Description of Course:
Students work in an off-campus field placement for 8-10 hours each week. This gives them the opportunity to get involved with programs which affect women's lives directly, applying the theories, principles and empirical findings in the area of women's studies.

Course Prerequisites:
WS110 or WS150 or AACS 150 or AACS 155

Course Objectives:
To give students the opportunity to work directly with women's issues. Their work will introduce them to some of the problematic interfaces between empirical knowledge and social policies. Their work will also assist them in learning more about their own skills and career goals.

Course Content:
1. Field Placement: Students will work between 8 and 10 hours each week at the field placement. These sites will be approved or selected by the instructor after consulting with the student individually and will include shelters, geriatric centers, non-profit agencies and local, state and federally funded programs which provide services for women.
2. Field Project:
a. Journal/Log: Students will keep a journal and log which includes hours spent in the field, the activities they participated in, questions and insights about their experience. The log will be signed by the supervisor.
b. Students will prepare a written report on their placement. Depending on the agency, this could include developing of volunteers, preparing a syllabus for in-service training of volunteers, researching other agencies for clients. If the student is providing direct service, the report might include a history of the agency, its mission, funding sources, clients served, staffing plans, etc. The report should also include a vision for the future: what societal changes might improve the work of this agency?
3. Readings, Individual supervision and Group Presentations: Each student will meet with the instructor periodically. The instructor will visit the student on site and meet with the on-site supervisor. Several group meeting will be scheduled for students to share their experiences.
4. Teaching Methods: Direct experience and supervision, group discussion and written project analysis.

Evaluation Methods: Evaluation of the on-site supervisor, written project, group presentation.

Suggested Readings:
Garland, Anne Witte. Women Activists. NY: The Feminist Press, 1988.

Gottfried, Heidi. Feminism and Social Change: Bridging Theory and Practice. Chicago, IL: University of Illinois Press, 1996.

Zepatos, Thalia and Kaufman, Elizabeth. Women for a change: A Grassroots Guide to Activism and Politics. NY: Facts on File Inc., 1995.

Bibliography:
Amott, Teresa and Matthaei, Julie. Race, Gender and Work. Boston, MA: South End Press, 1991.

Crawford, Christina: The legacy of domestic violence. NY: Station Hill Press, 1994.

Feiner, Susan F. (Ed.) Race and Gender in the American Economy. Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice Hall, 1994.

Fiol-Matta, Liza and Chamberlain, Mariam K. Women of Color and the Multicultural Curriculum. NY: The Feminist Press, 1994.

Hague, Gill and Malos, Ellen. Domestic Violence: Action for Change. Cheltenham, England: New Clarion Press, 1993.

Herman, Judith Lewis. Trauma and Recovery. NY Harper Collins, 1992. (new edition available)

O'Barr, Jean Fox. Feminism in Action: Building Institutions and Community through Women's Studies. Chapel Hill, NC: The University of North Carolina Press, 1994.

Roberts, Albert R. (Ed.). Helping Battered Women: New Perspectives and Remedies. NY: Oxford University Press, 1996.

Spender, Dale. For the record: The making and meaning of feminist knowledge. London, England: The Women's Press, 1985.

White, Evelyn C. Chain Chain Change. For Black Women in Abusive Relationships. Seattle, WA: Seal Press, 1994.

Preparer's name and date: Dr. Toby Silverman

Original departmental approval date:

Reviser's name and date:

Departmental revision approval date: