To more fully document the experiences of low-income, noncustodial fathers and identify policy and practice changes that might help fathers build better connections to the workplace and their families, researchers interviewed fathers and the front-line workers who try to help them. Research occurred in Austin, Texas; Columbus, Ohio; Minneapolis, Minnesota; and Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, in early 2002. The goal was to identify challenges facing low-income fathers seeking to support their children and challenges facing public and private agencies working to help fathers reach that goal. Results indicate that the needs of low-income, noncustodial fathers are similar to those of their female partners. They have low educational attainment and long histories of unemployment and substance abuse. Results also show that fathers do not trust service providers, assuming that caseworkers are aligned with mothers and will do little to help them. In all four cities, surveys indicated that few programs made concrete efforts to address such barriers. In all four cities, fathers and their advocates reported that many caseworkers were neither trained nor inclined to work with fathers. Private sector employers were reluctant to hire low-income men, preferring to hire women and part-time teenagers. Recommendations for Congress, state legislatures, and state-run and nonprofit programs are included. (Contains 41 endnotes.) (SM)