SHS 250-Community and Client Advocacy
Social and Human Services Department
Seattle Central Community College
Winter, 2009

Disability Notation: If you need course adaptations or accommodation because of a disability, if you have emergency medical information to share with me or if you need special arrangements in case the building must be evacuated, please make an appointment or talk with me as soon as possible.

Course description:  This course will cover the roles of the advocate in various human service settings, use of community advocacy resources and effective use of the media, law, negotiation and political process to achieve needed human services.

Text:  Promoting Community Change, 3rd Ed.  Homan, Mark S.  Brooks/Cole Publishing, 2004.

Course objectives:  The student will...

1.  exhibit an understanding of various types of advocacy including legislative, community organizing/grassroots development and networking as well as others.
2.  identify specific populations that may benefit from advocacy and issues specific to these populations that an advocate must consider.
3.  become familiar with sources of funding and ways of accessing that funding.
4.  develop an understanding of and an ability to work with multidisciplinary systems.
5.  display a knowledge of barriers that members of various populations face in accessing services.
6.  become familiar with local agencies/organizations that provide various types of advocacy services for specific populations including older adults, people of color, HIV+ clients and children and adults with disabilities, as well as others.
7.  work in a group on a project that involves application of social change strategies.

Instructor Responsibilities

1. To create a safe learning environment that allows for an exchange of ideas and exploration of the concepts and issues we encounter in this course.
2. To make clear my expectations of you in regard to preparation for class, class activities and assignments.
3. To maintain reasonable and high expectations and to hold you accountable to these.
4. To be available to help you individually and to provide referrals to other services that may be of help to you.
5. To give you feedback on your work so that you can increase your skills and knowledge throughout the quarter and beyond.

Student Responsibilities

1. To arrive in class on time and be prepared to actively participate in the class session.
2. To complete assignments on time and in accordance with the guidelines defined by me.
3. To stay in contact with me throughout the quarter, especially if you are having difficulty, i.e. absences, not understanding the material etc. Contact can be by telephone, email, in person or in writing. Your assignments are a good place to ask questions, offer answers or keep me informed of how you are doing in the class.
4. To be aware of how your behavior affects your classmates, the teacher and the learning atmosphere and act accordingly.
5. To develop professionalism in the following ways:

• Through the use of appropriate language.
• Maintaining confidentiality of information shared in the classroom.
• Monitoring your self disclosure and ensuring it is relevant to course content. Self disclosure of a personal nature can lead to feelings of vulnerability for all involved and can detract from the learning that is happening.
• By practicing listening skills. It takes effort to hear and understand what others are saying.  Class discussions are a good time to practice active listening.
• To be aware of how your behavior and attitude affect the culture of the classroom and the learning of yourself and peers.  Please turn off cell phones and/or pagers.
• Respecting diverse points of view and being willing to accept that there is often more than one acceptable answer.
• Accepting the fact that there are also plenty of wrong answers.

Assignments

1. Final group project (40%):  Early in the quarter you will choose an issue with 2-4 classmates that you would like to focus on for the duration of the quarter or the entire class will choose one project to work on.  Your small group will research the issue, develop a plan of action to promote change and implement the plan.  Your goal will focus on social change, rather than direct service, and it should be something you can accomplish during the quarter. At the end of the quarter your group will present your work to the rest of the class.

Some examples of past projects include organizing a campus-wide forum on proposed legislation, proposal for adoption of new curriculum in the SHS program., development and distribution of an information brochure regarding services for potential or actual domestic violence victims and developing and promoting a mentoring program on campus for students who are  former foster youth.  As you can see, there is a wide range of possibilities and you have the opportunity to do something that is meaningful to you.  I will provide you with a handout detailing the requirements of the project.  The written portion is due March 16th; presentations will be the 16th and the 18th.

2.  Learning Activities (30%):  Details and grading criteria will be provided on a separate handout.

• Use the crisisclinic.org Community Resources Online to locate five different advocacy services.
• Write a letter to an elected official, e.g. city or county council member, state legislator, member of congress or school board member, regarding a specific issue. 
• Attend a community meeting and turn in a 1-2 page observation.
• Complete a rough draft or progress report on your group project.

3.  Test  (10%):  There will be one test on Feb. 2nd.

4.  Attendance and participation (20%):  Your presence in class contributes to the energy and learning of everyone.  Additionally, because you are working on a group project, your group mates are relying on you.  This portion of your grade will be based on seminar discussions and exit notes.  

Late Policy:
Do everything you can to turn your work in on time. I have planned the assignments to coincide with the content we are covering in class and they are designed to enhance your understanding of the material. Therefore, if you don't do the assignment when it is due you are not going to get the full benefit of it. If you have an emergency and cannot complete an assignment on time, please let me know ahead of time. 10% will be deducted for work turned in up to one week late. 

Plagiarism

Plagiarism is defined as "taking and using another person's ideas and/or writing as one's own"  (Oxford American Dictionary).  It may be interpreted as the result of misunderstanding or of cheating.  It's becoming a greater problem as information is so readily available on the internet.  The forms of plagiarism I run into include quoting material from a source without identifying it as a quote and citing it and cutting and pasting material from other sources, as if written by the student.  Sometimes a student will cut and paste an entire paper and pass it off as their own work.  All of these examples are unacceptable.  If a paper is plagiarized the student will receive no credit.

SHS 250-Community and Client Advocacy