Jan Thomas

Connecting Academic and Intern Experiences — Semester

EXPL 206

Internships offer students hands-on experience in a possible career field of interest, the opportunity to focus career goals and aspirations, and exposure to the wider world outside of classroom. This course serves two purposes: to aid students in the identification and pursuit of internship opportunities and to offer students the opportunity to formally connect the internship with wider academic interests.\n\nStudents registering for this course will work collaboratively with a Career Development Office advisor and a faculty advisor as identified by the student. Working collaboratively with a Career Development Office advisor, students will produce high quality resumes and cover letters. Students will also discuss networking and practice interview skills. Upon completion of their pre-work, students will get a form signed by the CDO advisor prior to the start of the internship. An audit notation will be placed on the student’s record upon submission of the form to the registrar’s office. International students will work directly with the Center for Global Engagement to complete the course requirements.\n\nStudents must obtain an internship opportunity (60 hour minimum) within the first three weeks of class. In order to earn 0.13 units (credit/no credit) of credit, the student must complete all required activities including the final reflection paper and conversation with the faculty advisor. Students must submit the signed completion form to the registrar’s office at the end of the semester. Students may complete three internships and receive up to 0.52 units of credit either under EXPL 205 or EXPL 206. An audit notation will be placed on the student’s record upon submission of the form to the registrar’s office.

ST: Community Healthcare

HSPS 191

Community Healthcare: From Theory to Practice

INDS 160

This course provides the academic preparation for students to become a Health Coach with the Community Care Network (CCN) at Knox Community Hospital. Health Coaches are members of the CCN team that promote holistic physical, mental and social wellness through in-home visits with members of the community. Any student interested in becoming a Health Coach must take this course.\nCourse content focuses on population health, diseases that can lead to chronic illness, and psychosocial aspects of health and illness. Activities in this course will include interactive lectures, group discussions and presentations focusing on the conceptual and practical issues surrounding community healthcare. Case studies (actual de-identified patient scenarios) will be key tools in preparing students to become Health Coaches charged with the education and motivation of at-risk patients during in-home visits. The overarching goal of the program is to empower these patients to take an active role in their own wellness by promoting positive behaviors.\nAfter successful completion of this class, it is expected, although not mandatory, that students will participate in the Health Coaches program during the following semester(s). In teams of two, Health Coaches will be assigned their own clients and will collaborate with the hospital healthcare team to promote healthy lifestyle changes. Prerequisite: sophomore standing and permission of instructor to ensure students are prepared to become health coaches following the class.

Individual Study

SOCY 493

Individual study is an exception, not a routine option, with details to be negotiated between the student(s) and the faculty member and the department chair. The course may involve investigation of a topic engaging the interest of both student and professor. In some cases, a faculty member may agree to oversee an individual study as a way of exploring the development of a regular curricular offering. In others, the faculty member may guide one or two advanced students through a focused topic drawing on his or her expertise, with the course culminating in a substantial paper. The individual study should involve regular meetings at which the student and professor discuss assigned material. The professor has final authority over the material to be covered and the pace of work. The student is expected to devote time to the individual study equivalent to that for a regular course. Individual studies will be awarded 0.5 units of credit. Because students must enroll for individual studies by the end of the seventh class day of each semester, they should begin discussion of the proposed individual study preferably the semester before, so that there is time to devise the proposal and seek departmental approval before the registrar’s deadline.

Senior Honors

WGS 497

The major who wishes to participate in the honors program must have an overall GPA of 3.33 and a GPA of 3.5 in the major. The candidate in honors will complete all requirements for the major, the Senior Capstone, two semesters of independent study and will design and complete a research project. This project should integrate feminist theory and methodologies as well as the student’s chosen disciplinary or interdisciplinary cluster. Each honors student will prepare an annotated bibliography on her or his chosen project midway through the fall semester. After approval, the senior honors project will be undertaken in consultation with a project advisor. Students are encouraged to think boldly and innovatively about the kinds of projects they undertake and about how those projects interact with and benefit their communities. Senior honors projects might include gender-focused sociological or historical studies undertaken locally; exhibitions, productions or installations of gender-exploratory art, music or theater; or political, social and/or environmental service-oriented or activist work. Students will be closely mentored throughout their projects and, in the spring, will be evaluated by an external evaluator and by faculty in the program and in relevant disciplines. The evaluators will assess the strength of the students’ overall work, as well as the strength of their self-designed, project-appropriate public presentations of that work. Permission of instructor and department chair required.