This handbook offers a set of practical ideas and their philosophical underpinnings, designed to assist community groups which desire to form interagency coordinating councils. A Local Interagency Coordinating Council (LICC) works to develop, coordinate, and provide a community-based, comprehensive system of services for young children with…

Current approaches to need assessment belong to one of three theoretical orientations: the rationalistic perspective in which need is predicated on the existence of some pathology or deviance from the rational ideal; (2) the empirical position where need is conceived as deviance from a normative or observed state of good health and well-being; and…

The special needs of the homeless elderly are discussed, followed by the presentation of a program designed to augment the work of public shelters by coordinating medical, nutrition, and social services in a day center format that is structurally integrated within the local aging service infrastructure, utilizing existing resource patterns.…

Evaluation research, if appropriately matched to a human service program's stage of development, can help inform the decision making at each step. The developmental stages of a program, questions to be answered at each stage, and kinds of research activities pertinent to such questions are discussed. (TJH)

A survey was conducted of the number and needs of adults with mental retardation or other developmental disabilities (MR/DD) currently waiting for community services. Survey data were obtained for 46 states and the District of Columbia. Respondents included directors of state mental retardation/developmental disabilities programs, state…

Parents (n=121) of children with emotional/behavioral disorders were surveyed to obtain their perceptions of contacts with service agencies and views on design and implementation of comprehensive services. Overall, parents viewed the services favorably. Concerns focused on obtaining information about community services, finding recreational…

The booklet contains proceedings of a 1982 conference focusing on the needs of parents of handicapped children. Summaries of presentations and panels address the following topics: federal support systems for parents of handicapped children, parents' reactions to learning their child is disabled, early intervention services, community support…

Analysis of service needs of families caring for 571 young adults with mental retardation found that requests for community living were related more to family stressors than to characteristics of the young adult or participation in regular daytime activities. Services most requested were those representing normalizing activities. (Author/JDD)

Profiles a case study of a Puerto Rican community in New England to determine how natural support systems and human service organizations within the community influence substance abuse program development. Provides recommendations for community-based substance abuse programs. (SNR)

This report describes visits of two Americans to Bratislava, (Slovakia) and Prague (Czech Republic) as part of a larger project providing technical assistance to improve the care and services for children with special needs in these countries. A summary of the Bratislava visit lists people met and places visited (with a brief description of each…

This research project sought to identify, at a local community level, the needs and concerns of American Indians with disabilities. The selected target community was Denver, Colorado, and its surrounding metropolitan area. Data were collected through 100 face-to-face interviews with a volunteer population of American Indians with disabilities. The…

The report presents 10 brief issue papers that focus on improving Illinois state planning and administrative functions for the ultimate purpose of improving conditions for Illinois citizens with disabilities. Common themes include more active involvement of the disabled themselves and their families in the planning, delivery, and evaluation of…

Designed for the rural practitioner, this manual offers a description of the major developmental tasks faced by individuals during the latter part of the life span and a summary of the major implications that research holds for building community programs for the rural elderly. Section II discusses two major assumptions: (1) because human beings…

This study is a follow-up to a 1990 needs assessment of American Indians with disabilities in the Denver (Colorado) region. The study involved a content analysis of transcripts of three focus group meetings of Project Advisory Committee (PAC) members, American Indians with disabilities, and service providers. Overall, PAC members and service…

Twenty-two key professionals were invited to submit written comments and to attend a 1-day consultation designed to identify strategies for expanding the availability and quality of training for youth workers. Participants responded in writing in advance of the meeting to three sets of questions: type of people involved in youth work and…