Course Syllabus

Summer 2026 | SWK-1010-VO01 - Introduction to Human Services

Online Class

Online courses take place 100% online via Canvas, without required in-person or Zoom meetings.

Faculty

Michele Feiner
View Faculty Credentials

Hiring Coordinator for this course: Kate Hughes

General Education Requirements

Social Science

Note

Many degree programs have specific general education recommendations. In order to avoid taking unnecessary classes, please consult with additional resources like your program evaluation, your academic program catalog year page, and your academic advisor.

Courses may only be used to meet one General Education Requirement.

Course Description

This course provides an overview of the organization, values, theories, and variety of activities of various human service professions, with specific emphasis on social work. Students explore the human services and examine opportunities and educational requirements for a career in social work and other helping professions.

Essential Objectives

1. Trace the development of social welfare institutions in the United States, including the organization, funding sources, goals, management, and policies of contemporary local, state, and federal human service programs.
2. Compare human services systems in the United States to those developed in other global cultures and diverse societies.
3. Explain the needs of individuals and communities that are addressed by the human services system, describe human service programming, and evaluate the efficacy of common intervention methods.
4. Identify and discuss the educational and ethical requirements of human services professionals including the National Association of Social Workers Code of Ethics.
5. Apply the core values of Social Work—service, social justice, dignity and worth of the person, importance of human relationships, integrity, and competence.
6. Discuss the importance of cultural competence and demonstrate skills and strategies for supporting and collaborating with individuals from diverse backgrounds.
7. Explain the forms, mechanisms, and dynamics of oppression and the strategies of social change that advance human rights and social, economic, and environmental justice.
8. Explore the scope and diversity of career opportunities in social work and other human services fields through assignments such as informational interviews, job shadows, or other career exploration activities..

Required Technology

More information on general computer and internet recommendations is available on the CCV computer recommendations Support page.

Please see CCV's Digital Equity Statement (pg. 45) to learn more about CCV's commitment to supporting all students access the technology they need to successfully finish their courses.

Required Textbooks and Resources

*** This is a low cost ($50 or less) textbook or resource class. ***

This course uses one or more textbooks/books/simulations, along with free Open Educational Resources (OER) and/or library materials.

Summer 2026 textbook/book details will be available on 2025-12-01. On that date a link will be available below that will take you to eCampus, CCV's bookstore. The information provided there will be specific to this class. Please see this page for more information regarding the purchase of textbooks/books.

SWK-1010-VO01 Link to Textbooks for this course in eCampus.

For Open Educational Resources (OER) and/or library materials details, see the Canvas Site for this class.

The last day to use a Financial Aid Advance to purchase textbooks/books is the 3rd Tuesday of the semester. See your financial aid counselor at your academic center if you have any questions.

Artificial Intelligence(AI) Policy Statement

CCV recognizes that artificial intelligence (AI) and generative AI tools are widely available and becoming embedded in many online writing and creative applications.

Integrated: This course's generative AI policy acknowledges the use of AI is an essential skill in today's world. By using genAI for specific purposes, students become equipped with relevant skills and tools necessary to thrive in a technology-driven society. Emphasizing the mastery of generative AI should empower you to harness its potential, enhancing your problem-solving abilities and preparing you for future challenges and opportunities. Be aware, however, that any time generative AI is used at any point in the assignment without attribution it may be considered a violation of CCV's Academic Integrity Policy.

Artifical Intelligence (AI) is a fast growing and very helpful tool in the fields of education and human services. (AI) can offer strategies to support professionals in many ways including creating engaging learning experiences and locating appropriate resources and supports. Understanding AI's potential allows us to enhance the quality of our work in a rapidly changing world. As we learn to best work with this tool it is important to understand how to appropriately use it, AI can be asked how to best phrase a sentence, or to get ideas for a project or activity, or even for strategies to help meet the needs of a struggling student or client. AI should not be asked to write a paper for you or to give you the correct answers to a test and the use of AI should always be acknowledged.

Methods

Course Description:

This course provides an overview of the field of human services, exploring its history, ethical considerations, diverse career paths, and the role of professionals in assisting individuals and communities. Through readings, discussions, and case studies, students will gain insight into the various settings and populations served in human services.

Upon completion of this course, students will be able to:

1. Define the field of human services and its key principles.
2. Identify career opportunities and roles within human services.
3. Analyze ethical considerations and challenges in the profession.
4. Evaluate case studies to understand real-world applications of human services.

Discuss the impact of human services on individuals, families, and communities

This is a fully online, asynchronous course that runs from Tuesday to Monday and will consist of work in the following areas:

• weekly readings of textbook and articles
• written responses to readings, PowerPoints, videos
• weekly discussion posts
• weekly lectures, PowerPoints or other instructor materials
• text assignments including assessments and surveys
• projects
• final portfolio

As a 3 credit course you are expected to be engaged in the class for a minimum of 9 hours per week. Several of those hours should be spent in the Discussion Modules - responding to the weekly discussion prompt early in the week and responding to at least two of the prompts of your classmates through the remainder. It is especially helpful if you include your picture here in Canvas so we have an idea of what we all look like.

There are rubrics attached to each of the above assignment types so that grading is not a mystery.

It is assumed that many of you are working full time in the field, and your lives are busy. So the intention of this course is to provide you materials that will be applicable to the work that you are doing, while also connecting you with colleagues with whom you can both share and learn from. That said, it is also important that you keep up with the work according to the course schedule. Late work will be graded accordingly. If there are extenuating circumstances in your life please reach out to me so that we can have a conversation about how best to help balance the needs.

Evaluation Criteria

All Assignments are based on a 100 point scale. Rubrics for grades for all areas of concentration listed below are posted on the Canvas page. Distribution of points is as follows:

Discussion Groups - 35%

Weekly Assignments - 20%

Weekly Exploration Journal - 10%

Presentations - 10%

Final Project - 25 %

Grading Criteria

CCV Letter Grades as outlined in the Evaluation System Policy are assigned according to the following chart:

	High	Low
A+	100	98
A	Less than 98	93
A-	Less than 93	90
B+	Less than 90	88
B	Less than 88	83
B-	Less than 83	80
C+	Less than 80	78
C	Less than 78	73
C-	Less than 73	70
D+	Less than 70	68
D	Less than 68	63
D-	Less than 63	60
F	Less than 60
P	100	60
NP	Less than 60	0

Weekly Schedule

Attendance Policy

Regular attendance and participation in classes are essential for success in and are completion requirements for courses at CCV. A student's failure to meet attendance requirements as specified in course descriptions will normally result in a non-satisfactory grade.

• In general, missing more than 20% of a course due to absences, lateness or early departures may jeopardize a student's ability to earn a satisfactory final grade.
• Attending an on-ground or synchronous course means a student appeared in the live classroom for at least a meaningful portion of a given class meeting. Attending an online course means a student posted a discussion forum response, completed a quiz or attempted some other academically required activity. Simply viewing a course item or module does not count as attendance.
• Meeting the minimum attendance requirement for a course does not mean a student has satisfied the academic requirements for participation, which require students to go above and beyond simply attending a portion of the class. Faculty members will individually determine what constitutes participation in each course they teach and explain in their course descriptions how participation factors into a student's final grade.

Participation Expectations

Participation:

It can take some time to get used to the structure of an online class, especially if it is not something you have experience with. Let me give you a few tips:

• The Discussion Posts are the heart of the class. It is how I know you are actually attending! Each week I will post both the discussion prompt and the assignment in the announcement section of the module for that week.
• You are expected to post at least once initially, responding to the prompt, by Thursday night at 11:59 (earlier is fine and encouraged) and then finish up your replies to your classmates by Sunday night at 11:59. To get the most participation points, you should have four posts total, including your initial discussion post. Do not just sign in once per week to do all of your work.
• You should check back to see if people have asked you questions or responded to your posts--including me!
• Your posts and responses should be thoughtful and could include things like:
  1. Share feedback perhaps by saying something about how much thought or detail was put into the response.
  2. Build on the discussion by asking deeper questions about the responses to maybe find some commonalities.

3. Make a connection by noticing similarities or differences in your attributes and share an anecdote.

• I will use a rubric used to assess your posts each week; be sure to read the rubric to make sure you are getting full points (or find out why you are not!).

Missing & Late Work Policy

Submissions

Please plan on submitting work by the due date posted. I recognize that some of you are coming from Proficiency-based learning environments where this was not a norm, and I also recognize that all of us have many things in our lives that we are balancing, and that some weeks are just harder than others. But make turning in your work on time a goal and then if you just can't juggle it, know that I understand and will work with you. Don't just give it all up!

Late submissions will be accepted but will not be eligible for full marks. Assignments submitted after the deadline will receive a 10% grade point deduction that will increase depending on number of days late.

You are always welcome to resubmit an assignment that you did not meet your standard for additional points consideration.

If you recognize a due date might be a problem, you can advocate for yourself by following these steps:

1. Identify the problem
2. Contact me to propose a solution
3. Let’s negotiate

I reserve the right to revisit and change this policy if needed.

Accessibility Services for Students with Disabilities:

1. Provide disability documentation to the Accessibility Coordinator at your academic center. https://ccv.edu/student-support/accessibility-services/
2. Request an appointment to meet with accessibility coordinator to discuss your request and create an accommodation plan.
3. Once created, students will share the accommodation plan with faculty. Please note, faculty cannot make disability accommodations outside of this process.

Academic Integrity

Apply Now for this semester.