SOCIAL POLICY
Overview
Students interested in social policy begin their concentration with Professor Demetra Nightingale's Introduction to Social Policy course, in which they review the history of social policy in the United States, and brush-up on current social policy issues and debate. From there, students coordinate with IPS faculty to determine which social policy "special topics" dominate current policymaker conversations and research, and to design a course covering these areas. Additional social policy course offerings are available in the Sociology Department and at the Bloomberg School of Public Health.
Suggested Classes
195.654 Social Policy
This graduate course provides an historic, theoretical and programmatic overview of US Social Policy. The primary objectives are to (1) understand current social policy within the broader historic context of policy evolution since 1900; (2) provide an overview of the key theoretical, philosophic and ideological principles on which US social policy is based; (3) examine key dimensions of major current policies, including welfare, employment, child welfare, public housing, and social services; and (4) explore methodological and analytic methods used to determine the effectiveness of selected policies and programs. An interdisciplinary approach is used: economics political science, history, sociology, public administration and law.
195.685 Adolescents, Crime and Justice
Should adolescents who “break the law” be punished and held accountable or be provided services and treatment; is it possible to pursue all these objectives; how should adolescent drug use be handled; does the age of an offender matter in terms of how the police, prosecution, judiciary, and corrections respond; what justifies the detention or incarceration of adolescents; what should be the purpose of “confinement” and how should “reentry” figure in; should adolescents who commit particular crimes be subject to capital punishment; and what should be done about adolescents who have gang involvement? These are some of the public policy questions that will be examined and debated.
195.640 Policy Implementation
This course is designed to build on the analytic tools students have already honed. It will help them learnhow to apply those tools to effectively implement policies and programs in the public and not-for-profit sectors and through public private partnerships. There is an “art” to leading and a “science” to managing
systems. A successful leader/manager combines both sets of skills. Students will learn the tools and techniques of implementation, including selecting strategies, weighing alternatives, planning for contingencies and developing assessment tools. Other skills to be learned include preparing budgets, which are the circulatory systems of programs, and developing schedules that ensure that plans are realized.
195.652 Social Policy - Special Topics Seminar
This course is designed to focus on a specific area of social policy ranging from poverty issues to immigration to child welfare. The course will look at economics, political science, sociology and policy when examining the specific topic. Students will have the opportunity to design a research project of their choosing based on
the topics covered in the course.
230.614 Seminar on the Family
Sociological perspectives on contemporary family life, including marriage and divorce, cohabitation, singleparenthood, same-sex partnerships, children’s well-being, balancing family and work responsibilities, domestic violence and government policy towards families.
Other Possible Classes
180.353 Poverty, Welfare & Race
180.351 Labor Economics
230.643 Sociological Analysis
230.303 Social Theory
380.655 Family Planning Policies and Programs
191.344 The Politics of American Social Policy
380.600 Principles of Population Change
230.305 Poverty and Welfare Policy
380.603 Introduction to Demographic Methods
308.610 Social Inequalities, World Economy and the Welfare State
230.406 Research Seminar on Immigration
230.316 African American Family
230.328 Sociology of Human Development
230.387 Intelligence and Social Policy
230.311 Gender and Development
195.477 Introduction to Urban Policy
180.365 Public Finance
190.383 Urban Society and Policy
230.364 Sociology of Immigration and Ethnicity
190.384 Urban Politics and Policy
767.760 Urban Analysis
190.367 Neighborhood Politics
312.617 Fundamentals of Public Accounting
195.645 Economic Development Policy
360.349 Cities Under Stress: Learning from Baltimore
180.380 Population Economics
230.613 Urbanization and Social Movements
500.734 Urban Issues in Developing Countries
360.499 Race, Class, and Justice: Seminar Practicum in Contemporary Urban Space
230.612 Seminar on Social Inequality
360.413 Cities and Capitalism