BY
In the Spring Term of 2006, Professor Lucie White will offer an new 2-credit academic course – Pathways to Sustainable Work.
THIS COURSE IS IDEAL FOR ANY STUDENT INTERESTED IN SOCIAL JUSTICE, MENTAL HEALTH ISSUES, LABOR LAW, DISABILITY LAW, GRASSROOTS ACTIVISM, COMMUNITY ORGANIZING, OR WOMEN’S RIGHTS ISSUES.
Course Description: Students will explore cutting-edge theories of law and mental health that move beyond a deficit-oriented, narrowly defined “medical model.” The course will focus on law, social justice, community organizing, and grassroots activism. It will look at the real lives of real workers, exploring legislative, jurisprudential, and community-organizing innovations that promote sustainable work for individuals coping with mental health issues and other “non-normative” workers, such as former criminal offenders and single parents.
Clinical Opportunity: The clinical is not a requirement for the course, but students may add 2, 3, or 4 clinical credits for the Spring Term. The core clinical placement will be with Reaching Out About Depression (ROAD), a client-driven, community-organizing clinical that provides low-income women who have experience with depression with a chance to make real changes in their lives and communities. Students working with ROAD will practice an innovative kind of advocacy to head off crises (such as eviction or loss of benefits) among individual women and help the group with action projects aimed to make the institutions they regularly deal with (such as welfare offices, housing agencies, and work sites) more accommodating to their needs.
Course Requirements: Course requirements include facilitating one seminar session, class participation, and a final paper or project.
How to Enroll: Professor Lucie White will conduct interviews for the course and clinical during the first week of the Spring Term – on Thursday, February 2nd and Friday, February 3rd.
Contact: If you have any questions or concerns, please contact Lucie White (lwhite@law.harvard.edu) and Roger Pao (rpao@law.harvard.edu).