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UGRD > HUMCTR
Human Services
HUMCTR 100G Media Literacy, Art and Activism Matters
Description:
This curriculum is designed to make the study of art mean a lot, following Booker T. Washingtons philosophy to use art in the service of social justice. In order to understand the possibilities for art to matter in social change actions, we will use an interdisciplinary approach. We will study media literacy and various political/economic frameworks through which people try to make sense of specific events in the world. We will review various ideas that groups and individuals have used to change business as usual. Through studying how our knowledge about the world is shaped by various media institutions (education, journalism, social media, entertainment, and public relations/advertising) we will develop ideas about how art, broadly conceived, can intervene to challenge and reshape our perceptions and understandings. Through understanding how various events and actions can be interpreted using different political/economic frameworks, we will develop more effective interventions to provoke peoples imaginations about new possibilities for our society. More Info
Offered in:HUMCTR 220 The Life Cycle and the Environment
Description:
To understand human behavior in real-life situation, you must have a working knowledge of the life-span developmental process and the impact of systems in the environment on those developmental processes. All human behavior, whether it is physical, social or cognitive, comes into being through processes of development. Developmental changes result from the interaction of various influences, internal and external, and occur over the entire span of life, from the prenatal stage through old age. These internal influences can be hereditary, occurring at the time of conception, or can result from the biological/psycho-social history of the person up to the point of observation. The external influences range from the prenatal environment to the broadest social and cultural factors. Human development, then, is a life-long process, involving characteristic developmental changes from conception to death. Basic concepts and theories are used to explain these life-long developmental changes. Familiarity with the basic concepts and theories, therefore, is essential for functioning effectively as a human service worker. This course will examine the various stages of life development from neonatal infants to advanced age. It will identify and examine theories of cognitive, psycho-social, and biological development. It will look at the effects of the social, ecological, and physical environment on the various aspects of development. It will examine the challenges of development and the role of human service workers in helping families and individuals to respond to those challenges in productive and fruitful ways. Students will have the opportunity to conduct observations and apply theory to observations and service with diverse individuals, families and groups across the life cycle. More Info
Offered in:HUMCTR 225 Human Service Systems for Contemporary Families
Description:
This course provides an introduction to essential human services. It examines needs that arise during a lifespan. It looks at a broad range of reasons why individuals and families use human service programs; including income support, housing, food, clothing, energy, and transportation assistance, health care services, mental health services, addiction, sexual orientation, family life education, child and adolescent adjustment, abuse and neglect, military personnel and veterans assistance, immigrant and refugees aid, education and literacy programs, employment assistance, aging and retirement support, and legal services and dispute resolution. More Info
Offered in:HUMCTR 320 Intervention with Individuals and Small Groups
Description:
This course will focus on the skills and knowledge which are common to intervening with individuals and small groups, as well as, with organizations and communities. To be an effective human service worker, it is important to be able to apply skills with an understanding of relevant theories and models, and be able to choose appropriate intervention strategies and methods for particular situations. Since there is no substitute for actually working with individuals or groups, an important part of enhancing a workers intervention sills is obtaining hands-on experience in the field through a practicum covering the length of semester. More Info
Offered in:HUMCTR 322 Intervension with Large Systems
Description:
Students will learn to effect and improve the lives of individuals, families and groups by working for social justice and social change at the organization and community level. Students will learn how to analyze and engage with communities. We will apply knowledge and skills in organizing, advocacy, collaboration, influencing policy, social and community development, and planning, to address issues facing diverse populations in living communities and connected to organizations across the life span. To be an effective human service worker, it is important to be able to differentially apply knowledge and skills, and to be able to select from a range of strategies and interventions that will best suit particular situations and issues. As part of this course, students will be expected to participate in a practicum in which they can learn for the community, work on community identified issues, and apply theory to practice. More Info
Offered in:HUMCTR 345 Professional Responsibility and Ethics
Description:
This course will address value conflicts and ethical issues workers face when delivering direct services to clients in a range of human service settings; child welfare, criminal justice, mental health, and aging services among others. We will identify ethical issues and effective interventions in direct service work with consumers at risk. This course addresses; moral values, ethical principles and dilemmas, decision making frameworks, client confidentiality and informed consent, client risk, safety and autonomy, paternalism, professional boundaries, conflicts of interests, mandated reporting and legal issues in human services. We will critically examine anonymous cases of consumers at risk, identify ethical issues and value conflicts and apply best practice guidelines from the peer-reviewed literature to these cases, develop service plans, and draw implications of potential interventions for consumers, providers, service organizations and public policy. It is expected that student will gain specialized knowledge and skill in applying ethical theory to practice in human services. More Info
Offered in:HUMCTR 351 History of Social Welfare
Description:
This course addresses the historical development of human services from the colonial times to the present. The social, economic, political and cultural trends of society at large provide the context for both the identification of human service needs and development of strategies to accommodate these needs throughout various historical periods. Particular attention is given to the interplay between the historical context and changes in values, attitudes, policies, and the organization of human services. The course is organized along both the chronological order as well as by human service areas. More Info
Offered in:HUMCTR 370 Human Services Special Topics
Description:
The study of special topics in Human Services. Consult department's description of current offerings to find out about the topic or topics being explored this semester. More Info
Offered in:- TBA
HUMCTR 401 Research and Information for Evidence-based Practice
Description:
Today, human services professionals are confronting major changes in their work. The magnitude and complexity of social problems, what we know about them, and what are effective approaches to address them is growing rapidly. The computerization of bibliographies and the development of software that permits the rapid location of relevant evidence have made it easier for workers to do the best for their clients. The skills needed to find, to access, to retrieve, to use information and relevant studies quickly and reliably, and to separate the wheat from the chaff; and to apply sound evidence to problem solving are essential to human service practice. Workers must be trained in the process of turning social problems into questions and to systematically locating, appraising, and using contemporaneous research findings as the basis of informed decision making and practice. More Info
Offered in:HUMCTR 415 Human Service Policy and Practice
Description:
In this course students learn how to influence government decision makers who deal with a wide variety of complex human services policies. More Info
Offered in:HUMCTR 420 Professional Internship Seminar
Description:
This course enables students to apply theory to practice in Human Services through supervised internship and professional seminar. Students will have the opportunity to further develop their knowledge and skills through experiential learning and reflection in fieldwork seminar accompanying the placement. From this experience students will address ethical issues, improve their practice skills, gain a better understanding of themselves and the field, and gain familiarity with human service systems. There will be an emphasis on self awareness, growth and development, as well as, critical thinking, civic engagement, and professional identity. Students can expect to improve skills in communication and interpersonal relations; draw connections, between theory and practice; see how service agencies operate and work with diverse types of people. In the seminar we will discuss practice issues that emerge in the field, along with, professional issues such as use of self, self disclosure, supervision, termination, empowerment, and social justice and social control. More Info
Offered in:HUMCTR 425 Case Management
Description:
This instructional offering addresses current practice and policy for workers assuming multiple and conflicting roles posed by case management with consumers of human services. Case management functions include client screening, risk assessment, care planning, implementation, monitoring, reassessment, of the service plan. Case managers seek to support client self-determination but are also charged with controlling costs and rationing services causing ethical dilemmas for workers. We will examine best practice guidelines for case management and apply theory to practice. We will examine case management from the perspective of the consumer, practitioner, other providers and the service system. A major focus of this class is the critical examination of case management practice in mental health/mental retardation service, DSS, elder services, and criminal justice settings. This highly interactive class will involve lecture class discussion of anonymous case vignettes of consumers at risk drawn from the field, reading response assignments, writing response assignments, interviewing in the field, a final oral presentation and paper applying theory to practice, and a final assessment. More Info
Offered in:
