In the final segment of The Simmons Course, you will join other students in your major to focus on career, financial and life planning, considering internships, research, and service, employment and graduate school.

This course explores the issues related to serious illness and end of life care experienced by patients, families, and health care providers. The course utilizes the End of Life Nursing Education Consortium: ELNEC curriculum. The curriculum is being adapted to meet the educational needs of interdisciplinary students. Topics discussed include palliative care, serious illness, communication, cultural issues, sudden death, holistic practices and self-care. The class is highly participatory. As a final capstone project for the course, students will develop a creative, artistic expression representing personal meanings and emotions related to caring at the end of life.

This course focuses on preparing students to critically analyze research literature. Emphasis is placed on critically reading and interpreting published research in terms of applicability to the practice of health care professionals. Taught using small groups, discussions and lectures, this course provides a foundation for subsequent participation in research.

This course explores the issues related to serious illness and end of life care experienced by patients, families, and health care providers. The course utilizes the End of Life Nursing Education Consortium: ELNEC curriculum. The curriculum is being adapted to meet the educational needs of interdisciplinary students. Topics discussed include palliative care, serious illness, communication, cultural issues, sudden death, holistic practices and self-care. The class is highly participatory. As a final capstone project for the course, students will develop a creative, artistic expression representing personal meanings and emotions related to caring at the end of life.

This interdisciplinary course explores health issues from a societal perspective. An issues from local, community, national, and global perspectives. Healthy People 2000 is used to analyze data on current health issues. Leiningerstranscultural model and Penders model of health promotion focus the discussions. Health promotion of diverse populations is emphasized. Students conduct a needs assessment of a particular population group which allows for the integration of health promotion issues as they are affected bysocial, political, economic, ethical, and cultural policies.

Covers emergence and development of sociological thought and research. Introduces basic concepts, theoretical approaches, and methodological strategies for the study of social structures, processes, and relations. Focuses on the seven thematic areas of the department to cover a range of social issues useful to a critical understanding of society, social inequalities, and the interconnectedness across national and social borders.

Examines the unique perspective of health care from the cultural lens appropriate to women of color. Historical, social, environmental, and political factors that contribute to racial and gender disparities in health care are analyzed. Students will develop cultural competency tools for more effective health care delivery.

Introduces methods and strategies used in research in the social sciences. Teaches responsible consumption of social science research and presents the logic and skills of social research methods. Emphasizes the nature of inquiry and the relationship between theory and research. Includes social research ethics and an introduction to data analysis using computers in research. Previous courses in statistics or computers not required. Instructor consent required.

Emphasizes social determinants of physical and mental health and cross-cultural experiences of illness and seeking care. Pays special attention to the unequal distribution of health and illness in the U.S, the role of culture in our understandings of health and illness, and the social organization of health care.

Examines health and illness from a global perspective. Current public health dilemmas are analyzed, highlighting the role of colonialism, culture, development, and public health policies. Case studies will focus on how health issues are handled in different parts of the world, highlighting the roles of culture and political economy.

Introduces a critical sociological approach to understanding race, class, and gender inequality. Examines the historical origins of oppression in the United States by exploring how slavery, colonialism, and immigration have differentially shaped various groups' access to power. Explores contemporary struggles in South Africa. Examines impediments to the notion of the United States as a "mecca for diversity," including critical explorations of how injustices manifest themselves in the economy, education, the family, the arts, the media, and other key institutions.

Examines how social groups and institutions influence our production, distribution, and consumption of food. Food is a lens through which we can examine the values of social institutions, such as the family, agricultural and food policy, and the welfare system. We will discuss how social movements are organizing around food politics in the U.S. and elsewhere.

Consent of department required.

Develops the ability to speak, read, and write in Spanish. Enhances awareness and understanding of the Spanish-speaking world through the presentation of cultural materials.

Continuation of SPAN-101.

Develops communicative skills through a selective grammar review, discussion of topics of interest, and frequent use of audiovisual materials. Expands reading comprehension and cultural awareness through examples of Hispanic prose and poetry. Also offered as a TC.

Continuation of SPAN-201, with a special focus on writing at the intermediate level.

Aims to increase proficiency in the oral and written use of language. Readings include selections by contemporary Latin American authors and focus on various issues, such as women's roles and human rights. Includes written assignments and oral presentations based on readings and other current events.

Introduces students to the culture of Spain through the ages, from the multicultural society in medieval Iberia to maestros such as El Greco, Velazquez, and Goya. Includes works by a wide variety of authors and explores music, dance, and film, as well as contemporary issues through newspapers and Internet sites.

Discusses the artist's view of social turmoil and the political upheaval that has characterized Latin America in this century. Explores topics that may include coming of age and confronting the socioeconomic, religious, and political realities; the figure of the dictator; and exile and insilio.

Consent of instructor required. Addresses coursework required for the major or degree not being offered formally that semester. Students work under the close supervision of a faculty member. Consent is required for a directed study, which does not count toward the independent learning requirement.

Consent of instructor required.

Involves observation, analysis, and interpretation of children's learning needs, utilizing formal and informal assessment devices in order to write, implement, and evaluate individualized educational programs. Reviews test instruments and current issues in assessment. Requires weekly fieldwork in an integrated setting.

Focuses on the basic principles and approaches for the effective management of behavior for learners with special needs. Emphasizes preventive discipline, classroom environments, and techniques effective with learners with diverse needs and abilities, and strategies for behavior management in multicultural settings.

Introduces behavior modification and operant techniques, including clarification of more commonly used terms, with specific reference to application in the classroom. Provides overview of procedures and practices successful in schools, communities, and work settings. Requires fieldwork.

Explores major areas of special needs and examines issues unique to the delivery of service to learners with special needs, including assessment strategies, equipment adaptation, materials, and parent/professional relations. Focuses on language development and communication problems.

For graduate students only.

Experiences such as observation of a variety of classrooms, pre-practicum, or internship opportunities that are integral components of preparation of educators. involves full-time supervised teaching responsibilities in a public school classroom (levels: All) or 603 CMR 28.00 approved school with learners with severe disabilities.

Involves developing curriculum materials using the Massachusetts Curriculum frameworks and demonstrating service to learners with special needs. Requires papers and attendance at seminars.

This course is part of the Autism Specialization Program. SPND 490 course provides an overview of the major disability categories under IDEA. The course builds on the foundation of typical cognitive and physical child development, devoting attention to early childhood theorist in the field of child development. An in-depth study of IDEA disability categories, accommodation strategies, assistive technology to promote independence, language and communication development, social and emotional development, home/school collaboration and inclusive lesson planning will be a focus of this course.

This course is part of the Autism Specialization Program. Content in this course will focus on standardized and criterion-referenced assessment, curriculum development, and teaching/learning procedures to plan instructional programs for individuals diagnosed with an autism spectrum disorder. Emphasis will be placed on creating a functional IEP based on assessment results, developing individualized educational programs, and modifying the instruction and curriculum if the students are not making progress.

This course is part of the Autism Specialization Program. SPND 493 provides an introduction to and overview of evidence-based strategies for evaluating the behavior of individuals with autism and developmental disabilities. The design of systematic observation and measurement systems and interpretation of evaluative data are reviewed. Students also gain experience in designing, displaying, interpreting, and reporting evidence-based behavior evaluations.

This course is part of the Autism Specialization Program. SPND 496 involves students working with learners with intensive special needs/autism in their full time severe practicum placement under the mentorship of a Program Supervisor. Students study classroom teaching techniques and procedures and work with the Massachusetts Curriculum Frameworks to write well-structured lesson plans incorporating all Candidate Assessment of Performance elements. Students will participate in a internship in a public school inclusive classroom with learners with special needs and English Language Learners.

This course is part of the Autism Specialization Program. This course content is based on the Massachusetts Curriculum Frameworks and the Candidate Assessment of Performance. The seminar supports student's experiences in their practicum and inclusion placements. Students will learn and demonstrate understanding on how to use and incorporate the Massachusetts Curriculum Frameworks into teaching well-structured lessons for students with autism. Through class discussions, article reviews, peer evaluations and the development of their professional teaching eportfolio, students will incorporate the six essential elements from the Candidate Assessment of Performance into all their coursework and teaching. This course includes modules to meet the assistive technology state requirements.

Intended primarily for students in the health, behavioral, and social sciences. Covers univariate and bivariate data analysis, surveys and experiments, elementary probability, sampling distributions, statistical inference for proportions and means. Extensive use is made of the software R.

Covers two-sample t tests, analysis of variance, contingency tables analysis, Simpson's paradox, Screening, and issues in experimental and nonexperimental design. Includes sampling plans. Makes use of a statistical computer package. Does not fulfill requirements of the mathematics major.

Consent of department required.

Introduces students to the historical development of professional social work and social welfare and orients them to the purposes, values, and worldview of the profession. The evolution of contemporary social work, contributions of key historical figures and pioneers, role of influential social policies, and ways in which social workers have shaped the social service system are discussed. Finally, an overview of contemporary social work practice principles with an emphasis on social and economic justice is provided. This course includes a 40-hour service learning component.

Examines the issues and problems that social workers confront and provides a framework for understanding and critically analyzing the impact of social welfare policies on individuals, groups, and society. Through an examination of historical and contemporary social welfare policies, students build the knowledge, values, and skills required for effective practice through policy development and reform, including the ability to engage in policy practice to advance social and economic well being.

This course will examine the relationships among behavioral health, community systems, and child / adolescent development. Students will explore the impact of mental health conditions in children and family systems, including early childhood trauma, upon physiological and psychological development and functioning.

Human Behavior in the Social Environment allows students to participate in the in-depth study of the physical, psychological, social, and cultural forces impacting the growth and development of individuals within the context of their families, communities, and society. Students explore foundational theories necessary to an understanding of human growth and development and integrate information from biology, psychology, sociology, and social work. Using a life span approach, a social work strengths perspective, a social justice perspective, and a person-in-environment framework, Human Behavior in the Social Environment follows the human life span, covering the prenatal period through older adulthood and end of life.

This course is designed to give students entering social service professions an introduction to interviewing skills that are needed in order to complete initial and follow-up interviews with clients. These skills include engagement, working with the client to identify the presenting concerns, and working with the client to assess their needs and strengths. The course begins by focusing on engagement and interviewing skills when working with individuals, families, groups, and community members. The focus then turns to documenting these social service encounters. Once initial interviewing skills have been honed, the course focuses on skills for Motivational Interviewing before ending the course with an introduction to assessment. Throughout the course, strengths-based practice, a social justice orientation, person-in-environment, and culturally humble stance will be taken when looking at engagement and assessment. Students will leave this course with an understanding of how to conduct an empowering and strengths-based initial interview with a client, whether that client is an individual, family, group, or a composition of community members.

This course is intended to help students apply knowledge of social work skills, values and ethics to immersive community and virtual field experiences and to assist students in integrating classroom learning with their emerging practice experience. The course will also support studentsâ socialization into the profession and their self-reflective preparation for their Senior Field Practicum. The Junior Virtual Field Experience will provide the student with learning opportunities that complement SW 351 Social Work Practice l: Introduction to Generalist Practice and SW 352 Social Work Practice ll: Work with Individuals and Families,<i> </i>and provide a basis for generalist practice. In this context, students will be expected to develop and discuss knowledge, understanding and skills concerning relationships with prospective clients, supervisors, coworkers and external organizations. Students will also develop their resume and work on communicating skills development as they prepare for Senior Field Internship<i>.</i> In the Junior Field Lab, students will share learning experiences across a variety of immersive community and virtual field experiences. Students will be active learners in group process and group leadership skills. Lastly, students will discuss and understand the professional use of self in the social work role.

The first in the Program's series of four practice courses for social work majors, this course is aimed at orienting students to social work practice by providing a firm framework of social work knowledge and values and specific foundational skills. Students examine the ways that research, social policy and programs, economic and political forces, social work history, and explanatory theoretical paradigms inform work with clients. An introduction to the social work generalist perspective, this course allows students to begin to develop a professional identity and the relationship-building, interviewing, and planned change skills necessary for work with client systems of all sizes. Students become grounded in the constructs which make the social work profession unique.

The Social Work Field Placement and Seminar I (Fall) is designed for the senior social work student in order to integrate classroom learning with practical social work experience in an agency setting. Throughout the Fall semester, students participate in 16 hours of field placement per week toward completion of the 425-hour, year-long BSW senior field placement requirement. In addition, students meet once per week for a 1 hour and twenty minute, in-class field seminar led by the BSW Program Field Director. Through reflective discussion, weekly assignments, and major projects and papers, the Field Seminar focuses on the integration of theory and practice, building the student's professional social work identity, enhancing self- awareness skills, advancing practice competencies, and synthesizing field learning. All aspects of agency field work, including learning to work within the agency context, effectively using supervision, using research to inform practice, utilizing social work values and ethics in practice, and applying social work knowledge and skills with clients are addressed.

The Social Work Field Placement and Seminar II (Spring) is designed for the senior social work student in order to integrate classroom learning with practical social work experience in an agency setting. Throughout the Spring semester, students participate in 16 hours of field placement per week toward completion of the 425-hour, year-long BSW senior field placement requirement. In addition, students meet once per week for a 1 hour 20 min, in-class field seminar led by the BSW Program Field Director. Through reflective discussion, weekly assignments, and major projects and papers, the Field Seminar focuses on the integration of theory and practice, building the student's professional social work identity, enhancing self-awareness skills, advancing practice competencies, and synthesizing field learning. All aspects of agency field work, including learning to work within the agency context, effectively using supervision, using research to inform practice, utilizing social work values and ethics in practice,and applying social work knowledge and skills with clients are addressed.

This course provides students with the necessary skills to analyze the social welfare policies, benefits, and services that create the context in which all social workers practice. Students will learn about current state and federal policies related to a range of social welfare concerns (e.g., poverty reduction, health, housing/homelessness, criminal justice, disability, child welfare, immigration), the evolution of these policies, and the socio political and economic environment that has influenced their development and implementation. Students will build upon what they learned in SW403 Macro Social Work: Social Policies, Communities and Organizations by delving more deeply into various policy analysis frameworks, the mechanics of conducting policy analysis, and the evaluation methods to determine a policy's impact and effectiveness. To appreciate the complexities, contradictions, strengths, and weaknesses of the American approach to social welfare, students will be encouraged to think critically about the role of economics, politics, ideologies, values, and alternate policy models in each of these areas. The roles of power and privilege in social welfare policy will be assessed as they pertain to equality, equitability, and discrimination based on identity and social location. Class discussion, readings, and assignments will underscore the reciprocal relationship between clinical social work practice and social welfare policy.

This course is an intensive examination of the dynamics of various forms of oppression in U.S. society. The selection of the oppression of racism is deliberate. Through the analysis of critical race theory and intersectionality, students will come to understand the reasoning for this initial emphasis. The course begins with an analysis of racism from structural, (social) psychological and applied perspectives. This approach frames the analysis of other forms of oppression. Types of oppression (sexism, classism, homophobia, etc.) are examined in relationship to sociopolitical and economic factors, and historical themes that continue into the present day are identified. The course will explore the costs of oppression to all individuals and its differential impact on individuals in dominant and subordinate positions. The importance of power and the dynamics of domination and subordination in all forms of oppression will be explored. Practice issues will be examined in relation to multi-level interventions (i.e., individual, group, organizational and institutional).

Human Behavior in the Social Environment addresses two areas of focus. One is an ecological-developmental approach to human behavior in the social environment, taking a social constructionist perspective, emphasizing the ways in which culture (of large groups and small) and the broader social environment shape human behavior and identity. Concepts of resilience and resistance to oppression are emphasized using frameworks such as empowerment theories, systems theory and human ecology. This course emphasizes micro, meso, and macro level social systems that influence individual behavior, including families, groups, organizations and communities, as well as the larger society within historical and cultural contexts. Particular attention is paid to culture, race, class, gender and sexual orientation as dynamic social constructions that can be sources of both oppression and strength at all levels of social systems. The second area of focus is on current theoretical frameworks to understand the bio-psycho-social-cultural processes that shape human behavior and development of self across the life span. We emphasize the interaction of individuals with their environments as they mutually influence each other, emphasizing cultural diversity and social justice. The application of multiple theoretical perspectives to Social Work practice is emphasized.

This one semester course provides knowledge of the major categories of diagnoses for adults as formulated in DSM-5 and of theoretical perspectives in those categories. Attention is given to the dynamics of development and culture, and to the interrelationship among biological, psychological, and social/cultural systems that impact diagnosis. Focus will be on utilizing these elements in order to provide a comprehensive bio-psycho-social assessment. Treatments specifically related to these diagnoses will be noted.

This course examines crisis intervention and treatment approaches for children and adolescents, with a particular emphasis on vulnerable populations. Since crisis intervention is an integral part of social work practice, this course aims to provide students with knowledge of contributing factors, theories and practice models which best inform crisis intervention in social work with children and adolescents. Students will use a systems-based framework in their analysis of crisis situations and become familiar with the skills necessary to implement effective techniques with children and adolescents. The course will provide students with the opportunity to apply critical thinking skills when working with crises, as well as examine policy issues, ethical issues, and the intersectionality of oppression and the implications of oppression and discrimination on crisis experiences and interventions. Further, students will develop an awareness of the importance of engaging in self-care practices that will support their well-being when working with crises.

This two-semester course exposes students to selected generalist practice theories for social workers. The course will examine various levels of intervention, practice settings, and theoretical perspectives. Students are introduced to the general processes that are common to every client system level: preparation and engagement, differential use of self, assessment, contracting, intervention planning, intervention evaluation, and termination of services that are applicable no matter the setting or client group. Considered over two semesters is work with individuals, families, groups and the social context in which these client groups exist. A special concern is the impact of diversity and oppression for client and worker. Emphasis of this semester is mastering multi-level assessment. Actual practice dilemmas are examined through case discussions, videotapes, role-play, and other exercises.

Social workers across all sectors of practice are faced with individuals, families, and communities that are significantly affected by substance use disorders. The focus of the class is on exploring the nature, etiology and treatment of substance use disorders and how they relate to social work practice. Set within a social justice framework, students critically analyze the intersections of substance use with racism and other forms of oppression. Ethical and legal frameworks for substance use treatment are identified and analyzed. Students explore the complex interactions of biological, psychological, and social causes and consequences of substance use, and learn how to develop a comprehensive, multidimensional biopsychosocial assessment. The class prepares students to develop knowledge of, and skills in, evidence-informed substance use prevention, education, and treatment with individuals, groups, families, organizations, and communities.

Building on foundational knowledge and skills mastered from the first year social work practice course, this course will have four foci: 1) professional use of self; 2) the professional/therapeutic relationship; 3) continued development and refinement of more sophisticated assessment skills;and 4) mastery of brief/time-effective approaches to intervention/treatment. Contemporary clinical social work practice is ever evolving and is shaped by a number of stakeholders. Within this context of transition and change sound clinical social work practice is culturally responsive, flexible, and demonstrably effective, and when appropriate, community-based. The goal is for students to practice and acquire skill sets related to a variety of practice frameworks/ theoretical perspectives and to learn how to decide which particular approach is most beneficial for each specific client in achieving positive outcomes. The second semester will deepen the knowledge, skills, and values addressed in first semester and will provide an opportunity for students to integrate their course work across the curriculum as it applies to professional practice.

Weekly agency-based field placement, which focuses on foundation social work skills. Students complete agency based assignments in addition to process recordings and assessments. SW446A section 01 is for students doing a 24 hour per week field placement (Sept-May) SW446A section 02 is for students doing a 16 hour per week field placement. (Sept-Aug) The field department must approve all 16 hour placements prior to a student registering.

SW447A section 01 is for students doing a 24 hour per week field placement SW447A section 02 is for students doing a 16 hour per week field placement.The field department must approve all 16 hour placements prior to a student registering. The goal of field education is to learn the application of theoretical concepts and social work principles and values learned in the classroom to clinical practice. Field education provides supervised learning of advanced practice skills with individuals, families and groups in a variety of clinical settings.

This course will examine the public health problem of suicide, with specific attention to prevention, intervention, and postvention approaches. Students will gain an understanding of suicide epidemiology and underlying theory, as well as risk and protective factors for suicide. This course will familiarize students with evidence-based practices and ethical considerations with suicidal clients, including learning directly from individuals with lived experience with suicidality. Students will also learn about the current state and national strategies for suicide prevention, as well as policies related to suicide. Upon completion of this course, students will gain skills in assessment and management of suicide risk, intervention and treatment techniques with suicidal clients, and postvention approaches with survivors of suicide loss.

Building on the concepts and principles from SW 441 this course prepares students in basic principles of practice and program evaluation and their application to social work practice in agency settings. Using their agency settings as laboratories, students learn the major approaches to evaluation (needs assessment, process, and outcome) with attention to the struggles, tensions, and ambiguities related to current evaluation models and agency demands for evaluation. Sections with some online class sessions are designated as &#34;blended&#34;.

In this course we will begin examining best practices for trauma treatment with children, adolescents and families. Using the social work assessment process we will begin to use a phase oriented treatment paradigm to examine clinical applications of trauma treatment across various settings and client presentations. Special attention will be given to the in vivo utilization or role plays to deepen and enhance our clinical skill set when working with diverse traumatized clients. Our clinical social work practice will focus on integrating the social work paradigms of engagement, assessment, practice and evaluation while incorporating methods of addressing s ocial justice and client-centered policy engagement.The course will build on the knowledge and skills acquired in the foundation year Human Behavior in the Social Environment and Practice courses.

Required for students in the Advanced Standing program, this course is designed to provide a bridge to the concentration year clinical curriculum and field placement. A strong emphasis is on exploring the development of a professional social work identity and on supporting student's increasing self-awareness and ability to learn from practice experience. The course will focus on broadening the capacity for the use of self, promoting reflective practice, conceptualizing various theoretical perspectives and their application to clinical work and enhancing the ability to work across difference.

This course provides an overview of the theoretical underpinnings and clinical applications of dialectical behavioral therapy. Students will learn how to implement DBT treatment methods include integrating skills training into psychotherapy into their clinical practice with a diverse client population who present with a range of disorders and psychosocial concerns. The four key skill sets include: distress tolerance, mindfulness, emotion regulation and interpersonal effectiveness. Case examples and role-play will be utilized. This course meets the requirement for a clinical practice elective.

This course will provide an overview of major diagnostic categories in child psychopathology and provide students with the skills and abilities to conduct clinical assessments with children and adolescents using a bio-psychosocial developmental framework. An area of focus is case formulation and diagnosis. Attention will be given to the dynamics of development and culture, and to the interrelations among biological, psychological, and social/cultural systems. Teaching techniques include didactic presentations, case examples, videos, guest lectures, and class discussions.

The goal of field education is to learn the application of theoretical concepts and social work principles and values learned in the classroom to clinical practice. Field education provides supervised learning of advanced practice skills with individuals, families and groups in a variety of clinical settings. This course section is for Advanced Standing students only in their Fall semester of study.

This course offers an in-depth view of the social welfare policy process and systems in the United States with select comparisons from other nations. The aims of the course are to familiarize students with 1) a broad range of concepts, theories, and ideas about how social welfare policies and systems function, 2) social and economic justice critiques of social welfare policies and systems, and 3) processes of policy development, change, implementation and evaluation and how these related to social work practice and research. Reading, critical thinking, and peer discussion are emphasized as an approach to learning and processing course content. Policy analysis skills and tools are taught as a means of critically evaluating policy and linking policy frameworks and specific policy issues to students areas of research interest.

This course serves as an introduction to social work research methods in the doctoral program. Objectives of the course include examination of the research process as applied to the specialized needs of social work practitioners. Emphasis is placed on formulation of researchable practice questions of interest to seminar participants and examination of quantitative and qualitative research methods and strategies appropriate to these questions.

This course is the second of a two-part introduction to statistics series, building on SW651 and material in prior research methods courses. This course briefly reviews univariate, bi-variate, and multivariate statistics, then focuses principally on multiple regression as a technique to understand higher-order relationships. Students engage in lab work using SPSS to analyze data as part of the course.

This option is intended to allow students to supplement their doctoral study in areas of special interest to them. Contact the director of the doctoral program for more information.

This course is designed to help students integrate material learned across PhD courses, advance their individual scholarly agendas and research work, and develop professional academic and career skills. The course is a seminar format that is continuously attended each semester a student is enrolled in the PhD program. Students enroll in 685A in their first and second year in the PhD program in Fall, Spring, and Summer terms.

This course is designed to help students integrate material learned across PhD courses, advance their individual scholarly agendas and research work, and develop professional academic and career skills. The course is a seminar format that is continuously attended each semester a student is enrolled in the PhD program. Course content rotates over time to ensure students have exposure to a wide variety of content and activities. Students will set professional and scholarship goals at the beginning of the semester and co-evaluate their progress toward and achievement of these goals with the course instructor at the end of the semester. Accumulated work will be compiled in a portfolio that builds over time towards graduation requirements and postdoctoral career goals. 

This course is designed to help students integrate material learned across PhD courses, advance their individual scholarly agendas and research work, and develop professional academic and career skills. The course is a seminar format that is continuously attended each semester a student is enrolled in the PhD program. Course content rotates over time to ensure students have exposure to a wide variety of content and activities. Students will set professional and scholarship goals at the beginning of the semester and co-evaluate their progress toward and achievement of these goals with the course instructor at the end of the semester. Accumulated work will be compiled in a portfolio that builds over time towards graduation requirements and postdoctoral career goals. 

This practicum is for Social Work doctoral students and focuses on developing and applying pedagogical skills in a classroom setting at the School of Social Work. Before registering, doctoral students must have a signed teaching practicum agreement with the faculty member they will be working with. This is a required practicum.

This practicum is for Social Work doctoral students and focuses on developing and applying research skills while working on an active research study at the School of Social Work. Before registering, doctoral students must have a signed research practicum agreement with the faculty member they will be working with. This is a required practicum.

This course focuses on the context of macro social work, defined as policy practice, community practice, and organizational administration and management. This course will familiarize students with each of these practice environments by grounding them in the relevant historical and contemporary background of social work and social welfare policy, and then focusing on the theoretical frameworks and evidence-informed practice models for organizational and community engagement, assessment, and intervention. This course will underscore the responsibility that social workers have to understand and address the systemic factors that create circumstances of social, economic, and environmental injustice, with specific attention to the complexity of practice contexts and the influence of power and privilege on human rights. Students will learn strategies for social work at the macro level (i.e., policy, communities, and organizations) to influence, formulate, and advocate for social change related to social injustices based upon, but not exclusive to, race, ethnicity, language, class, religion, gender identity, sexuality, ability, citizenship status, age, and nationality. Throughout the course, examples will be drawn from local, national, and international contexts.

This 3 credit course builds upon SWO 403 Macro Practice: Social Policy and Social Work Organizations and Communities. Students will learn about current federal, state, and local policies related to a range of social welfare concerns (e.g., poverty reduction, health, housing/homelessness, criminal justice, disability, aging, child welfare, transportation), the evolution of these policies, and the socio-political and economic environment that has influenced their development, implementation, and evaluation. To appreciate the complexities, contradictions, strengths, and weaknesses of the U.S. approach to social welfare, students will make connections about the role of economics, politics, ideologies, values, and alternate policy models in each of these areas. The roles of power and privilege in social welfare policy will be assessed as they pertain to race, ethnicity, language, class, religion, gender, gender identity, sexual orientation, ability, citizenship status, age, nationality, and indigenous status. Students will demonstrate the ability to analyze social welfare policies, evaluate public budgeting for policies and programs, understand the role of the judiciary branch in the policy process, and assess the implementation of policies and the evaluation of their effectiveness. Class discussion, readings, and assignments will underscore the inextricable relationship between clinical social work practice and social welfare policy and practice. Students will consider how to incorporate policy work and advocacy into their own social work practice.

Since its inception, the social work profession has been committed to developing health and human services that promote diversity and alleviate and/or eliminate social oppression and injustice. Rooted in the ecological perspective, social workers are aware of and can identify large social structures and processes that can negatively impact the well-being of communities and individuals. This 3-credit course is an intensive examination of how racism meets at the intersection of other dynamics of oppression to shape our and our clientsâ experiences as we work together. The selection of the oppression of racism as a primary focus for the course is deliberate. Through the analysis of critical race theory and intersectionality, students will come to understand the reasoning for this emphasis. The course begins with conceptualizing race as a social construct and racism as a system that exists on multiple domains. From there, using an intersectional approach, we will examine the research focusing on how people develop racial identities in the face of racism, and how our racial identities position us to do our work. While thinking about how to disrupt racism in key sectors, such as the health professions and schools, we will then focus on how to enact culturally responsive care at the micro, meso, and macro levels in ways that honor the expertise and strengths of BIPOC people and their communities.The course is designed to stimulate critical thinking, help us critically reflect on our positionalities, and develop systematic critical analyses that lead to identifying ways that social workers can intervene and oppose oppression professionally and personally.

Human behavior in the Social Environment addresses two areas of focus. One is an ecological-developmental approach to human behavior in the social environment, taking a social constructionist perspective, emphasizing the ways in which culture (of large groups and small) and the broader social environment shape human behavior and identity. Concepts of resilience and resistance to oppression are emphasized using frameworks such as empowerment theories, systems theory and human ecology. This 3 credit course emphasizes micro, meso, and macro level social systems that influence individual behavior, including families, groups, organizations and communities, as well as the larger society with historical and cultural contexts. Particular attention is paid to culture, race, class, gender and sexual orientation as dynamic social constructions that can be sources of both oppression and strength at all levels of social systems. The second area of focus is on current theoretical frameworks to understand the bio-psycho-social-cultural processes that shape human behavior and development of self across the life span. We emphasize the interaction of individuals with their environments as they mutually influence each other, emphasizing cultural diversity and social justice. The application of multiple theoretical perspectives to Social Work practice is emphasized.

In this one semester 3 credit course students learn to assess psychiatric diagnoses described in the DSM-5, considering those diagnoses and compounding psychosocial challenges from multi-theoretical lenses. Throughout the course there is a central focus on issues of social justice and oppression, and the interrelationship between biological, psychological, and social/cultural systems that impact diagnosis and treatment. Treatments connected to diagnoses are noted briefly. Students will be able to comprehensively assess, diagnose, and write bio-psychosocial assessments of their clients that convey the social justice lens of social work. Teaching techniques may include didactic presentations, guest presenters, videos, class discussions, and practice exercises.

This 3 credit course examines crisis intervention and treatment approaches for children and adolescents, with a particular emphasis on vulnerable populations. Since crisis intervention is an integral part of social work practice, this course aims to provide students with knowledge of contributing factors, theories, and practice models that best inform crisis intervention in social work with children and adolescents. Students will use a systems-based framework in their analysis of crisis situations and become familiar with the skills necessary to implement effective techniques with children and adolescents. The course will provide students with the opportunity to apply critical thinking skills when working with crises, as well as examine policy issues, ethical issues, and the intersectionality of oppression and the implications of oppression and discrimination on crisis experiences and interventions. Furthermore, students will develop an awareness of the importance of engaging in self-care practices that will support their well-being when working with people in crisis.

This yearlong course will focus on the action, reflection, and skills of generalist social work practice. We will consider the basic processes of social work practice: engagement, assessment, contracting, intervention, evaluation, and termination, and their application to a wide range of issues and problems. We will look at various levels of intervention (intrapsychically, interpersonally, and intersystemically), various practice settings, social work practice roles, and theoretical perspectives. (3 credits per semester) In the first semester, particular attention is given to the multidimensional approach to assessment and intervention, interviewing skills and the development of the professional identity of the social worker, and the professional relationship with client(s)/client systems. Generalist social work practice is rooted in the ecological/ecosystems framework. Theories of empowerment and strengths-based perspectives are emphasized. Social work practice as framed and contextualized by professional codes of ethics, legal precedence, agency and organizational dynamics, neighborhoods, and communities will be studied and analyzed. While all sections of the course share a common outline for the syllabus, books, readings, and written assignments, each professor will shape their section to meet the specific needs of the classroom. Instructors will use a variety of mini-lectures, role-play, case presentations, process recordings, videos, and standardized cases to demonstrate different models and see the ways that different social and behavioral theories lead to particular ways of intervening. Given the changing demographics of U.S. society, there is a particular emphasis on cross-cultural understanding and on work with clients across the age spectrum.

The second semester of this yearlong 3 credit course will carry forward the ecosystems perspective from the first semester and will introduce students to four main practice theories: psychodynamic, cognitive behavioral, narrative, and solution focused. Within each framework, we will examine core principles and begin to explore implications for each phase of the helping process: engagement, assessment, planning, evaluation, and termination. Drawing upon these theoretical frameworks as an organizing framework for thinking about generalist social work practice, the course proceeds to explore work with individuals, families, and communities in various contexts and circumstances. Students will deepen their assessment skills and their intervention skills at micro, mezzo, and macro levels. An emphasis will be placed on collaborative consultation of student case presentations as one way of conceptualizing the work and thinking from multiple perspectives about intervention strategies. We will explore the use of evidence-based (or informed) practice. Ways of evaluating practice and using the professional literature as an aid to practice choices will also be discussed.

Social workers across all sectors of practice are faced with individuals, families, and communities that are significantly affected by substance use disorders. The focus of the class is on exploring the nature, etiology, and treatment of substance use disorders and how they relate to social work practice. Set within a social justice framework, students critically analyze the intersections of substance use with racism and other forms of oppression. Ethical and legal frameworks for substance use treatment are identified and analyzed. Students explore the complex interactions of biological, psychological, and social causes and consequences of substance use, and learn how to develop a comprehensive, multidimensional biopsychosocial assessment. This 3 credit course prepares students to develop knowledge of, and skills in, evidence-informed substance use prevention, education, and treatment with individuals, groups, families, organizations, and communities.

Building on knowledge and skills mastered from the foundation practice course, this 3 credit course is organized to expand and deepen studentsâ practice understanding and skills using a framework that incorporates the following learning goals:Students will be able to understand, interpret, and organize appropriate clinical data using the major social work paradigms (ecological, social justice, cultural responsiveness, ethics, and use of evidence).Students will demonstrate an ability to collect, appraise, and organize appropriate clinical data executing the social work process (engagement, assessment, formulation, goal setting, intervention, and evaluation).Students will demonstrate an ability to analyze, compare, contrast, interpret, and apply major social work practice approaches (psychodynamic, cognitive behavioral, solution-focused and narrative) to appropriate clinical data from their internships and to their classroom colleaguesâ clients.Students will be able to assess and interpret specific client challenges demonstrating knowledge of course themes related to professional use of self, the therapeutic relationship, assessment skills, and brief treatment.Prerequisite: SWO 421B

In this advanced 3 credit course, students combine theoretical knowledge and insights with evidence-based strategies for specific populations. Each practice approach reflects different ways of gathering, organizing, and reflecting on pertinent information and leads to distinct ways of conceptualizing issues and co-constructing clinical processes with clients. Students learn to identify which practice method or intervention is most beneficial for each specific client in achieving positive outcomes. Specific populations will be considered in this course, including children and adolescents, families, older adults, and sexual and gender minorities. The course focuses on deepening your knowledge and advanced clinical skills working with these populations. As this is a course that focuses on clinical practice, the aim is to include a significant amount of demonstration, role-play, and expert insight across the asynchronous and synchronous learning. 

This 3 credit course focuses on advanced ways to conceptualize, assess, and intervene in families. Modern and postmodern theories will be examined, practiced, and critiqued. Practice examples will include nontraditional and traditional families, and applications of family and systems theories to work with individuals and dyads will additionally be discussed. Developing oneâs own clinical voice and attending to ethnicity, class, and other social identities will be emphasized. Students are encouraged to bring case materials and to take full advantage of varied experiential learning techniques.

This 3 credit course introduces the fundamental principles of social work research, stressing the link between research and practice. Students will develop their critical thought regarding ethical considerations in research and will learn to design a research project. Also, students will learn to be critical consumers of research and professional literature, with a focus on the specialized interests and needs of individuals, families, and communities served through social work practice and allied professions. Students will develop an understanding of how statistics are used in research. Readings and class discussions will present principles of evidence-based or evidence-informed practice. Emphasis will be placed on the application of research to the practice of social work in micro and macro settings.

Generalist Field Education is an agency-based course in which students apply, in supervised practice, the theoretical concepts, principles, values, and ethics taught in the generalist curriculum. In addition to the supervised learning of clinical skills with individuals, families, and groups, students will learn the varied roles and skills used by social workers at the agency and community level. Case based learning is deepened and amplified through field instruction, process recordings, and required written assignments.

The Simulated Field Experience (SFX), a 14-week, three credit course that constitutes the first term of the generalist field placement. The SFX involves weekly asynchronous content, live sessions, and select assignments designed to prepare students for the field placement. This course creates a learning lab guided by a strengths-based, anti-oppressive practice approach where students apply social work values, ethics, knowledge, and skills to simulated interactions with standardized client-actors, role plays, and practice scenarios. Accordingly, the course provides an opportunity for students to build social work competencies and to prepare for practice-based learning grounded in the exploration of affective and cognitive processes including self-reflection and self-regulation, critical thinking, and cultural humility. In addition, students are exposed to a generalist social work process, evidence-based modalities, ethical decision-making, risk assessment, and working in interprofessional teams. Agency and larger system contexts for services, as well as the impact of social and economic policy on agencies and clinical practice, will be woven throughout the course. Throughout the course, students practice use of field education learning methods, including a competency-based learning plan and evaluation, process recording, and other reflective practice tools. In addition, students are introduced to the purpose and practice of supervision, as well as field education expectations. After successful completion of the course, students enter the three-term agency-based placement, which comprises the final term of the generalist placement and both terms of the specialized placement.Simulation training is an evidence-based teaching and learning pedagogy and an essential method for applying knowledge to practice. It provides the highest level of experiential learning while retaining the safety of working with actors, instructors, and peers rather than actual clients. Importantly, simulation offers a unique opportunity for observed practice and learning in a supportive environment where students will benefit from instructor guidance, peer support, and engage in reflective practice for application to future practice. Scholarly research indicates that students who engage in simulation practice increase their knowledge, skills, and confidence as practitioners. 

Specialized Field Education is an agency-based course in which students apply, in supervised practice, the theoretical concepts, principles, values, and ethics taught in the specialist level curriculum. In addition to the supervised learning of clinical practice skills with individuals, families, and groups, students learn organizational level social work skills. Case based learning is deepened and amplified through instruction, process recordings and required written assignments.

Specialized Field Education is an agency-based course in which students apply, in supervised practice, the theoretical concepts, principles, values, and ethics taught in the specialist level curriculum. In addition to the supervised learning of clinical practice skills with individuals, families, and groups, students learn organizational level social work skills. Case based learning is deepened and amplified through instruction, process recordings and required written assignments.

Specialized Field Education is an agency-based course in which students apply, in supervised practice, the theoretical concepts, principles, values, and ethics taught in the specialist level curriculum. In addition to the supervised learning of clinical practice skills with individuals, families, and groups, students learn organizational level social work skills. Case based learning is deepened and amplified through instruction, process recordings and required written assignments.

Social group work began in the settlement houses of the Progressive Era (early 20th century). The objective of group work was to diminish the effects of poverty and racial or ethnic marginalization by creating stronger, more supportive community relationships. Through groups, clients can find kinship, empowerment, social connections, personal and political voice, and skills that enable them to engage in more meaningful relationships in their lives. This course prepares students to plan for, assess, facilitate and evaluate social work practice with groups. Students will develop an understanding of the developmental stages of groups, roles among group members, and the function of mutual aid.

In this 3 credit course, students will gain relevant knowledge and practice skills in order to practice motivational interviewing and dialectical behavior therapy âwithâ diverse client populations in an array of settings. In the first half of the course, students will gain exposure to the spirit of motivational interviewing as both a philosophy about client engagement and an approach that is sensitive to and respectful of the clientâs ambivalence about change. They will learn how to ask questions and respond to clients in a way that is curious, reflective, supportive, and ultimately strives to promote client self-determination, well-being, and readiness for change. MI has been proven to be an effective approach for clients who struggle with substance use disorders and other addictive disorders, as well as suicidal ideation. In the second half of the course, students will focus on dialectical behavior therapy, which is a manualized curriculum developed by Marsha Linehan and teaches clients the skills that enable self-regulation of affect, and to consider how their own meaning making and perceptions impact their behaviors that inform their sense of self and relationship with others, and is used with clients in both individual and group settings. Students will also learn how to integrate MI and DBT as a combined intervention strategy when appropriate.

This 3 credit elective course will focus on acquisition of practice skills using a narrative therapeutic approach with individuals, families, groups, and communities. It aims at teaching a therapeutic process based on a belief in the power of the specific language or languages used and the value of multiple perspectives in helping people reach preferred outcomes and maintain relationships. The course builds on knowledge, skills, and values acquired in the foundation year to assist students in developing narrative practice approaches. It also examines the research and conceptual underpinnings of narrative therapy. The course will address issues of cultural diversity and narrative practice approaches with different populations and groups. Using experiential methods and exercises, the course will engage participants in practice skills that promote collaboration through stances of openness, accountability, respect for power of community, and the belief in client competence and reliance on clientsâ own expertise. The course will pay attention to social problems on a micro and macro level. Students will be encouraged to observe and give feedback to one another. The course will be divided in three parts. In the first part, we will review theories and models of narrative therapy, the second part will address interventions and techniques of narrative practice, and the last part will attend to special populations and special issues. Special issues will include illness, disability, spirituality, abuse, eating disorders, the elderly, families and children, groups, organizations, and larger systems.

This 3 credit course focuses on developing advanced social work practice knowledge, skills, and core competencies with a focus on health care delivery. The course content emphasizes critical thinking, group discussion, demonstration, and integrative practice learning to increase studentsâ conceptual and practice skills in order to be well-trained practitioners in health care. The course aims to teach students to develop knowledge and the full range of social work skills used in health care. The components of psychosocial assessment and treatment are integrated with the aspects of the medical and physical functioning of the person-situation configuration. Coping tasks of individuals and family members are viewed from a perspective of growth based upon psychosocial capacities, pre-illness coping patterns, phases of the illness process, and prognosis for physical functioning and life. Cultural and class factors are emphasized relative to health belief systems and how such factors interact with access to and utilization of health care services. Given the ongoing changes in health care, attention will be paid to the opportunities as well as the threats posed by emerging developments, and the adaptation of skills needed to respond to this changing environment including work carried out in the fast-paced context of crisis and time constraints.  Specific content areas covered in this course include unique social work roles in health care practice context of policy, technology, organization and health behavior theory; use of evidence-based assessment tools, treatment, and clinical intervention models within a variety of health settings; working with children, adults, elderly, and special populations; grief and loss dynamics; discharge planning; case management and managed care; legal and ethical issues; and interdisciplinary team work.   This course will: Aid students in developing the advanced skills and knowledge required to adapt social work skills to the fast-paced and changing health care environment while retaining an emphasis on social work values and ethics. Aid students in developing the requisite knowledge and skills to work effectively with diverse vulnerable and oppressed populations, especially minority persons, people from different ethnic groups and the immigrant groups, people of varying sexual orientation, the elderly, and people with disabilities. Deepen practice knowledge and skills with an emphasis on those especially applicable to health care social work practice such as crisis intervention and the structured approaches found effective with people experiencing profound health problems. Develop understanding of the complex nature of health care delivery systems and skills in interdisciplinary practice.Consider approaches for evaluating health care social work practic<b>e. </b>

The object of this 3 credit course is to provide a working knowledge of the basic principles and specific techniques of a contemporary multimodal approach to cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT) with consideration of its integration with other therapeutic approaches such as dialectic behavior therapy and mindfulness-based stress reduction. Issues presented include depression, anxiety, interpersonal relationships, phobias, psychosis, and working with children and adolescents.

This 3 credit course provides students with the foundation needed to understand the benefits and uses of telebehavioral health as well as the role of the telebehavioral health social worker. As more agencies and practices are providing âonlineâ services, it is crucial for students to understand the role of technology, social work ethics, evidence-based practices, special populations and adaptations.

This 3 credit course is designed to prepare students in the basic principles of program and practice evaluation and their application to social work practice in agency settings. Using both case examples and their agency settings as laboratories, students will learn major approaches to evaluation (needs assessment, process, and outcome) with attention to the value, tensions, and ambiguities related to adapting current evaluation models to agency requirements for evaluation.

In this 3 credit course we will begin examining best practices for trauma treatment with children, adolescents and families.  Using the social work assessment process we will begin to use a phase oriented treatment paradigm to examine clinical applications of trauma treatment across various settings and client presentations.  Special attention will be given to the in vivo utilization or role plays to deepen and enhance our clinical skill set when working with diverse traumatized clients. Our clinical social work practice will focus on integrating the social work paradigms of engagement, assessment, practice and evaluation while incorporating methods of addressing social justice and client-centered policy engagement.The course will build on the knowledge and skills acquired in the foundation year Human Behavior in the Social Environment and Practice courses.

This 3 credit course provides a current review of trauma-informed practices for adult survivors of complex trauma and trauma, as well as trauma-informed practice interventions designed to work with families that have experienced chronic stress and complex trauma. Clinical social work with traumatized individuals and families requires a flexible and informed skill set. This course provides an overview of current literature and empirical evidence relating to the treatment of complex trauma in adulthood and family systems, with an emphasis placed on work with vulnerable and oppressed populations. Students will engage in live in vivo role-plays with trained actors several times throughout the semester so that they may enhance their clinical skills and gain greater mastery of intervention strategies. This course provides students with the opportunity to understand and engage in a variety of treatment approaches, as well as examine ethical issues, policy issues, and issues pertaining to social justice, and their relationship to trauma treatment.The course is the second semester of the Lifespan of Trauma Treatment course, and builds upon 528A: Lifespan of Trauma Treatment With Children and Adolescents. Additionally, the course builds on the knowledge and skills acquired in the foundation-year Human Behavior in the Social Environment and Practice courses.

This 3 credit course is designed to provide a bridge to the concentration year clinical curriculum and field placement. A strong emphasis is on exploring the development of a professional social work identity and on supporting student's increasing self-awareness and ability to learn from practice experience. The course will focus on broadening the capacity for the use of self, promoting reflective practice, conceptualizing various theoretical perspectives and their application to clinical work, and enhancing the ability to work across difference.

This 3 credit course is designed to increase interest in working with, and sensitivity to, those with severe mental illness and their families. We will explore the question of what constitutes mental illness, evaluate historical explanations, and address the implication of stigma associated with the illnesses. Various theoretical and treatment models will be presented including psychodynamic, cognitive behavioral understandings, psychoeducational, and empowerment perspectives. First-hand experiences of both those with the illnesses and their families will be highlighted through readings, film, and guest speakers. Specific treatment modalities will also be a focus of our work. Students are expected to bring in material from their work for discussion.

This 3 credit course introduces students to the theory of attachment, covering areas such as patterns of attachment across the life span, relevant development theories, challenges of adolescence, adult attachment styles and relationships, how different attachment issues may manifest at different stages of life, and practical implications of attachment for conducting clinical therapy sessions. The neurobiology of attachment, the implications for attachment in trauma recovery, and the development of psychopathology from an attachment and neurobiological perspective are explored. Special attention is paid to the early life experiences including preverbal life experiences, adverse experiences of childhood, and the impact of abuse and neglect in childhood. This course explores clinical applications and usefulness of case conceptualization from an attachment and neurobiological aspect. Evidence-based approaches are utilized as the foundation for our exploration of clinical applications.

Advanced Standing Field Education is an agency-based course in which students apply, in supervised practice, the theoretical concepts, principles, values, and ethics taught in the generalist curriculum. In addition to the supervised learning of clinical skills with individuals, families, and groups, students will learn the varied roles and skills used by social workers at the agency and community level. Case based learning is deepened and amplified through field instruction, process recordings, and required written assignments.

Advanced Standing Field Education is an agency-based course in which students apply, in supervised practice, the theoretical concepts, principles, values, and ethics taught in the generalist curriculum. In addition to the supervised learning of clinical skills with individuals, families, and groups, students will learn the varied roles and skills used by social workers at the agency and community level. Case based learning is deepened and amplified through field instruction, process recordings, and required written assignments.

The required course supports students in their ongoing leadership development. As the first leadership course in the DSW, it sets the foundation for developing skills to prepare students for leadership roles.  This course acknowledges the range of leadership experiences DSW students bring to the program and the potential to expand leader-manager roles following program completion. The course covers a variety of leadership theories and perspectives, challenging students to develop and assess their own leadership style, with a particular emphasis on inclusive leadership.  Building on the work of Simmons University Institute for Inclusive Leadership, the course puts significant attention on leadership values of diversity, equity, respect, cultural intelligence, and collaboration.  Inclusive leadership has these values at its core.  Specific skills of leadership, including assessment, communication, human capital development, decision-making, and collaboration are explored.  The course culminates with a focus on leadership for the future, exploring innovation, technology, and change.  Throughout the course, students are required to apply course materials to practice situations and develop strategies for social work leadership.

There is more to teaching than the transmission of information from one human being to another. Teaching is about building a culture of trust, a relationship that supports intellectual growth through shared purpose and mutual aid, and a willingness to take risk and be uncomfortable. Each individual learner brings unique life experiences, preferences, and a mindset to their learning.  The instructorâs role is to understand how human beings learn and then work with their students to create an environment that will enable them to feel supported, visible, and respected- a learning environment in which they can thrive and experience the transformation that can occur when learning occurs in context with others. We will begin this course by imagining the inner life of the adult learner as we examine social learning theory, cognitive and metacognitive science, contemplative practices, the interconnectedness between emotions and knowledge acquisition and retention, and other diverse approaches to student engagement.  As we consider different frameworks for understanding adult learning, we will explore the impediments and barriers to learning that result from complex trauma, poverty, oppression, and most notably, racism.  These experiences can greatly impact a learnerâs ability to learn and to feel like a contributing and valued member of a learning community. As social work educators, we frequently  teach learners who are living with many of the exigencies that affect their clients.The second half of this course focuses on the principles and practices of contemporary approaches to teaching that emphasize the learnerâs agency and voice, and the importance of making course content relevant, interactive, experiential, and applicable to learners as human beings and professionals.  Throughout the course we will deconstruct the impact of structural racism on higher education, and on our studentsâ sense of belonging within the classroom and to the programs and institutions in which they are enrolled.  These themes will be threaded throughout all of the course curriculum and learning activities.

This seminar is grounded in the NASW Code of Ethics, which suggests that all actions that social workers take have ethical implications and consequences and that social justice considerations, in particular, must be weighed with every action. Through examination of ethics literature, public records of ethical violations, class discussions, and case-based learning, students will develop knowledge and skill in using an anti-racist, ethics-informed approach to decision making and taking action in the core areas of the DSW program: practice, teaching, and leadership.

This course will examine how professional social work knowledge evolves in the context of broader intellectual currents in philosophy and the social sciences, including debates in epistemology, ontology, and political and moral philosophy. Traditional and postmodern theories will be examined and deconstructed in relation to clinical practice with vulnerable populations traditionally served by social workers. Emphasis will be placed on utilizing a diversity, equity, inclusion, power, and antiracist (DEIPAR) framework to critically review perspective, particularly in relation to each other and their clinical utility and limitations when applied to vulnerable populations.

This course is designed to prepare students for diverse roles in organizational leadership with a focus on shifting institutional culture, creating social change, and advancing anti-racist policies and practices. Students will deepen their knowledge of organizational theories and concepts of power, privilege, and oppression within institutional frameworks. Students will develop strategies for effective change leadershipâ"including organizational assessment and analysis, adaptive solution finding, and leveraging of their own vantage points and positionality within an organization.

This course is designed to deepen studentsâ understanding of theories inclusive of theories previously explored in Practice 1, that advance practice using DEIP &amp; anti-racist (DEIPAR) lenses to help understand the relevance and supporting science of incorporating theories of historical and generational trauma. Theories of institutional, structural and individualized oppression will be discussed in the context of increasing awareness regarding: personal benefit of members of the dominant society from historical dehumanization of others, the impact of internalized and accommodated dehumanization in non-dominant and dominant societal members, personal and corporate responsibility for creating the conditions of dehumanization; how culture creates and recreates dehumanization and acceptance of dehumanization; ethical implications of being complicit in dehumanization; and the role of resistance to rejection in the struggle to use DEIPAR frameworks.

This course focuses on developing studentsâ knowledge of research methods to evaluate and utilize evidence for practice in clinical settings. Students will explore both quantitative and qualitative methods such that students are able to read and critique published research and determine the implications for evidence-based and evidence-informed practices with a particular focus on underserved and underrepresented populations. Students will also examine these methods for implementing practice evaluations for evidence-based and evidence-informed practice.

This course provides DSW students with the foundation needed to develop and design a course from a Learner Centered and Anti-Racist Approach. The student will have the opportunity to gain knowledge and skill related to the creation of learning objectives, assessments, syllabi and other key elements of a course. In addition, DSW students will learn to design and execute a Learner Centered instructional plan, rooted in inclusive pedagogy. Strategies will be discussed for effective instruction and management of classroom dynamics.

This course is designed to focus the broader themes of the first leadership course into examination of social justice and anti-racist considerations in clinical program supervsion and management, including challenging oppressive workplace structures and building decolonized work climates and cultures. Discussions and coursework will address the range of internal program dynamics addressing diversity, equity and inclusion issues in clinical supervision, managing complaints and conflict.

This course explores complex issues in classroom teaching. It builds on knowledge developed in SWO 702, The Inner Life of the Adult Learner, which emphasized understanding the learner and SWO 708, The Fundamentals of Inclusive Course Design and Effective Instruction, which focused on learner-centered teaching, and development of universally designed learning environments. In this course students will be engaged in developing culturally responsive approaches to navigating classroom dynamics. They will also learn to implement learning strategies for developing classrooms grounded in cultural humility, as well as to create space for debate in classrooms. Additionally, students will learn to apply strategies for the building of anti-racist (using DEIPAR principles) and inclusive classrooms in the complex learning environment. This will be done by way of synthesizing the knowledge gained through self-reflection, and analysis and evaluation of scholarly pedagogical literature.

This course builds on SWO-704 Deconstruction and Development of Clinical Social Work Knowledge and Practice and SWO-706 Theories to Advance Practice content to examine clinical processes working with complex and diverse populations. Building on critical skills of inquiry and analysis of critical race theory and intersectionality, students will explore the impact of clinical processes when working with complex and diverse populations inclusive of but not limited to: intersubjectivity, therapeutic relationship, transference and countertransference, containment, holding, the use of defenses, hope, and justice. The course will help students learn to apply tenets of radical social work and a decolonizing lens to explore processes of change toward a (re)imagined social work practice for complex and diverse populations. Using case material, students will interrogate the assumptions of theory, research and practice as they relate to working with complex and diverse populations. The course will challenge students toward skill and knowledge generation regarding conceptualization, critique, and analysis of culturally-informed formulation and in responsive working alliances with clients.

This course focuses on the development of expert level knowledge, skills, and competencies in interdisciplinary social work practice. The aims of the course are to familiarize students with 1.) the application of varying models of interdisciplinary practice 2.) approaches to working with and across disciplines while centering the stakeholder within the experience and 3.) the skills necessary to assume leadership roles on interdisciplinary teams. Students explore the complex interactions of different disciplines while examining the impact of interdisciplinary practice on outcomes, satisfaction, and greater structural change in the context of social determinants of health. Students embrace the foundations of social work as a frame for interdisciplinary practice as anti-racist, anti-oppressive practitioners, educators, and leaders. The course content emphasizes critical thinking, peer discussion, demonstration, and case-based learning to enhance studentsâ conceptual and practice skills to not only participate in, but lead interdisciplinary teams. 

This course will examine the nature of leadership adaptation in the context of the life-cycle of non-profit agencies. This course builds on content learned in prior leadership courses: SWO 701 Transformation, Inspiration, and Inclusion, and SWO 705 Power, Passion, and Social Change. The course will frame the knowledge and comprehension of adaptive leadership using the Judith Simon model of the five stages of the agency life-cycle. Students will engage in grouped discussion of this framed progression model to build contextual understanding of theories of power and social justice concerns regarding adaptive leadership. The class will explore tensions and ambiguities of leadership, as well as personal and public resistances to DEIPAR (diversity, equity, inclusion, power, anti-racist) considerations. At this stage, there is an emphasis on collaborative learning where students engage in the development and application of concepts relating to adaptive leadership found in readings and real world examples. Students will collaboratively synthesize and apply their emerging leadership in the area around which they are developing their expertise (their Capstone projects), using adaptive and socially just (DEIPAR) leadership lenses. Class discussions unfold using workshop style discussions to facilitate student application of ideas in new ways and/or in new contexts.

This is a process intensive course toward degree completion. Students will work with course faculty to refine their Proposal and build toward oral defense of their Capstone proposal. This is done through a scaffolding process where the students first develop their comprehensive exam, then develop their literature review, and construct their proposal. In this course, students will integrate their learning and knowledge from previous curricular content. The first paper of this course is the comprehensive exam where students will demonstrate knowledge of comprehensive integration of the three pillars (teaching, leadership and practice) as it relates to their developing area of expertise (Capstone project), and the DEIPAR framework. Students who received a passing grade on this comprehensive exam can then begin work on their second paper, the Literature Review, which justifies the project being proposed. A passing grade on the Literature Review paves the way to develop the Capstone Proposal.  Students will work with course faculty to refine their Proposal and prepare for oral defense of their Capstone proposal.  Content creation and application of knowledge and skills are expected weekly throughout the term.

The Capstone Seminar course builds on the Integrative Seminar, in which students demonstrated their expertise in DSW curricular content and defended their Capstone proposal (and obtained IRB approval as was needed). In this Seminar, students will implement the projects that were approved in the Integrative Seminar, which sets the stage for their postâ"DSW career trajectory.  The Capstone is the culminating degree project designed to address a problem, gap or unmet need in social work practice, leadership, or teaching. The strategy used to address the identified concern can be creative and delivery of the project can be varied. Through the Capstone, students will demonstrate their expertise in their chosen area through application of knowledge and theory gained in the three program pillars of practice, incorporating the DEIPAR social justice lens.