Disability and Community Services
The Disability and Community Services program combines course work in special education,
social work, and communication studies. This major prepares you to work as a professional
serving individuals with disabilities in a wide array of public and private sector
settings.
What You'll Study
Disability and Community Services
In this program, you will gain skills in assessing individual needs and in planning appropriate interventions and programs. The coursework utilizes a life span approach, preparing you to work with any age group of individuals with disabilities. Required social work courses enhance your understanding of working with families, groups, organizations, and community systems. Topics covered include:
- Foundations of Special Education
- Manual Communication and Signing
- Physical Education & Recreation for the Individuals with Disabilities
- Human Behavior in the Social Environment
Program Highlights
- Scholarships: From honorariums to full-tuition waivers, scholarships exist to reward your hard work and dedication to the major. Find more information here.
- Internships/Field Experience: The culminating experience for this program is the completion of a 480-hour supervised field experience working within a community agency. Given the wide array of job opportunities in this field, you will have the opportunity to meet this requirement by selecting a site based on personal interest.
- Student Learning Outcomes:
- Foundations: Candidates understand the field of disabilities and the provision of services to
individuals with disabilities in society.
- Development and Characteristics of Individuals with Disabilities: Candidates understand the similarities and differences in human development and the
characteristics between and among individuals with and without disabilities.
- Individual Learning Needs and Differences: Candidates are active and resourceful in seeking to understand how primary language,
culture, and familial backgrounds interact with the individual's disability(s) impact
the individual's academic and social abilities, attitudes, values, interests, and
career options.
- Social Environments and Interactions: Candidates actively create environments for individuals with disabilities that foster
cultural understanding, safety and emotional well being, positive social interactions,
and active engagement of individuals with disabilities.
- Communication Skills: Candidates understand typical and atypical speech and language development, the ways
in which disabilities can interact with an individual's experience with and use of
language and use individualized strategies to enhance language development and teach
communication skills to individuals with disabilities.
- Instructional Planning: Candidates develop long-range individualized service or behavior plans and systematically
translate these individualized plans into carefully selected shorter-range goals and
objectives taking into consideration an individual's abilities and needs, the community
environment, and a myriad of cultural and linguistic factors.
- Assessment: Candidates use the results of assessments to help identify needs of individuals with
disabilities and to develop and implement individualized programs, as well as to adjust
the individualized service plans in response to ongoing learning progress.
- Professional and Ethical Practice: Candidates demonstrate oral and written communication skills, use of technology, and
are guided by the profession's ethical and professional practice standards with respect
for diversity.
- Collaboration: Candidates routinely and effectively collaborate with families, educators, related service providers, and personnel from community agencies in culturally responsive ways.
- Foundations: Candidates understand the field of disabilities and the provision of services to
individuals with disabilities in society.
- Instructional Facilities: LHU students have the opportunities to engage in technology-equipped classrooms that
contain a wealth of hands-on learning materials dedicated to Disability Community
Service Majors.
- Careers: This program prepares you for employment in a range of professions including:
- Instructional Assistant in Public or Private Schools
- Therapeutic Support Personnel
- Job Coach
- MH/ID programs
- Community-Based Employment or Living Programs
- Early Intervention Programs
- Residential Treatment Programs
- Preschool/Daycare Programs
- Disability Agency Service Providers
Featured Program Faculty
