CHE 329 Final Project

CHE 329 Final Project Guidelines and Rubric

Overview
Older adults from the baby boomer generation now account for over one-fifth of the U.S. population. Many chronic diseases such as heart disease, cancer,
stroke, chronic respiratory diseases, Alzheimer’s disease, and diabetes are the leading causes of death among older adults. With the shift from infectious
diseases to chronic disease and degenerative illnesses, is the nation ready to assist older adults in living long and healthy lives? In this course, you have gleaned
skills and techniques in analyzing public health policies and communicating social justice issues when assisting the aging population.

For your final project, imagine you are working with a group of older adults facing a public health policy issue. You have been asked to advocate on behalf of this
group by developing a policy brief to present to a representative of your state or a state with which you are familiar. You will need to identify the public health
issue with the assistance of your population. Your next step would be to compose a public health policy brief explaining the purpose and significance of the
public health policy issue and provide recommendations to a policy maker with potential solutions.

The project is divided into three milestones, which will be submitted at various points throughout the course to scaffold learning and ensure quality final
submissions. These milestones will be submitted in Modules One, Three, and Five. The final product will be submitted in Module Seven.

This assessment addresses the following course outcomes:

 Articulate relevant public health interests that reflect the social demographics of the aging population to elicit buy-in from policy makers
 Analyze the benefits and limitations of public health policies and programs for determining how they impact the health of the aging population
 Analyze social justice issues faced by particular aging populations for determining the factors impacting their well-being
 Analyze competing perspectives on policies and programs for developing balanced recommendations to promote the well-being of aging populations

Prompt Compose a 6- to 10-page policy brief addressed to a local policy maker regarding the public health issue you are advocating attention for on behalf of
your selected population. Ensure that you use concise language and maintain a tight professional composition to elicit buy-in from the policy maker. Use 5 to 10
credible resources in your brief to support your claims.

Specifically, the following critical elements must be addressed:

I. Background: In this section, you will concisely introduce your public health need, the affected aging population, and your policy of focus to the policy
maker. Your background should be tightly composed to effectively address this professional audience.

A. Articulate to the policy maker a cogent argument regarding a public health interest (or need) of the aging population of your particular state. Be
sure to support your argument with relevant health statistics.

B. Provide a profile from this aging population that personalizes the public health interest for the policy maker. For example, for populations that
experienced World War II, one might discuss the impact of the war on the mental health status of an individual from that population.

C. Analyze the benefits of the policy for the aging population of your particular state. Be sure to provide specific examples.

II. Limitations of Policy: In this section, you will explore the limitations of the policy in terms of how it influences the health of the aging population and
how it relates to social justice factors in the lives of the aging population.

A. Analyze the limitations of the policy for the aging population of your particular state. Be sure to provide specific examples from the policy.
B. Based on your analysis, how does the policy impact the health of the aging population of your particular state? Be sure to support your

response with evidence.
C. Explain how the limitations of the policy are especially relevant to the social demographic of the aging population in your state. Be sure to

support your response with specific examples.
D. Analyze a social justice issue faced by the aging population in your particular state to determine the factors impacting the population. For

example, you might examine issues relating to ageism in the workplace, employer pensions, workplace conditions, racial discrimination, and so
on.

E. Explain the impacts of a social justice factor on the well-being of the aging population in your particular state. Support with relevant research.
For example, how would social security and healthcare reform impact the way the baby boomer generation votes in the next election?

F. Relate the social justice factor you identified to limitations of the policy. For example, how would exhaustion of social security funds relate to an
African American male who is on a limited budget—how would this affect him?

III. Recommendations: In this section, you will examine competing perspectives on the policy you have selected. Using that unbiased lens, you will provide
measured recommendations to the policy maker to improve the health of your selected population.

A. Identify a competing perspective on the policy of your state, explaining the rationale of their position and its merits.
B. Where do you disagree with the competing perspective you have selected and why? Be sure to include appropriate resources in support of your

argument.
C. Based on your analysis, provide balanced recommendations to the policy maker with respect to the policy that promotes the well-being of the

aging population. Be sure to include specific examples of what should be modified.

Milestones
Milestone One: Topic Selection
In Module One, you will identify an aging-policy issue to explore for your final project. These issues are as diverse as the older adult population and can be
tailored to your personal interests. Older Americans are increasingly diverse, differing in their racial and ethnic backgrounds, religion, income, education, and
sexual orientation, among other facets. These demographics undeniably impact the development of aging policies, just as different older adults are impacted
differently by policies. Instructor feedback on this milestone should be incorporated into your next milestone and into the final project. This milestone will be
graded with the Milestone One Rubric.

Milestone Two: Policy Analysis
In Module Three, you will build on the introductory information you detailed in Milestone One to begin to analyze your selected policy issue. Instructor feedback
on this milestone should be incorporated into your next milestone and into the final project. This milestone will be graded with the Milestone Two Rubric.

Milestone Three: Recommendations
In Module Five, you will formulate recommendations based on the work you have done so far in analyzing your policy issue. This milestone will be graded with
the Milestone Three Rubric.

Final Submission: Public Health Policy Brief
In Module Seven, you will submit your final public health policy brief. It should explain the purpose and significance of the public health policy issue you have
been exploring and provide recommendations to a policy maker with potential solutions. Instructor feedback on the previous milestones should be incorporated
into this final submission. This submission will be graded with the Final Project Rubric.

Deliverables

Milestone Deliverable Module Due Grading

One Topic Selection One Graded separately; Milestone One Rubric

Two Policy Analysis Three Graded separately; Milestone Two Rubric

Three Recommendations Five Graded separately; Milestone Three Rubric

Final Submission: Public Health Policy Brief Seven Graded separately; Final Project Rubric

Final Project Rubric
Guidelines for Submission: Your public health policy brief should adhere to the following formatting requirements: 6 to 10 pages, double-spaced, using 12-point
Times New Roman font, one-inch margins, and the latest edition of the APA manual for formatting and citations. Use 5 to 10 credible resources in your brief.

Critical Elements Exemplary (100%) Proficient (85%) Needs Improvement (55%) Not Evident (0%) Value

Background: Public
Health Interest
[CHE-329-01]

Meets “Proficient” criteria and
shows an astute ability to
appropriately articulate public
health interests of the aging
population

Articulates to the policy maker
a cogent argument regarding a
public health interest of the
aging population of a particular
state and provides relevant
health statistics supporting the
need

Articulates to the policy maker
an argument regarding a public
health interest of the aging
population of a particular state
but argument is not cogent or
contains gaps in support

Does not articulate to the policy
maker an argument regarding a
public health interest of the
aging population of a particular
state

8

Background: Profile
[CHE-329-01]

Meets “Proficient” criteria and
profile is especially well-
articulated to personalize the
public health interest of the
aging population

Provides a profile from a
particular aging population that
personalizes the public health
interest for the policy maker

Provides a profile from a
particular aging population but
profile provided is not relevant
for personalizing the public
health interest for the policy
maker or contains inaccuracies

Does not provide a profile from
a particular aging population

8

Background: Benefits
of Policy

[CHE-329-02]

Meets “Proficient” criteria and
shows a complex grasp on the
benefits of the policy for the
aging population

Analyzes the benefits of the
policy for the aging population
of a particular state

Analyzes the benefits of the
policy for the aging population
of a particular state but analysis
is cursory or contains
inaccuracies

Does not analyze the benefits of
the policy for the aging
population of a particular state

8

Limitations of Policy:
Analyze the
Limitations

[CHE-329-02]

Meets “Proficient” criteria and
shows a complex grasp on the
limitations of the policy for the
aging population

Analyzes limitations of the
policy for the aging population
of a particular state, providing
specific examples from policy

Analyzes limitations of the
policy for the aging population
of a particular state, but
analysis is cursory, contains
inaccuracies, or is lacking
specific examples from policy

Does not analyze limitations of
the policy for the aging
population of a particular state

8

Limitations of Policy:
Impact the Health of
the Aging Population

[CHE-329-02]

Meets “Proficient” criteria and
shows a complex grasp on the
policy as it relates to the health
of the aging population

Determines how the policy
impacts the health of the aging
population of a particular state
based on analysis, providing
supporting evidence

Determines how the policy
impacts the health of the aging
population of a particular state
based on analysis but
determination contains
inaccuracies or is lacking
supporting evidence

Does not determine how the
policy impacts the health of the
aging population of a particular
state based on analysis

8

Limitations of Policy:
Relevant to the Social

Demographic
[CHE-329-01]

Meets “Proficient” criteria and
shows keen insight into the
relevance of policy limitations
to aging populations of
particular demographics

Explains how the limitations of
the policy are especially
relevant to the social
demographic based on its public
health interest, providing
specific examples

Explains how the limitations of
the policy are especially
relevant to the social
demographic based on its
public health interest but with
gaps in logic or support

Does not explain the limitations
of the policy or how they are
especially relevant to the social
demographic

8

Limitations of Policy:
Social Justice Issue

[CHE-329-03]

Meets “Proficient” criteria and
shows an astute ability to
communicate social justice
factors affecting particular
aging populations

Analyzes a social justice issue
faced by the aging population in
a particular state to determine
the factors impacting the
population

Analyzes a social justice issue
faced by the aging population in
a particular state to determine
the factors impacting the
population but analysis or
determination is cursory or
contains inaccuracies

Does not analyze a social justice
issue faced by the aging
population in a particular state
to determine the factors
impacting the population

8

Limitations of Policy:
Impacts of Social
Justice Factor on

Well-Being
[CHE-329-03]

Meets “Proficient” criteria and
shows an astute ability to
communicate the impacts of
social justice factors on the
well-being of the aging
population

Explains the impacts of a social
justice factor on the well-being
of the aging population of a
particular state, providing
relevant research

Explains the impacts of a social
justice factor on the well-being
of the aging population of
particular state but with gaps in
accuracy or support

Does not explain the impacts of
a social justice factor on the
well-being of the aging
population of a particular state

8

Limitations of Policy:
Relate to Limitations

[CHE-329-03]

Meets “Proficient” criteria and
draws nuanced connections
between social justice factors
and limitations of policies

Relates social justice factor to
the limitations of the policy

Relates social justice factor to
the limitations of the policy but
with gaps in logic or detail

Does not relate social justice
factor to the limitations of the
policy

8

Recommendations:
Competing

Perspectives
[CHE-329-04]

Meets “Proficient” criteria and
shows sophisticated awareness
of a competing perspective on a
particular policy

Identifies competing
perspective on the state policy,
explaining the rationale of the
position and its merits

Identifies competing
perspective on the state policy,
explaining the rationale of the
position and its merits but with
gaps in accuracy or clarity

Does not identify competing
perspective on the state policy
and explain the rationale of the
position and its merits

8

Recommendations:
Disagree

[CHE-329-04]

Meets “Proficient” criteria and
support is especially well-suited
to claims against competing
perspective on policy

Explains disagreement with
competing perspective,
providing relevant support

Explains disagreement with
competing perspective but with
gaps in logic or relevant support

Does not explain disagreement
with competing perspective

8

Recommendations:
Recommendations

[CHE-329-04]

Meets “Proficient” criteria and
shows an astute ability to
develop balanced
recommendations for policy
makers that promote the well-
being of the aging population

Provides balanced
recommendations to the policy
maker based on analysis to
promote the well-being of the
aging population, providing
relevant support

Provides recommendations to
the policy maker, but
recommendations are not
balanced based on analysis, do
not promote the well-being of
the aging population, or do not
include relevant support

Does not provide
recommendations to the policy
maker

8

Articulation of
Response

Submission is free of errors
related to citations, grammar,
spelling, syntax, and
organization and is presented in
a professional and easy-to-read
format

Submission has no major errors
related to citations, grammar,
spelling, syntax, or organization

Submission has major errors
related to citations, grammar,
spelling, syntax, or organization
that negatively impact
readability and articulation of
main ideas

Submission has critical errors
related to citations, grammar,
spelling, syntax, or organization
that prevent understanding of
ideas

4

Total 100%