FCS 52006200 Families and Social Policy

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FCS 5200/6200Families and Social Policy
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Me

• Dr. Kowaleski-Jones
• http//www.fcs.utah.edu/faculty/kowaleski-jones/in
  dex.html
• Associate Professor, Family and Consumer Studies
• Ph.d. /Background in sociology
• Postdoctoral Fellowship in Policy
• Study Youth
• Public policyUSDA NSLP WIC Food Insecurity
• Neighborhood Influences--resilience
• Family transitions
• Child and youth obesity

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Readings

• Blank, R. 1997. It Takes A Nation
• Sawhill, I. 2003. One Percent for the Kids
• Course Reader available at Empire Publishing.
• Will be available in next week or so..
• additional readings available on the internet.

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Lecture Etiquette

• Cell Phones and other noisy devices
• Snacks
• Running late? Leaving early?
• Website
• Heat and Light.

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Key Questions for this Course

• What is family policy anyway?
• How does policy affect me? What about my family?
• What does the research say about family policy
  issues?
• How is public policy is formed? How we can
  influence it?
• How is policy analyzed?
• How can we think critically and creatively about
  reforming policy

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Forms of Evaluation

• Take home midterm and final
• Book Report
• Policy Paper
• Class Participation
• Guided discussion for graduate students

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Book Report

• One pagefront and back
• Complete bibliographic information
• Major points of book
• Critiquewhat was powerfulwhat was
  underdeveloped
• Application to family policy issue
• Connection to issue?

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What is the family in question?

• Census definition
• a family is two or more individuals living in the
  same household who are related by blood,
  marriage, or adoption.
• General definition
• Blood, affiliation, childrenno children?
• A family is a group of one or more adults related
  by blood, marriage, or affiliation who cooperate
  economically, who may share housing, and who may
  rear children.

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What is Family Policy

• A perspective to study policies that affect
  families?
• No more than general policy?
• At what level should government be involved in
  family life?
• Marriage?
• Taxes?
• Reproductive rights?

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Background..

• Public versus private families
• Columbine tragedy
• Andrea Yates
• How does policy change?
• incremental versus radical
• Health care reform
• Intended versus unintended consequences

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Why should policy intervenewhere is it
appropriate?

• Abusive relationship and the woman wont leave.
• A teenage girl has a baby outside of marriage.
• Single mother, living in poverty, trying to make
  ends meet, with little success.
• Public vs. private causes and solutions
• What can policy can and cannot do?