Other Resources: Education Programs & Materials

If you are an Extension professional and have personally used another program that you would like to share on this website, please email us.

• Caring for my Family. Developed by Michigan State University Extension, Caring for my Families is a free curriculum that helps mothers and fathers of newborns to learn about building healthy relationships with each other and their children through a series of interactive educational experiences. The purpose of the program is to equip unmarried mothers and fathers with skills for making healthy decisions and to explore future options for their relationship including the potential of getting married.
   
• Children, Youth, and Families Education Resource Network. CYFERnet is a national network of Land Grant university faculty and county Extension educators working to support community-based educational programs for children, youth, parents and families through the provision of practical research-based information.
   
• CoupleTalk. Developed by Kansas State University Extension, CoupleTalk is a free, non-credit, Internet-based distance education course designed  to help couples build skills to make their relationship stronger and more satisfying.
   
• The Dibble Institute. The Dibble Institute for Marriage Education is a nonprofit organization dedicated to helping young people learn skills which enable successful relationships and marriages. Materials/Curricula include Connections, LoveU2, and various brochures.
   
• Facilitating Open Couple Communication, Understanding & Study. FOCCUS is a internationally used inventory designed to provide engaged couples and those working with them a personalized profile of what is needed in their marriage preparation process. Access to programs and services that are current and research based, couple centered, adaptable, user-friendly and affordable.
   
• Family Information Services. Subscribers receive ONLINE ACCESS to psycho-educational resource materials developed by experienced practitioners (new resources posted monthly). Content covers parenting, child/youth development, marriage, and family relationships.
   
• Life Innovations, Inc. Introduction of PREPARE/ENRICH program and all the information regarding training workshops, counselors, and services help couples in different stages of marriage. Also provide recent studies and statistics of PREPARE/ENRICH program.
   
• Married and Loving It!. Developed by University of Idaho Cooperative Extension, the Married and Loving It! program consists of 5-sessions designed to strengthen marriage relationships by presenting the research findings about successful and happy couples to the general public.
   
• Marriage Builders. Headed by Dr. Willard F. Harley, Jr, Marriage Builders offers articles, Q & A section, seminars, and telephone counseling for married couples to overcome their marital conflicts and restore love.
   
• Marriage Education Institute. The nonprofit Marriage Education Institute was founded to strengthen relationships through Online learning. The Institute offers programs for singles, couples and professionals (with CE Credits available).
   
• Marriage Savers. Co-founded by Harriet and Mike MacManus, Marriage Savers is a ministry that equips local communities, principally through local congregations, to help men and women to prepare for lifelong marriage, strengthen existing marriages, and restore troubled marriage.
   
• The National Healthy Marriage Institute. The National Healthy Marriage Institute is a non-partisan, non-denominational social enterprise organization dedicated to developing products and resources to strengthen marriages and families.
   
• National Institute of Relationship Enhancement ®. NIRE, a non-profit educational corporation, offers skills training workshops, supervision and certification programs for mental health professionals and lay educators as well as a variety of innovative psychoeducational programs for couples and families.
   
• National Stepfamily Resource Center. Research-based information for professionals and families alike. Clearinghouse of up-to-date statistics and FAQs. Books and other materials available for purchase. All have been reviewed by academics in the field of family science as helpful in building family strengths. Community family life education 12-hour curriculum available, "Smart Steps for Adults and Children in Stepfamilies."
   
• Practical Application of Intimate Relationship Skills. The PAIRS programs provide a comprehensive system to enhance self-knowledge and to develop the ability to sustain pleasurable intimate relationships. This website provides information about PAIRS programs, trainings, and related research.
   
• P.I.C.K a Partner Program. The Premarital Interpersonal Choices and Knowledge (P.I.C.K.) program is a five-session curriculum developed by Dr. John Van Epp. Also known as How to Avoid Marrying a Jerk(ette), this program reviews the five dynamics that create attachment and the five crucial areas to explore in a  premarital relationship.
   
• Prevention and Relationship Enhancement Program. PREP is a comprehensive and well respected divorce-prevention/marriage enhancing program. PREP is a skills and principles-building curriculum designed to help partners say what they need to say, get to the heart of problems, and increase their connection with each other .
   
• The RELATE Institute. RELATE, developed by the Marriage Study Consortium at Brigham Young University, is a comprehensive premarital/marital assessment tool.
   
• Smart Steps for Stepfamilies. A 6-session curriculum designed for couples and children in stepfamilies (2 parallel series of lessons). This educational program addresses the unique needs and issues that couples in stepfamilies face and provides strategies for building healthy relationships and stable stepfamilies.