Description Of Social Work Program For SPAR

Department of Social Work

The Department of Social Work at Southern Connecticut State University was created in 1968. Until then a one credit course – “School and Community” offered in the Department of Education – was the extent of the social work offerings. In 1976 a self study was presented to the Council on Social Work Education (CSWE) for initial accreditation for the undergraduate social work program. Upon awarding of accreditation, plans were launched to develop an M.S.W. program. The first class of graduate students entered in 1982, and the program received its initial accreditation for the M.S.W. program in 1985. In that year, the President of the University created the School of Social Work in recognition of the two programs. This organizational arrangement lasted until 1988 when the School of Social Work was shifted to the newly created School of Social Work and Human Services along with the departments of Public Health, Recreation and Leisure and Marriage and Family Therapy. In 1991, the school’s name was changed to the School of Professional Studies and two other programs were added to the school: the School of Nursing and the Department of Communication Disorders. Each department in the school is administered by a faculty elected chairperson who reports to the Dean of the School of Professional Studies. The name of the school was again changed to the School of Health and Human Services in the mid 1990s. The current combined B.S.W. and M.S.W. program has been fully accredited since 1989 and was recently reaccredited through 2013.

Program Strengths: The CSWE site team identified 29 program strengths, some of which are listed below:

 Strong leadership provided by departmental director. Committed, accessible, vital, and talented faculty and administrative team.  The undergraduate programs total curriculum was excellent.  Clinical concentration is strength (of the graduate program). Clinical concentration well developed, strong theoretically with a breadth of offerings. Evoked “curricular envy” in site team.  Diversity content well infused throughout the curriculum.  B.S.W. policy course viewed as capstone where students can make the transition from case to cause. B.S.W. and M.S.W. students expressed passion for social policy courses. Ability to develop students’ passion for policy practice  Students researched, analyzed and developed change strategy and legislative advocacy effort in regard to significant legislation in the state legislature.  Able and enthusiastic students at both levels.  Agency based M.S.W. research projects are exemplary.  Throughout the practice content area evidence-based practice is emphasized.  Alumni have attained leadership positions and attribute this success to program emphases.  Wealth of excellent field placements.  Field instructors reported close and effective support from program.

1  Full and part-time faculty teaching is a strength; faculty are well prepared, knowledgeable, and have close relationships with students.  Service and teaching are strengths.  Admissions procedures at both levels are well developed.  Extensive faculty advisement.  Students report diversity content is an eye-opening experience.  Strong community involvement and support. Heavily involved with community agencies, professional associations, and community leaders.  Many innovations in the delivery of the curriculum. Strong leadership in the community.  Departmental Assessment Committee has implemented analysis and continuous improvement plan. As a result of the self-study the program revised the instruments used to assess outcome.

Students, Faculty and Administration: The social work program typically has approximately 300 full and part-time matriculated B.S.W. and M.S.W. students with 18 full-time faculty (down to 15 this year with several retirements), and about 20 part-time instructors.

Mission/Goals/Objectives: The Department of Social Work mission, goals and objectives are assessed on an ongoing basis by the Department Assessment Committee.

Mission: Southern Connecticut State University is one of four universities in the Connecticut State University system and the Department of Social Work at Southern Connecticut State University is the only program in this system and state that offers both undergraduate and graduate programs in social work. The program curriculum emphasizes a perspective that views people as having the capacity to change and adapt while in continuous and reciprocal interchange with all elements of their environment. The academic and field practicum components are designed to teach professional social work knowledge and to impart tools for scholarship, critical thinking, and evidenced based practice. We are committed to ethical practice and the integration of social work values in all educational activities and practice. The purpose of undergraduate education is to prepare students to work in entry level agency based social work positions. The focus of graduate education is professional education for students who will provide clinical or management services.

The mission of the Department of Social Work is to provide quality social work education to undergraduate and graduate students and to advance knowledge through study, practice, and research. Further, the Department is also committed to preparing social workers to promote system change to achieve economic and social justice in the life of communities impacted by rapid economic and social shifts. We are committed to students in the program being able to engage in practice with diverse populations in metropolitan settings. In addition, the Department is committed to educating social workers to be effective practitioners and leaders in the public and private sectors. The Department is also committed to developing partnerships with the community to further both the Department’s and the university's commitment to scholarship and professional preparation.

2 Program Goals 1.To educate students to utilize critical thinking skills in the practice of agency-based beginning professional social work at the generalist level with a variety of human systems. 2.To educate students to utilize critical thinking skills in the practice of social work management and/or clinical practice. 3.To practice according to the values and ethics of the profession. 4.To engage in the formulation and implementation of social policies, services and programs that meet basic human needs and support the development of human capacities. 5. To develop and apply knowledge and skill to address poverty and oppression and to promote social justice in the context of diverse cultures.

6.To educate social workers to serve in the public sector. 7.To promote partnerships between the department and the community to enrich the quality of life in the community and enrich professional preparation and opportunities for our students. 8.To advance social work knowledge through research, scholarship and community activities.

Program Objectives 1. Graduates will demonstrate an understanding of how the historical, philosophical and ethical foundation of the social work profession influences current structures and issues; understand the values, ethical standards and principles of the social work profession; practice in accordance with the values and ethics of the profession. 2. Graduates will demonstrate an ability to practice without discrimination and with respect, knowledge, and skills related to clients’ age, class, color, culture, disability, ethnicity, family structure, gender, marital status, national origin, race, religion, sex, and sexual orientation. 3. Graduates will demonstrate an ability to apply critical thinking skills within the context of professional practice. 4. Graduates will demonstrate an ability to understand the forms and mechanisms of discrimination and oppression and apply strategies of advocacy and social change that advance social and economic justice. 5. Graduates will demonstrate an ability to understand the ecological perspective; apply the ecological perspective in conjunction with theoretical frameworks supported by empirical evidence to understand how interactions between various client systems (individuals, families, groups, organizations, and communities) and between client systems and the social and physical environment influence human development and behavior across the life span. 6. Graduates will demonstrate an understanding of the influence of historical, political, social and economic contexts on social welfare policy; apply this knowledge to analyze, formulate, and influence state social policy legislation. 7. Graduates will demonstrate an ability to evaluate research studies and apply research findings to practice; use research methods to evaluate their own practice. 8. Graduates will demonstrate an ability to use communication skills differentially across client populations, colleagues, and communities. 9. Graduates will demonstrate an ability to use supervision and consultation appropriate to social work practice. 10. Graduates will demonstrate an understanding of how social policy impacts service delivery and organizational structure; apply this understanding to function within the structure of organizations and service delivery systems and seek necessary organization change. 11. Graduates will demonstrate an ability to conduct generalist social work practice (developing helping alliances, assessment, planning, implementation, evaluation, termination, advocacy, political action, legislative advocacy, collaboration) using the knowledge and skills of a generalist social work perspective with systems of all sizes. 12. Graduates of the social service management concentration will demonstrate an ability to practice

3 advanced management skills (leadership, decision making, supervision, budgeting, developing community resources, planning, policy analysis, program development and design, macro intervention strategies, and evaluating program effectiveness) to improve the lives of individuals and the functioning of organizations and communities to meet the purposes of the social work profession. 13. Graduates of the clinical concentration will demonstrate an ability to practice clinical social work skills (therapeutic relationship, empathy, professional use of self, use of theory and evidence-based knowledge for practice, interventions, evaluation of practice effectiveness, use and provision of supervision, leadership) to establish professional helping relationships with diverse clients which improve the lives of individuals and the functioning of families and groups. 14. Faculty will develop and apply knowledge and skills to formulate and implement policies, services and programs in the university and community that advance social and economic justice and support the development of human capacities. 15. Faculty will promote and participate in partnerships between the university and community that enrich the quality of community life and enhance professional opportunities for students. 16. Faculty and graduate students will contribute to the development of professional knowledge and disseminate that knowledge in the profession and the community.

The department offers entry level generalist education at the B.S.W. level and advanced practice in five specializations – Children and Families, Community Mental Health and Substance Abuse, Elderly Service, Health Care Systems, and Educational settings – for graduate students, who choose either a clinical practice or social service management concentration of study. In the M.S.W. program, “specialization’ denotes a field of practice and “concentration” indicates either clinical practice or management practice. The advanced curriculum in the graduate program also offers many courses that have smaller enrollments due to the seminar nature of the courses.

In 40 years, the program has grown from a one credit service course to a fully combined professional program that has provided the social work community with over 2,800 professionally educated baccalaureate and masters graduates.

The Department of Social Work has consistently sought to educate professional social workers who will work in the public sector and be guided by the ethics and values of our profession. Further, the department has consistently sought to educate students to deliver services to clients from diverse backgrounds and for population groups at risk. Social Work students are provided with skills and knowledge to practice in a rapidly changing professional climate, which includes research skills that will help them to evaluate their practice.

Student research projects – M.S.W. students complete a research project as part of their advanced field practice placement and seminar. At the annual Research Colloquium a volume of all student abstracts is presented to all students, and at least one student presents the findings of a research project. In addition, an alumni member makes a presentation on how the research process is important to clinical practice, providing valuable information to both graduating students and those M.S.W. students who will be conducting their research in the subsequent year.

4 Social work faculty have clinical expertise in variety of areas, some examples include:

 Brief family therapy  Sexual abuse of children  Violence prevention in middle schools  DBT interventions with chronically mentally ill mothers  Couples therapy  Cross cultural psychotherapy  Anxiety and panic disorders  Schizophrenia  Substance abuse and mental health services  School social work

Faculty also has expertise in a variety of social policy areas including:

 Criminal Justice  Social work practice with lesbian, gay and bisexual people  Cultural diversity  Latino studies  Welfare reform  Child welfare (since 2000, the department has had a grant from the Connecticut Department of Children and Families to provide training services and in 2006 established a post master certificate program in post adoption and foster care services)  Immigration and Refugee services, and  Gerontology (over several years from 2000-2002 the department had a grant from the John A. Hartford Foundation, which offered subsides to students interested in working with the elderly). Also, the Department currently (2008-2011) has a three year grant from the Hartford Partnership Program for Aging from the New York Academy of Medicine to offer stipends to students who rotate through three different elder internships a year.  The department, through the Connections program, has a formal relationship with the West Haven and Ansonia school districts. The violence prevention program 'Connections' is a unique field placement developed by Drs. Haymes and Howe in two separate school districts (West Haven and Ansonia) to address an array of student and milieu problems that are related to violent behavior perpetrated by students in school. The program is a partnership between each district and the Department of Social Work. The district pays for the field supervisor and Drs. Haymes and Howe supervise the field supervisors and assist in recruiting the 12

5 social work students each year. Drs. Haymes and Howe negotiate with the school districts each year for the continuation of the program. Dr. Esther Howe also participates on the education department’s committee charged with developing new guidelines for school social work statewide.  The Department of Social Work and the School of Education (School Counseling) have developed joint conferences to advance the knowledge and practice of work with children in schools. This is also a partnership that includes community school social workers and social work directors (1999-present).

Specializations and research interests of full-time faculty:

Mark Cameron teaches practice, human behavior, and research methods in the undergraduate and graduate programs. His research interests include school violence, organizational factors in service delivery, and practice education.

Edgar Colon’s teaching experience is in the areas of social welfare management, social policy, human behavior, social oppression and diversity issues, and clinical practice with substance abuse problems. Professor Colon's field of practice is health and mental health with particular focus on program design, planning and organization development based on the implementation of targeted capacity enhancement strategies in diverse communities.

Valerie L. Dripchak’s teaching interests are crisis intervention, brief treatment and advanced practice in addictions. Her research experience has been in the area of chemical and behavioral addictions.

Dr. Jack Gesino specializes in gerontological social work practice, families and men’s issues. His research experience includes the qualitative study of the interpersonal patterns of relatedness among later life families.

Dr. Esther Howe’s areas of expertise are interethnic relations, adolescent development, and the field of social work practice in educational settings.

Dr. Joanne Jennings has teaching expertise in distance learning, through two-way interactive television. Her research covers child welfare, distance learning and the development of an advocacy course.

Dr. Elizabeth Keenan teaches in the undergraduate and graduate programs in the areas of practice, research and human behavior in the social environment. Dr. Keenan’s research interests include cross-cultural practice, application and integration of psychological and social theories, social service agency dynamics, and practice evaluation.

Mr. Anthony Maltese’s social work practice experience is primarily in social service administration, consultation, and clinical practice, specializing in work with children

6 and adolescents. Mr. Maltese's areas of interest and expertise include clinical work with adolescents, community organization and development, and juvenile justice.

Dr. Constance L. Mindell’s practice experience includes clinical practice with adolescents and adults in individual therapy, family therapy, and in groups; administrative work as a clinical manager in major teaching hospitals and as the director of a social work and continuing care department in a community hospital. She has had extensive experience in the health care field, practicing, supervising, and consulting with community agencies and hospitals. Dr. Mindell developed an exchange program with social work students at South Bohemia University in the Czech Republic and has taught at that university on two occasions. Her areas of research interest include health care issues and international social work. Dr. Mindell has received, with a colleague, two faculty development grants.

Dr. Jaak Rakfeldt has been the Chairperson of the Department’s Community Mental Health and Substance Abuse Specialization since he created it and is also an Assistant Clinical Professor at the Yale University School of Medicine Department of Psychiatry, where he does clinical supervision, conducts seminars, and participates in clinical research. Dr. Rakfeldt serves as a clinical consultant and conducts seminars and colloquia at various community mental health agencies. Dr. Rakfeldt many publications primarily deal with mental health issues. Dr. Rakfeldt's research interests include clinical practice research as well as program evaluation, and policy and systems research, primarily in the area of community mental health and substance use.

Dr. Todd Rofuth has had 30 years post MSW social work practice experience primarily in social welfare policy analysis, research and supervisory positions in federal and state government and private consulting. He has obtained more than 30 grants in a variety of areas including child welfare, drug courts, elder care, community housing, Ryan White, child care and welfare reform.

Dr. Moss Stambler’s post-MSW experiences include school social work, hospital social work, work with pregnant teens, senior-adult camp social work, and during June 2004, social work conducting youth leadership training in a camp setting. His current areas of research interest and activity focus on environmental ethics and leadership.

Dr. Barbara Worden’s publications are in the area of gender issues in clinical practice and mental health. She has published a graduate text on gender influences in couple’s therapy, The Gender Dance In Couples Therapy, Brooks/Cole and a chapter on women and oppression in the text Diversity Oppression and Social Functioning, Allyn Bacon. Dr. Worden also published an article in an international journal (Group work) on a teaching technique she developed for the group work course. She presented this technique at an international conference of group workers in London.