Feature Issue on Faith Communities and Persons with ... - NCRTM
Feature Issue on Faith Communities and Persons with ... - NCRTM
Feature Issue on Faith Communities and Persons with ... - NCRTM
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24<br />
Profile<br />
Christ-Centered Inclusive Educati<strong>on</strong>:<br />
North Heights Lutheran Church<br />
by John E. Rynders <strong>and</strong> Noreen O. Rickenbach<br />
Aar<strong>on</strong>, a six-year-old boy <strong>with</strong> Down<br />
syndrome, <strong>and</strong> David, a nine-year-old<br />
boy who has multiple disabilities, attend<br />
regular Sunday school classes (though<br />
<strong>on</strong> different campuses) at North Heights<br />
Lutheran Church in suburban St. Paul,<br />
Minnesota. In spite of having substantial<br />
communicative <strong>and</strong> intellectual limitati<strong>on</strong>s,<br />
which sometimes present socializati<strong>on</strong><br />
challenges in the inclusive (mainstreamed)<br />
setting, the boys <strong>and</strong> their<br />
classmates benefit from inclusi<strong>on</strong>, growing<br />
in the ability to maintain friendships<br />
<strong>with</strong> others <strong>and</strong> in their Christian faith.<br />
North Heights Lutheran Church, a<br />
two-campus church of approximately<br />
8,000 members, believes every pers<strong>on</strong> is<br />
created by God <strong>and</strong> has a unique purpose<br />
for his or her life. The church, ministering<br />
to about 2000 children <strong>and</strong><br />
youth each week, has a calling to introduce<br />
Jesus to children at a young age so<br />
that they eventually make a life-l<strong>on</strong>g<br />
commitment to Him. Every opportunity<br />
is taken to minister the love of Christ to<br />
every child who walks through the<br />
church doors. There are ministries <strong>and</strong><br />
activities for children of all levels of ability<br />
<strong>and</strong> diverse backgrounds nearly every<br />
day of the week.<br />
The value placed <strong>on</strong> inclusi<strong>on</strong> of pers<strong>on</strong>s<br />
<strong>with</strong> disabilities by North Heights<br />
can be traced to a c<strong>on</strong>versati<strong>on</strong> that occurred<br />
about 20 years ago between a<br />
mother in the c<strong>on</strong>gregati<strong>on</strong> <strong>and</strong> the senior<br />
pastor. The mother, whose young<br />
adult s<strong>on</strong> <strong>with</strong> severe mental retardati<strong>on</strong><br />
was residing in a county residential facility<br />
located near the church, asked the<br />
pastor why the church hadn’t reached<br />
out to provide religious educati<strong>on</strong> for<br />
her s<strong>on</strong>. The pastor immediately put together<br />
a task force, charging it to do all<br />
that it could to provide this outreach.<br />
Task force members rapidly reached a<br />
c<strong>on</strong>sensus that North Heights should indeed<br />
reach out, not by taking a program<br />
to the man at this residential facility, but<br />
by creating a Sunday school program at<br />
the church tailored to his needs. Today,<br />
around 150 young adults <strong>and</strong> adults<br />
<strong>with</strong> disabilities, primarily <strong>with</strong> mental<br />
retardati<strong>on</strong>, are transported to North<br />
Heights by area group homes. In additi<strong>on</strong>,<br />
children <strong>and</strong> adults <strong>with</strong> disabilities<br />
who live <strong>with</strong> their families, such as<br />
Aar<strong>on</strong> <strong>and</strong> David, make up a growing<br />
part of the c<strong>on</strong>gregati<strong>on</strong>.<br />
For Aar<strong>on</strong> <strong>and</strong> David, the typical <strong>on</strong>ehour<br />
inclusive Sunday school class period<br />
generally looks like this: The first<br />
half features small group <strong>and</strong> individual<br />
activities such as listening to Bible stories,<br />
prayer, <strong>and</strong> arts <strong>and</strong> crafts activities.<br />
The sec<strong>on</strong>d half is a large group<br />
comprised of several regular classes<br />
meeting together, where group prayer,<br />
singing, <strong>and</strong> listening to a storyteller<br />
occur. These are enriched through the<br />
use of flannel boards, puppets or other<br />
audio-visual materials. During the activities,<br />
accommodati<strong>on</strong>s are made for<br />
both boys. For example, Aar<strong>on</strong> is “acti<strong>on</strong>-oriented”<br />
<strong>and</strong> enjoys coloring, h<strong>and</strong>ling<br />
clay, painting, <strong>and</strong> singing, but<br />
isn’t too keen <strong>on</strong> sitting <strong>and</strong> listening for<br />
extended periods of time. Hence, when<br />
Aar<strong>on</strong> loses interest, perhaps w<strong>and</strong>ering<br />
away from the group activity, a volunteer<br />
may take his h<strong>and</strong> <strong>and</strong> sit close to<br />
him or, if necessary, leave the classroom<br />
<strong>with</strong> him for a nearby resource room<br />
where they watch a videotaped Bible<br />
story, play a game or engage in another<br />
activity. David, who has serious movement<br />
<strong>and</strong> language difficulties, enjoys<br />
“just hanging out” <strong>with</strong> his classmates<br />
<strong>and</strong> listening to music. It is hard for him<br />
to not vocalize during group times when<br />
quietness is expected; at these times a<br />
volunteer takes him aside for an alternative<br />
activity or sits <strong>with</strong> him in her lap to<br />
help focus his attenti<strong>on</strong> <strong>on</strong> the activity.<br />
While church staff <strong>and</strong> volunteers in<br />
the c<strong>on</strong>gregati<strong>on</strong> are c<strong>on</strong>stantly looking<br />
for ways to provide inclusive activities to<br />
pers<strong>on</strong>s <strong>with</strong> special needs of all ages<br />
<strong>and</strong> ability levels, at this point there is<br />
more inclusive programming available<br />
for children than for youth <strong>and</strong> adults.<br />
Many of the older youth <strong>and</strong> adults attend<br />
the Special Needs Sunday School, a<br />
n<strong>on</strong>-inclusive program, <strong>and</strong> also attend<br />
an evening program at the church called<br />
the I Am His Club that offers prayer, music,<br />
snacks, <strong>and</strong> crafts to participants<br />
<strong>with</strong> disabilities. This existence of both<br />
specialized as well as inclusive opti<strong>on</strong>s<br />
in the church is due partly to the l<strong>on</strong>gst<strong>and</strong>ing<br />
history of providing specialized<br />
programming to adults from the<br />
county residential setting. But, in additi<strong>on</strong>,<br />
it stems from the fact that finding<br />
same-age n<strong>on</strong>disabled peers to provide<br />
needed supports for adults <strong>with</strong> disabilities<br />
in inclusive activities is more difficult.<br />
Hence, there are more inclusive opportunities<br />
for children, such as David<br />
<strong>and</strong> Aar<strong>on</strong>. For example, both boys, in<br />
additi<strong>on</strong> to having a mainstream Sunday<br />
school program, attend an inclusive program<br />
each Wednesday evening called<br />
Kingdom Kids Pi<strong>on</strong>eers, a club that offers<br />
Bible stories <strong>and</strong> activities, crafts<br />
<strong>and</strong> recreati<strong>on</strong>, <strong>and</strong> worship opportunities.<br />
Moreover, they both attend an inclusive<br />
summer Sunday school <strong>and</strong> vacati<strong>on</strong><br />
Bible school each year.<br />
The North Heights motto, “To Know<br />
Christ <strong>and</strong> To Make Him Known” has<br />
sparked the development of a vital<br />
social network that undergirds the inclusive<br />
religious educati<strong>on</strong> effort. Glimpses<br />
Citati<strong>on</strong>: Amado, A. N., Gaventa, B., Gaylord, V., Norman-McNaney, R., & Sim<strong>on</strong>, S. R. (Eds.). (2001/02). Impact: <str<strong>on</strong>g>Feature</str<strong>on</strong>g> <str<strong>on</strong>g>Issue</str<strong>on</strong>g> <strong>on</strong> <strong>Faith</strong> <strong>Communities</strong> <strong>and</strong><br />
Pers<strong>on</strong>s <strong>with</strong> Developmental Disabilities, 14(3). Minneapolis: University of Minnesota, Institute <strong>on</strong> Community Integrati<strong>on</strong>.