What is the Capstone Course?
The Capstone Course
The Capstone consists of a two-course sequence. Students across multiple disciplines collaborate to conduct a research project from start (conceptualization, creating research questions) to finish (presenting results).
During the first semester, students gain an in-depth knowledge of professional development resources in gerontology, including research, library and on-line resources, and the activities and resources of various professional organizations. As a class, students design a community-based research study.
During the second semester, students learn the process necessary to complete the research project in a community setting. As a team, they work with a local organization serving older adults to conduct an interdisciplinary study. Most commonly, these studies are designed to help the agency determine if their program is effective.
The course requires students to participate in team activities that include study design, data collection and analysis, and interpretation and presentation of findings. Dr. Marie Savundranayagam teaches the Capstone series.
Examples of Capstone Class Projects
2010-2011
2009-2010
2008-2009
2007-2008
Assessing Strategies for Fostering Community Connections in the Prospect / Farwell Initiative (PFI)
Part of Milwaukee County's Connecting Caring Communities Partnership (CCCP), the focus of the PFI is to foster community partnerships to improve long-term care and supportive services systems to ultimately create "elder-friendly" communities that are able to meet the current and future needs of older adult residents. The purpose of the Capstone research project is to:
- Explore whether the process implemented to identify the primary concerns of elders in the community accurately identified those concerns.
- Examine whether there is evidence to suggest that the strategies implemented in the Prospect/Farwell Initiative will promote a greater "sense of community," operationally defined as older adult residents' decreased sense of isolation, increased sense of socialization, improved perception of safety, greater knowledge of and access to services, and increased sense of belonging.
- Examine whether or not, and to what extent, older adult residents and stakeholders now feel that the community is "elder friendly.
Data for this study is currently being collected by the Capstone students.
2006-2007
The Impact of Holistic Case Management on Health Behaviors among Housing Development Residents
During this Capstone course, the interdisciplinary student team worked with SET (Service, Empowerment and Transformation) Ministry to evaluate their site-based model of service provision for elderly persons and adults with disabilities who lived in housing developments owned by the Housing Authority. The study focused on the key elements of the holistic approach used by Set Ministry and assessed the impact of such on patterns of service use by residents. Although the team hoped to reveal statistically significant findings, the intent was to provide a foundation to inform and guide future SET inquiries. Findings do suggest that SET's impact is consistent across sites.
2005-2006
The Impact of a Creative Sculpture Activity on Participants in an Adult Day Program
Students in this cohort worked with the Luther Manor Adult Day Care program to empirically assess the impact of creative activities on adult day center participants' level of engagement with other participants and staff. Students employed an eight-week observational study and recorded elders' interactions with others. Their findings indicated that elders who participated in creative activities showed significantly greater levels of engagement with other participants and staff compared to individuals who participated in traditional activities. These findings add to a small body of literature and provide empirical evidence to suggest that creative activities positively impact levels of engagement.
