January 9, 2025
As President of the NCFR Board of Directors, I have been honored to serve you and lead our yearlong strategic planning efforts.
On Monday, Jan. 6, you received an email announcing our new Guiding Principles, including our Vision,
Every Family Thriving, proposed mission statement, new Ends, and guidelines for governance and management to direct the work of the NCFR staff, board, elected leaders, and other volunteers. In that announcement (
found here) we promised that beginning in January, NCFR will take steps toward making the organization more focused and financially sustainable for the future.
This announcement is to inform you that the Board has approved a 2025 budget, and Interim Executive Director Kevin Lynch has led a reorganization of NCFR staff. These decisions stem directly from NCFR’s new strategic direction, which I will explain here in detail.
NCFR’s new
Guiding Principles, developed through an engagement process with over 1,600 touchpoints from the NCFR community, include revised “Ends” statements. The Ends answer the question,
why does NCFR exist? They express our aspirations for NCFR and the meaningful work we will do to create a positive impact and advance our vision of
Every Family Thriving. The first End emphasizes uniting researchers, educators, practitioners, and policymakers to share knowledge and turn it into action. The second focuses on producing and widely disseminating scientific knowledge about families for maximum impact. The third prioritizes action and advocacy, ensuring we systematically address family marginalization and create conditions for every family to thrive. I encourage you to read the
full Ends here.
Our new Guiding Principles also focus on improving NCFR’s management and financial sustainability. For years, we have operated with a chronic, structural deficit, covering annual shortfalls with investment income. Membership has declined from nearly 4,000 in the late 1990s to about 2,400 today, while NCFR’s scope of work has expanded. After a thorough budget review, the Board concluded that our current operations are fiscally unsustainable. The new Guiding Principles are intended to streamline and focus NCFR’s efforts, strengthen financial sustainability, and promote membership growth, and societal impact.
These changes required budget reforms. On Dec. 30, 2024, the Board approved a 2025 budget that led to staffing changes. On Jan. 3, 2025, Kevin laid off three valued colleagues who will be greatly missed. In addition, remaining staff members are assuming new roles and responsibilities. While these decisions were difficult, they were necessary to address budget challenges and support our new strategic direction.
See updated staff list here.
The Board will now focus on two top priorities for 2025: 1) searching for a new Executive Director to helm the organizations and implement our new Guiding Principles; and 2) adapting our governance model to make sure our governing policies support these principles.
Your Board thanks you for your patience and trust as the Board implements a new governance model and the NCFR staff transition through the reorganization. You will receive further updates as we complete the work ahead. You are bound to have questions and you may email the Board at
board@ncfr.org, or send us a message through
the NCFR website. As always, we welcome dialogue and look forward to connecting with you over this year.
With all my gratitude,
Bethany L. Letiecq, Ph.D.
NCFR Board President 2023-2025
