HUMAN SERVICES (HUS)

This course focuses on personal development and self awareness as well as professional development toward human service practice in an increasingly diverse social context. The course employs multicultural and critically self-reflective learning processes to explore meaning making processes and narratives in the context of the diversity of our human experiences. The course is designed to support the development of human service practitioners and professionals to demonstrate multicultural competencies, social justice awareness and practice, critical self reflection, and respectful dialogue across differences in perspectives, experiences, and histories.

This course introduces students to the principles and practices of group work in human services offering an in-depth exploration of group dynamics, leadership, and collaboration. It covers core concepts such as group development and dynamics, leadership styles, communication skills, conflict resolution, ethical onsiderations, and culturally responsive practices. Through interactive simulations and practical assignments, students will learn to apply these concepts in real-world human services scenarios, preparing them for effective and inclusive group leadership and participation in diverse human services contexts.

This course provides an integrative overview of research methods and program evaluation in the field of human services. Emphasizing empirical social research, it introduces students to the principles and techniques of both qualitative and quantitative methodologies, alongside ethical practices in research design and implementation. A significant focus is placed on program evaluation, teaching students how to assess the effectiveness and impact of human services programs through systematic inquiry and analysis. By combining theoretical knowledge with practical application, the course prepares students to become informed developers and evaluators of research projects, enhancing their ability to critically analyze and apply research findings to real-world human services settings.

This course is a supervised 100-hour field placement experience in an approved human or rehabilitation service agency. The field placement will provide students with an opportunity to become oriented to the human and rehabilitation services by observing and participating in the provision of services to client groups. As students develop they will have the opportunity to use their skills and knowledge to provide services within a highly supervised setting. This field placement enables students to work with staff representing a variety of human service fields. Students will also participate in a weekly seminar that provides group supervision, instruction, and discussion of the field placement experience. Students must contact the HUS clinical coordinator Susan Sabelli (ssabelli@assumption.edu) before registering for the course to ensure you have a placement.

This course is a field-based, professional opportunity for students to apply the theories, strategies, interventions, and knowledge learned through the HUS coursework. Students will be applying their classroom learning in a professional human services setting. The internship is an intensely supervised and supported experience as students are supervised by both faculty and an agency supervisor. There are three phases to the internship experience: orientation, observation, and performance. Students will perform all aspects of the human specialists job, e.g., intake interviewing, assessment, action planning, service planning, case management, and case closure. Students will complete a minimum of 400 hours on site during the fall or spring semester. The internship is a competency driven experience and specific skills related to the direct provision of services will be evaluated.