Course Syllabus

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Southern Utah University

Fall Semester 2025

SW Practice 3: Communities (Face-to-Face)

SW 3300-01

Course:	SW 3300-01
Credits:	3
Term:	Fall Semester 2025
Department:	FLHD
CRN:	31214

Course Description

Social Work Practice 3: Communities and Organizations continues the emphasis of Social Work Practice I on the development of knowledge, values, and skills for generalist social work practice. This course, however, focuses on generalist practice with organizations and communities using a social systems approach. (As Needed) [Graded (Standard Letter)] Prerequisite(s): SW 3100 - Prerequisite Min. Grade: C Prerequisite Can Be Concurrent? Yes Registration Restriction(s): Social work majors only

Required Texts

Kirst-Ashman, K. K., & Hull, G. J. H. (2018). Empowerment Series: Human Behavior in the Macro Social Environment (5th ed.). Cengage Learning.

Learning Outcomes

Course Outcomes

By the end of this course, you will be able to:

Deliberate foundational social work macro practice theory as applied to current social and political cultural contexts.
Demonstrate comprehension of community and organizational change models and the applicability of those models to social work practice, and the person and environment and generalist practice perspective.
Identify the mechanisms of social group work required for macro practice, including work in task groups, meetings, and teams.
Evaluate assessment and change strategies in macro practice systems.
Critically analyze and evaluate community practice theories in terms of their applicability to multicultural and historically oppressed populations and the social work mandate for social justice.
Demonstrate an awareness of effective social work practice in communities and organizations that is congruent with NASW values and code of ethics emphasizing practice interventions with communities and organizations.
Demonstrate awareness of, and critically discuss, the implications of ethnic background, culture, gender, age, sexual orientation, religion, socioeconomic class, and disability on community theory and practice.

Course Requirements

Assignment Outline

Reading Summary Logs

5 times throughout the semester (approximately every other week), you will complete a Focus on Critical Thinking activity from the previous weeks/chapters/readings found in the text. The assignments should be at least two pages in length and written according to APA 7. Be sure to use your text as a reference or items that have been presented in class. In-text citations will add depth to your summaries. Use the Focus on Critical Thinking activity as your guide to create your summary and provoke thoughts that apply to the information you have been reading and in-class instruction.

Exams / Quizzes (200 Points)

In lieu of a midterm exam, there will be several assignments and presentations due as listed in this syllabus. Your assignments will be considered your midterm, so please treat your assignments as such. As mentioned earlier, no late assignments will be accepted, so be sure to have them ready to turn in on the assigned date

Quizzes are a great way to encourage reading. Each week, there will be one (possibly two) reading quiz due. Quizzes will open the previous week before they are due. Quizzes are objective (e.g., multiple-choice, matching, and true/false) and worth 10 points. Quizzes are time-limited. Quizzes will be administered through Canvas utilizing Proctorio.

Community / Organization-Based Action Project

During the semester, you will complete a Community / organization-based action project. This will be the majority of the grade for this course. You will work in groups and be given some in-class time to work on this project.

Stage 1: Literature Review / Social Problem

You will be assigned to a group; this will be the group you will remain with for both the semester and your entire project. Your group will identify a social problem you want to address. You will complete a group paper written according to APA 7. The group paper will include a definition of, and a literature review of, the systematic causes of your social problem. Be sure to have all group members’ names included in the paper. Your paper must include at least 5-10 peer-reviewed articles in your reference section.

Peer Feedback Completion

Throughout the project, you will review your peers according to their engagement and contribution to the project and the group. You will do so by completing feedback and a scoring summary that you will give to your peers and to the instructor. In Stage 6, you will give a final evaluation of yourself, the group members, and the project.

Stages 2 and 3: Community Networking

You will identify various organizations or community members who are knowledgeable about the social problem of interest. You, as a group, will submit a list of community contacts and a description of what you learned by networking with the organizations and individuals. Your professionalism when networking is crucial.

Stage 4: Project Plan

You will complete a group paper identifying five systematic causes of the social problem and a strategy for addressing each cause. You will identify the strategy you plan to implement in collaboration with community partners you have networked with. Your paper must be written according to APA 7 and include a timeline for the intervention, which must be completed at least two weeks before the end of the semester. You also need to include a detailed plan for your intervention, what role each group member will fill, and the tasks that need to be completed. The paper should also include an evaluation plan with measurable outcomes to demonstrate the effectiveness or ineffectiveness of the intervention.

Stage 5: Project implementation and Presentation

You will implement your project in connection with your group and the community partners. This portion of the project will take the majority of your time. You will also complete a group presentation given in the last few weeks of class. This presentation needs to include all steps of the previous stages, as well as a visual representation of your project completed through photos, etc.

You will be graded according to appearance, professionalism of the presentation, and project implementation. The PowerPoint presentation (or another similar presentation tool, i.e., Prezi) will be graded on the quality and depth of your topic. It should follow the presentation outline found in Canvas. Your presentation must include PowerPoint. Other methods, such as visual aids or video clips, are up to you. Obviously, the content of your PowerPoint will substantially influence the quality of your presentation.

Before your presentation, you will email me a copy of your presentation so that I may upload it to Canvas for all students to access.

Stage 6: Project Evaluation

You will complete a final paper evaluation of yourself, your group, and your project. Your paper needs to be written according to APA 7. You will need to include your evaluation of the project completed using the measurable outcomes you identified in Stage 4.

Group Presentation

50 addressing policy issues; policy analysis process
30 points for interaction with students;
20 for professional appearance and presentation

Professional Engagement

This assignment is based on your class attendance and participation in the class. Due to the nature of this course, it is important to be in attendance, engaged, and involved. This course is also a prerequisite for the practicum.

This course and your engagement will be a reflection of the professional behavior expected to participate in a practicum. Each week you will be given points based on the criteria below.

Accordingly, we expect social work students to demonstrate courtesy, respect, and support for fellow students, instructors, clients, and all other persons. While the values of the profession are codified in the NASW Code of Ethics, the following additional standards of behavior are to be exhibited as well by all students enrolled in the social work program and this course: See rubric for further details.

1. Attendance: Attends classes and related meetings (CSWE EPAS 2.1.1)
2. Punctuality: Is punctual and present (CSWE EPAS 2.1.1)
3. Initiation of Communication: Initiates communication with the professor/supervisor
(CSWE EPAS 2.1.1; 2.1.3)
4. Course Engagement: Demonstrates appropriate engagement in class
activities/discussions (CSWE EPAS 2.1.1)
5. Responsiveness to Feedback: Demonstrates evidence of motivation to improve oneself (CSWE EPAS 2.1.1)

Course Outline

Course Summary:

Instructor's policies on late assignments and/or makeup work

No late work will be accepted. In order to make any accommodations, I need to be informed before the due date of an assignment for extenuating circumstances. Contact me via email.

Attendance Policy

If you are registered for a Face-to-Face, Synchronous Remote, Hybrid, or Remote Hybrid course, attendance is required. If you are ill or instructed to isolate or quarantine, you may request that a faculty member record the class and share it with you, but evidence of your illness or other status may be required. In order for you to receive academic accommodations and ensure that your request is communicated to faculty, you must submit this self-report form. If you miss more than three classes, you will not pass the course and will need to retake the course due to the experiential nature of the course.

ADA Statement

Students with medical, psychological, learning, or other disabilities desiring academic adjustments, accommodations, or auxiliary aids will need to contact the Disability Resource Center, located in Room 206F of the Sharwan Smith Center or by phone at (435) 865-8042. The Disability Resource Center determines eligibility for and authorizes the provision of services.

If your instructor requires attendance, you may need to seek an ADA accommodation to request an exception to this attendance policy. Please contact the Disability Resource Center to determine what, if any, ADA accommodations are reasonable and appropriate.

Academic Credit

According to the federal definition of a Carnegie credit hour: A credit hour of work is the equivalent of approximately 60 minutes of class time or independent study work. A minimum of 45 hours of work by each student is required for each unit of credit. Credit is earned only when course requirements are met. One (1) credit hour is equivalent to 15 contact hours of lecture, discussion, testing, evaluation, or seminar, as well as 30 hours of student homework. An equivalent amount of work is expected for laboratory work, internships, practica, studio, and other academic work leading to the awarding of credit hours. Credit granted for individual courses, labs, or studio classes ranges from 0.5 to 15 credit hours per semester.

Academic Freedom

SUU is operated for the common good of the greater community it serves. The common good depends upon the free search for truth and its free exposition. Academic Freedom is the right of faculty to study, discuss, investigate, teach, and publish. Academic Freedom is essential to these purposes and applies to both teaching and research.

Academic Freedom in the realm of teaching is fundamental for the protection of the rights of the faculty member and of you, the student, with respect to the free pursuit of learning and discovery. Faculty members possess the right to full freedom in the classroom in discussing their subjects. They may present any controversial material relevant to their courses and their intended learning outcomes, but they shall take care not to introduce into their teaching controversial materials which have no relation to the subject being taught or the intended learning outcomes for the course.

As such, students enrolled in any course at SUU may encounter topics, perspectives, and ideas that are unfamiliar or controversial, with the educational intent of providing a meaningful learning environment that fosters your growth and development. These parameters related to Academic Freedom are included in SUU Policy 6.6.

Academic Misconduct

Scholastic honesty is expected of all students. Dishonesty will not be tolerated and will be prosecuted to the fullest extent (see SUU Policy 6.33). You are expected to have read and understood the current SUU student conduct code (SUU Policy 11.2) regarding student responsibilities and rights, the intellectual property policy (SUU Policy 5.52), information about procedures, and what constitutes acceptable behavior.

Please Note: The use of websites or services that sell essays is a violation of these policies; likewise, the use of websites or services that provide answers to assignments, quizzes, or tests is also a violation of these policies. Regarding the use of Generative Artificial Intelligence (AI), you should check with your individual course instructor.

Emergency Management Statement

In case of an emergency, the University's Emergency Notification System (ENS) will be activated. Students are encouraged to maintain updated contact information using the link on the homepage of the mySUU portal. In addition, students are encouraged to familiarize themselves with the Emergency Response Protocols posted in each classroom. Detailed information about the University's emergency management plan can be found at https://www.suu.edu/emergency.

HEOA Compliance Statement

For a full set of Higher Education Opportunity Act (HEOA) compliance statements, please visit https://www.suu.edu/heoa. The sharing of copyrighted material through peer-to-peer (P2P) file sharing, except as provided under U.S. copyright law, is prohibited by law; additional information can be found at https://my.suu.edu/help/article/1096/heoa-compliance-plan.

You are also expected to comply with policies regarding intellectual property (SUU Policy 5.52) and copyright (SUU Policy 5.54).

Mandatory Reporting

University policy (SUU Policy 5.60) requires instructors to report disclosures received from students that indicate they have been subjected to sexual misconduct/harassment. The University defines sexual harassment consistent with Federal Regulations (34 C.F.R. Part 106, Subpart D) to include quid pro quo, hostile environment harassment, sexual assault, dating violence, domestic violence, and stalking. When students communicate this information to an instructor in-person, by email, or within writing assignments, the instructor will report that to the Title IX Coordinator to ensure students receive support from the Title IX Office. A reporting form is available at https://cm.maxient.com/reportingform.php?SouthernUtahUniv

Non-Discrimination Statement

SUU is committed to fostering an inclusive community of lifelong learners and believes our university's encompassing of different views, beliefs, and identities makes us stronger, more innovative, and better prepared for the global society.

SUU does not discriminate on the basis of race, religion, color, national origin, citizenship, sex (including sex discrimination and sexual harassment), sexual orientation, gender identity, age, ancestry, disability status, pregnancy, pregnancy-related conditions, genetic information, military status, veteran status, or other bases protected by applicable law in employment, treatment, admission, access to educational programs and activities, or other University benefits or services.

SUU strives to cultivate a campus environment that encourages freedom of expression from diverse viewpoints. We encourage all to dialogue within a spirit of respect, civility, and decency.

For additional information on non-discrimination, please see SUU Policy 5.27 and/or visit https://www.suu.edu/nondiscrimination.

Pregnancy

Students who are or become pregnant during this course may receive reasonable modifications to facilitate continued access and participation in the course. Pregnancy and related conditions are broadly defined to include pregnancy, childbirth, termination of pregnancy, lactation, related medical conditions, and recovery. To obtain reasonable modifications, please make a request to title9@suu.edu. To learn more visit: https://www.suu.edu/titleix/pregnancy.html.

Disclaimer Statement

Information contained in this syllabus, other than the grading, late assignments, makeup work, and attendance policies, may be subject to change with advance notice, as deemed appropriate by the instructor.

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