Certificate in Trauma-Informed Approaches (TIA)
Purpose
Trauma impacts individuals, families, and communities in many ways and on many levels, and is said to be a hidden epidemic. A history of trauma is often a factor in psychiatric disorders, addictions, behavioral disorders, suicidal behavior, personality disorders, violent behavior, and a variety of chronic health problems (National Council on Behavioral Health, 2015). In the criminal justice system, nearly 100% of women and men report some sort of traumatic experience prior to incarceration.
A trauma-informed approach refers to how an agency, organization, and/or community responsible for providing services such as mental health, educational, crisis, and/or criminal justice services thinks about providing those services in a way that supports resilience, prevention, treatment, and recovery. Trauma-informed care incorporates an understanding of adverse childhood experiences and their impact on mental, emotional, and physical health.
The certificate in trauma-informed approaches prepares students to work in a highly recognized model of wellness, which supports resilience and recovery, promotes positive health outcomes, prevents the worst outcomes of psychological responses, and integrates knowledge about the pervasiveness of trauma in systems in policies, practices, and procedures.
Students will find that a certificate in trauma-informed approaches will greatly supplement their skills and knowledge not only in Psychology, Criminal Justice, Behavioral Science or Organizational Dynamics degrees, but also in disciplines outside of the College of Social and Behavioral Sciences, including, but not limited to, Business Management, General Studies, Early Childhood Education, Elementary Education, Environmental Health, Human Resource Management, Information Systems Management, Nursing, Allied Health, Organizational Management, and Sports Management. Incorporating knowledge of trauma into services can help ensure physical, psychological and emotional safety for clients and for the professional themselves, and creates opportunities to rebuild a sense of empowerment and autonomy for survivors of trauma. Students must complete the Undergraduate Certificate Program form so that the certificate will appear on their transcript.
Curriculum
Note: Students are held to all prerequisite requirements; some students may require more than 5 courses to complete this certificate.
Core Requirements (9 credits)
| PSY 420 | Introduction to Trauma-Informed Approaches | 3 |
| PSY 421 | Trauma and Self-Care | 3 |
| PSY 422 | Practical Implications of Trauma-Informed Approaches | 3 |
Electives (6 credits)
Criminal Justice
Education
| ECE 201 | Health, Safety, and Nutrition | 3 |
| ECE 202 | Professional Issues in Early Childhood | 3 |
| ECE 214 | Creating Environments for Learning | 3 |
| ECE 217 | Family, Community, and School Partnerships | 3 |
| EDU 204 | Leadership and Collaboration | 3 |
| EDU 304 | Health and Physical Education | 3 |
| EDU 308 | Teaching in the Middle School | 3 |
| EDU 313 | Classroom Culture and Student Behavior | 3 |
| EPY 317 | Assessment of Young Children | 3 |
Health Care
| HLT 380 | Introduction to Military and Veteran Health | 3 |
| HSC 313 | Ethical and Legal Issues of Healthcare | 3 |
Organizational Dynamics
Psychology
Choose one of the following developmental courses
Sociology
| SOC 302 | Marriage and the Family | 3 |
| SOC 303 | Contemporary Social Problems | 3 |
| SOC 312 | Community Health & Social Issues | 3 |
| SOC 350 | Sociology of Disaster | 3 |
| SOC 352 | Crisis Communications | 3 |
| SOC 425 | Child Abuse: Recognition and Investigation | 3 |
| SOC 426 | Responding and Investigation: Child Maltreatment | 3 |
| SOC 427 | Responding to the Survivors of Child Abuse and Survivor Responses | 3 |
| SOC 464 | Working in the Helping Professions | 3 |
| SOC 468 | Case Management | 3 |
Total Credits for the TIA Certificate: 15