The Importance Of Having Fathers

W. Bradford Wilcox is Director of the National Marriage Project at the University of Virginia, Associate Professor of Sociology at the University of Virginia, Visiting Scholar at the American Enterprise Institute, and a Senior Fellow at the Institute for Family Studies.As an undergraduate, Wilcox was a Jefferson Scholar at the University of Virginia (’92) and later earned his Ph.D. from Princeton University. Prior to coming to the University of Virginia, he held research fellowships at Princeton University, Yale University, and the Brookings Institution.The coauthor of Gender and Parenthood: Biological and Social Scientific Perspectives (Columbia, 2013, with Kathleen Kovner Kline), Professor Wilcox’s research has focused on marriage, fatherhood, and cohabitation, especially on the ways that family structure, civil society, and culture influence the quality and stability of family life in the United States and around the globe. Now, Dr. Wilcox is exploring the contribution that families make to the economic welfare of individuals and societies. He is also the coauthor of Whither the Child?: Causes and Consequences of Low Fertility (Paradigm, 2013, with Eric Kaufmann), and the author of Soft Patriarchs, New Men: How Christianity Shapes Fathers and Husbands (Chicago, 2004). Wilcox has published articles on marriage, cohabitation, parenting, and fatherhood in The American Sociological Review, Social Forces, The Journal of Marriage and Family and The Journal for the Scientific Study of Religion. Wilcox is now writing a book with Nicholas Wolfinger titled, Soul Mates: Religion, Sex, Children, & Marriage among African Americans and Latinos (Oxford 2014).His research has been featured in The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, The Atlantic, Slate, National Review Online, NPR, NBC’s The Today Show, and many other media outlets.

Donald is the founder of Storyline, an organization that helps people live better stories. He is the author of several books including multiple New York Times Best Sellers. Donald lives and works in Nashville, Tennessee.

Robert Lewis has been a pastor, writer, speaker, and visionary for over forty years. Robert founded the original Men’s Fraternity and developed the Men’s Fraternity curriculum in 1990 while serving as Teaching Pastor and Directional Leader at Fellowship Bible Church in Little Rock, Arkansas. Robert was named Pastor of the Year by the National Coalition of Men’s Ministry in recognition for his efforts to help men discover Authentic Manhood.Graduating from the University of Arkansas in 1971 with a degree in Management, Robert went on to obtain both a M.A. in New Testament Greek and a M.Div. degree from Western Seminary in Portland, Oregon in 1977. He received the Doctor of Ministry degree from Talbot Theological Seminary in LaMirada, California in 1985.The original Men’s Fraternity curriculum has impacted more than one million men worldwide in churches, college campuses, corporate boardrooms, and correctional facilities. The Men’s Fraternity video curriculum published by LifeWay is comprised of three studies: The Quest for Authentic Manhood, Winning at Work and Home, and The Great Adventure. Men’s Fraternity has also inspired the development of 33 The Series, which is a study of authentic manhood modeled by Jesus Christ in his 33 years on earth.In addition to developing the Men’s Fraternity curriculum, he has authored a number of publications including: Raising a Modern-Day Knight (Focus on the Family), the Raising a Modern-Day Knight Video Training Series with Dennis Rainey (Sonlight Productions), Rocking the Roles: Building a Win-Win Marriage (NavPress), Real Family Values (Multnomah Press), The Church of Irresistible Influence (Zondervan), and Culture Shift: Transforming Your Church From the Inside Out published by (Jossey-Bass). He is also a contributing author to Building Strong Families edited by Dennis Rainey and Faith Factor in Fatherhood edited by Don Eberly.Robert has been featured on radio programs such as FamilyLife Today® and Focus on the Family®, and in a number of magazines including Leadership, Real Man, and Stand Firm. Today, Robert is still very involved in local church ministry and serves on a number of boards including The Bob Buford Institute. He is also a senior advisor to Leadership Network.Married since 1971, Robert and Sherard Lewis reside in Little Rock and have four grown children and three grandchildren.

Steve Farrar is the founder and chairman of Men's Leadership Ministries. A graduate of California State University, Fullerton, with a Master's degree from Western Seminary in Portland, Oregon, he also has an earned a doctorate from Dallas Theological Seminary. Steve authored the best-selling book, Point Man: How a Man Can Lead His Family and has since written fifteen other books. He is a frequent speaker at conferences, for Promise Keepers and at many other events nationwide. Steve and his wife, Mary, have three grown children and currently reside in suburban Dallas, Texas.