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• Submit Your Proposals for NCFR 2026
• Policy Highlights and Opportunities
• Social Science Advocacy Day
• Vote in NCFR Elections by March 1 |
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• Free CFLE Conversation: Feb. 25
• Faculty Reviewers Needed
• Students: Apply for NCFR Honors
• New NCFR Research
• Calls for Papers
• >> Job Opportunities << |
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2026 NCFR Annual Conference
Submit Your Conference Proposals
Make plans to join us this fall for NCFR 2026 in Minneapolis. This year's theme is Families at the Nexus of Law and Policy: The Intended and Unintended Consequences of Legislating Families and Relationships.
Key Dates:
★ Deadline for Proposals: April 1, 2026
★ Registration Opens: Early May
★ Proposal Authors Notified: Mid-June
★ Conference Dates: Nov. 18-21, 2026, Preconference: Nov. 17
Our 2026 Program Co-Chairs Brian G. Ogolsky, Ph.D., and Jennifer L. Hardesty, Ph.D., CFLE, are organizing each day of the conference around a subtheme and goals that build upon each other over the course of the week.
GET STARTED HERE
We are looking forward to your proposals this year!
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POLICY |
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Opportunities for NCFR Members and CFLEs
Sign-On Opportunity: Restructuring of the Office of Planning, Research, and Evaluation at the Administration for Children and Families. Signatures will be accepted until Monday, Feb. 23, 2026. On Feb 10th, the U.S. Dept of Health and Human Services (HHS) released an internal memo to the Office of Planning, Research and Evaluation (OPRE) with plans to decentralize its work and downsize.
This would impact the research and evaluation of many programs serving families through ACF, programs such as Adolescent Pregnancy Prevention and Sexual Risk Avoidance, Child Care, Child Support Enforcement, Child Welfare, Head Start, Health Profession Opportunity Grants, Healthy Marriage and Responsible Fatherhood, Home Visiting, and Welfare and Family Self-sufficiency. In a joint statement released by the Data Foundation , restructuring OPRE could negatively impact current research and evaluation on programs serving families. You can sign the letter coordinated by the Data Foundation here.
Additional Opportunities
RESOURCES
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Join the NCFR Delegation in Washington D.C.
Social Science Advocacy Day
March 23-24, 2026
The National Council on Family Relations (NCFR) invites you to join the NCFR delegation in Washington, D.C. to advocate for increased funding and visibility for family science and social science research focused on families! Social Science Advocacy Day is hosted by the Consortium of Social Science Associations (COSSA).
NCFR plans to convene all members virtually for a planning session to discuss and align shared goals for this event. In this meeting, we will discuss how to prepare for your time in DC. A potential in-person meeting will be planned morning of March 23. More details to come!
NCFR Members will receive the member rate for registration: $125/members; $50/students. Make sure to register now!
Already registered or plan on attending? Complete this webform so we can plan to gather as a group: COSSA NCFR Delegation. |
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FAMILY LIFE EDUCATION |
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Family Life Education Month
3 Ways to Celebrate FLE Month in February
Each February, NCFR celebrates Family Life Education (FLE) Month, highlighting the impact of Family Life Educators who strengthen families and communities through evidence-based, preventive work.
Join the celebration by taking action:
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Send a Thank You to a Family Life Educator
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Share a "Day in the Life" as an FLE student on social media.
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Tell employers about the value of hiring Family Life Educators
Amplify the profession during FLE Month and all year long by sharing your stories with #FamilyLifeEd.
LEARN MORE |
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UPCOMING EVENTS |
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CFLE Conversation
Supporting Basic Needs in Family Life Education
Feb. 25, 2026 / Noon - 1 p.m. CT / Free for CFLEs
Facilitator: Barbara Sweeney, MSW, MPH, CFLE, LCSW
Are you a CFLE supporting families' basic needs such as food, housing, health care, education, or transportation? Join this active conversation to engage in discussion with other CFLEs doing similar work!
Ms. Sweeney is the Coordinator of Food Security Outreach at the University of Rhode Island (URI). In her role, she manages the university’s basic needs pantries, serves as a case manager on the Student Support and Advocacy team in the Dean of Students office, and works to enhance food security policy throughout URI.
LEARN MORE & RESERVE YOUR SEAT
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NCFR Affiliates
Utah Council on Family Relations Annual Conference
Friday, April 3, 2026 / 8:30 a.m. - 3 p.m. MT / Utah Valley University,
Students: $15 / Professionals: $20
The Utah Council on Family Relations (UTCFR) will hold its 2024 annual conference at Utah Valley University on April 3, 2026. Keynote Speaker Alan J. Hawkins, Ph.D. will present findings for the 2025 National Dating Landscape Survey.
Paper and poster submissions are now being accepted with a deadline of March 18, 2026.
SEE FULL DETAILS
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NCFR MEMBER OPPORTUNITIES |
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NCFR Volunteers
Faculty Reviewers Needed for NCFR Honors Program
NCFR's Honors Student Program recognizes the exceptional academic, service, and leadership accomplishments of undergraduate and graduate students in the Family Science discipline.
NCFR seeks member volunteers to serve on a panel and review applications submitted by students in the final term of their degree program. Reviewers must currently serve as faculty in university family programs.
SIGN UP HERE |
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Graduating This Spring?
Students: Apply Now for NCFR Honors
If you are an NCFR member graduating this spring from an undergraduate, master's or Ph.D. program, you may be eligible to apply for NCFR Honors Student Recognition!
Students awarded NCFR Honors will receive a graduation stole, a certificate, and recognition in our NCFR Report member magazine — and it's a great addition to your résumé or CV.
STUDENTS: APPLY BY MARCH 1 |
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NCFR Elections
Meet the Candidates: NCFR Inclusion and Diversity Commitee Member-at-Large
All NCFR members are encouraged to vote in the NCFR elections by March 1 at noon CT. (Ballots were emailed to members on Feb. 1, 2026)
This week, you are invited to meet the nominees for NCFR Inclusion and Diversity Committee Member-at-Large. There are two open positions, and members may rank candidates in the order of preference.
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Greyson Arnold (University of Minnesota)
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Ashley Landers (The Ohio State University)
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Amy Morgan (University of Maryland)
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So Young Park (University of Missouri)
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Meagan Stewart (University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign)
MEET THE CANDIDATES
On this year's ballot members will also be able to vote on proposed amendments to the NCFR Bylaws. |
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NCFR Grants
Research Grant Proposals Accepted Beginning March 1
NCFR will open the submission period for its two grants on March 1, 2026. All proposals are due by April 1, 2026.
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NCFR Olson Grant: Bridging Research, Theory, and Practice: $10,000 annual grant available to NCFR members working to creatively contribute to the discipline of Family Science by bridging research, theory, and practice in their work. Learn more.
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NCFR Darling Family Life Education Research Initiative Grant: $5,000 biennial grant available to NCFR members and Certified Family Life Educators with the purpose of integrating Family Science research into the practice of Family Life Education. Learn more.
Please note: Application for IRB approval must be submitted prior to submitting the grant application and match the project name. |
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RESEARCH |
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NCFR Journals
Peruse New NCFR Journal Research Read Articles Published Feb. 8–14
Catch up on the latest research from NCFR's scholarly journals — Journal of Marriage and Family (JMF), Family Relations: Interdisciplinary Journal of Applied Family Science (FR), and Journal of Family Theory & Review (JFTR) — including these two with NCFR members (*) among their authors:
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JMF: Sexual flourishing: An expanded vision of sexual quality — Nathan D. Leonhardt, Dean M. Busby, Jason S. Carroll, Chelom E. Leavitt*, Emily A. Impett
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FR: Gaming perceptions, coplaying, and social support: A two-study examination — Minel Guler*, Benjamin Burke*
SEE ALL NEW NCFR RESEARCH
If you are an NCFR member subscribed to one of our journals, you can access articles by logging into your NCFR account. You can also sign up for email alerts. |
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NCFR Journals
JFTR Special Issue Call for Papers
Theme: Theorizing Families and the State
Submit manuscripts by March 15 for a special issue of NCFR's Journal of Family Theory & Review (JFTR) themed "Theorizing Families and the State."
Manuscripts are sought that further delineate the ways in which family privilege and oppression are socially structured and reproduced by the state via laws, policies, rules, and regulations in the modern era and how marriage fundamentalism, in particular, operates alongside structural racism, nationalism, sexism, and heterosexism as an axis of power and control.
SEE CALL FOR PAPERS
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NCFR Journals
Family Relations Special Section Call for Papers
Theme: Ukrainian Forced Migrants' Transnational Families
Submit letters of intent by April 30 for a special section of NCFR's Family Relations: Interdisciplinary Journal of Applied Family Science (FR) themed "Ukrainian Forced Migrants’ Transnational Families: New Relationality and Shared Agency."
The special section will provide a framework for understanding Ukrainian forced migrants’ transnational families; enable practitioners to learn about the specificities that matter in applied work; inform policy; and support intervention.
For authors invited to submit, manuscripts will be due Sept. 30, 2026.
SEE FULL CALL FOR PAPERS
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NCFR PUBLICATIONS |
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NCFR Publications
Second Editions of 2 NCFR Books Available for Purchase
Edited by Wm. Michael Fleming, Ph.D., CFLE; and Michael J. Walcheski, Ph.D., CFLE
$79.99 retail. $69.99 for NCFR members and CFLEs
Useful and informative for seasoned and emerging professionals, as well as for students, this textbook provides a comprehensive examination of the profession from the perspectives of many leading family scholars and educators.
The second edition includes four sections that consider the knowledge and skills needed for the effective practice of Family Life Education (FLE) and chapters on FLE with various populations and relevant issues.
Learn more & purchase >
Wisdom for Parents. Key Ideas from Parent Educators
Edited by Elizabeth A. Ramsey, Ph.D., CFLE
$29.95 retail. $25.95 for CFLEs
Family Science professionals from across the discipline share stories, reflection, and poems in this extensive collection of parenting knowledge that can benefit anyone— teachers, researchers, students, and parents!
A variety of relevant topics on the joys and challenges of parenting are woven together to create a valuable resource both in and out of the classroom setting. This second edition includes updated entries, new contributions, and discussion questions.
Learn more & purchase > |
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NCFR JOBS CENTER |
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Employment Opportunities
Employers: Get your job opening included in Zippy News by posting it in
NCFR's online Jobs Center! Get started here.
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FEATURED JOB
Assistant Professor Human Development and Family Studies
University of Alabama
The Department of Human Development and Family Studies, College of Human Environmental Sciences at the University of Alabama, seeks a tenure-track assistant professor of Human Development and Family Studies with a specialization in addiction science that is broadly defined. Candidates with a background in marriage and family therapy are preferred. The successful candidate will be expected to develop a robust scholarly research program with external support; teach undergraduate and/or graduate courses; advise and mentor undergraduate and graduate students; and engage in professional service at the campus, community, state, and/or national level.
Location: Tuscaloosa, Alabama
Required Education: Doctorate
Application Deadline: March 6, 2026
SEE FULL DETAILS |
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