NEW ACADEMIC PROGRAM – IMPLEMENTATION REQUEST I. PROGRAM NAME, DESCRIPTION AND CIP CODE A. PROPOSED PROGRAM NAME AND DEGREE(S) TO BE OFFERED – for PhD programs indicate whether a terminal Master’s degree will also be offered. MA in Human Rights Practice (Online only) B. CIP CODE – go to the National Statistics for Education web site (http://nces.ed.gov/ipeds/cipcode/browse.aspx?y=55) to select an appropriate CIP Code or contact Pam Coonan (621-0950) [email protected] for assistance. 30.9999 Multi-/Interdisciplinary Studies, Other. C. DEPARTMENT/UNIT AND COLLEGE – indicate the managing dept/unit and college for multi- interdisciplinary programs with multiple participating units/colleges. College of Social & Behavioral Sciences D. Campus and Location Offering – indicate on which campus(es) and at which location(s) this program will be offered (check all that apply). Degree is wholly online II. PURPOSE AND NATURE OF PROGRAM–Please describe the purpose and nature of your program and explain the ways in which it is similar to and different from similar programs at two public peer institutions. Please use the attached comparison chart to assist you. The MA in Human Rights Practice provides online graduate-level education for human rights workers, government personnel, and professionals from around the globe seeking to further their education in the area of human rights. It will also appeal to recent undergraduate students from the US and abroad with strong interests in studying social justice and human rights. The hallmarks of the proposed curriculum are: 1) core curriculum designed for individuals involved in human rights work across disciplines; 2) applied, problem-based, learning; 3) extensive interaction among students and with leading practitioners, with courses including video guest lectures and/or modules taught by leading practitioners; 4) interdisciplinarity, bringing together faculty from 10 different SBS departments (see faculty list below) and 3 colleges (with SBS as core and Law and CPH offering electives), and 5) flexibility as each student will have the opportunity to complete an applied project or take course electives that will be tailored to their own particular interest and needs, and that will evolved based on student interests and current trends in human rights. 2) The proposed program differs from offerings at other institutions in two fundamental ways. The degree is wholly online (thereby allowing for access to a worldwide population of students) and the courses are practice-driven with guest lectures and even modules led by experts working in the field of human rights. Of course we will have UA professors running most of the courses and providing traditional form lectures for students where needed. Currently, there are only a handful of masters-level degrees in human rights in the U.S. (Columbia University, University of Minnesota, Denver University, University of Connecticut, Boston College, UMass-Amherst, and ASU), none of which are offered online. Indeed, there is only one online graduate degree in human rights and that was just started at the University of York in the U.K. III. PROGRAM REQUIREMENTS – list the program requirements, including minimum number of credit hours, required courses, and any special requirements, including subspecializations, subplans, theses, internships, etc. Use the comparison chart to explain how your requirements are similar to and different from the two programs at the two public peer institutions to which you compared your program in Section II. A. CURRENT COURSES AND EXISTING PROGRAMS -- list current courses and existing university programs which will give strengths to the proposed program. If the courses listed belong to a department that is not a signed party to this implementation request, please obtain the department head’s permission to include the courses in the proposed program and information regarding accessibility to the course(s) for students in the proposed program. Whilst we intend to have some elective courses taken from current University online courses, the overall scheme of the MA degree will be based on new course offerings that are custom-designed for this online degree. As we expand our elective courses, and as more courses are offered online, we anticipate working with other departments and faculty in cross-listing courses for this degree. We are especially interested in developing sub-specialties that would draw on fields relevant to human rights work including: public management and administration, social justice, environmental studies, and public health (to name but a few). These will be developed based upon student and faculty interest, consonance with the core principles of the degree, and perhaps interest by donors and granting agencies. B. NEW COURSES NEEDED -- list any new courses which must be added to initiate the program; include a course prefix, number, title, catalog description and number of units for each of these courses. All of the required courses for the degree are new, although they will also be used for the proposed online graduate certificate in human rights. The MA will consist of 33 credits, consisting of 9 or 10 courses at 3 credits each, and a final (required) Applied Project course worth either 3 or 6 credits. The degree will be structured so that students may be admitted for the Fall or Spring semesters 6 courses are required: Human Rights Practice I Human Rights Practice II Human Rights Law Community Engagement in Human Rights Virtual Human Rights Field Trip Applied Project in Human Rights Course Descriptions (of Required Courses): HRTS 500 – Human Rights Practice I: This course provides an overview of human rights practice and activism. The course material will include the history of human rights and participatory approaches to human rights activism and social movements. Students will learn key aspects of human rights practice, including professional responsibility and ethics, interview skills and techniques, translating international norms into specific contexts, psychological issues such as trauma and memory, and various approaches to fieldwork. HRTS 501 – Human Rights Practice II: This course focuses on the practical aspects for creating successful human rights engagement and development. The course will cover issues such as management and public administration, grant writing, finance skills, anti-corruption methods, and cross-cultural sensitivity and culturally relative impacts of practice. HRTS 510 – Introduction to Human Rights Law: This course will provide students with an understanding of human rights law and the means for human rights enforcement as found in international, regional, and national domains. Featuring human rights lawyers and practitioners as guest speakers, the student will acquire the necessary tools for promoting legislative changes, engaging executive actors, and bringing challenges before a range of judicial tribunals. HRTS 595A – Virtual Human Rights Field Trip: This course will focus on a general thematic and timely issue in human rights. The course will “complete” 2 or 3 virtual field trips on the chosen issue as understood from different parts of the globe. An activist or scholar in the chosen issue or relevant location will supervise the field trip (along with the UA instructor) and arrange for video or audio interviews with key stakeholders, guest lectures, and a video tour of the location. The field trips will be tied together through assigned readings and course discussions. The course will conclude with a webinar featuring the supervisors of the field trips, key stakeholders, and other relevant experts from around the globe. Each semester shall address and develop a different human rights theme, with partial direction coming from external actors making the request for a focus on a specific issue. NOTE: This course can be taken twice as topics vary with three credits serving as an elective. HRTS 595B – Community Engagement in Human Rights: Course will revolve around a general topic in human rights; i.e., women’s rights, children’s rights, poverty and human rights, anti-corruption practices, or corporate social responsibility. Individual students will be actively involved in the issue in their geographic location (working with community members – broadly understood - where possible), applying the coursework to their community engagement and bringing their experiences back to the class discussions. Students will work together to address common experiences across contexts. At the end of the semester, students and faculty will produce white papers or other summary statements on the issue from a comparative perspective. NOTE: This course can be taken twice as topics vary with three credits serving as an elective. HRTS 5xx – Applied Project in Human Rights: Students and faculty will work to devise a project involving the application of concepts and knowledge learned in the program curriculum to a problem or research project in the student’s area of human rights practice or interest. The final product should be useful to academics, an agency, a community, or other group. It could be an action research project, a needs assessment study, a program evaluation, an in-service training program, a proposal for funding, the review and evaluation of pertinent literature, or a creative project of similar scope. For example, a student who works with refugees might devise a project to propose revisions to his/her organization’s policies and protocols based on ethical and culturally sensitive considerations studied in the Human Rights Practice course, and in line with applicable legal guidance from the Human Rights Law course. Alternatively, the project can center on the needs of a NGO working on an issue of relevant to the student that can in turn assist the NGO as well in a practical manner be it through research assistance. Can be taken for up to 6 credits. Additional electives will be developed and offered as the degree emerges and develops and links are made with other departments as well. The list of courses below illustrates the range of courses available as of the time of this proposal. Others will be developed based on student and faculty interest.