Each year, a team of friends, family, educators, and community members gathers to support and encourage Penny as we plan for her future.
This annual meeting is called a PATH. We talk with Penny about what she sees as her accomplishments, strengths, and hopes and dreams for the future. I’ve written about this experience before (go here), so I won’t go into all the details again, but I will highlight a few things that seem important for every parent and educator to consider about every child and their future.
The PATH is a person-centered, assets-based, community-resourced process.
Person-centered:
Penny communicates her hopes and dreams for herself. Peter and I chime in by saying that we see her abilities as a writer and a public speaker and that we have dreams for her to learn how to ride a bike. But she speaks for herself, and we seek to honor and support her vision for her life.
Assets-based:
We focus on areas of strength and possibility. Much disability work focuses on deficits, areas that need growth, and milestones that haven’t been reached. Instead of asking, “What can’t she do?” a PATH asks, “What can you do? What do you love?” We assume there is a future filled with promise and possibility and take steps towards that future.
Community-resourced:
Penny is not alone. We as parents are not alone. We work within a network of support that includes state services, community care through institutions like churches and non-profits, and relationships with neighbors and colleagues and friends.
At the end of each year, we create an action plan with specific, achievable goals. Doing laundry. Cooking one meal a week. Finding a summer job. Penny helps create the plan. And we all participate in small ways in seeing that plan become a reality.
Person-centered. Assets-based. Community-resourced.
And filled with hope.
More with Amy Julia:
- More about the PATH Proces for Penny
- Penny Sharing in Church for DSA Month
- The IEP Meeting Every Child With a Disability Deserves
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