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NCFR Weekly Zippy News
Friday, October 24, 2025
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• NCFR Policy Corner
• New NCFR Research
• FR & JFTR Calls for Papers
• Register for NCFR 2025
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Zippy News will take a break next week and return Nov. 6
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NCFR Publications
NCFR Debuts New Publication: NCFR NexusFall 2025 – Privilege
Introducing NCFR Nexus, a quarterly digital publication to serve serve NCFR’s transdisciplinary community of researchers, educators, practitioners, and policymakers. Access to Nexus is a benefit for NCFR members and Certified Family Life Educators (CFLEs), designed to encourage professional and transdisciplinary connection and dialogue.
The articles in this issue explore the concept of privilege, which is impacted by intersectional characteristics of one’s identity (e.g., race, gender, religion, sexuality, ability), as well as access to resources such as higher education or supportive family relationships.
READ FALL ISSUE
Join NCFR or renew your membership to access articles
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NCFR Policy Corner
This Week's Policy HighlightsOct. 23, 2025
U.S. Higher Education and Academic Freedom — The AAC&U opposes the Trump Administration’s “Compact for Academic Excellence in Higher Education,” reaffirming that academic freedom and self-governance are vital for the public good and the continued excellence of the American higher education system.
U.S. Federal Government Shutdown — The federal government shutdown that began on Oct. 1, 2025, after Congress failed to pass funding for FY26, has disrupted pay for millions of workers and threatens essential programs that support families. Prolonged inaction could severely impact food assistance, healthcare access, early education, housing, and services for children with disabilities across the nation.
SEE FULL HIGHLIGHTS
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NCFR 2025
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2025 NCFR Annual Conference
Friday Special Session:
Iheoma Iruka
"Young Children and Families Flourishing: Advancing Science-to-Action Focused on the Protection, Promotion, and Preservation of Humanity for All"
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We are pleased to present Iheoma U. Iruka, Ph.D., as a special session presenter on Friday, Nov. 20. The 2025 NCFR Annual Conference will be held Nov. 19-22 in Baltimore, Maryland.
Dr. Iruka will explore how the early years are crucial for ensuring all children have equitable opportunities to thrive, regardless of race or place. Attendees will learn how to center racial equity and cultural wealth in programs, policies, and practices that promote children’s and families’ healthy development. Read the full abstract.
Sponsored by the University of Georgia – Human Development and Family Science
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| REGISTER FOR NCFR 2025
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Member registration rates will be available for new or returning members once the following business day after they join or renew.
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2025 NCFR Annual Conference | Nov. 19-22, 2025 | Baltimore, Maryland
Translational Panels: Turning Research Into Action
Join us for a series of dynamic Translational Panel Sessions at the 2025 NCFR Annual Conference designed to spark collaboration and inspire action across the family field.
Explore how Family Science connects research, practice, policy, and public engagement through four dynamic panels that:
Highlight ways to translate research into practical strategies supporting families.
Share insights on using evidence to inform policy and advocacy.
Offer guidance on publishing translational work in leading journals.
Showcase creative approaches for communicating research to the public.
DISCOVER OUR PANEL SESSIONS
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2025 NCFR Annual Conference
NCFR Hotel Room Rate Ends Oct. 28
Upon registering for the 2025 NCFR Annual Conference, book your stay at NCFR's conference hotel site, the Baltimore Marriott Waterfront. Look for the blue "Book Hotel" button. Once registered for the conference, you will be able to use NCFR's discounted conference rate. The Baltimore Marriott Waterfront is this year's conference destination. Located next to the Baltimore Harbor, in the Harbor East neighborhood, and surrounded by restaurants, stores, and all kinds of fun, local opportunities.
- Register for NCFR 2025
- Book your hotel stay at the Baltimore Marriott Waterfront
*(book by 5 p.m. ET, Oct. 28, to receive the NCFR conference room rate)
- Take a look at some of the opportunities that await you—area outings for member groups | conference guide to fun
LEARN MORE
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2025 NCFR Annual Conference
Add the TCRM Workshop to Your Registration
Full day Nov. 18 | AM only Nov. 19
$40 for students | $60 for professionals
The Theory Construction and Research Methodology (TCRM) Workshop will be onsite at the 2025 NCFR Annual Conference. The TCRM Workshop is a longstanding tradition within NCFR and a great entry point if you are building an understanding in or have interest in theory and/or methodology, and advancing the study of families.
Working papers on family theory and research methodology are reviewed, discussed, and strengthened. TCRM presents an atmosphere of collaboration, invites engaged discussion between authors, discussants, and the audience alike. This year will feature a new format: question posters! The full schedule is now available online.
Register for TCRM when you register for the conference — or add it to your registration anytime later.
REGISTER FOR TCRM
TCRM is made possible with the support of NCFR's Journal of Family Theory & Review.
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Opportunities to Network and Connect at NCFR 2025
Thursday Morning Affinity Fair
Thursday, Nov. 20, 8:00–9:15 a.m.
Open to all attendees and featuring a light continental breakfast, this casual networking event offers a chance to build meaningful connections through NCFR’s many affinity groups (i.e., focus groups, sections, affiliates, students and new professionals, Certified Family Life Educators). Join the fun, meet new people, and enter for a chance to win a free NCFR membership!
Collab Corner
Wednesday - Friday, 8:00 a.m. – 8:00 p.m. and Saturday, 8:00 a.m. – 12 noon
A flexible space to connect, collaborate, and create. Whether you're networking with fellow attendees, diving into work, or simply taking a moment to recharge, this area is here for you to use as needed. Take advantage of the available resources, spark new ideas, and bring your projects to life. No sign-up required.
This year's schedule was created with more time for breaks in between sessions and time at night for attendees to "dine around" Baltimore.
NCFR 2025 will also have a new Thursday Morning "Affinity Fair" with continental breakfast, and a Friday Night Party — sponsored by the Department of Family Science at the University of Maryland School of Public Health
REGISTER FOR NCFR 2025
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NCFR MEMBER NEWS
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Save the Date: Nov. 14
2025 Virtual NCFR Annual Member Meeting
Friday, Nov. 14, 2025 1–2:30 p.m. CT (Find in my timezone)
All NCFR members are invited to attend the annual member meeting virtually via Zoom the week prior to the NCFR Annual Conference, to hear updates on NCFR’s activities, ask questions, and recognize colleagues' accomplishments.
No signup or NCFR conference registration is needed to attend this free meeting. NCFR members will receive an email with the Zoom link closer to the meeting date.
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CFLE NEWS AND UPDATES
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John Brown University Renews CFLE-Approved Program Status
NCFR extends a hearty congratulations to John Brown University. Their B.S. in Family and Human Services renewed their CFLE-approved status, joining four other programs that recently renewed.
Thank you to these programs for their dedication to Family Life Education! Graduates of these programs can apply for the CFLE credential through the CFLE-approved program process upon completion of the identified CFLE coursework.
You can find a list of CFLE-approved programs in NCFR's Degree Programs Guide.
*Learn how you too can get your degree program approved—see the CFLE Academic Program Approval process.
READ MORE THESE PROGRAMS
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NCFR JOURNALS
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NCFR Journals
Read the Newest NCFR Research: October JMF Issue
Plus Articles Published Oct. 5–18
Every week, we bring you the latest research from NCFR's scholarly journals advancing Family Science — Journal of Marriage and Family (JMF), Family Relations: Interdisciplinary Journal of Applied Family Science (FR), and Journal of Family Theory & Review (JFTR).
In addition to new early-view articles across the journals — including numerous articles from JFTR and FR — JMF's October issue is available now. Explore JMF articles on parental leave, parenting and parent–child relations, partnered relationships, and much more. Many articles are open access!
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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FR Invites Papers for Special Section
Theme: Community-Based Participatory Research to Understand Families and Family Contexts
Letters of Intent Due Dec. 30, 2025
NCFR's Family Relations: Interdisciplinary Journal of Applied Family Science (FR) has released a call for papers for a special section with the theme "Community-Based Participatory Research to Understand Families and Family Contexts."
Community-based participatory research (CBPR) methods — which challenge traditional power dynamics by recognizing that research participants are the foremost experts on their own lives — have been gaining momentum in developmental and Family Science, yet remain underrepresented. This special section will provide family practitioners, educators, marriage and family therapists, and interventionists with concrete tools and frameworks for implementing collaborative approaches that are more responsive to the diverse families they serve worldwide.
Letters of intent from interested authors are due Dec. 30, 2025. For authors invited to submit, manuscripts will be due June 15, 2026.
SEE CALL FOR PAPERS
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JFTR Invites Papers for Special Issue
Theme: Theorizing Families and the State
Submission Deadline: Jan. 15, 2026
NCFR's Journal of Family Theory & Review (JFTR) has issued a call for papers for a special issue with the theme "Theorizing Families and the State."
Building on the existing work of critical family scholars, the editors seek manuscripts 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.
More details, including key questions guiding the special issue, are available in the full call for papers.
Manuscripts are due by Jan. 15, 2026.
SEE CALL FOR PAPERS
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MORE OPPORTUNITIES
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NCFR Nexus
Call for Articles: Later Adulthood
Submission deadline: Nov. 1
The winter 2026 issue of NCFR Nexus will focus on later adulthood. With the U.S. population growing older, families and communities face new opportunities and challenges. Many adults thrive in independence, while others need significant support—often from unpaid family caregivers.
Potential topics include:
Research on later-life well-being
Community supports for healthy aging
Family needs in elder caregiving
Preparing professionals to serve older adults
Family Life Education in multigenerational contexts
NCFR Nexus invites articles from researchers, educators, practitioners, and policymakers. Submissions are due Nov. 1, 2025, via the NCFR Nexus Article Submission Form.
READ MORE
Questions or ideas? Contact editor Beth Magistad, Ph.D., CFLE, at nexuseditor@ncfr.org.
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Resources
Unlocking the Power of Fathers: Fatherhood as a Protective Factor for Promoting School Readiness
In a world where the archetype of the 'invincible parent' is crumbling, the concept of paternal steadiness emerges as a keystone of family resilience. The role of fathers often extends beyond the traditional breadwinner, shaping the fabric of childhood development and family well-being.
This brief from the Center for Urban Families peels back the layers on the understated significance of fatherhood as a pivotal protective factor.
READ BRIEF
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Video of the Week
Legend of the Poe Toaster
As we gear up for our November conference in Baltimore, here's a spooky story about how Edgar Allen Poe died mysteriously in Baltimore. Of particular interest, there is a true story of a unknown person who visited Poe's grave in Baltimore on the author's birthday for 75 years until 2009.
WATCH VIDEO
Do you have a video of a local news story from your area, or something notable? Email a link to tripsullivan@ncfr.org and perhaps we will feature it in Zippy News!
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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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Valdosta State University
The Department of Human Services invites applications for a 12-month tenure-track faculty position in Marriage & Family Therapy (MFT) program beginning July 1, 2026. The selected candidate will be responsible for teaching courses in the candidate’s area of expertise, maintaining scholarly productivity, and participating in service at the department, college, and university levels.
Location: Valdosta, Georgia
Required Education: Doctorate
Application Deadline: Nov. 3, 2025
SEE FULL DETAILS
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