week4

 
The purpose of this assignment is to broaden  your understanding of a community, develop analytical skills regarding  communities in relation to specific populations and their needs, and to  better plan and develop interventions to address issues and problems  facing the community.
This assignment has  three parts: Part I Understanding Your Community, where you will  consider the current demographics of the community and analyze how that  has changed over the past 20 years; Part II Community Assessment, where  you assess your community and a problem within your community; and Part  III Community Action Plan, where you develop a specific action plan to  address the problem you identified. As you reflect on the learning  resources and concepts from Weeks 1-4, be sure to explain what you have  learned about the policy’s effect on various groups. Consider how will  this knowledge assist you with your community action plan.
By Day 7
Submit a 4-page paper. The  paper needs to be well-researched and written using APA guidelines. Data  should come from at least five sources. 
Part I: Understanding your Community 

Analyze how your community has changed over the past 20 years. Use  policy and community concepts and theories from the learning resources  to support your analysis.
Describe your community, using research and statistics to describe  socio-demographic make-up. (For example: How many persons live in the  city and/or in the town? What were/are their cultural/racial  characteristics? What were/are their incomes, ages, political  affiliations, etc.?)

Part II: Community Assessment

Describe a problem that the community is currently experiencing.

Assess the duration, intensity, and frequency of the problem. 
Analyze the probable etiology of the problem, supporting your analysis with resources.

Analyze the key elements and characteristics of the community that make it vulnerable to this problem. 
Analyze the key strengths of the community that give the community resilience and the potential for overcoming the problem.
Identify major institutions (e.g., schools, factories, churches,  attraction sites, etc.) and explain how these institutions contribute to  or inhibit the community’s ability to address the problem? 
Explain which groups are most affected by the problem. 

Part III: Community & Policy Action Plan

Describe your proposed plan for community change. 
Explain the strategies and tactics you would you use to bring about  change. Consider if you would need multiple strategies, and if so,  explain which strategy would be used for each target.
Explain any policies that may influence the ability, either supportive or prohibitive, to influence proposed community change.
Explain what policies would need to be in place to ensure proposed plans are sustainable.

 

SOCW 6361 Webliography
These websites will be required throughout the semester. Become familiar with these websites, especially when doing research for your assignments.

Burns, J. C., Paul, P. D., & Paz, S. R. (2012). Participatory asset mapping: A community research lab toolkit. Retrieved from http://www.communityscience.com/knowledge4equity/AssetMappingToolkit.pdf

Community Toolbox. (2016). 2. Assessing community needs and resources. Retrieved from http://ctb.ku.edu/en/assessing-community-needs-and-resources 
Jansson, B. S. (2018). Becoming an effective policy advocate: From policy practice to social justice. (8th ed.). Pacific Grove, CA: Brooks/Cole Cengage Learning Series.
Chapter 4, “Understanding the Ecology of Policy in Government, Electoral, Community, and Agency Settings” (pp. 100–140)
 
Rome, S. H., & Hoechstetter, S. (2010). Social work and civic engagement: The political participation of professional social workers. Journal of Sociology & Social Welfare, 37(3), 107–129.