Community Services, Inc. (CSI) founded in December 1972, was a community based residential program developed in response to the Pennsylvania legislators' new policies regarding mentally retarded individuals. These legislators felt that people of all mental capacities had the right to live in their own community (as opposed to state operated institutions). CSI was a leader in the development of the group home model and ran homes according to the principles of Normalization, a theory developed by Wolf Wolfensburger. CSG continues to use the principles of Normalization in teaching individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities how to function in society and how to become a valued and active member of the community.
Community Services Management Corporation (CSMC) was formed in April 1974 with the initial purpose of providing administrative leadership for the expanding programs of CSI and developing and providing consultation to outside agencies with community residential programs. During July 1974, CSMC took on a new focus. The corporation began developing and implementing Options, a partial hospitalization program. With the development of this new program, the emphasis of the corporation expanded beyond group homes and began to encompass community treatment services for the mentally ill. These programs were approached with the same humanistic view as those created by CSI. During years following the creation of Options, CSMC added additional programs including new Options program sites; Tempo - a vocational rehabilitation program; Concepts - a partial hospitalization program for the dually diagnosed (mental health and mental retardation); an Adult Development Program; Intensive Case Management; and the CSG Bakery - a vocational rehabilitation program.
In addition, two Community Residential Rehabilitation programs also operated as part of CSMC until 1986 when they were transferred to Community Services Alternative, Inc. in order to comply with governmental regulations. These programs were residential in nature and designed to provide short-term rehabilitation services to people with severe and persistent mental illness.
MAPS Behavioral Health Services began as Management and Professional Services Corporation. Developed in 1992, MAPS' first services were acute partial hospitalization and psychiatric evaluations provided under contract with the Lancaster General Hospital. Always integrated with CSG, MAPS has since expanded its capabilities to include a variety of services, from psychiatric assessments to employee assistance programs. In addition, MAPS was the first one of the four CSG companies to operate primarily in the private sector. This enabled CSG to broaden its impact on the community and to prepare effectively for the more recent influence of managed care in the public sector.
In 1986 four entities (CSI, CSMC, CSAI, and MAPS Behavioral Health Services) joined to form one company and have been collectively referred to as Community Services Group (CSG).Today, CSG has offices in 19 counties and serves thousands of people each year.