Overview Of The Dana College Social Work Program

The mission of the Dana College Social Work Program is to prepare graduates for competent, ethical, generalist social work practice that contributes to the advancement of social and economic justice. The Program prepares graduates for both urban and rural practice, which includes employment in both rural and urban settings such as: community centers, medical hospitals, nursing homes and in-home services for the aged, group homes and residential treatment centers for children and adolescents, community-based services for people who are physically and/or mentally challenged, family-based social service agencies, human relations agencies, state social service departments (including child protective service units), chemical dependency programs, neighborhood health centers, and mental health residential treatment centers.
Many students who wish to specialize in a field of practice go on to graduate school to obtain the master’s degree in social work (M.S.W.).
The goals of the program include:

1. To prepare graduates for competent, ethical, generalist social work practice based upon the knowledge, values, and skills of the profession.
2. To prepare graduates who are able to contribute to the development of effective, just, service delivery systems, as well as to the advancement of social and economic justice.
3. To prepare graduates for culturally competent, non-discriminatory social work practice that honors differences within an increasingly diverse society in a global context.

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DANA COLLEGE SOCIAL WORK DEPARTMENT
PROGRAM OBJECTIVES

Graduates will demonstrate the ability to:

1. Apply critical thinking skills within the context of professional social work practice.
2. Understand the value base of the profession and its ethical standards and principles and practice accordingly.
3. 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.
4. Understand the forms and mechanisms of oppression and discrimination and apply strategies of advocacy and social change that advance social and economic justice.
5. Understand and interpret the history of the social work profession and its contemporary structures and issues.
6. Apply the knowledge and skills of generalist social work practice with systems of all sizes.
7. Use theoretical frameworks supported by empirical evidence to understand individual development and behavior across the life span and the interactions among individuals and between individuals and families, groups, organizations, and communities.
8. Analyze, formulate, and influence social policies.
9. Evaluate research studies, apply research findings to practice, and evaluate their own practice interventions.
10. Use communication skills differentially across client populations, colleagues, and communities.
11. Use supervision and consultation appropriate to social work practice.
12. Function within the structure of organizations and service delivery systems and seek necessary organizational change.

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