Running head: CULTURAL IMMERSION

Cultural Immersion & Agency Assessment Report Sophie DeMesse Wilmington University

CULTURAL IMMERSION Populations Served by My Agency: Race: Caucasian, African American, Asian Social Class: Lower, middle, upper class Immigration Status: Unknown Worldview or Philosophy: Unknown Gender: Male and Female Language: English Sexual Orientation: Unknown Appearance: Unknown Ethnicity: Unknown Ability/Disability: Unknown Religion: Unknown Region: Delaware; Elkton, MD; Kennett Square, PA

Population Selected for Cultural Immersion: African American males dealing with grief and bereavement

I. Knowledge Acquisition Through Cultural Immersion Populations History and Major Milestones To understand African American grief one must have an understanding of their history and culture. The history of African Americans dates back to 1619 when the first African slaves were brought to America. As the North American continent came into being and the demand for slave labor increased, millions of African slaves were torn from their homeland and forcefully brought over to work as indentured servants. Some historians have estimated that 6 to 7 million slaves were imported to the New World during the 18th century alone, depriving the African continent of some of its healthiest and ablest men and women (History, 2013b). It wasn't until the 19th century that slavery was abolished. Even so, African Americans continued to face hard times and loss. The Civil War, which began in 1861 as a struggle to preserve the Union, not a struggle to free the slaves, ultimately changed the future of the American nation forever (Civil War

CULTURAL IMMERSION Trust, 2013). At the end of the War in 1865, the 13th Amendment was adopted by the United

States, which banned the practice of slavery. The struggle for freedom and equality continued for almost a decade, and in the 1960s the Civil Rights Movement began. During this time civil rights activists used nonviolent protest and civil disobedience to bring about change, and the federal government made legislative headway with initiatives such as the Voting Rights Act of 1965 and the Civil Rights Act of 1968 (History, 2013a). This historical perspective is important to understanding the cultural process in African Americans and how values and beliefs come to be. According to Hardy-Bougere (2008a), cultural traditions, beliefs and values do make a difference in how people outwardly express their grief and how they try to cope with it. African Americans spiritual and religious beliefs, as well as their family systems, are methods used to cope and deal with death. Grief and loss in the African American culture are demonstrated through the support of the nuclear and extended familyThe African American patient tends to rely on their inner strength and draw from past experiences while employing those coping mechanisms as a vehicle for dealing with grief and bereavement or any other life-altering crisis (Hardy-Bougere, 2008b). In the United States, there is diversity among all cultures and within each culture itself. This diversity, which may include social economic status and educational background, also impacts African American culture. Males in general have a unique grieving process, thus African American males will too. Society tells men that they should be tough and be able to control their emotions. In most cases African American men will not reveal that they are vulnerable. This tendency is not only a gender-related characteristic, but it is a racial characteristic, given the psychohistory of betrayal in the lives of African American men (Wilson, n.d.). African American men dealing with grief

CULTURAL IMMERSION must be looked at and understood based on their cultural background, social environment, and characteristics of their gender. Immersion Experiences Autobiography or Biography Title of Book Selected: Martin Luther King, Jr. Author: Marshall Frady Publication Data: New York, NY: Penguin Marshall Frady was a reporter during the civil rights movement, during which Martin Luther King, Jr. became a symbolic African American leader. Throughout the book we learn

about Kings complex nature and insights into his character. Kings life was filled with unsettled times, but he provided inspiration to many during the struggle for equality. In essence, the book reveals, the outer turbulence attending Kings movement was all along matched by an unseen, equally turbulent struggle within King himself (Frady, 2002, p. 11). Film Film Viewed: Remember the Titans Director, Company, Year: Boaz Yakin, Walt Disney Studios, 2000 The film is set in Alexandria, Virginia in 1971 during the time schools were becoming desegregated. The story is focused on the T.C. Williams High School football team as they learn to overcome racial differences and work together when their school becomes integrated. Bill Yoast was the head coach of the team, but gets bumped to assistant coach when the school decides to integrate and hire Herman Boone. A lot of people are not happy with the fact that Yoast, a successful white man, is pushed aside to make room for Boone, an equally successful black man. Tensions are high during training camp and throughout the season. Racism and discrimination are common themes in the film, but so are overcoming segregation, friendship, and teamwork. As the football team is forced to play together they learn

CULTURAL IMMERSION to accept each other and work together. Instead of fear, they gain a new understanding of each

other. As the team learns from each other, so do the coaches, and ultimately the community. The football team surpasses the towns expectations and becomes a unifying symbol as they fight for the state championship title. Summary and Synthesis The historical background of the African American culture is what creates the foundation for values and beliefs today. African American culture is rooted in Africa, but due to events in history the culture has blended with others over the years. Historical and daily life events shape our perspective of how we view and treat others. We need to respect the differences between cultures and learn to appreciate and value the uniqueness of those around us. Culture is important and we should never forget where it comes or how it shapes us. II. Application of Cultural Knowledge Assessing Agency, Program and Services, and Personal Cultural Competencies Assessing the Field Work Agency Name of Field Placement Agency: Supporting KIDDS, Inc. Address of Agency: 1213 Old Lancaster Pike, Hockessin, DE 19707 Agencys Community Hockessin is one of Delawares more well to do cities. It is a suburb with larger houses, small businesses, and mushroom farms. Caucasians make up the overwhelming majority of the population. You can find restaurants, boutiques, grocery stores, a walk-in medical center, banks, schools, the Hockessin Athletic Club, and the Police Athletic League. Access Many of the members of this population come from Wilmington. Depending on where they live in Wilmington, and whether they drive or take the bus, it may take anywhere from 1530 minutes to get to the agency. Supporting Kidds provides very few services to this population.

CULTURAL IMMERSION This may be the case because there may be some transportation issues, and they would have to enter into a town that is culturally different and offers an environment unlike much of Wilmington.

Receptivity Clients enter through the side door and wait in what is called the conference room. It has a large table in the center, a small kitchenette to the left, and a bathroom around the corner. There are windows to let light in, a small couch and a table with magazines. The magazines consist mostly of National Geographic. When clients are present, the door to the rest of the house remains closed. There is no receptionist, but the Clinical Director or Clinical Intern will go get their client(s) when they have arrived and take them to their office. There is usually only one client or family in the waiting room at one time. The agenc y provides counseling and group therapy, but it doesnt feel or look like a doctors office because it is set in a remodeled house. As clients walk through the rest of the house and up the stairs they will notice that each room is painted a different bright color. In the downstairs hallways there are various images of childrens faces, but they are all light-skinned. If I were an African American male I may feel uncomfortable with the lack of images reflecting my culture and background. The bright colors seem welcoming, but the staff is all Caucasian and female, except for the occasional male intern.

CULTURAL IMMERSION Administration and Staff Training

Trainings, workshops, retreats, or other forums for discussion of diversity issues have not been offered to staff. Staff is expected to follow ethics and policies from their education and professional background. Currently, there are no African Americans employed at the agency, but they do not discriminate against any race, ethnicity, etc. Funding The agency receives most of their funding from grants for specific programs. There are school outreach programs, but they are not specifically designed to reach African American children. They do have funding for a new Hispanic outreach coordinator and translator to translate their agency information into Spanish. They also have funding to purchase Spanish books for their personal library to match the ones they already have in English. The funding is tight because it is a small nonprofit with only 2 full-time staff and 2 part-time staff. Staff Sensitivity The staff at Supporting Kidds seems to be very culturally sensitive of the populations they serve. I was not able to observe interactions with clients, but just from getting to know the staff and speaking with them I feel confident that they are sensitive to various cultures. They are professionals who follow appropriate guidelines and they are aware of diversity in cultures. Agency Programs and Services Effort Supporting Kidds is aware of the fact that they do not have a large population of African American families receiving services from them. Due to the small staff size and funding they are limited to how, when and where they can provide services. The agency needs to provide more outreach services. It seems the general population is not aware of their location and services, let

CULTURAL IMMERSION alone the African American population. With more resources the agency could potentially have another location in the city of Wilmington. Quality Cultural sensitivity is always considered and the agency is aware of the challenges they face in reaching the African American population. However, these challenges do not seem to be at the top of their to-do list. This does not mean it is not important, just that they have limited resources for offering more support at this time. There are no eligibility criteria, other than the

client has to be suffering from the loss of a loved one and needs group or individual therapy. The agency could be more sensitive to the culture by reflecting more of it in the office space and on their website and brochures. Effectiveness There are definitely more clients from this population that would benefit from these kinds of services than those that are receiving them. It is difficult to understand how this population feels about the agencys services, but they would probably complain about the location as one of the major challenges. There are counseling and therapy services closer to Wilmington, but these do not offer the unique services Supporting Kidds offers. Efficiency Supporting Kidds does not coordinate with other community services. There was discussion about having a satellite office in Wilmington to offer group therapy, but there is not enough staff and not enough funding to cover the needs for that kind of service. In the future, it would nice if the agency could expand and replicate itself in other areas of the state. NASW Standards for Cultural Competence Standards Selected for Review

CULTURAL IMMERSION Standard 7 Diverse Workforce: Social workers shall support and advocate for recruitment, admissions and hiring, and retention efforts in social work programs and agencies that ensure diversity within the profession. Agency

Currently, the agency is not culturally diverse. The staff and the board of directors do not represent diversity. The direct support professionals appear to be culturally competent, but clients who are not of the same race may feel like it is harder to communicate with them at first. The agency needs to make a greater effort to be more culturally diverse. They are trying to reach out to the Hispanic community since that population is slightly closer to the location of the agency. The next step would be to reach out to more African American populations and see how they can increase services in their area. Programs and Services The programs and services are not specific for one population. Grief is a feeling that is unique to everyone, but being around others who are going through the same thing can help a client feel like they are not alone. The services offered are appropriate for any population. Clinicians at Supporting Kidds are trained in their profession to be able to support various cultures. Personal Cultural Competencies The more real world experiences I have, the more culturally competent I feel. I need to increase my development in this area by continuing to experience diverse environments and working with various cultures. I can do this by educating myself and going to trainings regarding this topic.

CULTURAL IMMERSION Final Thoughts

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This exercise helped me work through the process of viewing and understanding a culture different than mine. It is a process I will take with me throughout the rest of my professional career and personal life experiences. I can apply this practice in various settings and professional practices. It will be useful in helping me work through the steps and apply what I learn.

CULTURAL IMMERSION References

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Civil War Trust. (2013). Slavery in the United States: A brief history. Retrieved from http://www.civilwar.org/education/history/civil-war-overview/slavery.html Frady, M. (2002). Martin Luther King, Jr. New York, NY: Penguin. Hardy-Bougere, M. (2008a). Culture, grief and bereavement: Applications for clinical practice. Retrieved from http://www.minoritynurse.com/article/culture-grief-and-bereavementapplications-clinical-practice Hardy-Bougere, M. (2008b). Cultural manifestations of grief and bereavement: A clinical perspective. Journal of Cultural Diversity, 15(2), 62-69. The History Channel. (2013a). Civil Rights Movement. Retrieved from http://www.history.com/topics/civil-rights-movement The History Channel. (2013b). Slavery in America. Retrieved from http://www.history.com/topics/slavery Oman, C. (Producer), Bruckheimer, J. (Producer), & Yakin, B. (Director). (2000). Remember the titans [Motion picture]. United States: Walt Disney Studios. Wilson, J. (n.d.). Counseling African American males. Retrieved from http://theviproom.com/visions/counseli.htm