Perspectives on Community Development

An advanced level course on community development which focuses on core aspects of community development with North American and European paradigms (but also incorporates Aboriginal and cross-cultural perspectives that accommodate human diversity and pluralism). The two-fold purpose of this makes the important connection between being and doing. Before persons can engage in “successful” community development, they must understand the interconnection between community “needs analysis” and “asset mapping” as well as understand how to effectively respond to “people” dynamics as core components of community development. In the first part of the course, students will be required to examine issues “community gaps and needs” with acute attention to challenging societal factors such as poverty, power, privilege, race, class, gender and other social inequalities and health disparities. Students will also be enabled to define “at-risk” communities within a social justice framework. Second, students will explore elements of “community assets” and “community capacity” whereby community can be supported to address many of their own needs “from the inside out”. The course will conclude with students being asked to begin to develop a simple program for community development informed by leading/standard models of community development. Prerequisites: SOCI 101, 102, 251, 252 Only open to third- or fourth-year students or equivalent Same as BUSI 328