Graduate Catalog: 2012-2013 - Alabama A&M University

to manage with decreasing resources especially inrural areas. Required of all Policy, Planning andAdministration concentration students.(Prerequisites: All foundation year courses orConsent of Instructor)SWK 614 Principles of Planning and ProgramImplementation - Three semester hours. The focusof this course is on the concept of planning withinsocial welfare agencies institutions for the purposeof program implementation. Students acquireknowledge and understanding of planning concepts,strategies, and objectives for program development,implementation and evaluation. An ecologicalsystem perspective is applied to promoteunderstanding of the interrelationships amongindividuals (micro systems), families, groups(mezzo systems), organizations/institutions andcommunities (macro systems). Likewise, a problemsolving approach is used to provide content forunderstanding the differential strategies forresolving needs of individuals, families, and smallgroups, and larger organizational or communitysystems. Theoretical, empirical, and experimentalcontents are utilized to provide the student with anawareness of both comparative and contrastingaspects of systemic planning with other activitiesrequired in program implementation and programevaluation. Required of all Policy, Planning andAdministration concentration students.(Prerequisites: All foundation year courses orConsent of Instructor)SWK 615 Grant Writing - Two semester hours.Explores various grant writing theories and skillsand demonstrates practical application of theprocess. Students will assist agencies andorganizations to apply for local, state, federal, andinternational grants for their programs or projects.Required of all students in the Policy, Planning andAdministration concentration, (Prerequisites: Allfoundation year courses or Consent of Instructor)SWK 616 Issues & Policies in CommunityMental Health - Three semester hours. Examinesthe impact of policies on social work practice inmental health settings, including local, state andnational policies from which services are derived.Also examines the differential impact of race,ethnicity and social class on policy formulation andservice delivery in mental health settings. Thiscourse is required of all students in the CommunityMental Health concentration. (Prerequisites SWK500, 501, 520, 521, or Consent of Instructor)SWK 621 Family Theories and Processes- Threesemester hours. This advanced level practice courseexplores sociological concepts of marriages andfamilies in contemporary society; vulnerablefamilies; family preservation; and the assessmentand treatment of marriages and families. Treatmentmodels, techniques, and strategies are highlighted.Social work values and ethics, research onmarriages and families and the treatment thereof,and cultural diversity issues are emphasized. Thiscourse is required of all students in Direct Practice.(Prerequisites: SWK 500,501,520,521,601,602,610or Consent of Instructor)SWK 630 Needs Assessment and ProgramEvaluation - Three semester hours. This coursebuilds on foundation courses and the need forscientific problem-solving, decision-making andaccountability in professional social work practice.Knowledge of the social work research process isthe foundation upon which students will developneeds assessment and program evaluation skills.Understanding of social work knowledge, values,skills and ethics associated with practice, policy, andhuman behavior perspectives will be articulated inthe student’s conceptualization and development ofeither a need assessment or a program evaluation.Additionally, these skills will be applied to a varietyof social systems and social problems for thepurposes of promoting, sustaining, and enhancingindividuals, families, groups, communities, andsocietal well-being. (Prerequisites: SWK 530, orConsent of Instructor)SWK 631 & 632 Research Project/Thesis - Twoto six semester hours. This course offers studentsthe opportunity to prepare an empirically basedresearch thesis derived from a practice problem. Thethesis is designed to make a significant contributionto a special area of interest within the student’sconcentration. Upon approval by the student’sThesis Committee, or the research project panel, andacceptance by the Dean of the School of GraduateStudies (Graduate Bulletin, 1999-2000), studentscomplete their research and thesis under theguidance of a graduate faculty member and thesiscommittee. Upon completion of the research project,the thesis is defended before the student’s thesiscommittee. (Prerequisites: Completion of all firstyearcourses, or Advanced Placement status, andRegistration for SWK 631: Research Project)SWK 641 Crisis Intervention and Short TermPsychotherapy - Two semester hours. In-depthexploration of the history and theory of crisisintervention and brief therapies. Crisis intervention165