Survey concerning experiences in worship settings

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March 20, 2010

Dear Self Advocate or Parent of an Individual with a Disability:

Greetings! Thank you for having the curiosity to open this e-mail! I hope this message finds you in good spirits, and that you are willing to share a few moments of your time with me.

For the past few years, I have developed a deep interest in the issues surrounding individuals with disabilities and their families as they pursue inclusion within worship congregations in their community. As a person with a disability, but, moreover, the parent of an individual with a disability, I came to a realization that our acceptance within our chosen house of worship was not always the same level of acceptance that individuals or families with typical children received within the congregation. My interest in this issue grew, and, as I had the opportunity, I explored and discussed this question with self advocates and other parents of children with disabilities.

Later, when time allowed, I had the opportunity to pursue studies at Central Baptist Theological Seminary in Shawnee, KS. As I discovered a path within my seminary life, I began to seriously look at the issue of full inclusion, or what I prefer to call “complete embracing” of individuals with disabilities and their families within worship congregations. I have now come to a point near the end of my seminary journey, where my interest in worship congregations and individuals with disabilities/their families is the focus of my thesis.

Below you will find a link, via an online survey service, to a brief, 25 question survey concerning experiences of individuals with disabilities and their families in respect toward their attempts to become involved in the life of worshiping congregations. This survey is anonymous, and your responses to the survey itself will only be viewed in an aggregate/collected manner. There is an opportunity to leave personal comments; however, no specific identification is required for this section of the survey. The personal comments section is there for your use, if there are any additional comments you choose to make.

The whole process of the survey should take approximately 15-20 minutes, and the aggregate survey responses, without the individual comments, will be made available to you for viewing upon request (see e-mail below). A similar survey is being circulated to congregational leaders of various religious groups to solicit their responses to a similar survey concerning their experiences of including individuals with disabilities and their family members in congregational life.

The survey can be found at: http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/TYGRJNV

The survey will be open from March 24, 2010 until April 25, 2010. This will allow me some time to review and analyze the surveys that have been received, and to incorporate the outcome into the body of the thesis work. If you would like to share this survey with another self advocate or family of an individual with a disability, please feel free to do so. If you would like a specific worship leader to receive a copy of the survey for religious leaders, you may, with their consent, send their e-mail address to me at the yahoo account provided below. In turn, I will send them the appropriate survey for completion.

Thank you again for your attention to this survey. I am in your debt for the time you have spent and the effort you have made in completing this survey. If you have any questions, please feel free to e-mail me at: jennyhatfieldcallen@yahoo.com .

Sincerely,

Jenny Hatfield-Callen

Seminary Student, Central Baptist Theological Seminary, Shawnee, KS