Families and Schools Together (FAST)
Families and Schools Together, Inc. (FAST) is a multifamily group intervention designed to build protective factors for children and empower parents to be the primary prevention agents for their own children. Dr. Lynn McDonald developed the FAST program to enhance children’s mental health and social-emotional performance through the child to parent attachment, enhanced family relationships, and relationships across parents, schools, and the community. Multiple families gather once a week for 8 weeks (for two years) to share a meal and participate in a variety of structured social activities, including music, drawing, family games, children’s sports, and opportunities for parents to interact in activities that apply theory and research.
Outcomes
FAST has been shown to strengthen family ties with increased communication, enhance a child’s success in school and at home, reduce child and family substance abuse involvement, and increase social support networks and reduce daily stress. Multiple randomized controlled trials led by UW-Madison investigators have been federally funded by highly competitive grants from DHSS, NICHD, NIDA, and US Dept of Education. The positive results have been consistent enough for FAST to be designated as one of the top 11 out of 400 family skill programs in the world by UNODC( 2010). Being evidence-based on several US lists and a UK list and an EU list, has resulted in funding to support FAST in 23 countries and 48 states. It started in Wisconsin.
Focus Areas
Project Leader
Lynn McDonald
Senior Scientist
- Department/Unit
- Wisconsin Center for Education Research (WCER)
- School or College
- School of Education