Dr. Jeff McNair from CalBaptist posted on his blog recently on the following question: Is community integration understood by those charged with facilitating it? Jeff is familiar with SRV and has sponsored an SRV workshop in California. See some previous posts on our blog here.
His incisive post is worth reading and considering, particularly in light of SRV teaching around personal social integration and valued social and societal participation. SRV teaching emphasizes that personal social integration and valued participation cannot be legislated or enforced but must ultimately be welcomed by people with valued social status.
His post is also relevant to consider from the perspective of the PASSING tool and assessment process, including the inquiry process (interviewing a human service organization) and the time spent visiting and observing services from an SRV framework.
McNair also touches on the idea of the culturally valued analog, by asking ‘Where would you go in the community to find opportunities for friendships and relationships?’
Note also his focus on the role domain of ‘cultus/values’ which Wolfensberger described in the SRV monograph (p. 30, A brief introduction to Social Role Valorization, Wolfensberger, Training Institute for Human Service Planning, Leadership and Change Agentry, 2004). In this case, McNair is looking at local churches in terms of the possibility of personal social integration and valued social participation; and I would add, in terms also of valued roles.
Marc Tumeinski