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Welcome Human Services |
Human Services Program
CORE HUS COURSES HUS 101
Introduction to Human Services: 3
Credits The human service field will be studied from
historical, political and social perspectives.
Students will familiarize themselves with the basic knowledge of common
problems in living and consumer populations, helping strategies and core skills
the delivery of human services. Techniques needed to effectively work in and
utilize the human service network will be presented. Students will be introduced to the agencies and services
available in the greater Worcester area. Upon
completion of the course the student will be able to explain the value of
participant empowerment, access appropriate supportive services, and
expeditiously navigate the human service system. This course addresses the standard core competencies for
human service workers in the areas of: Participant
Empowerment, Communication, Community and Service Networking, Community Living
Skills and Supports, Crisis Intervention, Education, Training and
Self-Development, and Documentation Prerequisite: ENG 100
F/S/SU HUS 121
Helping Relationships: Delivering Human Services:
3 Credits The helping relationship is one that partners with
and empowers others. This course
will introduce the student to a variety of knowledge, skills and personal
characteristics critical to an effective helping relationship.
Helping
others is both an art and a science. This
course is built upon research about human behavior, life stage theory,
intervention strategies and strength-based practice.
The art element is related to how an individual worker interprets,
integrates and is capable of developing a "feeling" about the person
who sits across from them. Using
demonstration, lecture, role-play and hands on experience; the student will
learn the fundamentals of: basic helping skills, crisis intervention, behavior
modification, and case management. Skills
in accurate document of client information on forms or with computer information
systems are a required outcome for this course.
This course addresses the standard core competencies for human service
workers in the areas of: Participant
Empowerment, Communication, Assessment, Community Living Skills and Supports,
Crisis Intervention and Documentation. Prerequisite: ENG 100
F/S/SU HUS
122 Community Development: 3 Credits Community
development is a process of social action in which the people of a community
organize themselves for planning and action; define their common and individual
needs and problems; make group and individual plans to meet their needs and
solve their problems; execute these plans with a maximum reliance upon community
resources; and supplement these resources when necessary with services and
materials from governmental and non-government agencies outside the community. This class develops a theoretical and practical understanding of community development (CD) strategies most frequently used in health education and human services programs. It examines social, cultural, and cognitive processes involved in community development through readings and hands-on projects in health education and human services. It is designed to provide you with principles and methods as well as the skills essential to planning and implementing CD in professional community health and human services practice. Prerequisites:
None.
F HUS
125 Group Dynamics:
3 Credits
Using a combination of didactic and experiential
methods, this course will facilitate the students learning about the theory;
process and practice of group work in human services. Students will describe the value of group work in helping
interventions, the stages of group development, the roles and tasks of the group
facilitator and strategies to deal with common group problems.
Course material will emphasize the purpose and unique issues of groups
commonly found in human service programs: education, discussion, task, growth,
support counseling and self-help. The
experiential component of this course will provide the student an opportunity to
participate in a group with the goal of enhancing self-awareness of personal
qualities and skills required for effective group leader roles. This course
addresses the standard core competencies for human service workers in the areas
of: Participant Empowerment,
Communication, Assessment, Community Living Skills and Supports, Crisis
Intervention and Documentation. Class
size will be limited to fifteen students due to the interactive nature of the
course. Prerequisites:
HUS 101 and HUS 121 F/S/SU HUS
141 Community Service: Delivering
Human Services:
3 credits This course is designed to
explore the field of human services through fieldwork in human service agencies
in the greater Worcester Area. The student, through observation and
“shadowing” of professionals, will become familiar with various roles of the
human service practitioner as well as the opportunity to explore multiple
aspects of service delivery. The student will select one to three areas of
interest within mental health, substance abuse, homeless/outreach, developmental
disabilities, gerontology, adolescent behavior management, and family services.
Students will visit a minimum of three area agencies during the semester to
increase awareness of community resources and understand services provided to
agency participants. The course work will involve lecture and class
demonstration of effective communication styles, agencies systems and systems
theory as well as effective joining styles, the importance of establishing
strong work habits and ethics, assertiveness skills, self-awareness, and
self-management. This course addresses the standard core competencies in the
areas of Community and Service Networking, Communication, Facilitation of
Services, Advocacy and Organizational Participation. Prerequisites:
ENG 100, HUS 101 and HUS 121 F/S HUS
221 Cultural Competence for Human
Service Workers: 3 Credits Human service delivery
requires that programs and workers meet the needs of a changing population with
appropriate understanding of diverse backgrounds. This course is designed to prepare human service workers to
develop awareness and skills that will allow them to provide culturally
competent services. Students will
examine three core principles: the worker must be self-reflective and examine
biases within themselves and their profession; the worker must have core
knowledge about the minority group value systems, beliefs about health and
personal problems, histories, traditions and natural systems of support inherent
in one's culture; and the worker must be able to demonstrate an integration of
this knowledge and personal reflection with practice skills.
Students successfully completing this course will be able to describe a
model of cultural competence in service delivery; specify how the model is
useful in a wide range of service activities and demonstrate core knowledge of
the cultural life of diverse groups. This
course addresses the standard core competencies in the areas of Participant
Empowerment, Community and Service Networking, Communication, Facilitation of
Services, Community Living Skills and Supports, Advocacy and Education, Training
and Self-Awareness. Prerequisites:
SOC 101, HUS 101 and ENG 101 F/S/SU HUS 231 Legal
and Ethical Concepts in Human Services: 3 Credits A basic course in ethical and legal issues that
challenge human service workers and agencies. The course begins with
investigation of the core values that are the foundation of helping services.
Students will also examine the issue of social justice and consumer
rights. Topics of consumer privacy, confidentiality, duty to disclose, and
boundary dilemmas are covered in depth.
A brief treatment of civil rights will be included.
Examples from Massachusetts’s laws (statutes, regulations and cases)
will be used to help learners understand their legal responsibilities for
reporting abuse and effectively collaborating with professionals from the
justice system. Upon successful
completion of this course, the student will have an understanding of the legal
system and how it impacts with human service issues.
This course addresses the standard core competencies for human service
workers in the areas of: Participant
Empowerment, Communication, Advocacy, Community Living Skills and Supports,
Crisis Intervention and Documentation. Prerequisites: HUS 101, HUS 121 and HUS 141
F/S
HUS
243 Human Services Practicum: 4 Credits This
course provides technical competency training and skills building through
directed, closely supervised involvement in a human service agency.
Close supervision and seminars are required experiences.
Required are 120 hours of professionally supervised individual and group
focused involvement. At the
conclusion of the practicum experience, the student will have demonstrated to
his/her agency supervisor a sensitivity to diverse populations and satisfactory
proficiency in the following core competencies: Participant Empowerment,
Community and Service Networking, Communication, Assessment, Facilitation of
Services, Advocacy and Organizational Participation and Documentation. (Open to
students enrolled in the Human Services Program only). Prerequisites:
being reviewed
F/S |