Mar 28, 2024  
2022-2023 Academic Bulletin 
    
2022-2023 Academic Bulletin [ARCHIVED CATALOG]

Educational Leadership MA


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E-mail: leader@andrews.edu

The K-12 Educational Leadership master’s program is an NCATE-accredited online program designed for post-baccalaureate participants who desire to obtain a degree in educational administration. NCATE is the leading accrediting body for K-12 educational preparation programs. The program was approved by the Higher Learning Commission in 2007 to be delivered on-line.

Those specifically served by this degree are the following:

  • Teachers interested in transitioning into educational administration
  • Principals of K-8, K-10, K-12 and 9-12 schools
  • Aspiring educational leaders

Once accepted into this master’s program, students must complete  LEAD 630 - Introduction to Leadership  where they will be introduced to the philosophy of educational leadership and review the standards that will guide their educational plan. The curriculum consists of a minimum of 34 credits beyond the baccalaureate degree. Many courses are offered as variable credits; therefore, candidates should consider their credit needs when planning their course work and when registering for these courses. There is no comprehensive exam or thesis requirement for the Masters degree program.  Instead, there is a program portfolio requirement.

Delivery: This program is only offered online with interactive online asynchronous courses that have a few required synchronous sessions (see School of Distance Education  definitions). The online courses follow fixed enrollment with semester start and end dates. Participants interact with each other and with instructor throughout all courses. The program requires an intensive one-week summer orientation (LEAD 630).

Electives


Choose remaining credits from EDAL, EDCI, or LEAD in consultation with academic advisor to total 34.

Additional Requirements


Internship Experience


The internship experience provides significant learning opportunities to synthesize and apply the knowledge and practice and to develop the skills identified in the standards. It requires substantial, sustained, standards-based work in a real setting, planned and guided cooperatively by the institution and school district personnel for graduate credit.

Admission Requirements


Students who are applying for admission to the Educational Leadership MA program are not required to take the GRE. For those students who are seeking the GRE scholarship, the GRE must be taken. The amount of a potential scholarship is related to the score achieved on the GRE as follows:

GRE ScoreScholarship
32050% tuition reduction
31025% tuition reduction
30010% tuition reduction

Additional Information


Certification & Licensure


Certification and licensure requirements for private/public school administrators vary by state. It is the responsibility of prospective students to check with their own state or local authorities to determine what coursework meets the requirements for private/public school certification in their state.

NAD Certification: Those seeking to use this degree for North American Division certification purposes need to have an NAD professional teaching certificate which requires graduate work in two of the following areas: learning theory/style, curriculum, improvement of instruction, education of the exceptional student, trends and issues in education, and multicultural education. As such, those completing this master’s degree and wanting NAD administrative endorsement will also need to take additional course work from the areas listed if they have not done so already.

Student Learning Outcomes


Based on the program’s 10 Guiding Standards, graduates will be able to:

  • Collaboratively facilitate the development, articulation, implementation, and stewardship of a shared school vision of learning through the collection and use of data to identify school goals, assess organizational effectiveness, and implement school plans to achieve school goals; promote continual and sustainable school improvement; and evaluate school progress and revise school plans supported by school-based stakeholders.
  • Sustain a school culture and instructional program conducive to student learning through collaboration, trust, and a personalized learning environment with high expectations for students; create and evaluate a comprehensive, rigorous and coherent curricular and instructional school program; develop and supervise the instructional and leadership capacity of school staff.
  • Ensure the management of the school organization, operation, and resources through monitoring and evaluating the school management and operational systems; efficiently use human, fiscal, and technological resources in a school environment; promote and protect the welfare and safety of school students and staff developing school capacity for distributed leadership; and ensure that teacher and organizational time is focused to support high-quality instruction and student learning.
  • Collaborate with faculty and community members, responding to diverse community interests and needs, and mobilizing community resources on behalf of the school by collecting and analyzing information pertinent to improvement of the school’s educational environment; promote an understanding, appreciation, and use of the diverse cultural, social, and intellectual resources within the school community; build and sustain positive school relationships with families and caregivers; and cultivate productive school relationships with community partners.
  • Act with integrity, fairness, and in an ethical manner to ensure a school system of accountability for every student’s academic and social success by modeling school principles of self-awareness, reflective practice, transparency, and ethical behavior as related to their roles within the school; safeguard the values of democracy, equity, and diversity within the school; evaluate the potential moral and legal consequences of decision making in the school; and promote social justice within the school to ensure that individual student needs inform all aspects of schooling.
  • Understand, respond to, and influence the larger political, social, economic, legal, and cultural context through advocating for school students, families, and caregivers; act to influence local, district, state, and national decisions affecting student learning in a school environment; and anticipate and assess emerging trends and initiatives in order to adapt school-based leadership strategies.
  • Participate in a substantial and sustained educational leadership internship experience that has school-based field experiences and clinical internship practice within a school setting and is monitored by a qualified, on-site mentor.
  • Understand and comprehensively apply technology to advance student achievement.
  • Appreciate the perspectives of others and develop a personal philosophy from which action and service emerge.
  • Understand and comprehensively apply research and evaluation for effective decision making. 

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