Education professionals are confronted with high levels of stress in their day-to-day work in daycare centres, which can also lead to professionals not being able to meet their own standards of dealing appropriately with children. In a recent study, the perspectives of education professionals on hurtful behaviour in daycare centres were recorded (cf. Boll & Remsperger-Kehm 2021).
Against this background, the development of the further education set "M.O.V.E. - Courage, Openness, Responsibility, Development" aims to raise awareness among education professionals in daycare centres of the issue of hurtful behaviour towards children and to train them to treat children with respect. Acquisitions of violence-prevention knowledge, collegial exchange within the team and reflection on one's own professional actions are intended to develop a "culture of mutual re-enrolment and support" and jointly prevent harmful behaviour towards children.

Project managers: Prof. Dr Regina Remsperger-Kehm, Professorship for Early Childhood Education, Fulda University of Applied Sciences; Prof. Dr Astrid Boll, Professorship for Childhood Education, E U | F H Europäische Fachhochschule Rhein/Erft GmbH
Cooperation partners: Bundesarbeitsgemeinschaft Mehr Sicherheit für Kinder e.V., HS Fulda, E U | F H European University of Applied Sciences, EH Freiburg, Foundation University of Hildesheim
Funding: Verband der Privaten Krankenversicherungen e.V. (PKV)
Duration: 2021-2024

Within the framework of three subprojects in six municipalities (in Bavaria, Hesse and North Rhine-Westphalia), the research project analyses the participation conditions of young tolerated persons with a special focus on the areas of education and profession in the context of different municipal and state policies. Participation opportunities are not only related to domestic or exclusive legal regulations, but also to the municipal practices of their interpretation, which are influenced by local circumstances, the cooperation of the actors, and also by federal state-specific circumstances, decrees and programs. The starting point is that a large number of local actors involved from welfare associations, NGOs, social work, social movements and migrant self-organisations influence the local integration conditions of tolerated persons and thus the consolidation of their stay. As part of the research project, the collaboration and conflicts between different actors will be investigated and best practice models for the training and labour market integration of young tolerated persons will be identified.

Project manager: Prof. Dr Ilker Ataç
Partner: Prof. Dr Karin Scherschel, Chair of Flight and Migration Research, Head of the Centre for Flight and Migration (ZfM). KU Eichstätt-Ingolstadt; Prof. Dr Susanne Spindler, Prof. for Social Work and Migration, Düsseldorf University of Applied Sciences
Funding: Foundation Mercator
Duration: 2021-2024

Offer and stakeholder analysis in the field of prevention and health promotion in the living environments (housing, living, working, learning, leisure) of people with intellectual disabilities in the city and district of Fulda

Project manager: Prof. Dr Anja Kroke, Fulda University of Applied Sciences
Project collaborator: Carina Schüßler
Cooperation partner: antonius Netzwerk Mensch
Funding: antonius Netzwerk Mensch
Duration: 2022

Ilker Ataç and Maren Kirchhoff analyse municipal measures for migrants with precarious residence status in Frankfurt am Main. Migrants with precarious residence status are a particularly vulnerable group. Their access to the labour market and social services: benefits is restricted by legal framework conditions and a lack of institutional capacity on the one hand and subjective factors such as fear of discovery and deportation on the other. The project specialises in existing studies from a comparative perspective in close cooperation with the city administrations of Frankfurt/Main, Cardiff and Vienna and in collaboration with the University of Oxford and the Vienna University of Technology.

Project manager: Prof. Dr Ilker Ataç
Partners: Dr Sarah Spencer, Centre on Migration, Policy and Society, University of Oxford, UK; Professor Dr Simon Güntner, Vienna University of Technology, Faculty of Architecture and Planning, Austria
Funding: BMBF / German Aerospace Center (DLR) and JPI Urban Europe, European Union's Horizon 2020 research and innovation program.
Duration: 2021-2022

Project homepage [german]

Project homepage [eng]

Conference report

This project aims to explore and explain local strategies to combat the exclusion of migrants with precarious residence status from key services such as health and housing in the context of COVID-19. Through case studies in three selected municipalities in Hesse, different approaches to service provision will be explored, including collaboration between public agencies and civil society. The project will strengthen academic networking and knowledge exchange to inform and improve future practice.

Project manager: Prof. Dr Ilker Ataç
Funding: Fulda University of Applied Sciences (internal funding)
Duration: 2021-2022

The research project examines the influence of the measures to contain the corona pandemic on the everyday work and professional self-image of social workers in residential care facilities for the elderly. A central component of the analysis is how social workers deal with the tension between enabling and funding residents' self-determination and implementing the prescribed protective measures.

Project manager: Dr Yvonne Rubin
Funding: Fulda University of Applied Sciences (internal funding)
Duration: 2021

The project focuses on families whose situation has changed as a result of the family member with a disability moving out into supervised housing: What were the reasons that managed the move out? How was this transition experienced?

Project manager: Prof. Dr Markus Schäfers
Funding: Fulda University of Applied Sciences (internal funding)
Partner: Landeswohlfahrtsverband Hessen
Duration: 2021

The project comprises a summative and formative evaluation of measures in the Ostend/Ziehers Süd integrated action plan as part of the funding provided by the federal and state Social City programme.

Project managers: Prof. Dr Jutta Buchner-Fuhs, Prof. Dr Monika Alisch, Prof. Dr Martina Ritter, Prof. Dr Stefan Weidmann
Partner: City of Fulda
Funding: City of Fulda
Duration: 2020-2022

rehapro offers long-term unemployed people with health restrictions early, close-knit and cross-legal support in an innovative pilot project. The academic monitoring reviews the achievement of objectives, impact and generalisability in summative and formative evaluation formats.

Project managers: Prof. Dr Sabine Pfeffer, Prof. Dr Uli Sann, Prof. Dr Frank Unger, Carolin Wunderlich
Funding: Federal Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs
Partners: Jobcenterverbund Kommunales KreisJobcenter Landkreis Fulda, Kommunale Vermittlung in Arbeit Landkreis Hersfeld-Rotenburg, KVA Vogelsbergkreis Kommunales Jobcenter
Duration: 2019-2024

The project aims to analyse the local living conditions of people with dementia in three selected neighbourhoods in Hesse and at the same time ask how voluntary work can be initiated in the neighbourhood. On the one hand, the project improves knowledge about the situation of people with dementia and, on the other hand, explores the willingness to engage in voluntary work and at the same time shows ways to create more neighbourly connections.

Project managers: Prof. Dr Dr i.R. Reimer Gronemeyer (Justus Liebig University Giessen), Prof. Dr habil. Martina Ritter (Fulda University of Applied Sciences), Prof. Dr Jutta Träger (Darmstadt University of Applied Sciences)
Funding: Diakonie Hessen Foundation (DiaDem Foundation Fund) & Hessian Ministry for Social Affairs and Integration
Duration: 2020-2021

The city of Hanau's youth welfare planning department would like to include the topics and interests of children and young people in the city area in the development of the new youth welfare plan. The project therefore uses an open process aimed at an exchange between children and young people (group discussions) to find out about these topics and interests, as well as where children and young people spend their time, and feeds the results back to the youth work professionals in the city of Hanau.

Project managers: Prof. Dr Stefan Weidmann, Prof. Dr habil. Monika Alisch
Funding: City of Hanau
Duration: 2019-2020

The Families.strengths project is gaining insights into the quality of life of families in which adults with disabilities live. As the parents who provide care and supervision get older, families often reach the limits of their capacity and ability to cope. Although these families recognise a need for support, they often do not make use of the help available. The research project examines the families' reasons for not making use of help and their perspectives regarding the future living and care situation of the disabled family member. Based on the findings of the project, concepts for family counselling and support can be developed to strengthen, relieve and accompany the families.

Project manager: Prof. Dr Markus Schäfers
Project collaborator: Dr Katrin Reich
Funding: Hessian Ministry of Research and the Arts (scholarship programme "Research for Practice")
Duration: 2019-2020

In the DIWAN project, future workshops with refugees, volunteers and previously unorganised critical citizens are being held in the three districts of Fulda, Hersfeld-Rotenburg and Vogelsberg in eastern Hesse. From these dialogue processes, which were moderated and documented by the university, a touring exhibition will be developed in collaboration with practical placement partners and participants in the future workshops, which can become a focal point for discussions on shaping integration processes and successful coexistence in the three districts.

Project managers: Prof. Dr. Monika Alisch, Prof. Dr. Martina Ritter
Project staff: Michael Haun; Jonas Hufeisen; Tatevik Mamajanyan
Funding: BMBF, federal-state programme "Innovative University"
Duration: 2018-2021

ProZiS empirically examines the role of professional and civil society actors in social work for the success of diversity in the community, using the two case municipalities of the city of Kassel and the district of Hersfeld-Rotenburg as examples.

Project manager: Prof. Dr habil. Monika Alisch (coordinating), Prof. Dr Manuela Westphal (University of Kassel)
Project staff: Anke Freuwört, MA; Jens Vogler, MA
Funding: BMBF, Migration and Social Change funding line
Duration: 2018-2020

The research project focusses on transition measures between school and professional life, which are primarily intended to enable young people with low or no school-leaving qualifications to enter professional life. The aim of the survey is to find out whether diversity of gender and sexual orientation is already a topic in the transition system and whether the needs of LGBT* young people are taken into account. To what extent is heteronormativity enrolled in the concepts of the transition system?
The research project examines these questions from the perspective of the professionals. The methodological centrepiece of the research project is a survey with various professional actors from the transition system in the Fulda/Vogelsberg region. The project is part of a joint project. The perspectives of young LGBT people themselves will be surveyed in other subprojects.

Project manager: Prof. Dr Susanne Dern
Funding: Hessian Ministry of Research and Culture
Duration: 2018-2020

The "Gemeinsam aktiv im Nüsttal" project in the municipality of Nüsttal in the Rhön is being supported academically in the form of a formative evaluation. It is aimed at gradually shaping the project together with the project participants, with a particular focus on the process of community building along common, preferably intergenerational interests of residents in the area community, among other things through the use of group-related participation methods.

Project manager: Prof. Dr habil. Monika Alisch
Funding: Municipality of Nüsttal
Duration: 2017-2018

In 2015, cities and municipalities were faced with the major challenge of taking in a large number of refugees and pursued different strategies with regard to the short-term and longer-term accommodation of refugees. In each case, however, the social constructions of (public) spaces changed as a result of the newly arrived groups, according to a basic assumption of the project.

Using a mix of methods including spatial observations, expert surveys, qualitative interviews and group discussions with residents and other actors in two social spaces in Dortmund and Düsseldorf, the project will analyse perceptions of the "places of encounter" and the perceptions of the stranger and the strangers associated with them. Civil society and municipal actors will be involved in the research process.

Project manager: Prof. Dr Heike Herrmann
Funding: Ministry for Innovation, Research and Academic Affairs of the State of North Rhine-Westphalia
Duration: 2016-2018

The process and the need for a changing distribution of roles and tasks between the state, business and civil society will be addressed in this research project. The focus is on the question of how the socio-political goal of professional social work to enable all citizens to participate can be supported by companies recognising that they can contribute to the creation of social participation within the framework of their corporate social responsibility as corporate citizens (enterprises as citizens with laws and duties).

Project manager: Prof. Dr Bettina Stoll (cooperation partner: Prof. Dr Heike Herrmann)
Funding: Hessian Ministry of Research and Culture, "Research for Practice" funding line
Duration: 2016-2017

The research project "Age4Health - Healthy neighbourhoods for older people" focuses on the exploration of municipal design options for the successful participation of disadvantaged older people and the funding of health-promoting living environments for older people in the municipality. Two participatory case studies are being carried out in urban (Kassel) and rural areas (Witzenhausen, Werra-Meissner-Kreis).

Project manager: Prof Dr Susanne Kümpers
Funding: BMBF
Duration: 2015-2018

The BUSLAR research project uses qualitative social research methods to investigate the structures of civic self-organisation in two rural regions (Eastern Hesse/Rhön and Upper Bavaria) in a way that is related to practice. In collaboration with 3 civil society "citizen services", sustainable services are to be (further) developed in a participatory manner, orientated towards the needs of local older people in particular, and linked locally and regionally with the structure of public services of general interest and private care providers.

Project managers: Prof. Dr habil. Monika Alisch, Prof. Dr habil. Martina Ritter
Project partner: Munich University of Applied Sciences
Funding: BMBF, SILQUA-FH
Duration: 2014-2017

Early help" has developed from an action programme of the Federal Ministry for Family Affairs, Senior Citizens, Women and Youth (BMFSFJ) into a statutory set of regulations enshrined in the Federal Child Protection Act. Families in precarious situations are an important specialisation. The research project shows that these support services provided by family midwives go far beyond their profile. The social and health development of children and their families who were supervised by a family midwife is examined in a longitudinal study over three years. Using a participatory research design (focus groups, future workshop, individual interviews), the social environment of the families was also analysed as a resource.

Project managers: Prof. Dr Anja Kroke (Department Oe), Prof. Dr habil. Monika Alisch (Department SW)
Funding: Hess. Ministry of Social Affairs, City and District of Fulda
Duration: 2014-2017

The "Sehnsüchtig" theatre project serves to evaluate the theatre concept for schools that was developed by the Addiction Prevention Network. The "Sehnsüchtig" project began in the 2015/16 school year at the Von Galen School in Eichenzell. The first phase of the project has been analysed and a short report has been prepared for those involved in the project. The second phase of the project, which is again not only about addiction but also about longing, will be carried out with a new and older group of pupils and will be terminated next year. The evaluation will focus on the pupils involved, selected teaching staff and parents, the theatre teacher, the project manager and the play performed in each case.

Project managers: Prof. Dr Jutta Buchner-Fuhs, Dr Joachim Wondrak
Funding: Fulda Addiction Prevention Network (the city and district of Fulda, the East Hesse police, the state education authority, Caritas and Diakonie addiction prevention services are among those involved)
Duration: 2015-2017

Further reporting on the project

Does a good labour market situation prevent poverty in old age or does such a development even conceal regional problems? The aim of this study is to present the current situation in the East Hesse region as a result of development processes and to analyse this in the context of the situation in Germany as a whole. In addition, possible problem areas for the region are to be identified on the basis of various factors that increase the risk of poverty in old age.

Project manager: Prof Dr Frank Unger
Funding: Osthessisches Bündnis gegen Altersarmut (founding members: attac, DGB, AWO, kfd, KAB, verdi, VdK)
Duration: 2015-2016

The aim of the project is to create suitable methods and instruments to include people with disabilities in residential facilities in the planned "Participation Survey" of the Federal Ministry of Labour and Social Work (BMAS). With the participation survey, the BMAS wants to improve knowledge about the living conditions of people with impairments and disabilities.

Project manager: Prof Dr Markus Schäfers
Project partners: TNS Infratest Sozialforschung and TU Munich
Funding: BMAS
Duration: 2015-2016

In the town of Hünfeld, a study is to be carried out in selected districts and neighbourhoods on the use and needs of young people with regard to cultural and social offers. The aim is to find out which existing offers are used by young people and which offers would still be needed from the young people's point of view.

Project managers: Prof. Dr Jutta Buchner-Fuhs, Prof. Dr habil. Martina Ritter
Funding: City of Hünfeld
Duration: 2015-2016

On assignment from the district of Fulda, the research project determines the situation of addiction care in the district. To this end, a prevalence estimate to determine the degree to which addiction counselling services are available, a written survey of important interfaces to addiction help and qualitative interviews with experts from the help system and self-help are being carried out. The aim is to draw up recommendations for action for the further development of help services for administration and politics.

Project manager: Prof. Dr Henning Daßler
Project staff member: Tanja Lück
Funding: District of Fulda
Duration: 2015

Project report

The formative evaluation focusses on projects as part of the "Diaconal Community - Fighting Poverty" project initiative. Seven locations were chosen from 14 funded projects for exemplary evaluation. Qualitative social research methods are used to analyse the implicit and explicit interests and needs of the project participants (initiators and target groups of the local projects) in such a way that the respective results can be fed back into the project process. The accompanying research focuses on the sustainability of the projects developed and attempts to identify success factors and obstacles to project development in cooperation with the project participants.

Project manager: Prof. Dr habil. Monika Alisch
Project collaborator: Dipl. Soz. Päd. Patricia Hofmann, M.A.
Funding: Research grant from the Evangelical Church of Kurhessen-Waldeck
Duration: 2014-2015

The specialisation of the academic monitoring is on the interface of the newly defined activities of the specialist in municipal care for the elderly deployed in two model municipalities in the district, whose function is to work together with existing offers for the elderly and complement them. In addition, the often implicit interest orientations of those involved in the network are to be revealed in order to uncover possible conflicts or problems and to be able to positively influence them through reflection.

Project manager: Prof. Dr habil. Monika Alisch
Funding: District of Hersfeld-Rotenburg, BBSR
Duration: 2014-2015

Sustainable, regional development of social spaces for people with disabilities are new fields of work with new professional requirements for graduates of the part-time Bachelor's and Master's degree programmes in the Department of Social Work. The aim is to develop a set of key figures that will enable sustainable regional management to reduce the exclusion of people with disabilities through target agreements with regional stakeholders; the project results will be incorporated into professional practice by incorporating them into the modules of the study programmes with the aim of expanding the soft skills of graduates in the field of integration assistance and increasing their employability.

Project managers: Prof. Dr Petra Gromann, Prof. Dr habil. Martina Ritter
Funding: European Social Fund (ESF), HALL program
Duration: 2013-2014

For the Heuberg district, a high proportion of migrants of around 50 per cent in small areas, a high concentration of budgets with very low incomes and a very high proportion of older people were identified as social space problems.
As there are already a number of neighbourhood-related activities and professional ideas for improving living conditions for older and ageing residents, the accompanying research aimed at developing needs-oriented projects focuses not only on the barriers, but above all on the conditions and resources for an appropriate lifestyle for older people with and without a migration background by identifying the needs and interests of older residents.

Project managers: Prof. Dr habil. Monika Alisch, Prof. Dr Frank Dölker
Funding: Zweckverband Diakonisches Werk Eschwege/ Witzenhausen
Duration: 2010-2011

The research project investigates the resources and barriers to a better quality of life in old age for older immigrants in German cities (Wiesbaden, Fulda, Munich). Qualitative and quantitative methods were used to investigate the networks, use of space and interests of older migrants and to research self-organisation projects in cooperation with social work providers.

Project managers: Prof. Dr habil. Monika Alisch, Prof. Dr habil. Michael May (coordinating)
Funding: BMBF, SILQUA-FH funding line
Duration: 2009-2012

The project is an evaluation of the "Parent Coaching" pilot project. Parent coaching is a method that responds to the problem of parents being increasingly overwhelmed in difficult life situations by combining conventional parent training courses with approaches from socio-educational family support. The aims of the academic monitoring and process evaluation of the "Parent Coaching" pilot project were to reflect on and develop the concept and to develop the "coaching" method in the special form used here.

Project manager: Prof. Dr Heike Herrmann
Supported by: AktionMensch
Cooperation partner: Albatros e. V., independent youth and family support organisation in Lüneburg
Duration: 2008-2011

The project focuses on gender-specific appropriation processes of residents of a discriminated against neighbourhood. The special needs and orientations of women as those who organise the various requirements of family members in their place of residence are generally ignored by urban planning, sociological urban research and social work oriented towards social spaces.

The aim of the project is to use the example of a medium-sized town, with the help of qualitative social research methods, to investigate the appropriation strategies and the framework conditions experienced as barriers by women in order to develop participation methods tailored to women.

Project manager: Prof. Dr Martina Ritter
Supported by: Fulda University of Applied Sciences
Duration: 2009-2010

In the joint project, over 300 educators and academics from primary and elementary schools developed and tested materials, tools and strategies for the systematic integration of children's day-care facilities and primary schools in Berlin, Brandenburg, Bremen, North Rhine-Westphalia and Thuringia.

The aim of the joint project TransKiGs was to strengthen the quality of education in children's day-care facilities and primary schools and to improve the transition between the two educational institutions. To this end, new forms of education in children's day-care facilities and primary schools were trialled and the cooperation between all those involved was further developed.

Project manager: Prof. Dr Sabine Lingenauber
Supported by: BMBF / Thuringian Ministry of Education and Cultural Affairs
Duration: 2008-2009

The international project initiated processes of local networking to improve health information and education, especially for socially discriminated against groups of people (older people, immigrants, single-parent households) in suburban neighbourhoods. The result is a guideline(s) for the organisation of community health management processes in Europe.

Project managers: Prof. Dr Barbara Freytag-Leyer (coordinating), Prof. Dr habil. Monika Alisch, Prof. Dr habil. Christoph Klotter
Partners: England, Latvia, Austria, Sweden and Romania
Funding: EU Committee, Lifelong Learning Program (Grundtvig)
Duration: 2007-2009