WilmU’s Child Advocacy Studies certificate helps the youngest victims.
A victim of child abuse might not be able to say what’s wrong. But a compassionate child advocate might be able to see the signs and assist in intervention. Wilmington University’s Child Advocacy Studies certificate can help both of them.
The five-course, fifteen-credit undergraduate certificate aims to train educators, health care professionals, law enforcement officials, social workers, mental health counselors, and others who work with children and families to recognize and respond to indicators of abuse, maltreatment, and neglect.
“Children don’t always have the ability to communicate their concerns,” says Susan Bair Purcell, program chair for the Child Advocacy Studies certificate program. “They don’t always know that what they’re experiencing is not okay. They don’t know there’s another way. WilmU’s commitment to improving children’s lives in the community is a practical approach to a big problem.”
WilmU’s commitment to improving children’s lives in the community is a practical approach to a big problem.” –Susan Bair Purcell
The certificate’s coursework offers a multidisciplinary approach to identifying, investigating, and reporting incidents. Students will conduct mock case studies, interviews, and home visits. Two electives in psychology, sociology, criminal justice, or legal studies specialize the certificate to individual interests and career goals.
Available in classrooms at WilmU’s New Castle campus as well as its Dover, Georgetown, and Burlington, N.J., locations and 100% online, the courses are taught by practicing professionals in legal, social services, and law enforcement fields. “That’s incredibly valuable, the experiences they bring to their teaching,” says Purcell, a deputy attorney general in the Delaware Department of Justice’s Special Victims Unit. “It’s worth much more than just a chapter in a book.”
Thanks to WilmU’s exclusive Dual-Credit ADVANTAGE™, students who complete the certificate can also apply the credits they’ve earned toward a bachelor’s degree in Behavioral Sciences, Criminal Justice, Education Studies, or Psychology, or toward our RN to Bachelor of Science in Nursing program.
“It’s always been important to be an advocate for children, who often have no voice of their own,” says Purcell. “Recent science has given us more insights into the impact that trauma has on children and their developing brains. With this type of training, we may actually be able to begin to break the cycle of child abuse.”
To learn more about WilmU’s Child Advocacy Studies certificate or to apply, please visit wilmu.edu/behavioralscience/child-advocacy-certificate.