Open-Ended Project

This project is an open-ended project designed to help you learn more about a topic related to resource management that is of high interest to you. Your end product will be a poster presentation along with a written document that addresses all components of your investigation. This document provides an outline of the steps you should complete for this assignment.

1.) Select a topic and get it approved. I am serious when I say I want you to select a topic that is of significant interest to you. What are you deeply interested in learning more about? How might this interest interact with where you want to go as a professional? No later than November 1, get your topic approved by me/us.

2.) Identify the resource topics that are a part of your project. How is your topic related to resources (i.e., education, money, social support, socioeconomic status, etc.) and families?

3.) Organize your investigation around 5 guiding questions that you generate.

You may use the basic "who, what, where, why, when" questions to help you get started. But, you should feel free to select questions that actually are of interest to you. For example, "What social supports are available for low income families in Ohio?" Or, "What educational experiences do I need to be a social worker?" The list goes on.

4.) Identify the content needed to answer the 5 questions above. This is the heart of the assignment. After researching your five questions, summarize what you learned. You may use professional websites, professional journal articles/references, people, community resources, etc. to help you answer the questions.

5.) Pull it all together in a poster and a paper format. You will organize a poster presentation with the highlights of your investigation and you should also submit a paper that that will provide a bit more detail to your

investigation.

Here is an example on an investigation related to adoption processes in Ohio:

Topic: I am passionate about working in the area of adoption.

Questions: 1.) What types of adoption are available in Ohio? 2.) What are the professional credentials of individuals who work in the area of adoption? 3.) How much does it cost to adopt a child? 4.) What are the social supports that are needed to ensure successful adoption? 5.) Is there an optimal age for child adoption?

Poster:

You should prepare a poster that is professional in appearance. A tri-fold poster is recommended. You may also print in large printer format a poster (see Mitch in the TRC to work on this - I think there is a $10.00 charge). We can also explore electronic forms of presentation.