BY ASHLEY PARISH
PALS Community Development Associate
This past year, our team spent a lot of time looking at the activities we do during our programs, and thinking critically about how to make them as inclusive as possible to folks of all abilities and backgrounds. We believe that every piece of PALS programming, from participant arrival and karaoke to the Congratulations Project and PALS Olympics, provides us with an opportunity to work towards our mission of changing attitudes, transforming lives, and inspiring a world of belonging. We are actively making modifications to our activities to bring us closer to that goal.
In past programs, we began our time together with a session called “Camp Rules.” During this activity, participants, volunteers, and staff would come together and write out a list of rules to follow while at camp. This became a staple PALS event, and for a long time, it made sense to begin camp this way, ensuring we all shared the same expectations and understanding of how to conduct ourselves at PALS.
We’ve identified this activity as an opportunity to talk more about inclusion and belonging. Every member of our community has a general idea of what respectful behavior looks and feels like, so it’s unnecessary to establish rules like, “I’ll be on time for lunch,” or “I’ll be nice to others.” We want folks to engage with our programming and leave these experiences having learned something new, having grown as a person, and having thought about ways to promote inclusion.
Thanks to the help of a team of volunteers called the ICAR team (Inclusive Conversations About Race), we established a new and exciting component of our programming called “The PALS Promise.” Rather than focusing on a set of rules, the PALS Promise encourages our community to commit to a set of principles and behaviors, and guides us on how we should treat one another. Check out this fun video of Jenni and Jason introducing the PALS Promise!
The PALS Promise: We are committed to inspiring a world of belonging. We promise to be welcoming, to include everyone, and to stand up for one another. We promise to work together, to learn from our mistakes, and to treat each other like family. We promise to have open hearts and minds, to act with kindness, and to respect the value of every person. Together, we will change our own attitudes, the perceptions of others, and the world.
We were thrilled to pilot the PALS Promise during our Spring programs. Here is how it looked: we began by encouraging folks to consider what inclusion looks and feels like to them. This crucial period of reflection reminds us of how wonderful it is to feel valued by our community, and why it’s so important to be welcoming to others. After reading and discussing the PALS Promise with participants, we then asked everyone to create their own promise to uphold throughout their program. Each person’s promise served as a reminder to be their best selves, and allowed everyone to make a promise that inspired and motivated them.
When we think about core components of any PALS program, activities like the dance, karaoke, or PALS Olympics often come to mind. These activities are staple components of our time together. They bring folks together, encourage laughter, and are just downright fun. However, programming like the PALS Promise is where we make our biggest impact. Not only does the PALS Promise encourage us to be more inclusive, it also reminds us of the intrinsic value of each person around us, and we can bring these promises into karaoke or Olympics to make those experiences even more powerful. We are excited to bring this activity to our programs, and will continue to seek out more opportunities to learn and grow with our community.
Want to make a personal PALS Promise?
Post your PALS Promise on social media and tag @PALSPrograms for a chance to appear on PALS facebook, instagram, or twitter!