- USU Extension offers free relationship classes statewide, including parenting and dating courses.
- Classes range from four to 20+ hours, with flexible scheduling options available.
- Programs target diverse groups, including teens, incarcerated fathers and stepfamilies.
LOGAN — From incarcerated fathers improving their parenting techniques within the walls of prison to teenagers and adults learning how to avoid falling in love with a "jerk or jerkette," Utahns are being armed with the ability to build strong relationships of all kinds through an array of free classes.
Utah State University Extension's Healthy Relationships Utah offers research-based parenting courses, classes for married and highly committed couples, self-improvement and smart dating classes, as well as courses for stepfamilies, teen parenting prevention and more.
"We … believe in strengthening relationships because we know how important healthy relationships are to individuals and to our society at large," said Kaleena Anderson, a program coordinator for Healthy Relationships Utah.
Anderson oversees the group of educators who teach:
- Parenting the Love and Logic Way
- Home Run Parents
- Positive Discipline
- Seven Principles for Making Marriage Work
- Couple LINKS
- Smart Dating: Avoid Falling for a Jerk or Jerkette
- Road to Happiness and Meaning
"I want (people) to see the value of the relationships in their life and feel like they have practical tools that they personally can do to try to improve those relationships, whether it's their parent/child relationship, whether its their relationship with their intimate partner or whether its with friends and family, coworkers, anything like that," Anderson said. "Because we know through research that people are better off mentally and emotionally and physically — I mean, every factor of your life is kind of influenced by the interpersonal relationships that you have with other people and your relationship with yourself."
Healthy Relationships Utah obtains both state and federal grants. Classes can range from four hours to 20+ hours, meaning they can take place over the course of several weeks. Class schedules vary from month to month, so if one schedule doesn't work for somebody one month, they can keep trying until they find something that meets their needs. Class information can be found on their website.
Aubrey-Dawn Palmer, project manager for Healthy Relationships Utah, oversees the "teen" classes, which include Love Notes and LiFT (Linking Families and Teens).
LiFT is a new class where teens and their parents are gathered together in the same room and are assisted in communicating about topics such as sexuality, relationships, media and technology. Throughout the class, the adults and teens are separated so they can be addressed in developmentally appropriate ways and then brought back together to learn to communicate effectively and be on the same page, Palmer said.
The Love Notes class takes place over the course of 13 lessons. The teens learn things like what personality traits they bring to a relationship, their expectations and values, as well as what a healthy relationship looks like. This class is taught in Juvenile Justice Services facilities and behavioral health facilities, and a lot of their students don't know what a healthy relationship is supposed to look like.
"We talk about what a healthy relationship looks like, and that includes things like communication skills and consent, and we talk about like red flags and warning signs that we might see in abusive or dangerous relationships," Palmer said.
The class also includes discussion around connection and trust, as well as a sexual health element that is in line with the Utah state laws around sex ed. It concludes with a parenting section, educating teens (many of whom come from traumatic family backgrounds) about what to look for in a partner and how their dating choices can shape who they marry and who they will co-parent with.
Love Notes is taught all over the Wasatch Front in the aforementioned facilities as well as alternative high schools, after-school programs, and foster care programs. LiFT is taught at these facilities and to the community at large.
Kelly Kendall, another program coordinator for Healthy Relationships Utah, oversees the InsideOut Dad classes taught to "justice-involved fathers" in nearly all of the jails and prisons in the state.
Many of the fathers taking this course have never had a father or father figure in their lives, so they learn about things like intergenerational poverty, incarceration and the family history aspect of that. Then they discuss what it means to be a man and showing and handling feelings, men's health and how to parent from inside jail, including what to talk to their kids about.
"A lot of them have never been involved with their kids' lives and they never had a dad as an example," Kendall said.
These fathers learn what their kids are going through at different ages and stages, as well as how to have meaningful conversations with them. Additionally, they learn how to be better supports to their children's mother and how to communicate and co-parent effectively with her.
Kendall said they also teach men how to provide emotional, spiritual and mental support to their kids and how to discipline in a positive way.
"It's more than just a job," Kendall said. "It's actually helping humanity and changing the trajectory of generations of people."
In addition to InsideOut Dad, Kendall oversees the healthy relationship class for stepfamilies, Smart Steps for Stepfamilies.
The Healthy Relationships Utah classes are typically held in person or at a scheduled time, virtually. For those interested in more of an "e-course" experience, the Utah Marriage Commission comes in clutch.
The Utah State University Extension houses the Utah Marriage Commission, which is managed by Alan Hawkins, a retired professor of Family Life at Brigham Young University.
The Utah Marriage Commission, a group of passionate experts and activists in the state dedicated to strengthening the institution of marriage, has worked with Utah State University Extension since 2021. Their mission is to take the research to the people, and it's been a very good fit, Hawkins said.
The commission offers free, research-based educational resources online in the form of podcasts, webinars, blogs, mini-courses and longer e-courses. The target audience are those who are between the ages of 18-35.
"We think we've got a lot of really good answers to the questions they have and provide research-based and free, high-quality products for them that are available on demand, that could help them learn the knowledge and skills they need to find success in life," Hawkins said.
Their popular podcasts and other resources can be found online at strongermarriage.org.
"I think the research is absolutely clear how stable, healthy relationships — and especially healthy marriages — make a real difference in terms of our success as adults and the success that our children will have," Hawkins said.
