STATE COLLEGE — Dads’ Resource Center recently opened an office in State College at 612 W. College Avenue on Dec. 8.
The decision to open a physical office reflects the ever-growing demand from dedicated and loving fathers fighting for the opportunity to become more involved in the lives of their children and to provide them with the love and guidance they need to grow into thriving and productive adults. The office also will serve as the primary location of services for fathers in Centre County who have been impacted by Intimate Partner Violence/Domestic Violence such as physical, mental and psychological abuse, including fathers who have been affected by unsubstantiated allegations of abuse. In addition to general support services, the DRC will be available to assist fathers who have been court ordered to have supervised visits and provide emergency shelter services for fathers displaced by IPV / DV.
“Many of our Centre County fathers have reported being impacted by domestic violence and were unable to get the help they needed,’ said Dads’ Resource Center Founder and Chair Dr. Joel N. Myers. “Fathers and their children need and deserve the care and support that these situations require and it became obvious that we needed to step up and provide it.”
Established in 2015 and funded almost exclusively by private donations, the DRC provides education, resources and advocacy for single fathers who struggle to be actively involved in the lives of their children because of the biases and barriers that often exist in family courts, county and human services. Over the past 10 years more than 500 fathers have reached out and received help from the Dads’ Resource Center, including more than 100 fathers from Centre County.
“According to the 2025 Anne E. Casey Foundation Kids County Report, 866,000 children in Pennsylvania live in single parent households, most with their mother. Many of those children have limited contact with their fathers,” said Myers. “Most often this is not because of a lack of interest or desire by their fathers. Children can be immeasurably harmed when they are needlessly denied the love and guidance of their father. “We believe that father absence, and specifically the ways that the family courts, county and human services systems obstruct father involvement with their children, is the single biggest under discussed crisis that exists in our society today.”
