Advance Human Rights and Social, Racial, Economic, and Environmental Justice
It is my desire, as a competent social worker, to look out for and speak up for injustices that I observe within my client population. This includes being intentional to notice injustices as well as advocating for the human rights of those around me. I will do this by continuously learning and applying knowledge relating to different social, racial, environmental, and economic populations. In addition, I will set up, use, and promote different practices which advance justice in areas of social, racial, economics, and the environment.
3.1 Demonstrate leadership in advocating for human rights, social, economic and environmental justice.
Course Evidence: During the completion of my Advanced Practicum class, I was able to attend a zoom meeting with the Georgia Cumberland Conference regarding equity advocacy within the Seventh-day Adventist conference schools. This meeting consisted of multiple people from the conference as well as multiple individuals from different schools who had taken on the role of being an equity advocate for their school. During the meeting, I was able to share some things that I am doing at the schools I’m placed at to advocate for social justice and encouraged them to try implementing those things as well. To read a reflective journal about this experience, click here.
Field Evidence: As a part of my practicum, I was able to review the data from the equity survey that students take each year and develop an action plan complete with a presentation. This action plan shows areas of strength as well as areas that provide opportunities for improvement. Additionally, this action plan provides some ideas of how the school can improve on different areas for future years. The equity survey has not been taken yet by the students so I have been unable to analyze the data. This action plan will be uploaded upon completion.
Additional Evidence: After the tornadoes tore through Kentucky during December of 2021, I got the opportunity to respond and do disaster relief. After coming back, I felt there was more I could do. I had an idea to fill some backpacks with school supplies and get them to kids who had lost everything in the tornados. That turned into delivering 164 backpacks filled with school supplies to Mayfield Kentucky for children, families, and schools in the area. Advocacy was a large part of this effort to show people the need, how they could help, and the impact they could make. To view an article written about this project, click on the following links: No Limits on God | Adventist Review, No Limits on God – Southern Tidings
3.2: Design and implement social action strategies that demonstrate social, racial, economic, and environmental justice.
Couse Evidence: Over the course of my Advanced Social Policy class, I was able to work with 3 other individuals in selecting an existing policy and creating an advocacy proposal that could better help individuals and use the money from the policy more effectively. Our group chose to focus on TANF and how the funds are currently spent. To view the completed paper, click here.
Field Evidence: At my practicum placement, Collegedale Academy, they host an event for the elementary students called Living Library. This event is put on by my supervisor, Amanda Ancheta, and encourages volunteers to come in from different cultures and ethnicities. This event aims to increase diversity awareness and allow students to learn more about different cultures and ethnicities in a fun, engaging way. To help promote this event and gather volunteers to participate, I was able to create a flyer that was distributed through social media as well as sent out to the constituent churches. To view the flyer that was created for advertising purposes, click here.
Skills Used: Through the completion of these learning behaviors, I was able to utilize skills of dependability, organization, leadership, understanding human relationships, and problem solving.
Knowledge Used: While completing the practice behaviors for this competency, knowledge from different courses such as Advanced Social Policy and Practicum were utilized. Additionally, knowledge about the TANF program, homelessness, different cultures, and procedures and policies relating to equity advocates were seen through this competency.
Values Present: Throughout this competency, I utilized the social work values of social justice and the importance of human relationships. Both of these values can be seen in advocating in the equity advocate meeting, creating an action plan for ongoing equity in schools, creating advocacy plans to assist a greater number of people with TANF, and working to promote the living library event.
Cognitive Processes Used: Recalling and applying information, illustrate upcoming events, analyzing and evaluating data, as well as investigate and select appropriate action steps are some of the cognitive processes that can be seen throughout this competency.
Affective Processes Used: Affective processes of contributing in meetings and persuading individuals to volunteer at living library are used throughout this competency. Additionally, making plans to resolve issues with policy programs, and examining data from the equity survey to improve interventions with students are also seen.
Theoretical Foundation: Persuasion Theory: This theory discusses the different elements of persuasion including intent, coercion, context, plurality, presence, and media. When these different things are present and executed properly, persuasion is more likely to occur. Throughout this competency, these different components can be seen in each and every evidence.