Intro to Cultural Competence

Achieving cultural competency is a process, and this course provides a framework to begin critical reflection, knowledge acquisition, dialogue and best practices that lead to cultural competence over time. Students begin their work toward cultural competency. Students gain skills to effectively interact with people of diverse cultures, languages, socio-economic classes, races, ethnic backgrounds, religions, sexual and gender orientations, special needs and other social identities. The course explores attitudes, behavior, institutions and policies. It examines privilege and oppression, intersectionality of identities, various groups' barriers to equal access and opportunity, and how cultural competence moves people and institutions toward practices of inclusiveness. (CSU/UC) (AA/AS-D, CSU-D, IGETC-4)