Syllabus

Schedule

Course Schedule:

Each week opens on Wednesday at 12:01 AM Eastern Time. Each week closes on Wednesday at 11:59 pm ET, with the exception of Week 8, which ends on Sunday. 

• Week 01: March 4 – March 11
• Week 02: March 11 – March 18
• Week 03: March 18 – March 25
• Week 04: March 25 -April 1
• Week 05: April 1 – April 8
• Week 06: April 8 – April 15
• Week 07: April 15 – April 22
• Week 08: April 22 – April 26

Week 1: Course Introduction

Weekly outcomes

• Identify major federal funding agencies for public health programs, with an emphasis on U.S. Department of Health and Human Services agencies
• Assess the ability to interpret major components of a grant application 

Readings/Videos

• Primary Reading: Karsh and Fox Lessons 2-4 (pages 15-77)
• Final Project Instructions, Resources and Templates
• Supplemental Reading: Take some time to learn more about the Department of Health & Human Services and its agencies

Lectures

• Module 1 Lecture

Assignments

• Pre-Course Quiz (Ungraded)

Discussion Forums

• Introductions:
  • Initial Post: As you begin this course, it is important to understand what your personal learning goals are for the semester. First, describe two to three learning goals that you would like to achieve for this course. Second, identify the relevant course outcomes that are most aligned to your learning goals.

    Response Posts: Respond to the initial post of at least one peer. Link one of their learning goals to a skill/competency that you would expect a grant writer to routinely utilize. Explain why the skill/competency you identified is significant.

• Department of Health and Human Services
  • Initial Post: Review the supplemental reading on the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS). Based on the information you’ve read, which agency’s funding opportunities are you interested in learning more about in order to develop a grant proposal? Describe the mission of this agency. Explain why you chose this agency

    Response Posts: Respond to the initial post of at least one peer who chose a different agency. Postulate the type of public health challenge or community need which could (potentially) necessitate an interagency funding opportunity between the agency your peer chose and your chosen agency.

Week 2: Identifying and Stating the Problem

Weekly outcomes

• Assess the ability to interpret major components of a grant application (Statement of Need)
• Concisely write sections of a grant narrative
• Query key national, state, and local datasets to document the need for an identified targeted geography and community
• Describe the expected positive impacts (resultant to meeting the identified need) on the targeted community as a result of the grant-funded program
• Identify major federal funding agencies for public health programs, with an emphasis on U.S. DHHS, Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration

Readings/Videos

• Primary Reading: Karsh and Fox 6-7 (pages 119-155)
• Final Project Instructions, Resources and Templates
• Supplemental Reading: Take a moment to learn more about the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration

Lectures

• Module 2 Lecture

Assignments

• Statement of Need

Discussion Forum

• US Census Bureau
  • Initial post: The 10-year U.S. Census Bureau survey is well known. The Census Bureau also conducts the American Community Survey which samples populations each year and provides overview and detailed data on communities (by state, city, county, and zip code).

    To compile useful data for your Statement of Need assignment complete the steps laid out in the instructions found in the module.

    Write a post in which you describe why the U.S. Census Bureau data you’ve queried is among the strongest type of data you can provide for your Statement of Need assignment. Utilize support from your text to develop your response.

    Response post: Respond to the initial post of at least one peer. Counter their argument by identifying the specific elements that make the data presented weak? (In others, consider what data may be missing either entirely or within a specific category). Suggest another credible source of quantitative data that could be utilized in a Statement of Need. Explain how you located the source and why you chose it.

Week 3: Developing Realistic Goals and Measurable Objectives

Weekly outcomes

• Identify major federal funding agencies for public health programs, with an emphasis on U.S. DHHS, Administration for Children and Families
• Assess the ability to interpret major components of a grant application (Goals and Objectives)
• Concisely write sections of a grant narrative (Goals and Objectives)
• Describe the expected positive impacts (detailed in the stated goals and objectives) on the targeted community as a result of the grant-funded program

Readings/Videos

• Primary Reading: Karsh and Fox Lessons 8-9 (pages 157-166)
• Final Project Instructions, Resources and Templates
• Supplemental Reading: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Administration for Children and Families
• Supplemental Reading: Take a moment to review the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention resources available on Evaluation Documents, Workbooks, and Tools, specifically Logic Models. 

Lectures

• Module 3 Lecture

Assignments/Tasks

• Goals, Objectives, and Outcomes

Discussion Forums

• Definition of a Goal:
  • Initial Post: Utilize Karsh and Fox’s definition of a goal (Lesson 8 of your reading). After reviewing the Supplemental Reading on the U.S. DHHS, Administration for Children and Families, state the goal of the agency in your own words. Select one of the program offices (e.g., Children’s Bureau). Describe 2 of the goals and objectives for that program office.

    Response post: Respond to the initial post of at least one peer. In your opinion is the goal of the U.S. DHHS, Administration for Children and Families OR the program office (selected by your peer) comprehensive enough. If yes, explain why. If no, then describe what you add to this goal.

Week 4: Understanding the Evidence-Base

Weekly outcomes

• Identify major federal funding agencies for public health programs, with an emphasis on U.S. DHHS, Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality
• Assess the ability to interpret major components of a grant application (Methodology/Program Plan)
• Concisely write sections of a grant narrative(Methodology/Program Plan)
• Apply an evidence-based practice to demonstrate the expected positive impacts on the targeted community as a result of the grant-funded program

Readings/Videos

• Primary Reading: U.S. DHHS, Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality – Selected case studies from AHRQ’s evidence-based tools and resources
  • St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital Uses AHRQ Survey to Promote Patient Safety
  • Medication Therapy Tools Help Pharmacists Educate Patients, Improve Adherence and Safety
  • AHRQ Telehealth Project Helps Address Mental Health Needs Among Rural Elderly in New York State
• Final Project Instructions, Resources and Templates
• Supplemental Reading:
  • Take some time to learn more about the U.S. DHHS, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
  • To learn more about implementing Evidence-based Practices review the following resources:
    • Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality Evidence-Based Reports
    • The Community Preventive Services Task Force (CPSTF) Community Guide
    • Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration Evidence-Based Practices

Lectures

• Module 4 Lecture

Assignments

• Evidence-Based practices

Discussion Forum

• Case Study Review:
  • Initial Post: Explore the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) web site and review the 3 case studies in your primary readings.

    First, provide a definition of an evidence-based practice.

    Next, select two of the case studies from your readings. Describe the evidence-based practices identified.

    State whether or not you believe one or both of the evidence-based practices reviewed were effective. State why or why not?

    Response posts: Respond to the initial post of at least one peer. Review the Criteria for Distinguishing Effectiveness From Efficacy Trials in Systematic Reviews (download the PDF to get the full document). How does the rationale provided by your peer compare to this criteria for effectiveness?

Week 5: Implementing and Sustaining the Work

Weekly outcomes

• Identify major federal funding agencies for public health programs, with an emphasis on U.S. DHHS, Center for Faith-based and Neighborhood Partnerships
• Assess the ability to interpret major components of a grant application (Capacity, Partnerships, and Sustainability)
• Concisely write sections of a grant narrative (Capacity, Partnerships, and Sustainability)
• Apply a realistic staffing plan and partnership strategy to demonstrate and sustain the expected positive impacts on the targeted community as a result of the grant-funded program 

Readings/Videos

• Primary Reading: Karsh and Fox Lessons 10, 13-14 (pages 179-188; 213-227)
• Final Project Instructions, Resources and Templates
• Supplemental Reading – Take a little bit of time to learn more about:
  • Memorandums of Agreement/Understanding and Letters of Support
  • The Center for Faith-based and Neighborhood Partnerships

Lectures

• Module 5 Lecture

Assignments

• Staff and Organizational Capacity/Collaborative Partners

Discussion Forum

• Organizational Capacity and Collaboration:
  • Initial Post: Lesson 10 of the reading in the Karsh and Fox text discusses the importance of collaboration and specifically “getting the right people at the table together.” Explore the organizational capacity and collaborative partners for the hospital/health system (chosen from the list of 25 largest hospitals in America, Student resources – Becker’s Hospital Review) you identified in Module 2. To do this, see additional directions in the course module.

    Response post. Respond to the initial post of at least one peer.

    • Critically evaluate the 2 existing hospital/health system community partners identified.
    • Propose 1 additional relevant partner that should be considered. Although the organizations/providers listed here are not required for inclusion, you may consider searching the list of SAMHSA-approved treatment providers (by the location of the hospital/health system) found here (https://www.samhsa.gov/find-help).
    • Thinking about sustainability, how would this additional partner support the long-term (ongoing) implementation of the grant-funded program proposed.

Week 6: Evaluation

Weekly outcomes

• Identify major federal funding agencies for public health programs, with an emphasis on U.S. DHHS, Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services
• Differentiate various evaluation methods to assess the expected positive impacts on the targeted community as a result of the grant-funded program

Readings/Videos

• Primary Reading: Karsh and Fox Lesson 11 (pages 189-198)
• Final Project Instructions, Resources and Templates
• Supplemental Reading – Take a moment to learn more about:
  • U.S. DHHS, Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services
  • CDC Program Evaluation Tip Sheet – Cultural Competence
  • CDC Program Evaluation Tip Sheet – Economic Evaluation

Lectures

• Module 6 Lecture

Discussion Forums

• Economic Evaluations
  • After reviewing both CDC Program Evaluation Tip Sheets:
    • Choose 1 type of Economic evaluation that could be used in your proposed grant-funded program.
    • Provide a definition.
    • Provide the primary purpose of the Economic evaluation (e.g., to minimize program cost).
    • Explain why it would be appropriate (based on the audience and purpose defined in the Tip Sheet).

• • Response post. Respond to the initial post of at least one peer.
    • Based on the Economic evaluation chosen by your peer, select at least 2 Cultural Competence tips that could be implemented in your peer’s grant-funded program (remember, the purpose of the program is to address the problem of opioid use disorder (OUD) by expanding/enhancing access to medication-assisted treatment (MAT) (the purpose of all assignments in this course). Remember to preserve/support the stated primary purpose of the Economic evaluation which your peer identified in their initial post.
    • Explain why you selected the 2 Cultural Competence tips you identified.

Week 7: Budgeting

Weekly outcomes

• Identify major federal funding agencies for public health programs, with an emphasis on U.S. DHHS, Health Resources & Services Administration
• Assess the ability to interpret major components of a grant application (Line-item budget) 
• Concisely write sections of a grant narrative (Line-item budget and budget narrative)
• Apply basic tools of budgeting and resource allocation to implement the grant-funded program for a targeted community

Readings/Videos

• Primary Reading: Karsh and Fox Lesson 12 (pages 199-211)
• Final Project Instructions, Resources and Templates
• Supplemental Reading – Take a moment to learn more about the U.S. DHHS, Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA)

Lectures

• Module 7 Lecture

Assignments

• Line-item Budget and Budget Narrative

Week 8: Course Reflection

Weekly outcomes

• Identify major federal funding agencies for public health programs, with an emphasis on U.S. DHHS, Food and Drug Administration, and the National Institutes of Health
• Assess the ability to interpret major components of a grant application (holistically)

Readings/Videos

• Primary Reading: Karsh and Fox Lessons 16-17 (pages 271-288)
• Supplemental Reading – Take a little time to learn more about:
  • U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS), Food Drug Administration
  • U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS), National Institutes of Health

Lectures

• Module 8 Lecture

Assignments

• Post-Quiz (Ungraded)

Discussion Forum

• Personal learning goals
  • Initial Post: As you end this course, it is important to understand if you achieved your personal learning goals this semester. First, review the 2-3 learning goals that you identified in Module 1. Second, summarize the goals here in your initial post and their alignment to the relevant course outcomes. Thirdly, select 1 learning goal, and describe whether or not you achieved the selected goal. Finally, relate your learning goal to a significant skill/competency that you learned (in this semester) that a grant writer would routinely utilize.
  • Peer Response. Respond to the initial post of at least one peer. Do you agree that the skill/competency your peer identified is significant for a grant writer? Explain how the skill/competency you identified in your initial post supports the skill your peer identified.

Student Resources

Online Student Support

Your Student Support Specialist is a resource for you. Please don't hesitate to contact them for assistance, including, but not limited to course planning, current problems or issues in a course, technology concerns, or personal emergencies.

Questions? Visit the Student Support Public Health page

UNE Libraries:

• Library Access for all students: Your library login ID and password are the same as the ones you use to log into Blackboard/Brightspace.
• Public Health Databases: https://library.une.edu/library-materials/find/research-by-subject/public-health/
• Library Tutorial: Find an article
• Library Questions: Ask a librarian or phone library staff at (207) 602-2361 or (207) 221-4330.

UNE Student Academic Success Center

UNE's Student Academic Success Center (SASC) offers a range of free online services to support your academic achievement. Writing support, ESOL support, study strategy and learning style consultations, as well as downloadable resources, are available to all matriculating students. The SASC also offers tutoring for GPH 712 Epidemiology, GPH 716 Biostatistics, GPH 717 Applied Epidemiology, GPH 718 Biostatistics II, and GPH 719 Research Methods. To make an appointment for any of these services, go to une.tutortrac.com. For more information and to view and download writing and studying resources, please visit:

• UNE Student Academic Success Center

Information Technology Services (ITS)

• ITS Contact: Toll Free Help Desk 24 hours/7 days per week at 1-877-518-4673

Accommodations

Any student who would like to request, or ask any questions regarding, academic adjustments or accommodations must contact the Student Access Center at (207) 221-4438 or pcstudentaccess@une.edu. Student Access Center staff will evaluate the student's documentation and determine eligibility of accommodation(s) through the Student Access Center registration procedure.

Policies

AMA Writing Style Statement

The American Medical Association Manual (AMA) of Style, 11th edition is the required writing format for this course. Additional support for academic writing and AMA format is provided throughout the coursework as well as at the UNE Portal for Online Students.

Online resources: AMA Style Guide

Turnitin Originality Check and Plagiarism Detection Tool

The College of Professional Studies uses Turnitin to help deter plagiarism and to foster the proper attribution of sources. Turnitin provides comparative reports for submitted assignments that reflect similarities in other written works. This can include, but is not limited to, previously submitted assignments, internet articles, research journals, and academic databases.

Make sure to cite your sources appropriately as well as use your own words in synthesizing information from published literature. Webinars and workshops, included early in your coursework, will help guide best practices in APA citation and academic writing.

You can learn more about Turnitin in the Turnitin Student quick start guide.

Technology Requirements

Please review the technical requirements for UNE Online Graduate Programs: Technical Requirements

Course Evaluation Policy

Course surveys are one of the most important tools that University of New England uses for evaluating the quality of your education, and for providing meaningful feedback to instructors on their teaching. In order to assure that the feedback is both comprehensive and precise, we need to receive it from each student for each course. Evaluation access is distributed via UNE email at the beginning of the last week of the course.

Late Policy

Students are responsible for submitting work by the date indicated in Brightspace.

Quizzes and Tests: Quizzes and tests must be completed by the due date. They will not be accepted after the due date.

Assignments: Unless otherwise specified, assignments will be accepted up to 3 days late; however, there is a 10% grade reduction (from the total points) for the late submission. After three days the assignment will not be accepted.

Discussion posts: If the initial post is submitted late, but still within the discussion board week, there will be a 10% grade reduction from the total discussion grade (e.g., a 3 point discussion will be reduced by 0.3 points). Any posts submitted after the end of the Discussion Board week will not be graded.

Please make every effort ahead of time to contact your instructor and your student support specialist if you are not able to meet an assignment deadline. Arrangements for extenuating circumstances may be considered by faculty.

Student Handbook Online - Policies and Procedures

The policies contained within this document apply to all students in the College of Graduate and Professional Studies. It is each student's responsibility to know the contents of this handbook.

Student Handbook

UNE Course Withdrawal

Please contact your student support specialist if you are considering dropping or withdrawing from a course. The last day to drop for 100% tuition refund is the 2nd day of the course. Financial Aid charges may still apply. Students using Financial Aid should contact the Financial Aid Office prior to withdrawing from a course.

Academic Integrity

The University of New England values academic integrity in all aspects of the educational experience. Academic dishonesty in any form undermines this standard and devalues the original contributions of others. It is the responsibility of all members of the University community to actively uphold the integrity of the academy; failure to act, for any reason, is not acceptable. For information about plagiarism and academic misconduct, please visit https://www.une.edu/studentlife/plagiarism.

Academic dishonesty includes, but is not limited to the following:

1. Cheating, copying, or the offering or receiving of unauthorized assistance or information.
2. Fabrication or falsification of data, results, or sources for papers or reports.
3. Action which destroys or alters the work of another student.
4. Multiple submissions of the same paper or report for assignments in more than one course without permission of each instructor.
5. Plagiarism, the appropriation of records, research, materials, ideas, or the language of other persons or writers and the submission of them as one's own.

Charges of academic dishonesty will be reviewed by the Program Director. Penalties for students found responsible for violations may depend upon the seriousness and circumstances of the violation, the degree of premeditation involved, and/or the student’s previous record of violations.  Appeal of a decision may be made to the Dean whose decision will be final.  Student appeals will take place through the grievance process outlined in the student handbook.