Child Policy at the Schubert Center

Starting as an initiative of the Schubert Center in 2004, child policy is now a core area of emphasis that guides the Center’s approach to education, research dissemination, and community engagement. Specific policy-oriented activities include:

Education

The Schubert Center oversees an undergraduate minor in Childhood Studies (CHST), in which three child policy courses are offered:

• Child Policy (CHST 301) provides an overview of the policy-making process, presents a critical-inquiry framework for policy analysis, and introduces students to key issues in child-related practice and policy in the U.S.
• Experiential Learning in Child Policy (CHST 302) gives students an in-depth understanding of state and federal legislation impacting children, youth, and families. The course includes an experiential learning component in which students visit Washington, D.C. to meet with policymakers and see the legislative process in action.
• Child Policy Externship (CHST 398) awards course credit to Mann Child Policy Externs who are matched with community agencies involved in areas of children’s health, education, juvenile justice, mental health, and child welfare. These externships provide undergraduates with the opportunity to work directly with professionals who design and implement policies that impact the lives of children and families.

Through the generous support of the Mann Endowment Fund, these courses facilitate valuable learning experiences for students. Reflecting on the CHST 302 trip to Washington, D.C., student Maya Brown writes, “I learned so much about how the legislative process works, what kinds of questions to ask to understand policy issues, and how to be a well-informed citizen. I think all of the students came away energized about the differences we can make in child policy.”


Dissemination of Research

Faculty at CWRU who are engaged in child-related studies meet regularly as a campus-wide consortium of Schubert Center Faculty Associates. Representing the social sciences, dentistry, humanities, law, medicine, nursing, public health, engineering, and social work, this group is particularly interested in bridging research, practice and policy to improve child well-being in the greater Cleveland community while developing knowledge and approaches that are generalizable to children in other settings. Additionally, the Schubert Center produces a series of in-depth, stand alone Research and Policy Briefs in coordination with our seminar series (see below). These briefs summarize new and ongoing child-related research underway at CWRU, and highlight implications for policy and practice. A compendium entitled As Life Unfolds: Research on Children and Childhood at Case Western Reserve University was published in 2006.


Communications & Community Engagement

Regular forums and seminars are convened by the Schubert Center to stimulate an ongoing dialogue among scholars, policy experts, advocates, and professionals primarily from Northeast Ohio. A searchable database of CWRU faculty with research expertise on children and childhood is available here and was also published as a directory in As Life Unfolds (2006). These efforts are part of the continuing endeavor to broaden public access to university resources and to better connect faculty with the community.

Activities surrounding child policy at the Schubert Center have been supported by the CWRU College of Arts and Sciences, The George Gund Foundation, and the Cleveland Foundation. Externships and other experiential learning opportunities for students are supported by the Mann Endowment Fund held by the Schubert Center. The Schubert Center is generously supported by the Schubert, Bondy, Brisky, and Hamilton endowments.