2020-2021 Academic Catalog 
    
    Mar 29, 2024  
2020-2021 Academic Catalog [ARCHIVED CATALOG]

Community Development and Planning, MA


Overview


Graduate Program


Poverty and structural racism undermine the quality of life in urban areas in the United States, and the societal costs can last for generations. The complexity of these problems demands an approach that goes beyond social work or urban planning or design. We developed the M.A. in Community Development and Planning because we believe social and economic justice are possible through the practice of engaged and future focused community development.

In Clark’s Community Development and Planning program, students learn about the relations between power and capital that produce inequity, and how to use this knowledge to build partnerships and capacity in people, places, organizations, and institutions in order to promote structural change. Our curriculum is strategic and future-oriented, informed by an understanding of historic political-economic trends and current affairs. The curriculum has depth in areas such as youth justice, economic development, food security, and managing neighborhood transformation through community engagement, planning, and non-profit leadership.

Our faculty are engaged scholars and practitioners who work with, and for, state and city governments as well as community development corporations and other non-profits on a range of initiatives aimed at addressing urban challenges. They bring their skills and experience into the classroom, working closely with students to chart career paths. As mentors, the faculty introduce students to internships and a broad professional network.

The CDP Experience

Our pedagogy is community-engaged. We incorporate internships, case studies, instructor-practitioners, and field-based courses. The projects in our field-based courses are situated within highly effective and impactful cross-sector partnerships forged by our faculty over many years. These include the Worcester Youth Violence Prevention Initiative, food systems work with Worcester Public Schools, housing and neighborhood plans with local community development corporations, and reconstruction efforts in Puerto Rico.

Courses reflect our community-engaged educational focus. Classroom discussions and applied projects tackle the implications of community development and planning theory, planning techniques, decision-making and negotiation, spatial analysis, and research and project evaluation methods.

Graduate Requirements


Community Development and Planning Course of Study


The M.A. in Community Development and Planning requires a minimum of 10 graduate course units, combining skills/methods courses and elective courses that link theory with practice. You can pursue one of our transdisciplinary concentrations or create your own. One completion unit is the final requirement.

Program Requirements


Culminating Course Unit

There are several options:

  1. Thesis (after approval of a proposal, with two Faculty Readers) - Typically for those considering a doctoral path or professional research path.
  2. Research Paper (one Reader) - Typically based on secondary data analysis.
  3. Practitioner Paper (one Reader) - A deliverable based on the student’s professional experience (e.g. consultancy).
  4. Collaborative Final Project- (led by faculty) - Tackling larger problems and issues, and providing students with team-based experience that reflects the professional setting.
  5. A 3rd Methods/Skills focus via extra one Unit/Course and related to the student’s concentration or self-designed course of study.

Methods and Skills Options


IDCE methods and skills courses are grouped into three clusters. The first cluster consists of general methods courses that are appropriate to students across programs (IDSC, CDP, ES&P, and MHS). These courses are foundational and relevant to all concentrations. The second cluster consists of methods and skills courses that pertain more to specific programs, concentrations and/or certificates. Students should review the syllabi posted on Moodle and then consult with their advisors and/or the instructors to determine the relevance of the course materials to her/his plan of study. The third cluster consists of methods and skills courses that are highly specialized and are unlikely to be appropriate to students from other programs, concentrations, and/or certificates.

Second and third cluster courses may require technical skills as pre-requisites. Additionally, some second and third cluster methods and skills courses may be closed to students not enrolled in a specific program.

Cluster 1        General (offered at least annually)

IDCE 310 Intro to Geographic Information Science  

IDCE 340 Fundamentals of Youth Work  

IDCE 358 Advanced Topics in International Development  

IDCE 361 Project Management for Social Change  

IDCE 366 Principles of Negotiation and Mediation: An Overview of Conflict Resolution Approaches  

IDCE 30103 Networks and Analytics of Development  

IDCE 30109 Introduction to Epidemiology  

IDCE 30110 Social Policy: Qualitative Methods For Design and Analysis  

IDCE 30225 Grant Writing for Community Developers  

IDCE 30229 Program Monitoring and Evaluation Fundamentals  

IDCE 30238 Public Communication Seminar  

IDCE 30281 Community Needs and Resource Analysis  

IDCE 30291 Qualitative Research Methods  

IDCE 30296 Nonprofit Management  

Cluster 2        More Specialized (offered annually or biannually) 

GEOG 316 Field Methods for Environmental Science  

IDCE 319 Quantitative Methods and Statistics For Evaluators  

IDCE 332 Sustainable Development Assessment and Planning  

IDCE 333 Development Mgmt in Developing Countries  

IDCE 334 Planning and Zoning for Community Developers  

IDCE 335 Strategies for Community Organizing  

IDCE 390 CDP Research Seminar  

IDCE 30203 Program Evaluation for Youth and Community Development Initiatives  

IDCE 30204 Advanced Community Development Finance and Research  

IDCE 30274 Computer Programming for GIS  

IDCE 30281 Community Needs and Resource Analysis  

IDCE 30282 Community Based Health Research  

IDCE 30287 Fundamentals of Environmental Science  

IDCE 30289 Community Development Finance  

IDCE 30306 GIS for International Development in Practice  

IDCE 30360 Spatial Analysis for Health  

IDCE 30393 Social Applications of GIS  

Cluster 3        Highly Specialized (offered annually, biannually, or as demand requires)

GEOG 392 Remote Sensing of Global Environmental Change  

GEOG 397 Advanced Raster GIS  

IDCE 302 Python Programming  

IDCE 334 Planning and Zoning for Community Developers  

IDCE 342 Dynamic Modeling of Human/Environment Systems  

IDCE 388 Advanced Vector GIS  

IDCE 30102 Case Studies in Environmental Issues and Policy Analysis  

IDCE 30108 Research Methods for Forced Migration  

IDCE 30262 Web Mapping and Open Source GIS  

Concentrations - IDCE


Students may select from one of the Concentrations within IDCE.

Climate Change Impacts & Adaptation

The Climate Change Impacts & Adaptation concentration focuses on understanding and responding to one of the world’s greatest challenges. IDCE’s program brings together environmental, social, and policy scientists to produce collaborative, integrative approaches that improve society’s capacity to understand and address the climate crisis.  All people and places are touched by climate change, but impacts and capacities to adapt are unevenly distributed across populations and landscapes, making social equity and justice core concerns.  Students gain literacy in the science of climate change, the structure and policy of climate negotiations and finance, and they learn how climate change factors into multiple sectors, including health, water, food, urban infrastructure, energy, and conservation.  Students develop skills in climate modeling in GIS; risk assessment; quantitative and qualitative data analysis; participatory research methodologies, and policy analysis.  Opportunities to contribute to faculty research include active projects in the Arctic, West Africa, Ethiopia, Mexico City, and New England.  Students are prepared for careers with international organizations like the World Bank, USAID, FAO, and World Resources Institute, as well as state and municipal agencies, climate action networks, and private sector consultants.

GEOG 363 The Climate System and Global Environmental Change  

IDCE 328 Food Security and Climate Change  

IDCE 332 Sustainable Development Assessment and Planning  

IDCE 341 Nongovernment Organizations: Catalysts for Development  

IDCE 365 Cities, Regions, Climate Change & Health  

IDCE 30101 The Political Economy of Food and the Ethics of Eating  

IDCE 30102 Case Studies in Environmental Issues and Policy Analysis  

IDCE 30117 Place-Based Ecological Knowledge  

IDCE 30118 Science Meets Policy in the Real World  

IDCE 30205 Climate Change, Energy and Development  

IDCE 30231 Humanitarian Assistances in Complex Emergencies/Disasters  

IDCE 30243 Seeing Like a Humanitarian Agency  

IDCE 30264 Environmental and Social Epidemiology  

IDCE 30272 Environmental Justice in Latin America  

IDCE 30701 Beyond the Population Bomb: Rethinking Population and The Environment in an Era of Climate Change  

MGMT 5615 Corporate Social Responsibility  

PHYS 343 Technology of Renewable Energy  

Environment & Development

The Environment & Development concentration explores how the science and politics of resource use shape efforts to promote sustainable development. The program critically examines what is being conserved, for whom, and why with particular attention to issues of power, equity, and justice. Coursework includes ecology and earth systems science, natural resource management, ethnobiology, political ecology, and sustainable development. Students tackle complex problems through transdisciplinary collaborations that integrate multiple ways of knowing and being in the world, including marginalized perspectives. Conceptually, students will learn why conservation and development efforts frequently have adverse impacts on human-environment relations. Students will gain competencies in environmental impact assessment, evaluation of ecosystem services, stakeholder mapping, system dynamics modeling, diversity analysis, and participatory action research.  The concentration prepares students for careers with international environmental organizations such as the Nature Conservancy and the United Nations Environment Programme, as well as land trusts, environmental advocacy groups, and governmental agencies.

Courses (Note: the non-IDCE faculty who offer courses mentioned in this concentration have agreed to include their courses in this list):

BIOL 316 Ecology  

GEOG 333 Terrestrial Ecosystems and Global Change  

IDCE 332 Sustainable Development Assessment and Planning  

IDCE 365 Cities, Regions, Climate Change & Health  

IDCE 30101 The Political Economy of Food and the Ethics of Eating   

IDCE 30117 Place-Based Ecological Knowledge     

IDCE 30701 Beyond the Population Bomb: Rethinking Population and The Environment in an Era of Climate Change  

GEOG 309 Trends in Forest Ecology  

GEOG 316 Field Methods for Environmental Science  

GEOG 323 Forest Ecology and Management Seminar  

GEOG 332 Landscape Ecology  

GEOG 336 Wildlife Conservation GIS Research Seminar  

GEOG 360 GIS & Land Change Models   

IDCE 395 Culture, Environment, and Development  

IDCE 30154 Mega Development: Exploring The Nexus Between Natural Resource Extraction, Infrastructure Development and Environment   

IDCE 30245 Natural Resource Management  

IDCE 30272 Environmental Justice in Latin America  

IDCE 30287 Fundamentals of Environmental Science  

GEOG 386 Special Topics  Habitat Modeling

GEOG 386 Special Topics  Urban Forestry

GEOG 389 Conservation GIS  

Refugees, Forced Migration, & Belonging

The Concentration in Refugees, Forced Migration, & Belonging strives to understand the complex political economy of the global distribution, circulation, and regulation of people on the move today. We take a participatory, community-based, and refugee-centered approach to the field, and offer a comprehensive analysis of experiences of and responses to forcible displacement and integration from a mobilities perspective. Students will learn how policies and organizations designed to manage or assist forced migrants, refugees, and other displaced people intersect with ideas about citizenship, integration, sustainability, gender, development, and belonging. Students are introduced to critical policy perspectives, and integrative methods and approaches for research with forced migrant populations, including GIS, and narrative research and analysis. Graduates will be equipped to pursue doctoral or other advanced degrees, work for government, inter-governmental, international aid agencies or non-profit organizations.

IDCE 332 Sustainable Development Assessment and Planning  

IDCE 341 Nongovernment Organizations: Catalysts for Development  

IDCE 358 Advanced Topics in International Development   

IDCE 365 Cities, Regions, Climate Change & Health  

IDCE 30103 Networks and Analytics of Development  

IDCE 30107 Forced Migration and the City  

IDCE 30108 Research Methods for Forced Migration  

IDCE 30111 Urban Development: Process and Change  

IDCE 30231 Humanitarian Assistances in Complex Emergencies/Disasters  

IDCE 30235 Trafficking: Globalization and Its Illicit Commodities  

IDCE 30243 Seeing Like a Humanitarian Agency  

IDCE 30248 Gender and Health  

IDCE 30297 Refugees, Forced Migration, and Belonging  

IDCE 30397 People on the Move Research Studio  

Education, Youth, & Development

Education is one of the most important tools communities across the globe possess for addressing inequity and achieving socio-economic development. In IDCE, we understand education to be both formal and informal, and what happens within and outside of schools. Community-based youth development focuses on the whole child and the whole family. The Education, Youth & Development concentration connects these fields and prepares students for rewarding careers in youth development and educational settings in the US and internationally in communities, schools, governmental institutions, non-profit organizations and NGOs, and philanthropic foundations. Our courses are taught at the intersection of critical analysis of power and privilege; educational access, justice and equity; gender identity, race, and class; and youth development studies. IDCE field-based experience may take you into the City of Worcester and surrounding areas, or internationally to our various field sites. You will develop professional skills in program planning and management, policy analysis, advocacy and organizing. 

EDUC 308 Literacy Across the Curriculum  

EDUC 327 Culture, Language and Education  

IDCE 341 Nongovernment Organizations: Catalysts for Development  

IDCE 358 Advanced Topics in International Development  

EDUC 361 Human Development and Learning  

EDUC 381 Critical Pedagogies  

IDCE 332 Sustainable Development Assessment and Planning  

IDCE 333 Development Mgmt in Developing Countries  

IDCE 364 Educational Policy Issues in “Developing” Countries: Governance, Management, and Financing  

IDCE 365 Cities, Regions, Climate Change & Health  

IDCE 30117 Place-Based Ecological Knowledge  

IDCE 30221 Education and Development  

IDCE 30365 Global Issues in Education  

IDCE 303 Youth Work: Practice and Social Justice  

IDCE 335 Strategies for Community Organizing  

IDCE 340 Fundamentals of Youth Work  

IDCE 345 CDP Practice: Reflection and Deliberate Practice  

IDCE 387 Labor, Globalization and Inequality  

IDCE 30111 Urban Development: Process and Change  

IDCE 30203 Program Evaluation for Youth and Community Development Initiatives  

IDCE 30225 Grant Writing for Community Developers  

IDCE 30281 Community Needs and Resource Analysis  

IDCE 30296 Nonprofit Management  

Urban Resilience

The Urban Resilience concentration prepares students to understand the capabilities of individuals, communities, institutions, and businesses in cities to withstand and adapt to a variety of multi-dimensional shocks and chronic stressors. Students will investigate the resilience of urban communities to natural hazards, environmental depletion, economic downturns, social exclusion, and other systemic failures or structural challenges. Through classroom instruction, internships, and fieldwork, students learn to support community asset building, and to address inequitable impacts on different groups in society such as youth, immigrants, women, and other vulnerable populations. Students who pursue this concentration will acquire analytical and practical tools, and professional expertise. Graduates will be qualified to work as urban and community planners, program and policy analysts, project managers, social advocates, and nonprofit leaders at various levels of government and in non-profit organizations in the United States and abroad, as well as to pursue further graduate education.

IDCE 303 Youth Work: Practice and Social Justice  

IDCE 308 Health (in)Equity: Social Determinants and Policy Solutions  

IDCE 320 Food Production, Environment, and Health  

IDCE 332 Sustainable Development Assessment and Planning  

IDCE 334 Planning and Zoning for Community Developers  

IDCE 341 Nongovernment Organizations: Catalysts for Development  

IDCE 344 Going Local: Community Development and Planning  

IDCE 365 Cities, Regions, Climate Change & Health  

IDCE 387 Labor, Globalization and Inequality  

IDCE 390 CDP Research Seminar  

IDCE 395 Culture, Environment, and Development  

IDCE 30107 Forced Migration and the City  

IDCE 30111 Urban Development: Process and Change  

IDCE 30203 Program Evaluation for Youth and Community Development Initiatives  

IDCE 30204 Advanced Community Development Finance and Research  

IDCE 30205 Climate Change, Energy and Development  

IDCE 30225 Grant Writing for Community Developers  

IDCE 30231 Humanitarian Assistances in Complex Emergencies/Disasters  

IDCE 30245 Natural Resource Management  

IDCE 30261 Immigration and Knowledge-Driven Industries  

IDCE 30281 Community Needs and Resource Analysis  

IDCE 30287 Fundamentals of Environmental Science  

IDCE 30289 Community Development Finance  

IDCE 30291 Qualitative Research Methods  

IDCE 30296 Nonprofit Management  

IDCE 30393 Social Applications of GIS  

Monitoring & Evaluation

Monitoring and Evaluation (M&E) is an essential and required element of domestic community and international development programs. Collecting and using program data related to outcomes, impacts and performance, both intended and unintended, are essential for accountability and evidence-based decision making. The Monitoring and Evaluation concentration prepares students in the current theory, knowledge, skills and professional competencies necessary for leadership roles in program evaluation and management. Students will learn to: design and develop M&E systems; develop project specific indictors; understand and use evaluation frameworks including logical frameworks; appropriately utilize evaluative thinking and evaluation theory of change frameworks; develop knowledge and competence in a range of evaluation methodologies; collect, manage, and analyze data; and, craft professional reports and presentations. We prepare graduates to work according to the American Evaluation Association’s professional standards and code of ethics. Students who complete the concentration may enter the field as “monitoring & evaluation officers,” “M&E leads,” or more senior positions such as “MLE Director.”

IDCE 319 Quantitative Methods and Statistics For Evaluators  

IDCE 332 Sustainable Development Assessment and Planning  

IDCE 341 Nongovernment Organizations: Catalysts for Development  

IDCE 365 Cities, Regions, Climate Change & Health  

IDCE 30103 Networks and Analytics of Development  

IDCE 30203 Program Evaluation for Youth and Community Development Initiatives  

IDCE 30225 Grant Writing for Community Developers  

IDCE 30229 Program Monitoring and Evaluation Fundamentals  

IDCE 30245 Natural Resource Management  

IDCE 30275 Gender in Development Planning  

IDCE 30281 Community Needs and Resource Analysis  

IDCE 30282 Community Based Health Research  

IDCE 30306 GIS for International Development in Practice  

IDCE 30360 Spatial Analysis for Health  

Gender and Development

Gender and Development concentration students examine the creation, reproduction, and reduction of gender inequalities around the world. We bring a feminist lens to tackle global issues pertaining to gender and power. Students interested in gender identity and politics may pursue topics such as access to land and natural resources; power and empowerment; and forced migration and displacement, as well as gender inclusion in the management of non-governmental organizations, advocacy campaigns, and related fields. Students who take the concentration will learn the methods, tools and approaches used by scholars and practitioners to conduct gender analysis. Graduates will be equipped to pursue doctoral or other advanced degrees, work for government, inter-governmental, international aid agencies or non-profit organizations. Students completing this concentration could be qualified to serve as “gender specialist” or “subject matter expert,” and would be able to pursue careers in education, research, policy and program development, project management, consulting, and more.

IDCE 329 Property and Community  

IDCE 332 Sustainable Development Assessment and Planning  

IDCE 341 Nongovernment Organizations: Catalysts for Development  

IDCE 354 Beyond Victims and Guardian Angels: Third World Women, Gender and Development  

IDCE 358 Advanced Topics in International Development  

IDCE 365 Cities, Regions, Climate Change & Health  

IDCE 395 Culture, Environment, and Development  

IDCE 30117 Place-Based Ecological Knowledge  

IDCE 30221 Education and Development  

IDCE 30103 Networks and Analytics of Development  

IDCE 30154 Mega Development: Exploring The Nexus Between Natural Resource Extraction, Infrastructure Development and Environment  

IDCE 30184 Gender Analysis of Power and Conflict  

IDCE 30235 Trafficking: Globalization and Its Illicit Commodities  

IDCE 30248 Gender and Health  

IDCE 30275 Gender in Development Planning  

IDCE 30360 Spatial Analysis for Health  

IDCE 30365 Global Issues in Education  

IDCE 30701 Beyond the Population Bomb: Rethinking Population and The Environment in an Era of Climate Change  

Health Equity

The field of community and global health calls for achieving health equity and justice for all people worldwide. Students in the Health Equity concentration will learn about the global and local determinants of disease, the barriers to accessing high quality and affordable medical care, the ways communities and governments set health priorities and evaluate health needs, and the role of policy in promoting healthy individuals, families, and communities. Students who concentrate in health equity will gain understanding of the national and global burden of disease, the major actors and institutions that influence health policy domestically and globally, how health systems are organized around the world, and how they might contribute to achieving health equity as a community and global health professional.

IDCE 308 Health (in)Equity: Social Determinants and Policy Solutions  

IDCE 320 Food Production, Environment, and Health  

IDCE 332 Sustainable Development Assessment and Planning  

IDCE 341 Nongovernment Organizations: Catalysts for Development  

IDCE 365 Cities, Regions, Climate Change & Health  

IDCE 377 Approaches to Global Health  

IDCE 30101 The Political Economy of Food and the Ethics of Eating  

IDCE 30103 Networks and Analytics of Development  

IDCE 30248 Gender and Health  

IDCE 30264 Environmental and Social Epidemiology  

IDCE 30282 Community Based Health Research  

IDCE 30306 GIS for International Development in Practice  

IDCE 30360 Spatial Analysis for Health  

IDCE 30701 Beyond the Population Bomb: Rethinking Population and The Environment in an Era of Climate Change  

Healthy People/Healthy Planet

We inhabit an ever-changing social and natural world that has a profound influence on individuals, households and communities.  Human health and wellbeing depend on a complex interplay among social conditions (economic, cultural, and political) and the physical environment (indoor and outdoor spaces, residential and occupational).  These factors help us understand health vulnerability in terms of marginalization, poverty, lifestyle, and disparities in access to health-enabling resources and differential exposure to life-threatening conditions.  The Health People/Healthy Planet concentration approaches health in the broadest sense (physical, mental, social). We train students to analyze the origins of health disparities and identify how risk factors and promoting factors vary across populations and landscapes. Graduates will be equipped to examine the intersection of social and environmental determinants of health and to work towards health equity in partnership with diverse stakeholders.

GEOG 316 Field Methods for Environmental Science  

GEOG 343 Human Dimensions of Global Change  

IDCE 308 Health (in)Equity: Social Determinants and Policy Solutions  

IDCE 320 Food Production, Environment, and Health  

IDCE 328 Food Security and Climate Change  

IDCE 332 Sustainable Development Assessment and Planning  

IDCE 341 Nongovernment Organizations: Catalysts for Development  

IDCE 365 Cities, Regions, Climate Change & Health  

IDCE 377 Approaches to Global Health  

IDCE 395 Culture, Environment, and Development  

IDCE 30101 The Political Economy of Food and the Ethics of Eating  

IDCE 30117 Place-Based Ecological Knowledge  

IDCE 30205 Climate Change, Energy and Development  

IDCE 30231 Humanitarian Assistances in Complex Emergencies/Disasters  

IDCE 30330 Approaches to Community Health  

IDCE 30245 Natural Resource Management  

IDCE 30360 Spatial Analysis for Health  

IDCE 30701 Beyond the Population Bomb: Rethinking Population and The Environment in an Era of Climate Change  

MGMT 5615 Corporate Social Responsibility  

Program Faculty


Laurie Ross, Ph.D. - Coordinator

Ramon Borges-Mendez. MCP, Ph.D.

Kathryn Madden, MCP, AICP

Affiliated Faculty/UDSC Faculty


Mark Davidson, Ph.D.
Eric DeMeulenaere, Ph.D.
John Ameer, Ed.D.
John Brown, Ph.D.
Patricia Ewick, Ph.D.
Jacqueline Geoghegan, Ph.D.
Bruce London, Ph.D.
Deborah Martin, Ph.D.
Sarah Michaels, Ph.D.
Jie Park, Ph.D.

Amy Richter, Ph.D.
Rhys Townsend, Ph.D.

Department Instructors


Timothy McGourthy, MA, MPP
Frank Kartheiser, MA
Jennifer Safford-Farquharson M.Ed
Dorothy Swope M.Ed
Robb Zarges, Ph.D.