Churches could run gov't supported ‘marriage bootcamps’ to 'save' America: report

By Leonardo Blair, Senior Reporter Monday, February 16, 2026

Local churches could run government-supported marriage bootcamps for cohabiting couples with children in a bid to get them to formally walk down the aisle with the promise of a “wedding bonus” of up to $5,000, researchers suggest in a new report.

The report, "Saving America by Saving the Family: A Foundation for the Next 250 Years," was published last month by the conservative public policy think tank the Heritage Foundation.

Highlighting the nation’s record low fertility rate, which was 1.6 births per woman in 2024, the report proposes ways to “remove the many obstacles blocking the formation of healthy families, to make marriage and family life easier, and to restore family to the center of American life in rhetoric and in reality.”

Among the suggestions to help, which is already drawing some criticism online, is the idea of government-supported marriage boot camps administered by local churches and nonprofits.

Before suggesting the marriage bootcamp as a solution to America’s family woes, the report makes it clear that the proposal isn’t completely new. It highlights that the federal government has been trying to support families through similar programs, such as the Healthy Marriage and Responsible Fatherhood grants, “to help couples to communicate better, manage conflict, and jointly support their children.”

“A related idea would combine several of these elements into a marriage ‘bootcamp’ for cohabiting couples with children. Recruitment could be done through local nonprofits that work with families as well as radio, transit, and social media advertisements,” the report by researchers Roger Severino, Jay W. Richards, Emma Waters, Delano Squires, Rachel Sheffield, and Robert Rector notes.

The federal government has tried marriage education programs in the past, such as the $35 million initiative called Helping Every Area of Relationships Thrive.

Early data from some grantees of that initiative, like the Community-Based Connections, Inc., show that over 95% of families served reported improved family functioning.

With the help of local churches and the “wedding bonus,” researchers believe cohabiting couples could be encouraged to wed and live a more stable life.

“A local church could use this type of grant to run a program that covers important topics like communication, money management, blended families, fidelity, and conflict resolution. Successful completion of the program would mean that couples are ready to walk down the aisle at a communal wedding by the end of the bootcamp,” the report notes. “The bride and groom would also be matched with a mentor couple to help them to navigate the highs and lows of early married life.”

The “wedding bonus” is presented in the report as the most innovative aspect of the marriage, as it would encourage them to get married and stay married.

“For example, each couple that completes the program could receive a ‘wedding bonus’ of up to $5,000 on their wedding day to be paid through foundations or private donors, not government funds. Grant recipients could be financially encouraged based on their rate of marriage success,” the report notes. “This is a simple way to create an incentive structure geared toward the outcomes many people desire. This program idea would complement, not substitute for, the marquee family policies proposed later in this report. But like those policies, there would be strict provisions to screen and prevent fraud.”