Family Support America

Principles of Effective

Family Support Programs

v    Staff and families work together in close relationships based on equality and respect.

v    Staff enhance families’ capacity to support the growth and development of all family members-adults, youth and children.

v    Families are resources to their own members, other families, and programs and communities.

v    Policies and practices affirm and strengthen families’ ethnic, racial, and linguistic identities and enhance their ability to function in a multicultural society. 

v    Programs are embedded in their communities and contribute to the community-building process.

v    Programs advocate with families for services and systems that are fair, responsive, and accountable to the families served. 

v    Practitioners work with families to mobilize formal and informal resources to support family development. 

v    Programs are flexible and continually responsive to family and community issues. 

v    Principles of family support are modeled in all program activities, including planning, governance, and administration.