Human & Social Services Assistant Diploma

This course is an introduction to the writing process and the formulation of appropriate workplace communication, as well as the essentials of essay writing. Instruction in effective academic and career reading strategies are introduced, along with basic information literacy skills to retrieve, evaluate, and appropriately use the ideas of others.

This course will provide an overview of the foundations, principles, and theories of counseling and human and social services, with an emphasis on differentiating between the two. Students will be encouraged to think about their future in the field by considering career options as well as compassion fatigue, burnout, and self-care. In addition, students will learn about the ethical standards and professional organizations that oversee human and social services work.

In this course, students will examine the fundamental principles of family dynamics and the influence of cultural factors. Students will be introduced to various family theories, assessment, and therapeutic intervention strategies. Emphasis will be placed on relationships, parenting, and the signs and symptoms of behaviors associated with abuse, domestic violence, and neglect. Students will examine legal and ethical issues including reporting policies and procedures related to family therapy. Students will also explore the range of services and resources available to families including those through the local department of Children and Family Services.

This course examines the ways that culture, gender, sexual orientation, religion, socio-economic status, and other factors of diversity affect the helping relationship, helping strategies, and the effectiveness of human service provision. Emphasis is on understanding the diversity of factors that affect how and why an individual accesses human service organizations and the human service worker's ethical responsibilities as it relates to sensitively honoring clients' cultural experiences.

This course will provide an overview of the public policies, processes, and practices that shape the experience of mental health and illness in the United States. It will cover a range of mental health disorders along with their impacts on individuals, families, and communities. Topics addressed will include mental illness, chemical dependency, and substance abuse as well as intervention strategies and resources available. Emphasis will be placed on the challenges of community mental health treatment and innovations to overcome these barriers, including recent public policy developments.

This course introduces students to the basic use of computer hardware and software, electronic communication, and the Internet. Students will develop and utilize their technical knowledge, skills, and abilities in working with office technology in order to efficiently perform tasks and complete projects for contemporary academic, professional, and personal use. Students will apply fundamental theoretical, analytical, and problem solving strategies to advance their understanding of computer literacy.

This course will help students learn and apply concepts relating to various workplace situations. Learners will gain a fundamental understanding of the connectivity across course disciplines that incorporate numerical calculations, ratios, proportions, percent, measurement, algebraic concepts, and the ability to visually communicate numerical information.

In this course, students will study the theories and descriptions related to disorders of behavior, emotion, and thought. Techniques in the diagnosis and treatment of these disorders will also be explored. Students will examine psychological disorders and their impact on individuals in the workplace.

This course introduces students to the basic tenets of the communication process and the necessity of effective communication in order to achieve academic, professional (career), social, and personal goals. Students will consider factors which influence the achievement of those goals for academic, professional (career), social, and personal success, as well as for the creation of productive learning communities and students' transformation into agile, lifelong learners.

This course provides students with an introduction to psychology and the science of human behavior. Students are exposed tou00a0concepts, terminology, principles, and theories foundational to the discipline. Featured topics include research methods, consciousness and learning, emotional and motivational theories, psychological disorders and treatment, personality theories, and social psychology as they relate to personal, professional, and academic life.

Students are introduced to sociological principles through exploring the relationship between the individual, attitudes, behavior and the community. This includes the contemplation of issues like race, gender, class, sex, and age, as well as organizational infrastructures and their tendencies towards power, authority, and status.