The head of the Glenwood Resource Center is leaving, after 35 years in the job. Doctor William Campbell says the mission’s changed “vastly” since the institution was built.He says it began as a Civil-War orphanage, with a job far different from the demands on the center today, but he says part of its goal is to change to remain useful for the people it serves. The center’s central purpose is to make a person’s life better and return them to a productive life in whatever community they wish to be in. That’s why the center has permanent residents but is part of the movement to “mainstream” many clients with jobs, classes and homes in the outside world. The state has four mental-health institutes, and two the resource centers at Glenwood and Woodward to serve the mentally disabled, who used to be termed retarded. Campbell says Iowa’s been a leader in delivering services to people outside institutions. He saysthe emphasis is on community delivery of services, and he says the name “resource centers” is apt as they transfer their knowledge and information to support people in being successful at the life they choose. No date is set for his retirement, but the 76-year-old Campbell says he wants to start now to ensure an orderly transition.
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