DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATIONAL LEADERSHIP & POLICY
Master of
Education
and/or PreK-12 Administrative
Licensure Program
Program Emphasis: PreK-12 School Administration
1. Introduction to the ELP Department
The Department of Educational Leadership and Policy, a division of the College of Education, emphasizes the application of theory and research to the practice of administration in PreK-12 schools. The Department has a strong national reputation (consistently ranked among the top twenty Educational Leadership Departments in the country) and has a faculty prominent in their respective areas of leadership expertise. Faculty members are prominent and active leaders in national organizations such as the University Council for Educational Administration, the American Educational Research Association, and the Association for the Study of Higher Education. The Department is the home of the Utah Education Policy Center and the Educational Administration Quarterly, the premier journal in the field of educational leadership.
2. Introduction to the Program
The ELP M.Ed. degree/PreK-12 Administrative Licensure Program is a two-year professional program for licensed educators with experience. Utah licensure as a teacher, school counselor, school social worker, or school psychologist is a pre-requisite. If a person enters with a Masters degree, the program meets all the requirements for administrative licensure, providing the candidate successfully completes the program and obtains a passing score on the School Leaders Licensure Assessment (SLLA), short version. A person entering the program without a Masters degree can receive both a Masters degree and be eligible for administrative licensure by successfully completing program requirements and obtaining a passing score on the SLLA, long version. The longer version of the SLLA has replaced the previously required Masters Comprehensive Exam.
Another option for licensed educators wishing to have a Masters degree in Educational Leadership without administrative licensure is to request, at the end of the first year of the program, a change to a Masters only option. See Additional Notes section below. Also, the department offers a Teacher Leadership Masters degree. See description on homepage under that title.
3. Program Mission and Conceptual Framework
The mission of the ELP M.Ed. degree/PreK-12 Administrative Licensure Program is to develop preK-12 school leadership and policy to raise student achievement, to close the achievement gap, and to create democratic and just school communities. The program is designed to help potential administrators develop the knowledge and skills essential for effective administrative performance in PreK-12 schools. As a professional program, course work and other field experiences develop both conceptual understandings and clinical skills.
The content and processes of the PreK-12 M.Ed./Administrative Licensure Program are founded on a knowledge base thoroughly developed and cited in the educational leadership preparation literature. The knowledge, skills, and dispositions promoted in the program lead to the fundamental goal of improving learning for all students. To accomplish this goal, the conceptual framework of the program is two-dimensional. The first dimension reflects the thematic organization of the program around three major themes: Leadership, Context and Foundations of Schooling, and Informed Decision Making. The second dimension of the program reflects the valued outcomes of schooling: School Effectiveness and Efficiency (emphasizing improved teaching & learning processes & outcomes); Equity and Social Justice (addressing the understanding of school inequity in terms of educational access and outcomes for children); and Democratic Community (using democratic processes and building democratic professional & school communities).
4. Program Coursework Requirements:
Leadership for Effective, Equitable, & Democratic Schools
ELP 6210 (3) – Leading Schools
ELP 6110 (3) – Understanding & Leading Organizational Change in Schools
ELP 6310 (3) – Instructional Leadership I: Organizing Learning in Schools
ELP 6330 (3) – Instructional Leadership II: Organizing Teaching in Schools
Context and Foundations of Effective, Equitable, & Democratic Schooling
ELP 6400 (3) – Foundations of Educational Organizations, Policy and Leadership
ELP 6410 (3) – Introduction to Educational Law for School Administrators
ELP 6430 (3) – The Politics of Education
ELP 6450 (3) – Administration of Educational Resources
Informed Decision-Making for Effective, Equitable, & Democratic Schools
ELP 6010 (3) – Decision-making Theories, Processes, & Issues in Educational Leadership
ELP 6050 (3) – Program Planning & Evaluation
Capstone Field Experience to Promote Effective, Equitable, & Democratic Schools
ELP 6710 (15) – Administrative Internship & Seminar in K-12 Schools
5. Administrative Internship
Approved internships complying with departmental standards and the State of Utah regulations are required of students wishing to earn a PreK-12 administrative license. The state-required 450 contact hours include both elementary and secondary school administrative experience. Licensed administrators in school settings mentor interns, and the internship experiences are supervised by the Director of PreK-12 Field Studies. Intern progress and mastery of professional standards is monitored and evaluated by site mentors, the field director, and by students themselves. An intern-produced portfolio includes artifacts which reflect the participation and personal reflection on the knowledge, skills, and dispositions for each professional standard. Additional specific information regarding administrative internships is available from the department’s Director of PreK-12 Field Studies.
6. Performance Expectations
All students are expected to have necessary computer word processing skills and writing skills for graduate study. Students without these skills are required to obtain them before they begin their formal course work. By Graduate School policy, all work for the master’s degree must be completed within four consecutive calendar years. Candidates are required to maintain a 3.0 or higher GPA in course work. No graded work of C- (minus) or lower is acceptable toward the degree or the administrative license.
Academic Probation – Effective August 14, 2003, a student earning less than a 3.00 cumulative GPA in the ELP graduate program in which they are enrolled will be put on academic probation for the next two consecutive semesters of enrollment and must maintain a 3.00 average during that time. If at the end of this probationary period the student does not have a cumulative 3.00 GPA in his/her program of study (i.e., courses associated with the completion/fulfillment of the degree), the student will be dismissed from the academic program.
7. Program Schedule
The courses start annually each summer, with program completion in the Spring semester two years later. Students take coursework as a cohort, typically enrolling in two courses per term while working full-time in professional educator roles. All program courses are offered in the evening to accommodate working professionals. The first year of the program requires candidates to successfully complete 18 credit hours of core required coursework. Throughout the second year of the program candidates complete 12 credit hours of core required coursework and 15 credit hours of administrative internship and Leadership Seminar (See SAMPLE schedule at the end of this document).
SAMPLE Program Schedule – Course Sequence can vary somewhat, although the internship is consistently offered during Year 2 of the program. All courses are 3 credit hours unless otherwise noted.
Summer Yr 1 |
Schedule |
Fall Yr 1 |
Spring Yr 1 |
Schedule |
Summer |
Fall & Spring |
|||
6210 Leading Schools |
4:00-9:00 One day per week |
6310 Instructional Leadership I: Learning |
6330 Instructional Leadership II: Teaching |
4:35-7:05pm Same day |
6110 Organizational Change |
4:00-9:00 2nd day each week |
6010 Decision-Making |
6050 Program Evaluation |
7:15-9:45pm Same day |
Summer Yr 2 |
Fall Yr 2 |
Spring Yr 2 |
||
6400 Foundations |
4:00-9:00 One day |
6410 Ed Law |
6450 Resource Admin |
4:35-7:05pm Same day |
6430 Politics of Ed |
4:00-9:00 2nd day |
6710 Internship & Seminar (6 credit hours) |
6710 Internship & Seminar (6 credit hours) |
7:15-9:15pm Same day |
6710 Internship & Seminar (3 credit hours) |
TBA |
Additional Notes:
* M.Ed. Degree Only Option: Candidates admitted into the M.Ed. Degree Only
Program (without licensure) will complete 30 credit hours of required course work in the Department of Educational Leadership and Policy and 6 credit hours of electives in another department(s) in order to earn the required 36 credit hours for a Masters Degree. (A list of acceptable courses will be provided by the academic advisor). A passing grade on a final comprehensive examination will be also required in order to be recommended for the Master’s Degree in Education. If, within a 5-year period of completing the Master’s Degree, these students wish to earn a PreK-12 administrative license, they have the option to reapply to the department, enroll in the PreK-12 Leadership Internship & Seminar (Summer, Fall, & Spring Semesters - 15 credit hours), successfully complete the required 450 hours of supervised internship, complete all Internship and Seminar requirements, and earn eligibility for recommendation to the State Office of Education for Utah Administrative/Supervisory Licensure.
Students should consult the General Catalog of the University of Utah for other rules and regulations pertaining to admission, enrollment, program, graduation requirements, etc. www.utah.edu
The University of Utah provides reasonable accommodation to the known disabilities of applicants. Students with disabilities should notify the faculty member in writing by the 2nd week of class and contact the University’s Center for Disabilities if accommodations are needed (voice/TDD: 801-581-5020 or FAX 801-581-5487). www.disability.utah.edu
The Department of Educational Leadership and Policy will expect all admitted students to follow the Ethical Standards of the American Educational Research Association www.aera.net/about/policy/ethics.htm and the Standards of Ethical Conduct for Utah Educators of the Utah Professional Practices Advisory Commission. www.rules.state.ut.us/publicat/code/r686/r686.htm