Educational Leadership and Policy Analysis, Specialist Certificate

Program Overview

This Educational Specialist program in Educational Leadership & Policy Analysis prepares individuals for leadership roles in education, including superintendent certification. It offers a comprehensive curriculum covering topics such as resource allocation, organizational theory, and educational planning. Students complete a practicum experience and a specialist paper to demonstrate their research and practical skills. The program is delivered in a face-to-face evening/weekend format.

Program Outline

Outline:

Category I

• ELPA 702 Introduction to Educational Leadership

Category II

• ELPA 832 Resource Allocation for Equity and Social Justice
• ELPA 846 The School Superintendency
• ELPA 860 Organizational Theory and Behavior in Education
• ELPA 870 The Politics of Education
• ELPA 875 Theory and Practice of Educational Planning

Category III

• At least ten (10) additional courses including at least thirty (30) graduate credits selected from any courses in Educational Leadership & Policy Analysis.
(A maximum of three (3) graduate credits of ELPA 990 or ELPA 999 may be included in the 30 credits.)
• Students seeking Superintendent Certification need to incorporate required coursework into Category III.
In addition to Category II course work, Superintendent Certification requires:
• ELPA 890 Applied Research in Educational Administration
• Research Methods and Statistics Courses
• At least two (2) courses including six (6) graduate credits of research courses distributed as follows:
• An introductory statistics course which includes descriptive statistics, central tendency, probability, inference, and variance.
• The research requirement for the Educational Specialist Certificate shall be satisfied by completing ELPA 824.
• Supporting Courses
• At least two (2) courses including six (6) graduate credits of supporting coursework in teaching and learning (typically one course in curriculum and instruction and one additional course).
Additional courses in teaching and learning are recommended.

Assessment:

• A practicum experience requiring 150 contact hours for an initial administrator license and an additional 75 hours for each additional administrative license.
• Practicums are completed under the guidance of department faculty.
• The specialist paper should be derived from a current, practical problem which is researchable and limited in scope.
• The specialist paper should have the approval, cooperation, or collaboration of the governing board or administration of an educational institution when appropriate.
• The specialist paper should utilize applied, market, or policy research.
• The specialist paper should result in recommendations for action.
• The design and methodology for the specialist paper will be developed by the student and major professor and reviewed and approved by a three-person faculty committee which will also conduct the oral examination on the completed specialist paper.

Teaching:

• Mode of Instruction: Face-to-Face Evening/Weekend

Careers:

• The Educational Specialist Certificate is most often completed to earn superintendent certification/licensure.