MN591: Urban Youth Workers Institute
Conference Course (4 units)
Jude Tiersma
Watson, Assistant Professor of Urban Mission
Dan Hodge, Adjunct Instructor in Urban Mission
Spring 2006 Pasadena
DESCRIPTION:
This
course is held in conjunction with the Urban Youth Workers Institute at Azusa
Pacific University, May 18-20 (www.uywi.org). This is an annual conference
featuring plenary sessions with speakers and music by and for urban youth.
Workshops feature a variety of experts on many topics of interest to urban
youth workers. In addition to the conference, which has a strong “hands on”
orientation, other class sessions will be held that will seek to understand at
a deeper level some of the dynamics related to working with urban youth. Themes
include the tension between the generations within immigrant communities,
understanding the social environment of urban youth (c.f., Garbarino), and the
pervasive influence of hip hop.
LEARNING OUTCOMES:
• Students will be introduced to some key
issues facing urban youth and urban youth workers.
• Students will be introduced to an ecological paradigm for understanding the
context of urban youth.
• Students will grasp the significance of hip hop in emerging youth culture.
COURSE FORMAT:
Attending the Conference May 18-20,
meeting with fellow students and professors for class sessions in addition to
the conference. Class sessions will include lecture and group discussion, and
will meet during the conference lunch break on Friday and Saturday. In
addition, class will be held Friday May 12, 9 am-12 pm, and Friday May 26, 9
am-12 pm. Students will arrange one visit to an urban youth ministry site.
REQUIRED
READING: (1500 pages total) If you have previously read any of the required
texts, please select an alternative text from the recommended reading list or a
book approved by the instructor.
Forman, M. and M. A. Neal, eds. That’s the Joint: The Hip Hop Studies
Reader. Routledge, 2005.
Garbarino, James et al, Children and
Families in the Social Environment. New York: Aldine de Gruyter.
Garbarino, James. Raising Children in a
Socially Toxic Environment. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass. 1995.
McLaughlin, Milbrey W., Merita A. Irby, and Juliet Langman. Urban
Sanctuaries: Neighborhood. Organization in the Lives and Futures of Inner-City
Youth. SF: Jossey Bass, 1994.
RECOMMENDED READING:
Anderson, Elijah, Code of the Street. 2000.
Fremon, Celeste. Father Greg and the
Homeboys. New York: Hyperion. 1995.
Forman, Murray. The Hood Comes First:
Race, Space, and Place in Rap and Hip Hop. Wesleyan U. Press 2002.
Heath, Shirley Brice, ed. Identity and
Inner-City Youth. New York: Teacher’s College Press, 1993.
Garbarino, James et al, Children in
Danger. San Francisco: Jossey Bass.1992.
Kitwana, Bakari. Why White Kids Love Hip
Hop. Basic Civitas Books, 2005.
KRS 1, Ruminations. New York, NY,
Welcome Rain Publishers.
Sinsabaugh, Ginger. Help! I’m an Urban
Youth Worker. Youth Specialties.2001.
Perkins, William Eric, ed. Droppin’
Science: Critical Essays on Hip Hop Culture. Temple University Press, 1995.
Vigil, James Diego. A Rainbow of Gangs:
Street Culture in the Mega City. 2002.
ASSIGNMENTS:
Attendance at all conference sessions,
additional lectures, and urban youth site visit; 750-word report on the
conference; 250-word report on site visit; 1,500 pages of reading from required
and recommended reading or other approved reading related to the topic;
Annotated Bibliography on your reading; One major paper (3000-3750 words) on a
significant topic related to urban youth work. (Note: Those attending the
conference and taking the course who do not live in the LA area can substitute
200 extra pages of reading and an extended paper, in lieu of the missed Friday sessions).
PREREQUISITES: None.
RELATIONSHIP TO CURRICULUM: Elective.
FINAL EXAM: None.