About “Integration” Centre
International “Integration” Centre for Professional Partnerships operates in the spheres of inclusive education and international cooperation in accordance with the priority directions of the development of education and science of Lviv Polytechnic National University.
Background
The establishment of International “Integration” Centre for Professional Partnerships is directly related to the long-term experience of training professionals for the social sphere gained at Lviv Polytechnic National University.
Lviv Polytechnic National University has been training professionals for the social sphere since 1999, when the Social Work Education Program (SW Program) was launched under Canada-Ukraine Reforming Social Services Project (RSS Project) (1999-2003) funded by the Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA). The long-term experience of training sociologists, social workers and social welfare professionals has been gained at the Department of Sociology and Social Work (SSW Department) established in 2001 within the structure of Institute of the Humanities and Social Sciences at Lviv Polytechnic under this international initiative. The sustainable development of the education programs and the SSW Department overall, and the University capacity building in the sphere of social inclusion and inclusive education has been taking place against the background of the long-term partnership with the University of Manitoba – the Canadian partner of Lviv Polytechnic in Canada-Ukraine RSS project as well as with other leading institutions both inside and outside Ukraine.
In the process of the initiation and further development of the education programs
at the SSW Department, the “University-Community” system of professional education has evolved. Its conceptual foundations are justified particularly by the principles of the ecosystems approach, the strengths perspective, the theory of intersectionality, the holistic model of health, environmental safety as well as by other professional education approaches in the social sphere. The training of students to confer Bachelor’s, Master’s or Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.) degrees according to their specialty has been taking place in view of the partnership cooperation development at the local, regional, all-national, and international levels.
Against this background, in 2015, International “Integration” Centre for Professional Partnerships (hereinafter – “Integration” Centre) was established for the purpose of developing:
- an inclusive consciousness, and an inclusive educational environment and architectural and social accessibility to study opportunities at Lviv Polytechnic for people with special educational needs; and
- a network of multidisciplinary partnership interaction of Lviv Polytechnic with governmental and non-governmental organizations in Lviv, and other partner organizations both in Ukraine and abroad.
Based on “Integration” Centre the programs of continuous professional training in the social sphere (non-formal education), exchange programs for undergraduate, graduate and post-graduate students are provided, as well as international projects are implemented, with one of these being the project “Retraining and Social Adaptation of Servicepersons and Their Family Members in Ukraine. Integration of the “Norway-Ukraine project” model into the state system”. Here “No Limits” Services of Accessibility to Learning Opportunities (hereinafter – “No Limits” Accessibility Services), Veteran Services for Combatants, Their Families, & Internally Displaced Persons (hereinafter –Veteran Services), and counselling and coordination services “Community Health Clinic of Lviv Polytechnic” (hereinafter – Community Health Clinic) are provided.
In their delivery, the services rely on both the interaction of the University subdivisions and the cooperation with governmental and non-governmental organizations in Lviv, this way going beyond the academic community and extending to the community of the city. The progressive development of “No Limits” partnership network and its offspring – “No Limits” research platform (launched on the initiative of the Lviv community representatives) contributes to the consolidation of efforts of educators and practitioners of the social sphere, representatives of public authorities and local self-government.
In their current activities, the Department of Sociology and Social Work and International “Integration” Centre for Professional Partnerships closely cooperate as one team, and in this organic professional partnership the emphasis is made on research, which is key to the sustainable development of the “University-Community” system of professional education formed at Lviv Polytechnic National University. This in turn allows the University to respond to current challenges based on the innovative global experience and updated strategies and technologies of professional education and professional activities in the social sphere, which is becoming increasingly important in the COVID-19 pandemic time specifically.
The mission of “Integration” Centre is: to promote the integration of theory, practice and policies in the social and humanitarian sphere based on common civilization values, the development of the humanitarian component, in attitudes towards people with special education needs in particular, the integration of the fundamental principles of social inclusion and inclusive education in the realities of social relations on the way of the formation of social standards, democracy and the development of civil society in Ukraine and Ukraine’s entry into the world-wide educational space.
The main purpose of “Integration” Centre in performing its activities is to create an inclusive consciousness, particularly the understanding of challenges of functioning of persons with disabilities and chronic diseases in the educational environment.
The major objectives of “Integration” Centre on the way of achieving its goal are:
- to promote the principles of social inclusion and inclusive education for persons with disabilities and chronic diseases among the University personnel and students;
- to provide support for students with special education needs in the process of education to ensure equal opportunities for university education at Lviv Polytechnic National University; &
- to promote the application of the potential of governmental and non-governmental agencies as students’ field placement sites to ensure the adherence to the social inclusion principles, involvement in the processes of policy-making, and representation and advocacy of the interests of persons with special education needs and their families.