Parents Lead the Way (1960–1974)

 They said 'institutionalize.' Parents said 'organize.'

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Parents Lead the Way: Grassroots Organizing Changes Missouri (1960–1974)

As recently as the 1960s, families were routinely told their children could not be educated. Doctors advised parents to institutionalize children with developmental disabilities and “move on with their lives.” Many parents were told their children would never learn, never contribute, and should be separated from the family for everyone’s good.

But a growing number of parents rejected this advice and decided to fight back.

The Parent Revolution Begins

Across Missouri in the 1960s, mothers and fathers who refused to accept the status quo began finding each other. In church basements, living rooms, and community centers, they shared resources, compared experiences, and realized they were not alone. What started as informal support groups quickly evolved into organized advocacy.

These parent groups, often led by mothers who had been told to “go home and forget” about their children, became a powerful force for change. They did not just want sympathy; they wanted action. They demanded that their children deserved education, therapy, and the chance to participate in community life.

Building What Didn’t Exist

When public services didn’t exist, parents created them. Throughout Missouri in the 1960s and early 1970s, parent-led organizations launched:

• Preschools and early education programs – Small classrooms where children with disabilities could learn alongside trained teachers
• Summer camps – Providing respite for families and social opportunities for children
• Therapy clinics – Occupational, physical, and speech therapy when medical establishments said it was pointless
• Parent training workshops – Teaching families how to support their children’s development at home
• Respite care programs – Giving exhausted families temporary relief

These were not fancy facilities with government funding. They were grassroots operations run on bake sale proceeds, church donations, and the volunteer labor of parents who simply would not take “no” for an answer.

In St. Louis, Kansas City, Springfield, and smaller communities across Missouri, parent groups affiliated with The Arc built networks of support. They proved that with the right help, children could learn. They demonstrated that families could stay together. They showed that inclusion was possible.

The Fight for Public Funding

But parent-run programs, no matter how dedicated, could not serve everyone who needed help. Parents realized that private charity was not enough; they needed public commitment and tax dollars.

Throughout the 1960s, Missouri parent groups lobbied relentlessly:

• They testified before legislative committees
• They invited lawmakers to visit their programs
• They organized letter-writing campaigns
• They brought their children to the state capitol to put faces to the cause
• They built coalitions with educators, doctors, and social workers

Their message was clear: children with disabilities were citizens who deserved public investment.

Senate Bill 40: A Missouri Milestone

Their persistence paid off. In 1969, Missouri passed Senate Bill 40, revolutionary legislation that empowered individual counties to create and fund local services for people with developmental disabilities.

Senate Bill 40 allowed counties to establish special property tax levies approved by local voters to fund disability services. This meant that communities could raise their own money to support their neighbors with disabilities rather than waiting for state or federal action.

The passage of SB 40 was a direct result of parent advocacy. These parents had demonstrated need, proven that services worked, and built enough political will to change state law.

By the early 1970s, counties across Missouri began establishing developmental disability resource boards. These boards, governed by local citizens, could fund:

• Early intervention services
• Residential support
• Employment assistance
• Family support programs
• Community inclusion initiatives

St. Charles County established its Developmental Disabilities Resource Board under SB 40, ensuring local families would have access to coordinated services. What began as a grassroots parent movement had transformed into sustainable public infrastructure.

National Context: Building Toward IDEA

Missouri’s parent movement did not happen in isolation. Across the nation, similar organizing was taking place. Parent advocacy groups were filing lawsuits, lobbying Congress, and demanding that children with disabilities receive public education.

Key national developments during this period:

• 1965: Elementary and Secondary Education Act provided the first federal funds for special education
• 1972: PARC v. Pennsylvania established the right to education
• 1972: Mills v. Board of Education extended educational rights to all children with disabilities
• 1973: Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act prohibited disability discrimination in federally funded programs
• 1974: Congress began drafting what would become the Education for All Handicapped Children Act

Missouri parents were part of this national wave, connecting with advocates across state lines, sharing strategies, and building momentum for the federal special education law that would pass in 1975.

Why This Era Matters

The period from 1960 to 1974 demonstrates the power of grassroots organizing. Parents who were told to institutionalize their children instead:

• Built educational programs from nothing
• Secured public funding through democratic processes
• Changed state law to support future generations
• Laid the groundwork for federal special education rights

These were not professional advocates or politicians. They were ordinary parents who became extraordinary activists because their children’s futures depended on it.

The preschools, therapy clinics, and summer camps they created in the 1960s and 1970s became models for the formal service systems we have today. The county boards they fought for under Senate Bill 40 continue to fund vital services more than fifty years later.

Most importantly, they proved that parents could be powerful agents of change. When told “your child can’t,” they responded, “yes, they can, and we’ll build the system to prove it.”

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