HAHR 620 Protection Systems for Women, Children, and Vulnerable Populations

God’s Word calls His people to care for the weak and vulnerable, with an emphasis on widows, orphans, sojourners, and the poor. At home and around the world, women and children in crisis settings face the dark reality of abandonment, exploitation, and abuse. This course explores the actors and protection systems in place to support women, children, and vulnerable populations.

Textbook readings and lecture presentations

No details available.

Course Requirements Checklist

After reading the Course Syllabus and Student Expectations, the student will complete the related checklist found in the Course Overview.

Discussions (3)

Discussions are collaborative learning experiences. Therefore, the student is required to provide a thread in response to the provided prompt for the Discussion. Students will post two replies in each discussion. Each thread must be at least 400 words and each reply must be at least 200 words. Each thread must be supported with at least two scholarly citations and each reply must incorporate at least one scholarly citation. Discussions will utilize “Six Hat Thinking” and a “3CQ Approach” to cultivate variety in vantage points, reflection, and courtesy in dialogue. (CLO: A, B, C)

Portfolio Project Assignments (4)

Portfolio Project: Part 1 — Resource Map Assignment

The student will investigate their locale to map community resources in civil, private, and public categories of intervention and support—such as justice and legal systems, government agencies, schools, NGOs, church ministries and faith-based outreaches, as well as involved individuals. Prompts will tie to course material for the creation of a categorized table of services with brief commentary of their role, as well as a map visualizing how these services overlap and collaborate to form a web of care to support women and children in crisis. There will be an introduction (200-400 words), a resource table, a diagram, and a conclusion (400-600 words). (CLO: A, B, C)

Portfolio Project: Part 2 — Prevention Strategy Assignment

Building from the course and their personal investigation of area organizations, the student will consider how these entities create a shielding wall around vulnerable populations to avert harm, avoiding distress and trauma. They will “think upstream”—specifically about how to prevent women and children from falling into the fast-flowing river of crisis. How can resilience be built in individuals and within the community structures to give bounce in turbulent times? This assignment will have five chapters, each containing 300-600 words and at least two references. (CLO: A, B, C)

Portfolio Project: Part 3 — Flow Chart Assignment

Building from the course and their personal investigation of area organizations, the student will describe how these local resources provide a support network of care. The student will create a scenario of two imaginary women (or children) in a crisis, each passing through a spectrum of community servers in hopes of restoration and new beginnings. One character will pass only through secular organizations, while the second will also interact with available faith-based entities. The flow will mention where support is lacking or where services bottleneck, suggesting how gaps could be filled and highlighting the unique role of the church in crisis. This assignment should be 750-1,500 words. (CLO: A, B, C)

Portfolio Project: Part 4 — Advocacy Presentation Assignment

The fourth Portfolio Project is a submission of a 5-10 minute video of an Advocacy Presentation. The assignment provides a cumulative opportunity to meld the knowledge from the course topics and God’s Word with the experiential learning of community analysis and flow through agencies and services both to prevent trauma and support those in a particular corridor of crisis. Through the creation of an advocacy presentation recorded before a live audience, the student will grow in confidence to speak with clarity and understanding on behalf of women and children caught in crisis, mobilizing others to personal involvement in a network of care. The student will focus on communicating creatively and clearly, with sound presentation skills (precision in speech, varied intonation, and enhancing gestures) that add impact to their advocacy. (CLO: A, B, C)

Summative Reflection Essay Assignment

The student will conduct both personal and professional reflections, selecting prompts among three elements of What? So What? and Now What? The student will meditate on the Apostle John’s injunction (I John 3: 16-18) of moving faith from mere words to action. The student will consider their course learning and how the Lord is directing to move forward to walk humbly with Him in mercy and justice, protecting and empowering the least of these (Micah 6:8). This assignment should be 600-900 words. (CLO: A, C)