Course No :
Course Title :
Instructor :
SOWO 570 (Section 001: Mondays, 2:00 – 4:50pm)
Social Work Practice with Organizations & Communities, Fall 2011
Mat Despard, MSW
School of Social Work, Room 402-E
Office: 919.962.6467
Fax: 919.843.8715
Office Hours: despard@email.unc.edu
Skype: mat.despard
Mondays 12-1:30pm & Tuesdays 12–1:30pm
(Please request appointment as I am sometimes asked to attend meetings and events during these hours)
COURSE DESCRIPTION: In this course, participants explore frameworks, values, and skills to meet individual and family needs through interventions with work groups, organizations, and communities.
COURSE OBJECTIVES:
1.
Articulate and define social work roles and effective engagement, communication and use of self skills in organizations and communities working with diverse populations by age, race/ethnicity, nationality, gender, gender identity, sexual orientation, abilities and immigrant/refugee status.
2.
Relate social work roles in organizations and communities to the NASW Code of Ethics, particularly concerning social justice, self-determination, cultural competence and social and political action in working with disadvantaged populations.
3.
Understand basic explanatory theories and perspectives that guide social work practice with work groups, organizations, human service systems and communities.
4.
Demonstrate how to assess a community issue(s), including the strengths and needs of neighborhoods and various population groups - racial and ethnic minorities, older adults, children and youth, gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgendered people, people with disabilities, immigrants, refugees – or other groups who have experienced disadvantage.
5.
Understand organizational structure, culture, climate, power and decision-making processes in human service organizations.
6.
Articulate strategies for how human service organizations can increase cultural competency, multiculturalism and anti-oppression.
7.
Articulate how to support self-advocacy efforts among consumer and population groups that have experienced disadvantage.
8.
Understand various evidence-based intervention approaches to community change through social planning, social action, community organizing and community development practice models.
9.
Demonstrate how to plan an organizational, human service system or community intervention aimed at measurably improving the quality of life for a group of people.
EXPANDED DESCRIPTION: Many homeless people struggle with poor health, severe mental illness and substance abuse and are in and out of jail and emergency rooms. Single parents with young children can’t afford high quality child care to help them work and prepare their children for success in school.

These are the types of problems social workers care about but that can’t be fixed by helping one person at a time. This is why we need to help make changes in organizations and communities .
This course focuses on helping students developing the following skills to help facilitate organizational and community change, which correspond to graded assignments:
1.
Community assessment – collecting and analyzing primary (new) and secondary (existing) quantitative and qualitative data to better understand a community issue or problem.
2.
Program or intervention planning – explaining how a set of coordinated activities of one or more organizations that will result in quality of life improvements (increased job skills, lower neighborhood crime) for a group of people.
3.
Organizational assessment and development – understanding key aspects of human service organizations, ways that they can be improved, and how they can help facilitate community change.
4.
Advocacy – learning how to advocate for organizational and/or community change with key decision makers.
The key assumptions of this course are:
1.
Communities have both problems (risk factors) and assets (protective factors) that influence people’s behavior outside of the family or household.
2.
Social and economic opportunities are not equally distributed in communities. Certain groups of people experience disadvantage and/or discrimination that stands in their way of getting what they need for a decent life.
3.
The best efforts to help a group of people are those with a) a clear focus on outcomes (intended quality of life improvements for a group of people); b) the involvement of people most affected by the problems; c) clearly stated ideas about how change will occur; and d) are well evaluated and guided by the best available evidence .
4.
Human service organizations need to work together (collaborate) and with groups of residents, businesses, and faith communities to improve community conditions.
5.
Human service organizations are nothing more than vehicles to organize sets of activities to improve the quality of life for people. They are imperfect and in constant need of improvement and community support.
6.
Sometimes it is better for people to help or advocate for themselves than to be helped by human service organizations or the government. Sometimes our role as social workers is to figure out how to support people in their efforts to do so.
RESOURCES
All course lectures, syllabus, assignment information, and external links to useful web sites are or will be available on Sakai, at http://sakai.unc.edu
REQUIRED TEXTS & READINGS :
Gibelman, M. & Furman, R. (2008). Navigating human service organizations (2 nd
ed.) . Chicago, IL:
Lyceum Books, Inc. (referred to as “GF” in Class Schedule and Reading Assignments, below)
Unless otherwise noted, all other required readings are available on the Sakai course site.
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TEACHING METHODS
My goal is to make course content as practical as is possible in a classroom setting. We will use case examples, role plays, multimedia, problem-solving exercises and discuss students’ field placement and prior professional experiences. Students’ active participation is critical.
CLASS ASSIGNMENTS
Student performance will be evaluated based on the following assignments, which are briefly described below (full, detailed assignment instructions and grading guides are available on Sakai):
Requirement Due Date* Points
Class Participation & Attendance
Community Assessment
Logic Model & Theory of Change
Organizational Assessment
Ongoing
10/3
10/31
11/21
15
20
30
15
Community Advocacy 11/28 or 12/5 20
*Except for the Community Advocacy assignment, students have the option of turning in one assignment one week later than the due date.
All written assignments should be submitted electronically on Sakai using your PID, not your name by the start of class time on the due date.
Class Participation & Attendance (15 points)
The full number of points will be awarded when students miss no more than one class, show that they have completed assigned readings, and make active and thoughtful contributions to class discussions and other learning activities. Fewer points will be awarded when this is not the case at the discretion of the instructor. In extenuating circumstances (medical or family emergency), absences will be considered excused. Being on time for class is very important and is a sign of respect for the learning environment.
Being late and/or leaving early may result in the loss of class participation points. Participation will be judged by the degree to which students participate in class discussions, exercises, role plays and other learning activities.
Community Assessment (20 points; Due 10/3/2011 )
Students will select a social problem for which they will conduct an abbreviated community assessment, such as the need for coordinated mental health and substance abuse services for homeless adults with children. Students will demonstrate the ability to access and use online secondary data (data that has already been collected) sources and conduct one key informant interview to assess the problem. In addition, students will identify community assets relevant to a subsequent change effort to address the community problem, describe how they would understand the problem from the perspective of persons directly affected by it, and discuss the implications of their findings.
Logic Model & Theory of Change (30 points; Due 10/31/2011 )
Students will create a logic model that depicts the major components of a new program or intervention
(not an existing one) that they think is needed to address the social problem discussed in the
Community Assessment assignment. Students will also develop a theory of change that explains the assumptions underlying the logic model, particularly why they think the selected activities and/or services of the program or intervention will result in the desired outcomes. The theory of change must be supported with no fewer than 5 scholarly sources to demonstrate the ability to use the best available evidence to support ideas for a program or intervention.
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Organizational Assessment (15 points; Due 11/21/2011 )
Students will complete a profile of an organization which they think would be a good home for the program or intervention that they outline in the Logic Model/Theory of Change assignment and explain why they think the organization is a good home.
Community Advocacy (20 points; Due 11/28 or 12/5/2011 )
In small teams of three, students will demonstrate advocacy skills by conducting a 15 minute presentation or discussion in class before a mock group of students who play roles as the targeted audience. Students will form teams of three around shared interests (e.g. homelessness) and decide upon which previous assignment that they wish to focus their findings and/or discussion. For example, a team interested in housing issues may present Community Assessment findings related to homelessness and affordable housing before a county Board of Commissioners from whom they wish to secure greater funding. The targeted audience will be a group that has the power or influence to address the social problem.
Detailed instructions and grading guides for each of these assignments are available on Sakai in the
Assignments folder.
GRADING SYSTEM :
The School of Social Work operates on an evaluation system of Honors (H), Pass (P), Low Pass (L), and
Fail (F). The numerical values of these grades are:
H: 94-100; P: 80-93; L: 70-79; F: 69 and lower
A grade of P is considered entirely satisfactory. The grade of Honors (“H”) — which only a limited number of students attain -- signifies that the work is clearly excellent in all respects.
Grading Guides
Grading guides for all written work can be found on Sakai. These guides identify grading criteria for each assignment, including the relative weight of each criterion. Therefore, students are advised to closely follow the guides, as they constitute the Instructor’s expectations and evaluation methodology for these assignments.
Reviewing Assignment Drafts
I am happy to review outlines and drafts of assignments to offer limited feedback to help a student determine whether they are on the right track as long as such material is emailed to me at least 4 calendar days before the assignment is due.
EXPECTATIONS FOR WRITTEN ASSIGNMENTS
Students are expected to use good academic English; grades will be lowered for poor grammar, syntax, or spelling. Those who have difficulty writing are STRONGLY encouraged to use online resources of the campus Writing Center ( http://www.unc.edu/depts/wcweb/) and the School of Social Work
(http://ssw.unc.edu/students/writing) and/or seek assistance from Diane Wyant or Susan White in the
School of Social Work.
The School of Social Work faculty has adopted APA style as the preferred format for papers and publications. All written assignments for this course should be submitted in APA style.
Exceptions to this requirement are that students are expected to format and present their written work based on 1) assignment instructions and 2) single spacing and any format the student desires for presenting bulleted
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and numbered lists, tables, charts and other in-text objects that results in a professional and attractive presentation expected by human service organizations.
Information concerning APA style and writing resources are listed below:
American Psychological Association. (2009). Publication manual of the American
Psychological Association, 6 th
Edition . Washington, D.C.: American Psychological Association.



 http://www.apastyle.org/learn/faqs/index.aspx (Frequently asked questions about APA Style) http://owl.english.purdue.edu/handouts/research/r_apa.html
(Additional APA Style guidance) http://www.bartleby.com/141/ (electronic version of Strunk's The Elements of Style which was originally published in 1918) http://www.fas.harvard.edu/~wricntr/resources.html (The Harvard University Writing Center, links
 to on-line reference material and many other useful sites for authors) http://www.unc.edu/depts/wcweb/ (The UNC writing center—on-line and tutorial help at Phillips
Annex 962-7710)
POLICY ON INCOMPLETES AND LATE ASSIGNMENTS :
A paper is considered late if it is emailed in any later than the start of class on the day it is due . The grade for late papers will be reduced 10% per day, including weekends. Therefore, a paper that would merit a grade of 100 on Friday will receive a grade of 70 if submitted on Monday. Similarly, a paper due at 2pm on Monday handed in at 3pm will be considered 1 day late.
Except for the Community Advocacy assignment, students have the option of turning in one assignment one week later than the due date. This is meant to give students flexibility in meeting multiple assignment deadlines.
A grade of Incomplete is given only in exceptional and rare circumstances that warrant it, e.g. family crisis, serious illness. It is the student’s responsibility to request and explain the reasons for an
Incomplete. The instructor has no responsibility to give an Incomplete without such a request.
POLICY ON ACADEMIC DISHONESTY :
It is the responsibility of every student to obey and to support the enforcement of the Honor Code, which prohibits lying, cheating, or stealing in actions involving the academic processes of this class.
Students will properly attribute sources used in preparing written work and will include the following pledge on the first page of all written assignments: “I have not given or received unauthorized aid in preparing this written work.” Credit will not be awarded for unpledged work. Please refer to the APA
Style Guide, The SSW Manual, and the SSW Writing Guide for information on attribution of quotes, plagiarism and appropriate use of assistance in preparing assignments. In keeping with the UNC Honor
Code, if reason exists to believe that academic dishonesty has occurred, a referral will be made to the
Office of the Student Attorney General for investigation and further action as required.
POLICY ON ACCOMMODATIONS FOR STUDENTS WITH DISABILITIES:
Students with disabilities that affect their participation in the course and who wish to have special accommodations should contact the University’s Disabilities Services ( http://disabilityservices.unc.edu
) and provide documentation of their disability. Disabilities Services will notify the instructor that the student has a documented disability and may require accommodations. Students should discuss the specific accommodations they require (e.g. changes in instructional format, examination format) directly with the instructor.
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POLICY ON THE USE OF ELECTRONIC DEVICES IN THE CLASSROOM
Use of electronic devices is permitted for learning purposes such as taking notes and looking up information relevant to a discussion or small group activity, but is prohibited for purposes not relevant to the class and/or when it is distracting to others or keeps the student from being engaged in class.
Class 1 - 8/29 Introduction
Objectives
1.
Course overview, syllabus review, class norms.
2.
Discussion of macro social work practice models, principles and roles.
Class 2 - 9/12 Understanding Communities
Objectives
1.
Understand key characteristics and functions of communities, including different types of capital.
2.
Describe key concepts and ideas related to how communities change.
Readings
Homan, M.S. (2011). Promoting community change: Making it happen in the real world. (Read Chapter
2: Theoretical frameworks for community change, pp. 34-69).
Mancini, J.A. & Bowen, G.L. (2009). Community resilience: A social organization theory of action and change. In J.A. Mancini & K.A. Roberto (Eds.), Pathways of human development: Explorations of change, (pp. 245-265). Lanham, MD: Lexington Books.
Class 3 - 9/19 Community Assessment, Part 1
Objectives
1.
Describe the purpose of and methods for conducting community needs and asset assessments.
2.
Explain ways in which assessments can include the participation of residents and other stakeholders.
3.
Understand the needs and assets of diverse groups of people.
Readings
The Community Tool Box. (2011). Chapter 3: Assessing community needs and resources . Read the following sections:
Section 2: Understanding and describing the community .
Section 3: Conducting public forums and listening sessions .
Section 4: Collecting information about the problem .
Section 5: Analyzing community problems .
Magaña, S. & Ybarra, M. (2010). Family and community as strengths in the Latino community. In R.
Furman & N. Negi (Eds.), Social work practice with Latinos: Key issues and emerging themes.
Chicago: Lyceum.
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Manning, M.C. (2001). Culturally competent assessments of African American communities and organizations. In R. Fong & S. Furuto (Eds.), Culturally competent practice: Skills, interventions and evaluations.
Boston: Allyn & Bacon.
Class 4 - 9/30
(Friday)
Objectives
Community Assessment, Part 2 *Class Meets in Durham at 2pm*
1.
Understand how key aspects of Durham’s history have shaped its current community conditions.
2.
Describe community needs and resources in East Durham and explain why and how these differ from other parts of Durham.
Readings
See web links on Sakai in the Class 4 folder for information about Durham’s history and Northeast
Central Durham to give students an orientation for the field trip.
Class 5 - 10/3 Solving Community Problems: Different Strategies
Objectives
1.
Understand and compare and contrast different strategies for addressing community problems.
2.
Explain when collaborative efforts involving multiple organizations are needed rather than the efforts of a single organization.
3.
Describe the different professional roles social workers adopt in community change efforts.
Video: Holding Ground (story of the Dudley Street Neighborhood Initiative in Boston, MA)
Readings
Administration for Children & Families. (2008). Interagency collaboration.
Retrieved from http://www.childwelfare.gov/pubs/acloserlook/interagency/interagency.pdf
Belkin-Martinez, D. (2010). “Solidaridad y justicia”: Latinas, community organizing, and empowerment.
In R. Furman & N. Negi (Eds.), Social work practice with Latinos: Key issues and emerging themes. Chicago: Lyceum
Gamble, D. & Weil, M. (2010). Community practice skills: Local to global perspectives.
(Table 2.1 Eight models of community practice with twenty-first century contexts & Table 2.2 Primary and related roles for social workers/community practice workers in the eight models).
Johnson Butterfield, A.K., Chisanga, B. (2008). Community development. In T. Mizrahi and L.E. Davis
(Eds.) Encyclopedia of Social Work (20 th
Edition).
Washington, DC: .
National Association of Social
Workers. (e-reference edition). (Access via UNC Libraries; Click “Browse” and enter “Community
Development”)
Lopez, M.E. (2003). Transforming schools through community organizing: A research review . Harvard
Family Research Project, Harvard Graduate School of Education, Cambridge, MA.
Sherraden, M.S. (2008). Community economic development. In T. Mizrahi and L.E. Davis (Eds.)
Encyclopedia of Social Work (20 th
Edition) . Washington, DC: . National Association of Social
Workers. (e-reference edition). (Access via UNC Libraries; Click “Browse” and enter “Community
Economic Development”)
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Class 6 - 10/10 Solving Community Problems: Using Logic Models
Objectives
1.
Articulate outcome objectives – quality of life improvements for a target population – and relate them to evidence concerning an identified problem(s) from a community assessment.
2.
Draft a logic model to identify the inputs, activities, outputs, and outcomes of a program or intervention that address the identified problem(s).
Readings
W.K. Kellogg Foundation. (2004). Logic model development guide . (Read Chapters 1-3, pp. 1-34). Battle
Creek, MI.
Class 7 - 10/14
Friday
Solving Community Problems: Examples * Class Meets in Durham at 2pm*
Objectives
1.
Understand the characteristics and effectiveness of various interventions to improve community conditions for a group of people.
Readings
We will be meeting with staff from East Durham Children’s Initiative and the Durham Partnership for
Children in Durham. See Sakai for web links for background information about Promise Neighborhoods and about community change efforts in East Durham.
Class 8 - 10/24 Solving Community Problems: Theories of Change
Objectives
1.
Articulate a theory of change for a program or intervention – a coherent, evidence-based explanation of how program or intervention activities will result in desired outcomes.
2.
Understand how to use the best available evidence to support your theory of change.
Readings
ActKnowledge and the Aspen Institute Roundtable on Community Change. (2003). Guided example:
Project Superwomen.
Class 9 – 10/31 Understanding Human Service Organizations
Objectives
1.
Identify the key differences among nonprofit, for profit and public human service organizations.
2.
Understand the professional roles that social workers play in different host settings.
3.
Explain what it means for an organization to be considered “community-based” and how this affects service delivery and participant outcomes.
Readings
GF Chapter 1: Getting to know the human service organization
Chapter 2: Distinguishing features of organizations
Chapter 7: Social work practice in host settings
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Class 10 - 11/7 Human Service Organization Culture
Objectives
1.
Understand how organizational culture can affect service delivery and outcomes for client populations
2.
Explain how organizational culture can perpetuate discrimination and oppression and how this affects service delivery and participant outcomes.
3.
Describe steps organizations can take to become culturally competent, multicultural or antioppressive and understand the differences in these competencies.
Readings
GF Chapter 4: Who has the power? Roles in human service organizations
Hemmelgarn, A.L., Glisson, C. & James, L.R. (2010). Organizational culture and climate: Implications for services and intervention research. In Y. Hasenfeld (Ed.), Human services as complex organizations (2 nd
ed.).
Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.
Messinger, L. (2004) Out in the field: Gay and lesbian social work students’ experiences in field placement. Journal of Social Work Education, 40 (2), 187-203.
Class 11 - 11/14 Organizational Development
Objectives
1.
Understand how organizations can improve their performance.
2.
Explain ways in which social workers can exert leadership in human service organizations – influencing others to improve organizational performance – regardless of their formal title.
Readings
GF Chapter 11: Coping with change
Chapter 12: Lending a helping hand: Making your organization better
James, J., Green, D., Rodriguez, C. & Fong, R. (2008). Addressing disproportionality through undoing racism, leadership development, and community engagement. Child Welfare, 87 (2), 279-296.
Class 12 - 11/21 Advocating for Change in Organizations and Communities
Objectives
1.
Describe basic differences between advocating on behalf of a group of people and supporting self-advocacy efforts.
2.
Demonstrate various advocacy skills.
3.
Understand how to identify and engage targets for change.
4.
Describe how to facilitate effective meetings.
Readings
Hardcastle, D. A. & Powers, P. R. (2004). Community Practice: Theories and skills for social workers (2 nd ed.) (Chapter 10: Using work groups: committees, teams, and boards & Chapter 13: Using the advocacy spectrum).
Class 13 - 11/28 Community Advocacy Presentations
Class 14 - 12/5 Community Advocacy Presentations (cont’d), Course Review & Evaluation
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