Fall 2025 Seated and Hybrid Electives

This foundational course examines historic and contemporary anti-Black racism and white supremacy in the United States. Students will analyze policies and strategies to identify, challenge, and transform the values, structures, and behaviors that perpetuate systemic racism, white supremacy and anti-blackness. Students will also engage in self-reflection, develop self-awareness, and participate in critical analysis of systems of privilege and oppression, as well develop personal strategies for becoming antiracist and facilitating change in communities and society. *Course with a racial justice focus.*

The purpose of this course is to familiarize students with social media and social networking as they influence community change. Specifically, students will be introduced to the fundamental terms and concepts of social media and networking, including various interfaces, tools, and platforms that may be leveraged to promote community change and development. Students will also explore existing scholarship and best practices, as well as issues of social justice, burdens of adversity, social disadvantage, and human rights as they apply to the democratization of technology. Students will examine and evaluate the challenges, opportunities, and future applications of social media and networking related to community change.

In today's world, we hear daily about injustices and social and economic inequality. Many of us feel that we want to make a positive difference in the world and to do something to help alleviate these forms of human suffering. We may feel powerless or that we do not have the knowledge and tools to stimulate the changes we wish to see. Yet, the world is full of examples of inspiring people who through personal, spiritual, cultural, or political transformation move from being victims or bystanders to becoming activists and agents of change. This First-Year seminar is designed to introduce students to social activism and the social change process. This will be done through an examination of the experiences of social change activists and the organizations and social change movements that have emerged to address pressing social issues. These include but are not limited to economic inequality, racial and ethnic discrimination, educational inequality, mass incarceration, and tensions around immigration. Through a human rights and social justice lens, we will look at how individuals and groups can mobilize and turn their desire for a more just world into concrete action that makes a difference.

Why would we want to live and work in a diverse, equitable, inclusive, and accessible society? This introductory course will enable students to go beyond buzzwords and critically examine diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility (DEIA) as they apply to everyday life. Students will use multiple modes of inquiry to explore how diversity and intersectionality shape human experiences to create privilege and power that systemically oppress, marginalize, and exclude people. Students will engage in reflective practice, examine their own biases, and consider strategies to create socially inclusive and equitable communities that facilitate belonging and connection across difference. Through experiential and active learning, students will gain an understanding of and explore topics that include but are not limited to the dimensions of DEIA; the benefits of DEIA; critical analysis of DEIA initiatives across settings, and the interconnections among DEIA, public policy, and key social issues. Students will also identify strategies for personal and social responsibility in advancing DEIA.

This course introduces the social work profession and generalist social work practice. Students will be introduced to the core values of social work and be exposed to issues of diversity, equity, inclusion and accessibility (DEIA), oppression, and social justice. The course will familiarize students with the various roles, functions, and tasks that social workers perform in a variety of settings and acquaint them with the primary skills and practices of social work with individuals, groups, and communities.

This course provides an introduction to social welfare policies, defined as the many programs and policies that have been developed in the United States to assist and provide support for people in need. Students will study the development of social welfare policies and programs in the United States, as well as the political, economic, and social factors involved in the creation, implementation, administration, and limitations of these programs. Students will be familiarized with many of the basic social welfare programs and examine how the programs do and do not serve their intended populations. A collaborative, trauma-informed, racial equity, and human rights lens will be used to discuss the impacts of these programs and the changes that are necessary to achieve a more equitable society. Students will also be introduced to the various roles of social workers within the social welfare system.

This course provides the foundational knowledge to understand and recognize child maltreatment in diverse settings. The course covers the historical and comparative perspectives, including a trauma-informed and human rights perspective, on child maltreatment, with an emphasis on improving outcomes for children and families. This course is designed for, but not limited to, students who are interested in public health, social work, human services, nursing and other health professions, sociology, psychology, law and education.

This course is designed to increase student understanding of the adverse experiences of children growing up in various countries. The purpose of this course is to expose students to considerations of socioeconomics, health, culture, religion and politics and how these affect the welfare and well-being of children across the world. This course examines advocacy efforts using a trauma-informed, human rights framework.

This course examines direct social work practice within and related to the criminal legal system and the role of social work and other helping professions in shaping these practices. This course focuses on prevention and intervention strategies that address the high incarceration and reincarceration of people with mental health challenges, the overrepresentation of people of color in carceral and community supervision settings, and supportive services that facilitate community reintegration following incarceration. This course will provide students with a foundational knowledge of effective interventions at various points across the criminal legal system, historical and current rehabilitation and correctional theories that guide prevention, diversion and rehabilitation interventions, and the sociopolitical and policy context that shapes the criminal legal systems response to individuals, families, and communities. Key developments and innovations in practice will be highlighted - such as trauma-informed, human-rights-informed and gender-responsive approaches - with attention to social identities and individual characteristics that can impact treatment options and influence outcomes.

This clinical course will prepare students for social work practice with service members, veterans, and their families. Students will become oriented to the assessment of and evidence-based treatments for signature injuries and diagnoses found among veterans and their family members (e.g., post-traumatic stress disorder, traumatic brain injury, depression, substance abuse, readjustment issues, intimate partner violence, military sexual trauma and complex trauma). Clinical modalities will include individual, couple, family and group interventions that promote health, wellness and resiliency among service members, veterans, and their families. Students will develop knowledge about the unique challenges and issues facing veterans from different eras and conflicts, and the impact of intersectionality of multiple diversity factors (e.g., gender, military hierarchy and status, racial/ethnic background, sexual orientation, age, disability, citizenship status) on the experiences of service members, veterans and their families.

Restorative justice (RJ) is a social justice approach toward repairing the harm, promoting positive interpersonal relationships and building community when conflict, misconduct or criminal behavior occurs. RJ brings social justice to the criminal justice system, schools, and communities. With youth, RJ is an evidence-based approach toward improving school climate; interrupting the school-to-prison pipeline that disproportionately affects youth of color; and creating safe and supportive environments for children and youth without resorting to punitive responses. 

In this class, students will learn about RJ and practice skills in conducting RJ circles in school, the criminal justice system and community settings with children, youth and adults. Students with an interest in working in criminal justice settings, neighborhood community centers, schools, child welfare settings and other organizations serving children, youth and adults are encouraged to take this course. *Course with a racial justice focus.*

This course is approved for CEU's.

Students participating in this course will assist in the development of a one-stop service center to address unmet needs of frail elders in Erie County. Students will work with members of the Project's Steering Committee and serve as consultants engaging in activities related to community engagement, program design, grant writing, performance measurement, marketing, outreach and policy advocacy over two semesters. Students will learn firsthand what consulting with non-profit organizations and local community groups is like to design and implement a large-scale project.