KNOWLEDGE, SKILLS, AND VALUES

Each student will develop a growing understanding of:

• Self:  Greater understanding of your own identity in context of social change
• Community:  Greater understanding of the people, history, culture, issues and social and organizational fabric of the community where you work
• Broader context:  Greater understanding of the broader macro context within which you work, including social, cultural, economic and political systems
• Social forces: How race, class, gender, belief systems, power and privilege play out in your context, in institutions and policies, and for you personally
• Social change efforts: How social movements, community organizing and other  change strategies have shaped the community and society and can shape the future,
• The universals of organizing:  How people can be organized to bring about community and social change
• Values and vision: The values and vision of increased justice and renewed civic life and democracy which undergird grassroots and other social change efforts 
• The issues which are most relevant for a given group and how they can best be addressed, including the pros and cons of different strategies

Each student will develop skills in:

• Strong interpersonal skills in building relationships and helping people participate
• Participatory processes and popular education with which to develop people's capacity to participate and develop as effective, informed social actors, organizers and leaders
• Bringing people together for effective action, including growing mastery of organizing strategy and tactics
• Participatory issue development and action research, including competencies in helping people surface, analyze, understand, and address root causes
• Critical thinking, strategic thinking, and reflective practice
• Campaign development and execution
• Starting new efforts, catalyzing new initiatives, and building organizations

Each student will develop strong community values:

• Faith in the possibility of significant change through grassroots change efforts
• Respect for people's dignity, human rights and untapped potential
• Commitment to strengthening participatory democracy, community leadership and bottom-up democracy; commitment to creating the space for ”voice” and developing the capacity for voice
• Commitment to confronting  issues of racism, class, gender, age, power and privilege
• Commitment to a community and accountability to it
• Belief in working in community, not just individually
• Commitment to organizing people to take the leadership in pressing for systemic, institutional and policy reform while developing their own capacities and rights
• Commitment to creation and support of institutions, policies, and systems which are people-centered and just