Date of Award

2026

Document Type

Project Portfolio

Degree Name

Doctor of Leadership in Global Perspectives (DLd)

Department

Seminary

First Advisor

Mario Hood, DMin

Second Advisor

Karen Tremper, PhD

Third Advisor

Jason Swan Clark, DMin

Abstract

Parental incarceration is often seen solely in terms of crime and punishment, overlooking the profound disruption that can destabilize entire households. Grandparents who step in to raise children are frequently left to bear the burden of the collateral damage with limited or fixed incomes, increasing the risk for food insecurity while facing stigma and emotional strain.

Although incarceration and food insecurity are often treated as separate issues, this project, Standing in the Gap: Exploring Family Stability through Immersive Learning, recognizes their connection, particularly when the circumstances stem from parental incarceration. At the same time, many faith communities remain on the sidelines, responding in limited and fragmented ways. This Need, Problem, or Opportunity (NPO) asserts that Wesleyan faith communities often lack awareness of how parental incarceration exacerbates hunger, particularly among low-income households where grandparents are raising their grandchildren.

Key insight resulting from the research is that caregivers, particularly older grandparents with limited incomes, face compounding financial hardships and social isolation when assuming care for children impacted by incarceration. At the same time, many incarcerated parents are actively pursuing healing, responsibility, and restoration with their families, leaving grandparents to navigate emotionally taxing circumstances. Yet, few churches recognize their theological significance or relational capacity for meaningful engagement with affected families within broader processes of restoration.

Grounded in Wesleyan commitments to justice, mercy, and reconciliation, this design-based research project created, tested, and refined three intervention prototypes: a faith-based study curriculum, a grassroots social media campaign, and a simulated immersion experience. Through iterative stakeholder-engaged testing, the simulated immersion experience proved most effective at fostering empathy, systems awareness, and action.

Today, Standing in the Gap equips Wesleyan faith communities to engage families affected by incarceration with dignity, understanding, and shared responsibility

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