Human Services/Social Work - HSSW.AA

Mandatory Health Records: All required health records, immunizations, and physicals MUST be filed in the STCC Health Services office by the first day of classes.  The Health Office is located in Building 20, Room 320 (third floor), the phone number is 413 755-4230.  Additional information and required forms can be found on the health services website http://www.stcc.edu/healthservices. The college/program reserves the right to rescind the admission status of any student not meeting, as well as not submitting, all post-admission requirements in a timely manner. 

Background Check: College programs involving potentially unsupervised contact with children, the disabled, or the elderly, including fieldwork (a clinical affiliation, internship, externship, or field placement) with a private or public healthcare provider or daycare provider, will be required to undergo state-wide and/or national criminal background checks, including but not limited to: Massachusetts Criminal Offender Record Information (CORI) and Sex Offender Record Information (SORI), Seven (7) year residential Search, and FBI Fingerprinting checks. The purpose of the background check is to ensure a safe and protective environment for all clients, particularly members of vulnerable populations.

Students choosing not to consent to the required background checks will be ineligible to participate in fieldwork involving vulnerable populations. Ineligibility to participate in fieldwork may affect a student’s ability to successfully complete the program.

Based upon the results of the background checks, a student may be deemed ineligible to participate in academic or clinical activities, which may impact a student’s ability to successfully complete program requirements. Background checks are reviewed by the College’s CORI Board. The CORI Board determines eligibility to participate in academic and/or clinical activities. Students have the right to appeal the determination of the CORI Board by filing a written appeal with the Vice President of Student and Multicultural Affairs within 10 business days of receiving the CORI Board’s determination.

Furthermore, please be advised that eligibility to participate in College academic and/or clinical activities following a background check does not guarantee eligibility to sit for a professional credentialing examination(s) or for employment upon program completion. It is the student’s responsibility to contact the certification or licensure board for a particular healthcare or other service profession to determine the standards that must be met for credentialing, licensing and/or employment in that field.

The student will:

1. Become aquainted with the operations of human service organizations to include historical perspective, differentiation between private/public sector; and contractual entities and requirements.
2. Develop an understanding of ethical practices (to include legal aspects of the social worker’s code of conduct);
3. Be introduced to societal diversity and the needs of various subcultures this entails;
4. Develop an understanding of the arts and languages associated with various cultures;
5. Learn to communicate effectively, both orally and written, and;
6. Learn the basics of social science research/methodology.