CSL 233 Multicultural Issues in Human Services

3 hours 

This course provides an interdisciplinary introduction to multicultural issues in human service helping professions. The central focus will be a critical evaluation of cultural competence on both individual and organizational levels in human service institutions. The impact of one's own level of cultural awareness and bias toward self and others will be examined within the context of how cultural, social, economic, political and historical factors influence these institutions. Additionally, the course will explore how various relevant terms, including multiculturalism, diversity, race, culture and ethnicity, have come to be defined and applied from diverse perspectives. Through the use of reflective writing, narrative analysis, discussion, and experiential teaching methods, the course will engage participants in development of cultural self-awareness, general knowledge about cultural groups and organizational cultural competence in the human service profession.