Learning Resources

Contemporary Social Justice Issues

Note: Skim the following resources to identify a contemporary social justice issue of interest to you.

Gracia, J. N. (2020). COVID-19’s disproportionate impact on communities of color spotlights the nation’s systemic inequities. Journal of Public Health Management & Practice, 26(6), 518–521. https://doi-org.ezp.waldenulibrary.org/10.1097/PHH.0000000000001212

La Vigne, N. G., King, R., Fontaine, J. (2015) Want to reduce mass incarceration? Do no harm and invest in people and communities. https://www.urban.org/urban-wire/want-reduce-mass-…

Tsai, A. C., Kiang, M. V., Barnett, M. L., Beletsky, L., Keyes, K. M., McGinty, E. E., Smith, L. R., Strathdee, S. A., Wakeman, S. E., & Venkataramani, A. S. (2019, November 26). Stigma as a fundamental hindrance to the United States opioid overdose crisis response. PLOS Medicine, 16(11), 1–18. https://go.openathens.net/redirector/waldenu.edu?url=https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pmed.1002969

Williams, C. (2018, September). A blueprint for action: Supporting young women of color in the District of Columbia.
https://media.thewomensfoundation.org/wp-content/u…

Historical Social Justice Issues

Library of Congress. (n.d.). The Civil Rights Act of 1964: A long struggle for freedom, legal timeline. https://www.loc.gov/exhibits/civil-rights-act/lega…

Library of Congress. (n.d.). The Civil Rights Act of 1964: A long struggle for freedom, The Civil Rights Era timeline. https://www.loc.gov/exhibits/civil-rights-act/civi…

National Park Service. (n.d.). US women’s suffrage timeline 1648 to 2016. https://www.nps.gov/articles/us-suffrage-timeline-…

Defining Goals for a Community Needs Assessment Plan

Stroh, D. P. (2015). Systems thinking for social change: A practical guide to solving complex problems, avoiding unintended consequences, and achieving lasting results. Chelsea Green Publishing.

• Chapter 11, “Systems Thinking for Strategic Planning” (pp. 167–194)

Identifying Data Sources for a Community Needs Assessment Plan

Community ToolBox. (n.d.) Using public records and archival data. https://ctb.ku.edu/en/table-of-contents/assessment…

To Prepare

• Read Chapter 11 in the course text. Consider how to develop a clear path of action, including well-defined goals, for addressing the problem you chose for the Final Project.
• Read the article, “Using Public Records and Archival Data.” Think about how to use public records and archival data to gain a better understanding of the magnitude of a social problem, what has been done to address it, and what gaps exist.
• Reflect on the social problem that you chose for your Final Project.
• With the social problem in mind:
  • Identify two goals of the community needs assessment that that you and your team would implement to address the social problem.
  • Identify five data sources (e.g., policy, local laws, statistics about who from the population is impacted by the problem) that your team would use for the community needs assessment.

By Day 7

Submit a 2-page paper (not including a title page or reference page) that addresses the following areas.

• Refine the Problem Statement. Refine your problem statement, based on what you learned from your peers, your Instructor, and/or the Learning Resources this week and in previous weeks.
• Develop a Team Strategy. Normally, after you have identified a project team, you would meet with the team and collaborate on the items listed below. In this case, since you are only planning the community needs assessment, you will address these items yourself rather than with a team.
  • Define two goals of the community needs assessment that you and your team would implement to address the social problem.
  • Identify five data sources that your team would use for the community needs assessment (e.g., policy, local laws, statistics about who from the population is impacted by the problem). Explain how your team would use the data sources to gain a better understanding of the magnitude of the problem, what has been done to address it, and/or what gaps exist.