Rights of Community Involvement
- To know about the community organization/partner, its policies, people and program
- To have guidance and direction
- To do meaningful and satisfying work
- To have a voice in activities and planning
- To be given proper orientation and training
- To be aware of safety concerns and risky behaviors
- To be supported in work done at the site
- To have access resources and training workshops to support and enhance community involvement work
Responsibilities of Community Involvement
- To be open and honest with leaders, community partners, and community members
- To make realistic commitments and fulfill all commitments
- To prepare before working with the community by attending orientation and attending on-going training and reflection sessions
- To commit to continued learning about the community partner and challenging oneself to be a better participant through dialogue, reading, and training workshops
- To enter into service with humility, enthusiasm, commitment, openness and a willingness to learn
- To ask questions, treat people respectfully, listen and learn
- To appropriately seek guidance and direction
- To be prompt and dependable
- To respect confidentiality and privacy and the individual circumstances of community members
- To be an appropriate role model, particularly when working with children
- To be flexible
- To ask for help when you need it
- To realize that you are not the only one giving
Suggestions
- Dress comfortably and appropriately
- As in any metropolitan area, use common sense (e.g., don't leave personal belongings unattended, recognize your comfort zones and find support to challenge your boundaries)
- Make a genuine effort to get to know people at the community site (e.g., community members, staff, building personnel, etc.)
Civic Engagement would like to thank Civic House, a community service and learning collaborative at the University of Pennsylvania, for the use of their material.