Advocacy Assignment

Goal

This assignment is designed to connect you, as a social work student and prospective professional, to the local, state, and national advocacy organizations and/or coalitions that promote policy change on an issue of importance to you.

Tasks

· You will identify an area of interest (for example: child welfare, education, homelessness, disabilities, older adults, mental health, health care, substance abuse, immigration, racial equality, LGBTQI+ rights, women’s rights, domestic violence, juvenile justice, employment, poverty, hunger, etc.).

· Identify 2 advocacy organizations and/or coalitions that promote policy change within your interest area,

· Research the background, scope and membership of each one.

· Describe the kinds of activities each engages in (including how they use social media to engage others) and any recent victories they claim

· Describe each organization’s advocacy agenda for the current year, making note of any specific initiatives that you find especially intriguing or exciting;

· Interview a participant, staff member or leader (from at least one of the identified advocacy organizations) about how they are organized, staffed, and funded; and identify the other organizations and legislators (or legislative committees) with which they work closely.

· Detail the specific ways in which you, as an aspiring policy practitioner, could become involved with each organization and explain how you could leverage what they offer to make yourself a more effective advocate.

Formatting and Length

· All papers should follow general APA formatting rules (omit title paper).

· In addition to the above criteria, 10% of your grade on this assignment will be based on the presentation of your ideas (e.g., formatting, editing, grammar, etc.)

· Your reference list should include proper citation of all sources used for this paper.

· 3-5 pages.