SOCW 2350. Introduction to Social Work. 3 Hours.

This course is designed to introduce students to the field of social work and the concept of social welfare along with the values and ethics that guide the social work profession and the setting in which social workers are employed. The historical roots of the field of social work and the profession's commitment to diverse and at-risk populations and social/economic justice are highlighted. Cross-listed with SOCI 2350.

SOCW 2361. Introduction to Social Work. 3 Hours.

This course is designed to introduce students to the field of social work and the concept of social welfare along with the values and ethics that guide the social work profession and the setting in which social workers are employed. The historical roots of the field of social work and the profession's commitment to diverse and at-risk populations and social/economic justice are highlighted. Cross-listed with SOCI 2350.

SOCW 2390. Interviewing and Documentation in Social Work. 3 Hours.

This is the first class in the practice component of the Social Work curriculum. Interviewing and Documentation in Social Work is a prerequisite for SOW 365: Social Work Practice I and SOW 430: Social Work Practice II. This course introduces students to the process of interviewing and documenting encounters with clients. Students are introduced to the principles, skills, and phases of interviewing clients. The course emphasizes essential engagement, communication, and recording skills and techniques. It also develops students’ ability to use interviewing, intervention, and documentation skills to enhance relationships with individuals, families, groups, organizations, and community systems. Students will learn the oral and written skills necessary to engage in social work practice and how interviews can help to promote social and economic justice. Attention is given to interviewing to communicate respect, warmth, acceptance, and authenticity related to clients’ age, socio economic status, color, culture, disability, ethnicity, family structure, gender, marital status, national origin, race, religion, sex, and sexual orientation.

SOCW 330. Introduction to Trauma. 3 Hours.

This course is a basic trauma 101 course focused on providing information on trauma, how it impacts constituents, and how we as social workers address it in agencies which we work. This course will also provide students with the basics of trauma informed care, and introduces students to the principles, pillars, and approaches of Trauma-Informed Care and their applications in working with various systems to achieve equity in service provision and outcomes. Prerequisite: SOCI 1301, PSYC 2301, SOCW 2390, and SOCW 2350 or SOCW 2361 all with a minimum grade of B.

SOCW 331. Human Behavior and the Social Environment. 3 Hours.

This is a generalist social work course that examines biological and social science concepts and how they influence human behavior, particularly in the context of the social environment. The course focuses on human development from the prenatal period through older adulthood and investigates varying social contextual factors, such as race, culture, ethnicity, stress, adaptation, and gender impacts on development. Additionally, course explores and applies biological, psychological, social, and spiritual theories and how they contribute to client assessments. Prerequisites: SOCI 1301, PSYC 2301, SOCW 2390, and SOCW 2350 or SOCW 2361 all with a minimum grade of B.

SOCW 332. Diversity, Oppression, and Social Justice. 3 Hours.

Course is designed to introduce students to the diverse populations and the biases and oppression they are likely to encounter that can have impact on their functioning. The course will assist social work students in understanding the complex nature of the person in the environment taking into consideration the dynamics of diversity, social oppression and social functioning. Students will learn about diverse cultures, family structure, roles, immigration and assimilation experiences of marginalized groups. Students will also learn about the influence of dominant culture on these diverse and marginalized (population at risk) groups. Additionally, this course will examine the adaptive capabilities and strengths of these marginalized groups and how such capabilities and strengths can be used in effective social work practice. Prerequisites: SOCI 1301, PSYC 2301, SOCW 2390, and SOCW 2350 or SOCW 2361 all with a minimum grade of B.

SOCW 333. Child Welfare and Maltreatment. 3 Hours.

This is an introductory course in child welfare and maltreatment. This course is organized around four themes: (1) The history, mission, and scope of child welfare services and practice, including the underlying philosophy and values that drive child welfare practice, and addressing cultural and relationship issues when working with families; (2) Conceptual and practical information on identifying child maltreatment, assessing family needs and strengths, and determining the level of risk to children for future maltreatment; (3) Case planning and applying a casework model to working with families; (4) Interviewing skills in a child welfare setting, especially as these skills relate to family assessment, child risk and case planning, and integrating the use of professional authority in these activities. The course utilizes an ecosystem perspective for understanding and assessing the special needs of at-risk children and families. Specific attention is on assessing families and children using the State of Texas’ Family Based Safety Services and other family assessment instruments. Prerequisites: SOCI 1301, PSYC 2301, SOCW 2390, and SOCW 2350 or SOCW 2361 all with a minimum grade of B.

SOCW 334. Practice I: Social Work with Individuals. 3 Hours.

Provides an overview of generalist social work and the practice, knowledge, and skills needed to successfully work with individual clients in social work. Focuses on understanding human behavior guided by a range of perspectives, theories and interventions models used in social work practice. Emphasizes interpersonal engagement, critical thinking, problem solving, ethical decision making, and cultural humility. Course builds on interviewing and documentation skills from previous coursework and is one in a series of generalist practice courses. Prerequisites: Prerequisite: SOCI 1301, PSYC 2301, SOCW 2390, and SOCW 2350 or SOCW 2361 all with a minimum grade of B.

SOCW 335. Social Welfare Policy & Analysis. 3 Hours.

Analyzes current social policy within the context of historical and contemporary factors. Examines major social forces and institutions as they relate to and determine social policy emphasizing social welfare services and social functioning within current U.S. society. Evaluates social welfare frameworks in light of the principles of social and economic justice and how this impacts individual, group and community well-being. Prerequisite: Prerequisite: SOCI 1301, PSYC 2301, SOCW 2390, and SOCW 2350 or SOCW 2361 all with a minimum grade of B.

SOCW 360. Working with Diverse Populations. 3 Hours.

This course is designed to introduce students to the diverse populations they would come across in the field of social work. Course contents will include a discussion of the historical, cultural, socioeconomic, and political backgrounds of such groups as well as various ethical considerations involved in working with diverse populations.

SOCW 365. Social Work Practice with Individuals and Families. 3 Hours.

This course presents an overview of the theories and models of social work intervention with individuals, families, and groups with a focus on helping individuals and families cope with family problems. Through didactic and experiential activities, students will learn and practice assessment and intervention techniques for work with diverse family structures in a variety of practice settings including home, school, child welfare, mental health, family court, corrections, and other community environments. Specific practice models will include humanistic, positivistic, and evidence based methods.

SOCW 370. Social Welfare Policy. 3 Hours.

This course introduces students to social welfare policy and advocacy in the field of social work with emphasis on the historical, cultural, socio-economic, and political basis of social welfare policy in the United States and to some degree, around the globe. Attention will also be paid to issues such as poverty and inequality, health and health care policy, child welfare, mental health care policy, welfare of the elderly, and human rights.

SOCW 411. Generalist Field Seminar I. 1 Hour.

This course is a co-requisite with SOCW 433. The course focuses on teaching students to process their work with clients in professional recordings and to analyze their performance in field practicum. The course is an intentionally designed peer-learning community where students can critically evaluate the integration of generalist knowledge, skills, and values learned in courses with their field education experience. The course uses active reflection, encouraging students to draw upon strengths and identify areas of improvement through constructive feedback from peers and faculty; this process is designed to aid students in developing their professional reflexes. Prerequisite: Senior Standing and completion of all Junior level social work coursework.

SOCW 412. Generalist Field Seminar II. 1 Hour.

This course is a co-requisite with SOCW 434. The course focuses on teaching students to process their work with clients in professional recordings and to analyze their performance in field practicum. This course assists students in understanding and achieving competence in the social work skills taught and practiced in their field practicum setting. The course requires students to report and analyze field activities with faculty and peers, including the assessment and evaluation of client populations. Prerequisite: Senior Standing.

SOCW 430. Practice II: Social Work with Families and Groups. 3 Hours.

This undergraduate course introduces students to the generalist practice foundation of social work with families and groups, also known as mezzo systems. Students will learn skills for developing professional relationships with mezzo client systems, garnering and examining data, assessing constituent concerns as they relate to attributes of the client system and the client's environment. The course will also focus on planning, choosing appropriate interventions, implementation interventions and evaluation of client system outcomes. Prerequisites: SOCW 330, SOCW 331, and SOCW 333.

SOCW 431. Social Work with Communities and Organizations. 3 Hours.

This undergraduate course introduces students to the generalist practice foundation of social work with communities and organizations, also known as macro systems. Students will examine and apply concepts, theories, and models of practice with macro systems to address complex issues of these systems. The course will analyze and implement approaches social workers use to engage with, influence, and intervene with communities, organizations, and other macro systems. Prerequisites: SOCW 333 and SOCW 434. Also, SOCI 1301, PSYC 2301, SOCW 2390, and SOCW 2350 or SOCW 2361 all with a minimum grade of B.

SOCW 432. Statistics in Social Work. 3 Hours.

Introduces the use of statistics for research in social work and focuses on understanding statistical outputs. Teaches descriptive and inferential statistics with specific focus on understanding central tendency, variability, correlation, probability, regression, and various other inferential statistical techniques such as t-test, analysis of variance, post-hoc tests, and non-parametric statistics. Prerequisites: MATH 1314, 1324, or 1332. Also, SOCI 1301, PSYC 2301, SOCW 2390, and SOCW 2350 or SOCW 2361 all with a minimum grade of B.

SOCW 433. Research Methods of Social Work. 3 Hours.

This is an undergraduate course that focuses on research methods used in social work. This course prepares students for designing and carrying out research in practice settings and for agency purposes. This course includes training students to critically analyze scholarly literature and apply it in work within social work practice settings. This course will also explore practice and program evaluation. Prerequisites: SOCW 432 with a minimum of D. Also, SOCI 1301, PSYC 2301, SOCW 2390, and SOCW 2350 or SOCW 2361 all with a minimum grade of B.

SOCW 434. General Field Practice I. 3 Hours.

This course is the first of two within a sequence. The course focuses on engaged field education and developing practice skills through live field engagements with clients systems. This course is considered signature pedagogy for the BSW program's curriculum and is designed to socialize students to become professional social work practitioners. The course is designed to connect content learned in the coursework across the curriculum to live practice. The course seeks to reinforce purposes, values, and ethics of the social work profession and fosters the integration of empirical and practice-based knowledge (evidenced-based practice) to promote the development of professional competence. This course requires students to complete field practicum hours as dictated by the Council on Social Work Education. Prerequisites: Senior Standing and completion of all junior level social work coursework.

SOCW 435. Generalist Field Practice II. 3 Hours.

This course is the second within a sequence. The course focuses on engaged field education and developing practice skills through live field engagements with clients systems. This course is considered signature pedagogy for the BSW program's curriculum and is designed to socialize students to become professional social work practitioners. The course is designed to connect content learned in the coursework across the curriculum to live practice. The course seeks to reinforce purposes, values, and ethics of the social work profession and fosters the integration of empirical and practice-based knowledge (evidenced-based practice) to promote the development of professional competence. This course requires students to complete field practicum hours as dictated by the Council on Social Work Education. Prerequisites: Senior standing and completion of all junior level social work coursework.

SOCW 475. Introduction to Gerontology. 3 Hours.

This course provides students with a broad overview of the field of gerontology and discuss the characteristics of older adults, the sociology of aging, theories of aging, stereotypes, and ageism, physiological and psychological changes of aging, and alternative healthcare methods that may benefit older adults. It explores a variety of perspectives on aging, including the social aspects of aging: family relationships, health, economics, retirement, widowhood, and care of the frail elderly.

SOCW 489. Independent Study. 3 Hours.

This course provides individual instruction. Students may repeat the course when topics vary.

SOCW 497. Special Topics. 3 Hours.

Instructors will provide an organized class designed to cover areas of specific interest. Students may repeat the course when topics vary.