Efficacy Questionnaire (VMHSEQ), the Family Empowerment Scale (FES) – Family Subscale, the Caregiver Strain Questionnaire (CGSQ), the Support Functions Scale (SFS) – Short Version, Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ), the Brief Impairment Scale (BIS), the Wide Range Achievement Test 3 (WRAT3,) and the Ohio Youth Problems, Functioning, and Satisfaction Scales – Hopefulness Subscale. Results indicate that Parent Connectors (PCs) interacted with families for 5 hours spread out over 32 weeks of the school year. These interactions were viewed as positive by parents in the Parent Connectors Program group and the families were highly satisfied with the program. Results also indicate that the parents in the Parent Connectors Program group obtained needed mental health services and family empowerment. Students whose parents were in the Parent Connectors Program group received almost twice as many minutes of mental health services compared to students whose parents were in the comparison group. Additionally, students whose parents were in the Parent Connectors Program group attended school for 17 more days on average than those with parents in the comparison group. In addition, there was a moderate effect in reading improvement for students whose parents were in the Parent Connectors Program group. Limitations include small sample size, sample was obtained from one school district rather than from a nationally representative group, attrition of parents who dropped out of intervention group, and lack of follow-up.

Length of controlled postintervention follow-up: None.

Kutash, K., Duchnowski, A. J., Green, A., & Ferron, J. (2013). Effectiveness of the Parent Connectors Program: Results from a randomized trial. School Mental Health, 5(4), 192–208. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12310-013-9106-4

Type of Study: Randomized controlled trial
Number of Participants: 112

Population:

  • Age — Intervention: Mean=13.71 years; Comparison: Mean=13.54 years
  • Race/Ethnicity — Intervention: 51% Black, 29% White, 11% Hispanic, and 4% Other; Comparison: 49% Black, 29% White, 9% Other, and 7% Hispanic
  • Gender — Intervention: 77% Male; Comparison: 89% Male
  • Status — Participants were parent–student dyads recruited from a large school district.

Location/Institution: Twenty-three middle schools or special centers with self-contained special education classrooms for students identified with emotional disturbances (ED)

Summary: (To include basic study design, measures, results, and notable limitations)
The purpose of the study was to discuss the efficacy of the Parent Connectors Program at increasing the engagement of families in the education and treatment of their children who have emotional disturbance (ED). Participants were randomly assigned to either the Parent Connectors Program group (i.e., intervention group) or the non-treatment comparison group. Measures utilized include the Expected Benefit Mental Health and Expected Benefit Education scales, the Social Norms Mental Health and Social Norms Education scales, the Vanderbilt Mental Health Services Efficacy Questionnaire (VMHSEQ) – Short Version, Educational Efficacy Questionnaire (EEQ), the Special Education Elementary Longitudinal Study (SEELS), the Frequency of Positive Communication scale, the Caregiver Strain Questionnaire (CGSQ), the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ), and the Engagement in Child's Education at Home scale. Results indicate that parents in the Parent Connectors Program reported positive program effects including increased perceived benefit of engagement, more engagement in their child's services, and a more positive response to social norms. Students of these parents received more mental health services, were enrolled more days in school, and were suspended fewer times and for fewer days. Limitations include small sample size, findings may not generalize to more affluent or culturally heterogeneous samples, there was no direct measure of parent engagement in school activities or interactions with teachers, and lack of follow-up.

Length of controlled postintervention follow-up: None.

Additional References

Kutash, K., Cross, B., Madias, A., Duchnowski, A., & Green, A. (2012). Description of a fidelity implementation system: An example from a community-based children's mental health program. Journal of Child and Family Studies. 21(6) 1028–1040. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10826-012-9565-5

Duppong Hurley, K., January, S. A., & Lambert, M. (2017). Using caregiver strain to predict participation in a peer support intervention for parents of youth with emotional or behavioral needs. Journal of Emotional and Behavioral Disorders, 25(3), 170–177. https://doi.org/10.1177/1063426616649163

Weiss, C. L., Blizzard, A. M., Vaughan, C., Sydnor-Diggs, T., Edwards, S., & Stephan, S. H. (2015). Supporting the transition from inpatient hospitalization to school. Child and Adolescent Psychiatric Clinics of North America, 24(2), 371–383. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chc.2014.11.009

Contact Information

Krista Kutash, PhD
Title: Professor Emeritus
Agency/Affiliation: University of South Florida
Website: www.boystownresearch.org/centers-and-institutes/child-and-family-translational-research-center/translational-research-parent-connectors
Email:
Phone: (813) 995-4195
Albert J. Duchnowski, PhD
Title: Co-developer, Professor Emeritus
Agency/Affiliation: University of South Florida
Website: www.boystownresearch.org/centers-and-institutes/child-and-family-translational-research-center/translational-research-parent-connectors
Email:
Phone: (727) 859-2034
Kristin Duppong Hurley, PhD
Title: Research Scientist II
Agency/Affiliation: Boys Town National Research Hospital
Department: Child and Family Translational Research Center
Website: www.boystownresearch.org/centers-and-institutes/child-and-family-translational-research-center/translational-research-parent-connectors
Email:
Phone: (531) 355-1279

Date Research Evidence Last Reviewed by CEBC: October 2024

Date Program Content Last Reviewed by Program Staff: December 2024

Date Program Originally Loaded onto CEBC: February 2020