This manuscript details efforts to redesign a graduate literacy program guided by two, full-time faculty members to better meet candidates' needs in an online learning environment supported with relevant and current curricula. Through professional literature, intentional curriculum, and authentic field experiences, program coursework is closely…

In the second of two continuous improvement briefs on selection, UIC Center for Urban Education Leadership researchers and UIC Ed.D. program administrators describe how they build program capacity to assess & measure the characteristics they associate with school leader success. [For Part I, see ED622510.]

On average, natural disasters directly impact approximately 160 million individuals and cause 90,000 deaths each year. As natural disasters are becoming more familiar, it stands to reason that school personnel, particularly mental health professionals, need to know how to prepare for natural disasters. Current disaster preparation and response…

Preservice and graduate programs in educational administration fail to fill the situation-specific needs of principals, according to the author. What is needed is a variety of inservice programs, tailored for (and by) principals, that address both specific concerns and broader philosophic issues. (Author/DS)

Describes professional associations' attempts to define desirable knowledge and skills for aspiring administrators. Shows how an educational administration program model (the Reasoned Action Leadership Model) blends a professional knowledge base with the performance skills needed for effective practice. Offers performance-based illustrations and…

Over the last quarter of a century, the world has undergone rapid change. Almost every aspect of human life is more complex and interdependent, requiring knowledge of human and social systems as well as physical and biological systems. The social, behavioral, and economic (SBE) sciences contribute penetrating insights on such issues as the causes…

Literacy coaching is a very hot topic (Cassidy & Cassidy, 2007) that has been spurred on by two opposite belief systems. On one hand, the Reading First schools can receive federal funding to hire coaches to raise test scores. This has led some teachers to characterize coaches as "test-prep enforcers." On the other hand, Bean, Swan…

Describes the search for a relevant knowledge base for the field of educational leadership and identifies some traditional and emergent sources. Presents a newly developed program in educational leadership to illustrate how elements of the knowledge base have been incorporated into an innovative, holistic approach to preparing school…

A three-credit graduate course was developed to train school administrators on planning and managing programs for the gifted/talented. Compared to controls, 45 administrators who received the training gained more knowledge about educational programing for the gifted and developed more favorable attitudes toward gifted youth and programing for…

Florida State University's Educational Leadership Consortium Specialist Degree program grew out of collaboration among 17 school districts and Florida State educational faculty. The program recruits practitioners from the 17 districts who demonstrated high leadership potential and wanted to develop their leadership capacity. ELC Specialist degree…

Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University (VPISU) offered in Richmond (Virginia) a cooperative graduate program to prepare inservice administrators to act as change agents in Richmond-area schools. This paper considers the program's purposes, development, implementation, and future. Section I reviews the program's development, discussing…

Describes the masters and doctoral programs offered by West Virginia University (WVU) that focus on communication in instruction for secondary and elementary teachers. Discusses the antecedents of the programs, the beginnings at WVU, the assumptions underlying the programs, and the nature and benefits of each program. (SR)

The authors of this article contend that most doctoral students in the arts do not fully appreciate the meaning of their PhD, and that the current system of graduate education perpetuates this phenomenon, with each generation of professors passing down their understanding of the doctorate to succeeding generations. The authors argue that what is…

A training program was developed at Fayetteville (North Carolina) State University to provide educators with theory and skills in special education consultation. The program, which can be embedded into a graduate degree program or stand alone, consists of a theory course, an internship, and a seminar in issues. (JDD)

This paper recounts how one urban-based university addressed the need for teachers to acquire the knowledge and skills required to take on increasing types of leadership roles. The university formed a partnership with a nonprofit organization to design and implement a 32-semester hour master's degree program to address the issue. The program…