Elizabeth Byram, MSW, PhD

Courses Taught

• Introduction to Social Work
• This is an introductory social work course in which students will learn about the profession of social work, its field of practice, values and ethics, policies and history of the social work profession, its interactions with contexts which shape practice, and its promotion of social and economic justice to advance human rights, alleviating critical social problems, and promoting individual and community well-being. An overview of principal social work values, codes of ethics, practice methods, research considerations, and policy issues and emphasizes the unique experiences of diverse and at-risk population groups facing various social challenges. The course will also offer knowledge and practice behaviors in engaging diversity and differences in social work practice. As an introduction to the social work profession, the course will discuss being a professional social worker and how to act accordingly, based on a fundamental understanding of the National Association of Social Workers Code of Ethics.
  
• Social Work Practice I
• This course teaches a generalist approach to social work practice based on an empowerment model. Students will acquire the knowledge, skills, values, and methods of generalist social work to facilitate the assessment, planning, intervention, and ending phases of the practice process. This course emphasizes social justice, cultural competence, and practice with members of oppressed groups.
  
• Empowerment Practice II
• Focuses on empowerment practice through designing and implementing change efforts within organizational and sociopolitical realms. Students will acquire knowledge and skills to mobilize participant groups toward social change, reshape organizations to empower rather than oppress participants, to create opportunity structures through societal resource expansion, and to fashion a just and responsive community environment.
  
• Social Work Program Evaluation
  
• Disability and Social Justice
  
• This elective course introduces MSW students to a range of disability-related topics in the context of social work practice. Students will critically examine different models of disability, such as the medical and social models, and will consider how perspectives on disability have evolved throughout history. Students will analyze social justice issues through a disability lens, with a particular emphasis on the intersection of disability with other marginalized identities. Students will examine ways in which social workers can advocate for disability justice across all levels and areas of social work practice.
  
• Field Internship Experience