Group dynamics explores current theories and models of how individuals work within groups. The outcome of this analysis is to allow students to learn to effectively manage, lead, and generate results from group processes. The facilitation of groups into teams to achieve stated outcomes is within the group process strategies learned. The outcome of this course is to provide students with an understanding of group dynamics and their impact on organizational interventions with emphasis on team building, facilitation tools, and techniques.

The process of instructional design is both an art and science. The framework of this course is to teach the students how to design instruction regardless of content area to allow learners to successfully achieve stated outcomes. The components of the course include problem identification, needs assessment, analysis of learner’s abilities, the design of measurable performance objectives, the development of assessment strategies within the design of instructional materials, and the formative and summative evaluation process.

Learning in the 21st century requires creating an engaging and exciting learning experience whether you are interested in online, classroom-based or blended, and delivery for a school, college or training environment. This course guides you through the process of developing and applying a learning product or solution that addresses a performance gap or educational need in any educational or training experience. The course learning outcome is to develop an instructional strategy proposal, create a learning plan that includes technology to support the learning experience and then evaluate the effectiveness of that learning plan. Course topics include: learning in the 21st century, understanding diversity in learning design, and applying assistive technologies, analyzing task and learner needs; applying instructional design principles with a focus on educational technologies, exploring innovative and emerging technologies; and evaluating strategy. Upon completion of this course, students will be able to: • Demonstrate knowledge of a job analysis/needs analysis and selection of an appropriate model to accomplish learning. • Demonstrate the ability to develop and implement a learning strategy using technology, given the needs of the learners and the organization. • Describe how to conduct a formative evaluation process evaluating the effectiveness and efficiency of the selected learning strategy in the work environment including learner achievement and the organization's needs. • Evaluate technology used for learning and training purposes. This course is open to any graduate status student or department permission.

Organizational culture exists in all kinds of organizations including profit-seeking firms, non-profit organizations and government agencies. It is a primary determinate for how well employees function together and like working in the place they do. Ultimately organizational effectiveness and success depends on a healthy organizational culture. This course introduces organizational culture and methods of analyzing it. The course takes an interdisciplinary functionalist view of organizational culture and subcultures as being: (a) things observed, felt, heard and expressed by employees; (b) organizational values espoused in mission statements, goals, ideals, norms, standards, and moral principles; and (c) underlying assumptions of employees about their roles, responsibilities and relationships given available resources relative to client/constituency performance expectations, applicable labor-management agreements and regulatory/safety compliance issues. Methods for analyzing the health of organizational culture and subcultures are related to various kinds of circumstances faced by firms, organizations and agencies.

Sooner or later all organizations change in certain to many respects and for several reasons. This is true for organizations in profit, non-profit and government sectors which all have many things common. Ongoing organizational success frequently depends on how well change is managed given new opportunities, challenges or threats faced by organizations. Managing organizational change requires knowledge of things in an organization that may need to be changed including an organization’s mission, goals, fiscal health, budget, operations and/or production/service capabilities, facilities, unit structure, personnel, culture, technology and other resources. Effective management of organizational change also requires knowledge of and skills in ways to introduce, guide, support, monitor and evaluate changes once they are implemented. This course takes an interdisciplinary applied approach to managing organizational change teaching SOAR-based strategic planning, SWOT analysis, total quality management (TQM) and continuous quality improvement (CQI) among other change models and methods.