Mission & History

The  emphasis  in  the  field  of  mental  retardation in the 1940’s, and before, was  institutionalization  – “Put them away and provide care giving”. The 1950’s brought an emphasis on keeping  families  together.  This developed a need for community services and family support.

In 1950, all children with IQ scores below 50 and those deemed “unable to benefit from classroom instruction” were excluded from the public school system.  Providing services to these children was one of the earliest activities of the Association.

In an expression of concern for the welfare of children in the three Commonwealth-operated facilities for the mentally retarded, Polk, Pennhurst, and Laurelton, a Sunshine Committee was organized for the purpose of sending cards and gifts to residents at these institutions.  This effort met with resistance on the part of the institutional staff who would not provide the names of residents. Although institutions in the Commonwealth had  a permissive policy with regard to parental visits at this time , for the most part, they prohibited parental visits for the first three months of placement of a child in an attempt to sever parent child relationships a  policy  reflecting  common professional advice to “put your child away and forget him/her”.

1954 brought about legislation which permitted public school districts to provide classes for children with IQ scores under 50. The PARC members took immediate and active advantage of this legislation by persuading local school districts to provide space and assisting in every detail of the arrangements for these classes.

1955 was a year of mental health reform in Pennsylvania. Tours of Commonwealth institutions by Governor Leader and members of the ARCs revealed severe overcrowding and lengthy waiting lists. Nine thousand children were in institutions, three thousand were on waiting lists, and seventy applications for residential placements were being received each month. Legislation was passed in, 1955 permitting the establishment of Commonwealth-supported interim care facilities for mentally retarded individuals on the waiting lists. By 1955 there were 41 local chapters affiliated with the PARC, the Pennsylvania Association.

In January of 1956, HB 1671., an appropriations bill which provided money for  the  building of three new institutions for the mentally retarded , was pending.  The welfare budget was in serious jeopardy of being cut $40,000,000. The PARC members contacted their local legislators and sent telegrams voicing the PARC’s position. The PARC’s efforts met with success and the appropriations bill passed uncut.  This was not  the  only  victory  for the PARC in 1956.  In March, ACT 429 was passed , mandating the public provision for education of all mentally retarded children.

Evidence of the inadequacy of institutional care  for children with mental retardation was tragically shown in the fall of 1957  when  an influenza epidemic struck and caused the death of  many Pennhurst residents.  Upon investigation the PARC discovered there was no immunization program for Commonwealth institutions. At the PARC’s insistence, the Department of Health and the Department of Welfare instituted immunization of all residents.

1957 also brought about, at the PARC’s suggestion, a separate division for mental retardation within our Commonwealth. The PARC also prepared their own general statement of needs throughout the Commonwealth for persons with mental retardation.