A Blueprint for Community Building
TRAINING OUTLINE


Part I  - Introduction to “Community”

1.  Introduction to training (outline and outcomes)

2.  Dictionary Definition of Community

3.  Types of Community  (Micro and Macro Community)

4.  Media’s perception of Community (“Mayberry” the mythological community)


Part II - “Real Community”

1.  Community Interactions Discussion (Current and Potential)

2.  Enriched Community Interactions


BREAK


Part III - Interactive Community Building - “A walk down Your Main Street”

1.  A walk down “Your Main Street” - Exercise 1 and Discussion

2.  Potential interactions - Exercise 2 and Discussion

3.  Community Links - Exercise 3 and Discussion

4.  Latitude’s Experience - An Example Community Links Programming


QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS


A Blueprint for Community Building

In this training we discuss ways in which we can become an integral part of our community.  We  show how both folks thought to have disabilities, staff, and organizations can establish a community presence, and then how we can use that presence to benefit support and contribute to the community.

Personal introductions (experience, education, interests, etc.)

PART I - Introduction  to “community”
1.  Introduction to Community Building training (go over outline and outcomes)

2.  Dictionary Definition of Community (Visual in form of projected note or chart)

Webster’s Dictionary Definition of Community:  1. a social group of any size whose members reside in a specific locality, share government, and have a common cultural and historical heritage.  2. a social group sharing common
characteristics or interests and perceived or perceiving itself as distinct in some respect from the larger  society within which it exists.  3. a group of men or women leading a common life according to a rule.  4. as assemblage
of plant and animal populations occupying a given area.  5. joint possession, enjoyment, liability, etc.  6. Similar character, agreement, identity.  7. the community, the public; society.

Discussion of Community as a fluid term....this leads to types of community

3.  Types of Community (Discussion)

Define Micro and Macro Community (smaller and larger community. Give Example of each. Discuss the interaction/interplay of each. Discuss and chart a variety of types of community

Micro Community (smaller community):  a community within a macro community or larger community.

Macro Community (larger community):  the community that exists outside the doors of your micro community (residence, workshop, Adult Day center, etc.)

Example #1:  Dishwashers; Servers; cooks; etc. - Micro Communities at Restaurant Entire Restaurant - Macro community There is an even a larger community outside the doors of the restaurant and each family or group the comes to eat at the restaurant is a micro community, and so on...

Example #2:  Support Coordinators; Administration; Community Habilitation Providers - Micro communities at an Adult Day Health Center Entire Adult Day Health Center - Macro Community There exist an even larger community outside the doors of the ADHC where each group that enters it becomes a micro community, and so on.

4.  Medias influence on our perception of community (Discussion)

Discuss the mythological community of “Mayberry”.  How does it work?  Who runs it?  (The Sheriff runs it.)  No Problems. Right?  How do social services work?  Sheriff (Andy Griffith) runs Social Services also. Discuss the sociological fantasy compared to the realities of “real community“  (include law, morals, government, security, social supports, recreation opportunities, etc.  What is the reality?  What is the fantasy?  We confuse the two.
How does perceived community undervalue and distort the potential of our “real community”?  (Cultural fantasy does influence our perception of “real community”?

Part II - “Real Community”

1.  Interactions within Your Community (Discussion and Charting)

When you are at work, in what “real” ways are the people you support interacting within the macro community (larger community)?

Discussion:  (chart interactions/dialogue)

Sample Discussion:

Top five (5) answers (common negative interactions)

Answer #1  When we need supplies for the office or home, the participants go with us to Office Depot to by supplies.

Answer #2  On Fridays, we take a group of people to neighborhood yard sales.

Answer #3  We have a paper route and deliver the paper every Wednesday.

Answer #4  We take a group bowling every Tuesday night.

Answer #5  We take the participants for a ride in the country side.

Commonalities
1.  Enter community and travel in groups
2.  Activities require very little interaction with other people in community.
3.  Activities are repetitive and/or little variation in the activity.
4.  Activities were not generated by the interests of the participants (revolve around agency needs or staff interests.


(How to take what they’re doing now, and turn it into an enriched community interaction. With hopes that the ISP goals are geared toward community interactions. Opportunity for Goal Writing Training!!!)

Creating more enriching interactions in the community and for the participants.

Example 1
Activity:  Going to Office Depot for supplies.
Enriching the interaction:  One person is given the responsibility for charting office supplies and keeping track of when they need to be replaced.

Example 2
Activity:  Visiting Neighborhood Yard Sales.
Enriching the interaction:  Have each participant create a list if items of interest to him/her which they might find at a garage sale.
Introduce yourselves.  View this as an opportunity to meet and greet the neighbors.
Better yet, organize a neighborhood garage sale that benefits another local/community program (perhaps a neighborhood crime watch program - organize meetings at your facility, and so on)


Example 3
Activity:  Bowling every Tuesday night
Enriching the interaction:  So, you are required to bowl every Tuesday.
Well, this is your opportunity to connect with the community.  Bake, as a group, some cookies and treats to share with the people around you at the bowling alley.
Organized a bowling tournament (amongst yourselves or with the community).
Organized a bowling tournament fundraiser for another program in your community.
Give to your community!!!

How often do you bowl?  Who goes bowling?  Does the size of the group vary?
Do the people who go vary?  Are the people in the group interacting with people without disabilities?
Repetitive process are cyclical, reaching a point where they become more negative than positive, but it becomes more difficult to break the cycle.

BREAK - 10 MINUTES


Part III - Interactive Community Building

A walk down Your Main Street - Discussion and use of Map/Chart

1.  Interaction tool:  Exercise 1 - Map of Your Main Street
 a.  Walk down Your Main Street as a group.  Quickly note their location and a few of the  buildings around them.  (make sure we call them “buildings“, because that is what they will see.)

 b.  Ask the group what they see? Chart this as the locations are called out.

 c.  Discussion - if applicable

2.  Interaction tool:  Exercise 2 - List of buildings and the potential of 1/2 already filled  out
 a.  Read, go over, and discuss the potential of the buildings already filled out.

 b.  Ask individuals or group(s)  (depending on the size of the audience) to complete the potentials of the buildings that have not been filled out.

 c.  Discuss and chart their answers.

3.  Community links - exercise and discussion Interaction tool: Exercise 3 - linking your program, and two places on main street - Q & A
 a.  Ask individual or group(s) to complete worksheet 2, linking Your Program  with two other places on Main Street by answering the questions.

4.  Discussion and sharing of Latitude’s Experience working with Everyday Matters and it’s participants.  An example of community links.
  a.  outline the process including:
  1.  how we established communication
  2.  got people’s stories
  3.  created poetry
  4.  arrangement with local coffee house for poetry reading
  5.  other connections made; Ky Hist. Society, poetry in streets, etc.
  6.  our link to radio station and Ace PR
  7.  performance reading as larger link (link to possibility for PR trainings)


Exercise 2


Identify the potential enriched interaction opportunities for the following:

1.  LIBRARY
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2.  COFFEEHOUSE
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3.  FLOWER SHOP
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4.  RITE AID
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5.  YMCA
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6.  HARDWARE STORE
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7.  VACANT LOT
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8.  COMMUNITY COLLEGE
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9.  ART GALLERY/FRAME SHOP
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10.  CITY GOVERNMENT BUILDING
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Exercise 2

6.  Hardware Store - Potential for Employment; handmade pottery retail; materials/wood scrap donations; and more!

2.  Coffee House/Cafe - Potential for social gathering; reading/writing poetry; Art exhibit; community poetry reading; public performance; employment; and more!

1.  Library - Potential for specific research (KY History, genealogy); readings, movies, authors visit, etc.; books on tape; borrowing books; and more!

10.  City Government - Potential for access to civic participation such as parades, fairs, voting, letters to the editor, letters to politicians, political dialogues, city council meetings, health care, and more!

4.  Rite Aid - Potential for access to copy machine and film development; employment; materials donation (disposable cameras, etc.); community
bullutin board; purchase newspapers; and more!

Exercise 3

Out example of community links:

4.  Rite Aid; Your Program; 9.  Art Gallery/Frame shop

Document 24 hours in their life with a disposable camera (Donated by Rite
Aid)  and develop the film at Rite Aid.  Then set up an exhibit at the Art
Gallery and purchase the frames at the art gallery.  Print publicity posters
at Rite Aid (copy machine) and pass out the posters to neighboring
businesses and the larger community.


Exercise 3


1. YOUR PROGRAM 2. _______________  3. ________________


Why did you choose these two places on Your Main Street?
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What opportunities are available in each place?
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How are you going to link them?
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How will this link benefit the people that you work with?
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How will this link benefit the macro community (larger community)?
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Supported Employment training/workshop

workshop for staff at sheltered workshops

Begin with A Blueprint for Community Building
This leads to discussion of downtime at sheltered workshops and the
question:  How can they interact positively during downtime?

Two separated program links:  1.  Elm Tree  2.  Oak Tree

1.  Elm Tree (the less flexible group/environment)
 a.  seek community opportunities
 b.  develop interactions
 c.  chart interactions
Introduction to arts, materials, and more while at the sheltered workshop.

2.  Oak Trees (the more flexible group/environment)
 a.  how to engage community
 b.  how can you access it?
 c.  charting interactions

Assignments will be given with consistent follow-up and semi-annual
re-training.

Year 1
Meet same staff (re-train)
* evaluate documentation quarterly

Year 2
meet every 6 months
*evaluate documentation and re-train

Time Frames
Where are people connecting with community and how?
What are people doing in the workshop?

Expected long term outcome:  Gradually improve downtime - turn it into
perceived uptime - then it becomes opportunity time - then community time!!!


Working with People Considered to have a Severe Disability

describe a person you know who is considered to have a severe disability
what are your expectations of that person?
what are the expectations of staff, your agency, church,
family.....community?
how does the community react to or interact with this person?
how does this person interact within the community?

We will teach how to you how to identify and recognize the potential of this
person.
What are that persons interests?
What is his/her day like? etc.?

(interactive worksheet with case study)
Identify at least one “gift” that they have to offer.
Chart the discussion

How can we share this gift with the larger community?
Example: Clifford at Everyday Matters.