500

This course provides each candidate with frameworks, models, and educational leadership strategies and dispositions that influence change and continuous improvement in schools. The course focuses on change theory, collaborative long-range planning, and decision-making processes that emphasize equitable practices. Pre-requisite(s): None. Co-requisite(s): None. 2 semester hours

The course explores advanced communications and technological capacities associated with effective leadership in educational settings. The course examines conceptual frameworks, national standards and research that support productive leadership practices in visualizing, designing, and implementing rich teaching-and-learning environments to increase equity, inclusion, teacher efficacy, and good digital citizenship practices. Candidates will study and apply communications and technology skills to frame discussions of teaching, to foster trust in teachers and students, to build culturally proficient teams, to use data to tell organizational stories, and to engage in effective routine and crisis communications with impactful messaging using social media. Pre-requisite(s): None. Co-requisite(s): None. 3 semester hours

EDL 517 provides graduate students with a comprehensive overview of concepts and practices related to applying leadership in organizations with missions that include teaching-and-learning or other education functions. Serving as an introduction to the Strategic Educational Leadership Program, EDL 517 examines leadership practice across a range of organizational settings not limited to PreK-12 or postsecondary institutions. The course surveys essential leadership responsibilities, including creating collective vision, fostering collaborative work climates, and leading organizations to achieve learning goals. EDL 517 students use case studies, self-assessments, structured observations, and reflections to apply leadership concepts to their own work lives as emergent leaders. Pre-requisite(s): None. Co-requisite(s): None. 2 semester hours

This course focuses on the cultural, ethnic, and socio-economic contexts of schools and school communities. Through course readings and activities, leadership candidates will have opportunities to develop critical perspective toward diversity. Emphasis will be placed on developing leadership skills and dispositions that result in candidates' capacity to promote inclusive practices. In particular, candidates will understand how their actions impact perceptions about inclusiveness within such realms as race, class, gender, sexuality, ability, religion, culture, and language. Pre-requisite(s): None. Co-requisite(s): None. 2 semester hours

This course provides leadership candidates with a foundational understanding of community dynamics in order to mobilize efforts and resources to improve student learning. Emphasis is placed on identifying community outreach opportunities, strategic partnerships, and vital relationships. Ways to plan, organize, and evaluate school community initiatives will be explored. Candidates will learn to utilize diverse sources of data to analyze community context. Other topics include mobility, community schools, local employment, inter-organizational networking, and inter-cultural communication. Pre-requisite(s): None. Co-requisite(s): None. 2 semester hours

This course provides an opportunity for candidates to explore what it means to lead student-centered schools, with a particular focus on culturally responsive pedagogical principles and to support student-centered initiatives. Student-centered schools are characterized by a culture of equitable access for all, empowered learning, personal accountability, self-discipline, and safety. This course will look at the school leader’s role and dispositions as well as the need for self-awareness and reflection in creating and sustaining a culturally responsive culture by integrating building management and program supervision skills with knowledge of best practices in student-centered classrooms, child and adolescent development, student motivation and discipline strategies, social emotional learning, environmental and emotional safety, character development programs, and relationship building. Issues of safety will be addressed, including disaster planning, bullying, and cyber-bullying. Pre-requisite(s): Admission to the M.Ed. or Ed.S. Program. Co-requisite(s): None. 2 semester hours

School and district leaders must have a working knowledge of relevant legal issues as part of their leadership roles. This working knowledge is important for several reasons. First, a leader should have knowledge to recognize a potential legal issue and seek necessary counsel. Second, legal knowledge should be at a level where the leader can confidently act in ethical and professional manner regarding day-to-day operational activities. Third, the leader should be familiar with the law and policy making systems to a degree that enables effective advocacy and involvement in those systems. Finally, the leader must be able to quickly assess emergency situations and respond in a reasonable and prudent manner to maintain fairness and avoid liabilities. This course enables leadership candidates to understand the fundamentals of school law, and in particular, special education law, to ensure that laws are upheld and applied fairly and equitably with the goal of enhancing school climate. Particular attention will be given to application of Multi-Tiered Systems of Support and student learning in the least restrictive environments. Pre-requisite(s): None. Co-requisite(s): None. 2 semester hours

This course enables candidates to develop decision-making and problem-solving capabilities to mobilize schools with a common vision. Within the context of systems theory applied in educational settings, as well as current educational policy, candidates analyze organizational situations using leadership frames, network analysis, and decision-making theories. Candidates will build capacities to empower leadership teams and teacher decision-making. Candidates will make sense of how current policies impact educational change and how good leadership funnels those efforts into positive school culture and productive school improvement. Alternative models of school organization, including charters, are explored, as candidates understand how leaders best respond to external changes. Pre-requisite(s): None. Co-requisite(s): None. 2 semester hours

This course prompts leadership candidates to develop plans and strategies for using educational resources to promote student achievement. Students will examine theories of effective resource allocation as well as case studies presenting decisions and tradeoffs involving the key resources such as budgets, staff, time, and technology. They will create a major resource re-allocation project, making leadership choices about resources while providing decision rationales, aligning resources with school improvement plans, and resolving resource conflicts. Course topics also include resource adequacy, equity, efficiency, reliability, as well as quality staff recruitment, selection, support, and retention. Pre-requisite(s): None. Co-requisite(s): None. 2 semester hours

Leadership candidates will become familiar with a variety of curriculum development strategies, curriculum integration, differentiation, curriculum monitoring and assessment. Candidates will learn leadership skills required to offer a culturally responsive and differentiated curriculum used to advance student achievement, supporting all students including English language learners, gifted and special needs students. Multi-tiered system of supports (MTSS) will be examined as a systematic model for problem-solving in academic and behavioral areas. Leadership for instructional technology will also be explored. Pre-requisite(s): None. Co-requisite(s): None. 2 semester hours

Candidates will develop competencies in data interpretation, data-informed decision-making, and data presentation to improve student achievement. They will also examine and compare tools for analyzing student performance data and for collaborating with teachers on creating data-driven approaches to improve instruction and student achievement. Formative and summative assessment will be studied from a leadership and administrative perspective as well as strategies for conducting program evaluations. Pre-requisite(s): None. Co-requisite(s): None. 2 semester hours

As instructional leaders, candidates will promote teacher efficacy and implement comprehensive professional growth plans for all staff focused on student learning. State-specific models of teacher evaluation will be explored, as well as current conceptions of adult learning and professional development. Particular attention will be given to understanding the change process as it applies to individuals and organizations, supervision models and evaluation strategies, and collaborative models of interpreting and improving instruction. Course goals and topics are aligned with Illinois and Florida state requirements. Pre-requisite(s): None. Co-requisite(s): None. 2 semester hours

Educational policy studies is a field that explores the relationship between policy and student learning outcomes. This course focuses on the conceptualization, administration, and evaluation of educational reform. It reviews policy formation, implementation, and the politics of educational reform on achieving preferred education aims. Attention is devoted to issues of standardization and customization, accountability and responsibility, professionalization and privatization, local initiatives, state rules and regulations, and national mandates. The course analyzes the manner in which historical, political, legal, socio-economic, and cultural contexts shape the ability of administrators, policy makers, and educators to initiate, implement, modify, and/or resist given educational reforms. Pre-requisite(s): None. Co-requisite(s): None. 3 semester hours

This is the first course for candidates for the M.Ed. or Ed.S. in Educational Leadership. Candidates are introduced to the program expectations, state and other academic standards, certification requirements, professional decorum, NLU technology platforms, and professional writing expectations. It also requires students to develop an Administration and Supervision/Educational Leadership Internship plan. Pre-requisite(s): None. Co-requisite(s): None. 1 semester hour

This course enables leadership candidates to demonstrate competency in case study analysis, to implement competency-based strategies in presenting their leadership identity, to receive feedback regarding progress in leadership development, and to demonstrate use of feedback for performance improvement. Candidates gain skills in competency- based interviewing and written communication. Pre-requisite(s): None. Co-requisite(s): None. 1 semester hour

This course is the final forum for leadership competency demonstrations and final assessment of leadership candidates in the M.Ed. or Ed.S. in Educational Leadership Program. In it, candidates demonstrate leadership knowledge, skills, and dispositions through a formal interview and capstone case analyses drawing upon all previous courses, as well as applicable national and state leadership standards. Candidates are assessed for their presentation skills, as well as their understanding of all program curriculum, through a formal interview and a video case analysis. Pre-requisite(s): None. Co-requisite(s): None. 2 semester hour

Candidates for the M.Ed. in Educational Leadership complete an educational leadership project that demonstrates competencies and knowledge in building-level leadership. The course provides an opportunity to identify an area of research interest used to develop a Master’s level project demonstrating the application of content knowledge focused on a school or district issue. Candidates work with faculty to develop a product such as a grant application, school improvement plan, technology or curriculum initiative, public-relations plan, or another project having practical application. Program faculty help candidates to complete standards-based projects supporting their career aspirations as school leaders. Pre-requisite(s): None. Co-requisite(s): None. 1-4 semester hours

The Director of Special Education Internship requires candidates to engage in authentic leadership in the Special Education setting. The internship requires candidates to apply theoretical and empirical knowledge to integrated field experiences. In consultation with the faculty university supervisor and a site based special education administrator mentor, the candidate’s internship involves supervised field experiences that provide practice in competencies demonstrated by effective Directors of Special Education. The course may be taken for 1 or 2 semester hours per term to meet the endorsement field experience requirements. Pre-requisite(s): None. Co-requisite(s): SPE 544, SPE 549 and SPE 561. 1-3 semester hours

The Administration and Supervision Internship requires candidates to engage in authentic leadership at the school building level. The internship requires candidates to apply theoretical and empirical knowledge to solve practical administrative problems and to transform learning environments. In consultation with the faculty supervisor and a site principal mentor, the candidate will engage in an extensive internship that involves practice and competency in the 36 competencies demonstrated by effective principals as research by the Southern Regional Board of Education (SREB) and the National Educational Leadership Standards (NELP). Pre-requisite(s): Admission into the M.Ed. or Ed.S. in Educational Leadership Program; EDL 570. Co-requisite(s): None. 1-6 semester hours