This course covers human resource management issues, policies and practices with an emphasis on working within human service agencies. The shift from a clinician to administrator will be covered, with a focus on the skills that managers and leaders need to practice in order to work effectively with employees. The historical evolution of labor laws will be reviewed as well as the principles and practices of managing employees successfully, including motivating employees, recruitment/hiring practices, performance evaluations, compensation, labor relations, cultural diversity within the workplace, and the implications of ADA in hiring employees with disabilities. Fellows will be given an opportunity to learn and practice skills in coaching, team-building, and conflict resolution as part of this course. 

Leadership in an Interconnected World 

The purpose of this course is to help students understand organizations, especially public organizations, and be able to take effective action in them. Attempts to improve organizations without adequate understanding can make things worse instead of better. Students' own experiences usually provide ample testimony to the difficulties of trying to manage and change organizations. Whether trying to introduce a new information system, restructure a department, terminate a program, or cope effectively with transition in management, better understanding helps to reduce surprise, confusion and catastrophe. Sound intuition, valid theory and management skills are all helpful and needed. This course seeks to reinforce intuition and to expand theory and skills. 

Grants-in-Aid and Grants Management 

In today's world where needs are great and resources are scarce, proficiency and skill in grant writing is essential for those in leadership and management positions in non-profit and public organizations. This course will teach Fellows the process of writing a successful grant proposal. Specifically, Fellows will learn to: 1 - prepare a step-by-step grant proposal, including developing a fundable idea; 2 - identify an organization whose mission fits with the project; 3 - research and identify potential funding sources; and 4 - write a complete grant application. 

The purpose of this course is to provide an overview of the origins, components, organization, and operation of the health system in the United States and to introduce key issues that will need to be addressed in the future. Health care includes both acute and long-term care and disabilities such as mental health, substance abuse, and developmental disabilities. The course is an introduction to the major health issues and institutions. A major emphasis is on home health services, Medicaid and Medicare, managed care, integrated service delivery systems, and other health care changes. This course should provide students with the opportunity to connect U.S. Health care system issues with their own professional experiences and issues related to public policy, and the concerns of people with disability who are unserved/underserved. 

This course provides an opportunity to evaluate and understand the many legal influences on public policy and social issues that affect the lives of persons with developmental disabilities and their families. With an understanding of local, regional, state and national forces and trends, practitioners and future leaders in the field of developmental disabilities will have improved capacity to assist persons with disabilities and their families in achieving desired goals and outcomes. Our ability to provide effective support and assistance is dependent upon a broad and thorough understanding of laws, regulations, and their implementation by public and private organizations attempting to serve persons with disability, and the role that law can play in facilitating (or frustrating) the goals of health care institutions, social institutions and service providers. Current and future supports to persons with disability and their families must respect and support principle3s of self-determination and maximum participation of persons with disability in planning and implementation. Participants will analyze the Context, Constituency Activities, Principles and Ideas, Actors and Institutions, Media Presentations, Research and other factors on the development of law and public policy and practice on the lives of families and children with disability. 

The course examines many aspects of public policy/practice in the lives of families and children with developmental disabilities including the evolution and current discussions about the definition of disability, developmental disability and mental retardation; legislation that has provided for civil rights in public access, employment, education and health; the issues that people with disabilities feel are most important at the current time; and the factors that came together to achieve success in the past. 

This course provides an opportunity to evaluate and understand many aspects of public policy and social issues that affect the lives of persons with developmental disabilities and their families. This course continues our investigation of developmental disability service policy and practice with a focus on the issues related to unserved and underserved populations. With an understanding of local, regional, state, and national forces and trends, practitioners and future leaders in the field of developmental disabilities will have improved capacity to assist persons with disabilities and their families in achieving desired goals and outcomes. Our ability to provide effective services is dependent upon a broad and thorough understanding of laws, regulations, and their implementation by public and private organizations attempting to address the needs of persons with disability. Current and future planning for persons with disability and their families must respect and support principles of self-determination and maximum participation of persons with disability in planning, and implementation. Where gaps in services and programs exist, programs must effectively and equitably plan for identification of and outreach to people who are eligible for services and supports and who may not be receiving them, as well as continuing opportunities for those people already within the system. This includes identification, reduction and removal of barriers to programs and services, as well as creation of new opportunities for access to existing generic supports. 

Healthcare Strategic Management 

This course examines and applies principles of the strategic planning and policy making processes as they relate to key issues in the management of the delivery of quality healthcare within the current and future US healthcare system. The perspective is strategy based and coursework focuses on applying both processes to resolution of challenges posed by external and internal economic, social, regulatory, political and technological environmental factors, as well as internal institutional adaptive mechanisms. 

Graduate Communication and Info Tech: Health 

Effective communication and use of information technology are critical for success in a graduate education program and at work. This class, a 1 credit class required for all students matriculating in the Suffolk MHA and MPA/Health programs, covers key topics including writing and presenting, computer programs and skills, and use of the Internet for research and other activities. In the last class, leadership competencies necessary for success in the healthcare field are discussed. This class also reviews the Suffolk healthcare curriculum and will help students plan their Suffolk program of study. The assignments are designed to assess and improve your writing skills, while, first, helping you to understand your career path and what you want to achieve at the combined Shriver/Suffolk program and second, introducing through a case study some key issues that you will address in your health courses. 

This year-long course is designed to help Fellows integrate and synthesize leadership skills through examination and application of Maternal and Child Health principles. The course is divided into four sections: 1) Gaining Perspective: Families and Consumers as Primary Stakeholders; 2) Disability Informatics & Information Technology in Human Services Leadership; 3) Cultural Competency and 4) Maternal and Child Health Projects. The aims of this course are to assist Fellows to develop and demonstrate integration and mastery of learned skills in: 1) written and verbal communication, 2) problem analysis and critical thinking, 3) planning and implementation, and 4) engaging stakeholders and developing partnerships. 

• Gaining Perspective: Families & Consumers as Primary Stakeholders 

  The goal of this part of the course is to provide LEND Fellows with an opportunity to participate in, observe, and learn about some of the day-to-day life concerns of a child and his/her family or an adult who has a developmental disability. Understanding the issues and problems faced on a day-to day basis by families of children or by adults with developmental disabilities is an important foundation upon which to develop leadership skills. Leaders need to understand how programs and policies affect families, what gaps families experience in programs and service systems, and what families or adults perceive they need in order to be successful in the care of their child with a neurodevelopmental disability or to participate as a full member of a community. 

  The experiential component of this course provides two opportunities depending on the professional and personal background of each Fellow. Fellows may be matched with a family who has a child or adult with a disability; these family visits (12-15 hours in total) will allow our Fellows to obtain an “insider’s view” of the successes, disappointment, challenges and triumphs that the individual and his/her family encounter, and in doing so, will be able to identify whether systems and programs that have been designed to assist persons with disabilities have been helpful or successful. For Fellows with more extensive family/adult work in the disability field, assignment to an agency/non-profit organization can be made to provide an opportunity to partner with parents of children with a disability or adults with  disabilities and collaborate on a shared project. 

• Disability Informatics & Information Technology In Human Services Leadership 

  The Internet and databases freely available now provide extremely powerful tools to leaders, managers, and policy makers in human services. However, the sheer magnitude of information presents problems in deciding how to locate and filter the data to be considered. This segment of the course will address issues involved in storing, retrieving, and using information in the human services to make data-based decisions. We will also consider software applications that leaders in the field should be able to effectively use to manipulate and communicate information to team members , policy makers, and potential funders. We will also consider other issues leaders may need to consider to effectively utilize information technology in their organizations. 

• Cultural Competency 

  Changing cultural and linguistic demographics of the country demand that professionals in health, mental health and disabilities fields develop on-going skills towards becoming culturally competent. Cultural competence is required in order to provide services that are family-centered, community based and qualitative. To be culturally competent is to treat clients and patients with dignity and respect for their respective hertiages and to respond in a manner that will ensure that service delivery needs are being met in a manner that acknowledges cultural differences as well as attitudes towards health, disabilities and the need for services. 

  This course is designed to provide a means for training professional health, mental health and disability workers and agency personnel to examine their own, individual level of cultural competence. It is also designed to provide some of the skills that are needed to develop, implement and evaluate the cultural competence of human service agencies and service delivery systems. 

• Maternal and Child Health Projects  

  In partnership with other Massachusetts agencies and organizations that are funded through Maternal and Child Health, Fellows will be assigned to work in partnership with parents, consumers and professionals on projects or on issues that have an impact on children, youth and adults with disabilities and special health care needs. Fellows will be expected to present these projects at a poster session to be held at the end of the Fellowship year. 

  For Fellows pursuing a degree in either the Master of Health Administration or the Master of Public Administration programs, additional courses are required through Suffolk University. These courses will be discussed at orientation.