President Obama named Joshua DuBois, a 27-year-old Pentecostal minister, to lead the Office of Faith-Based and Neighborhood Partnerships. DuBois served as the director of religious affairs for Obama’s presidential campaign.

The Office of Faith-Based and Neighborhood Partnerships has four top priorities including; fatherhood, interreligious dialogue and cooperation, the role of nonprofits in the economic recovery, and working to reduce the number of abortions and unwanted pregnancies.

As for the fatherhood priority the issue of absent fathers is a particularly big one in African-American families, where over 60% live in single-parent homes. With the statistics showing that children who grow up without a father are far more likely to drop out of school, commit crimes, live in poverty and end up in prison clearly anything the government can do to help will be welcomed.

But the fatherhood initiative is not just targeting African-American families. “This is about kids who are growing up without responsible role models in their families, and that is for all American families regardless of their background,” DuBois says.

And he encourages all Americans to get involved by letting his office know what programs in local communities are working to strengthen families.

“At the end of the day, solutions are not going to come out of Washington,” DuBois says. “They’re going to come out of individuals and families and communities across the country who are stepping up to the plate and meeting our challenges, including the challenge of father absence.”

We wish Mr. Joshua DuBois the very best in his new important role.

Links:

White House Office of Faith-Based and Neighborhood Partnerships