LLS 411 | AUTOBIOGRAPHIC RESEARCH | 4 quarter hours
(Graduate)
Autobiographical Research methods have been used in various academic disciplines including sociology, curriculum studies, and others. They allow researchers to place their experiences and observation within an academic context. However, they demand more rigor and structure than literary autobiography or personal storytelling. Autobiographic researchers conceive of their experience and observations as information about society and culture. This course will help students draft an autobiographic research text.
LLS 420D | APPLYING ETHICS IN THE PROFESSIONS | 4 quarter hours
(Graduate)
Moving from theory to applied practice, students will be invited to turn their new knowledge towards the field of engagement which is close to their own industry. Classic and contemporary case studies in business leadership, community organizing, nonprofit management, organizational development, education, healthcare, technology, and sports will all be made available.
LLS 420G | EMOTIONAL INTELLIGENCE AT WORK | 4 quarter hours
(Graduate)
Success and satisfaction at work and in life depend on the partnership between thinking and feeling, though our organizations and cultures may not acknowledge that. Too often people are told to "leave emotions out of it" when human biology makes that impossible. This course focuses on how we can develop strength in recognizing and managing our emotions to better manage our behavior, our relationships, and our agility in responding to various settings. Participants will deepen their understanding of emotional intelligence (EI) by exploring the research literature and completing an assessment of EI sponsored by 6 Seconds (http://www.6seconds.org) Research regarding emotional intelligence has expanded in recent decades but the past three years have offered powerful studies of emotions at work following the peak of the COVID-19 pandemic. The course will examine recent research by Gallup, 6 Seconds, and the U.S. Department of Labor addressing empathy as the cornerstone competence of emotional intelligence, mental and emotional health in the workplace, and how global declines in emotional intelligence pose threats to innovation, intercultural relations, and economic development. Participants also will examine their current profile of emotional intelligence and consider pathways for growth at work and beyond.
LLS 440A | UNDERSTANDING AND FLEXING MINDSETS | 4 quarter hours
(Graduate)
A mindset is a set of mind - a mental aggregate - that fixes thinking into a narrowed range of perceiving and behaving. Our expectations then conform and we indulge behaviors that align with those expectations. The mindset then sets the mind. Through this seminar we will explore both how mindsets (e.g. a fixed mindset vs a growth mindset) form and their benefits and liabilities. We will also consider dynamics and strategies involved in shifting/managing mindsets in order to develop/engage new approaches to learning, decision making, problem-solving and optimizing positive influence in various spheres of impact (personal, interpersonal, organizational and societal).
LLS 460 | LEADING SUCCESSFUL PROJECTS: PRINCIPLES AND METHODS IN PROJECT MANAGEMENT | 4 quarter hours
(Graduate)
This course is designed to provide students with a broad and deep understanding of Project Management, with the primary focus on the project management key principles, concepts and methods to give individuals, and the organizations that employ them, a competitive advantage in the marketplace.
LLS 480 | STRATEGIC CHANGE MANAGEMENT | 4 quarter hours
(Graduate)
This is a 4 credit-hour Liberal Learning Seminar for all degree tracks in the Master of Arts in Applied Professional Studies degree program: Educating Adults, Organizational Change, Social Change. The course design combines asynchronous online learning with weekly mandatory video conferencing. Program Learning Outcomes and Course Learning Outcomes reflect strategic principles and practices of change management as applied in workplace and community organizational settings. Students critically evaluate models and theories of strategic change, and create a strategic change management plan for improvement in their area of professional practice.