School of Social Work

School of Social Work
Western Michigan University
Kalamazoo MI 49008-5354 USA
(269) 387-3180

Child Welfare Minor

Western Michigan University is now offering a pathway for students interested in becoming child welfare professionals to learn more about child welfare-related work. Child welfare workers will work with parents to ensure children and their families have the tools they need to thrive, building upon the strengths of the family and their community to help provide safe, permanent, and loving environments for children.

Bachelor’s level students currently enrolled at Western Michigan University are eligible to declare Child Welfare as a minor (15 credits).

For more information about the social work minor, please consult with a College of Health and Human Services academic advisor.

Students declaring a Child Welfare minor MUST complete a Child Welfare Minor Declaration form.

 

Required specialized child welfare courses (6 credits):

  • SWRK 4235: History, Policies, and Confronting Disparities in Child Welfare (3 credits)
  • SWRK 4530: Child Maltreatment: Prevention, Assessment, and Intervention (3 credits)

An additional 9 credits are required to complete this minor. Bachelor of Social Work (BSW) students MUST choose only from the first drop down list of approved courses:

  • AAAS 3100: Black Woman: Historical Perspectives of the Black Woman (3credits)
  • AAAS 3140: The Black Community (3 credits)
  • ADA 3330 Addiction and Addiction process (3 credits)
  • ADA 3360: Clinical Approaches to Substance Use Disorders (3 credits)
  • ADA 3370: Substance Abuse Treatment Strategies (3 credits)
  • ADA 3380: Addiction Assessment, Recovery, and Illness Management (3 credits)
  • ADA 3410: Diversity in substance abuse (3 credits)
  • ADA 5200: Family and Addiction (3 credits)
  • ANTH 5220: Poverty, Power, and privilege (3 credits)
  • FCS 2660: Personal Nutrition (3 credits)
  • FCS 3170: Crisis in Families (3 credits)
  • GWS 3500: Psychological Perspectives on Gender (3 credits)
  • SOC 4120: Child Abuse (3 credits)
  • SWRK 4650: Motivation Approaches to Trauma-Informed Care (3 credits)
  • SWRK 3200: Interviewing and Assessment (3 credits)
  • SWRK 3330: Introduction to Culture, Ethnicity, and Institutional Inequity (3credits)
  • SWRK 3500: Human Behavior and the Social Environment (3 credits)