Educational Leadership, M.Ed.

Program Description

The M.Ed. in Educational Leadership program instructs aspiring school administrators in current scientific research, pedagogy, and instructional technology. Students are empowered to maximize school effectiveness and improve supervision and leadership skills in diverse P-12 school settings. Students will develop the strategies required to lead for learning, including creating a school-wide vision and using data to inform decision-making. The program is aligned with Professional Standards for Educational Leaders (PSEL) for effective leadership and is designed to create culturally aware and competent administrators.

Program Outcomes

Develop, implement, and monitor a shared vision of learning for a K-12 school, promoting the academic and social success of all students and effectively aligning the vision to the school’s mission. (VII)
Employ evidence-based strategies, including observation and high-quality professional development, and intellectual processes to support teachers as they strengthen content delivery, instructional effectiveness, and assessment for all students. (I, III)
Engage faculty, staff, and other school stakeholders in team-building strategies, and facilitate the process of developing and maintaining professional learning communities to increase student engagement and achievement. (IV)
Implement skills, concepts, and practices to structure an educationally enriched, technology-enhanced, positive and safe school environment. (VI)
Manage human and fiscal resources effectively which includes prioritizing decisions based on the school’s academic achievement goals. (VII)
Practice and model ethical decision making skills to include equitable considerations, valid data gathering, various reporting measures and consequence analyses concerning school personnel and other issues impacting school environments. (VI)
Promote strong parent, family, and community relations by modeling equity, fairness, and respect among all school stakeholders. (IV)
Demonstrate shared decision making and an effective communication network through various media modes and accessibility for the purpose of maintaining positive community/school relationships. (IV)
Apply legal and social principles in an institutional framework to enrich the school’s climate, culture, and diverse learning infrastructure, including an emphasis on civic and global learning. (V)
Engage in professional learning activities, including research, to remain current in the field and to ensure relevant application of evidence-based practices in the school setting. (I, II)

Course List (34 Semester Credits)

Note

EL5113 - Educational Leadership Internship Completion is scheduled if students need to earn additional internship hours above what was required and earned in the EL 5983 course.

Course List for Residents of Texas (34 Semester Credits)

Research Courses (3 Semester Credits)

RES5163 - Research Methods for Educational Leaders (TX)

Literacy Courses (3 Semester Credits)

LIT5253 - Strengthening Literacy for Educational Leaders (TX)

Leadership Courses (28 Semester Credits)

ELX5033 - Creating Safe and Supportive Learning Environments (TX) (Initial Course)
ELX5023 - Assessment Strategies (TX)
ELX5053 - Community Engagement, Outreach, and Collaboration (TX)
ELX5123 - Diverse Learners (TX)
ELX5623 - Developing Teachers (TX)
ELX5703 - Campus Improvement (TX)
ELX5723 - Resource and Fiscal Management (TX)
ELX5753 - Law and Policy (TX)
ELX5983 - Practicum Experience for Educational Leadership (Texas) (15-wk format) (Concurrent enrollment with final academic course and ELTX 5091 )
ELTX5091 - Capstone Experience for Educational Leadership (TX) (1 Semester Credit; 5-wk format) (Concurrent enrollment with ELX 5983 )

Notes for Texas Educational Leadership Students

*Military service, training, or credits, including credit for life experience, credit by examination, or credit by correspondence are accepted as assessed by the College, or as assessed by the College or the American Council on Education (ACE) for military credits, or as assessed by the Council on Adult and Experiential Learning (CAEL) for prior Learning credits.

*Information about ACE’s Educational Leadership program performance (pass rates) over the past five years is avaialble on the Texas Education Agency’s website.

*Information about the effect of supply and demand forces on the educator workforce can be found on the EEP website and from Texas Workforce Commission

Internship Requirements for State Licensure

The Educational Leadership internship experience will be fully documented in a 10-week course designed to allow students the opportunity to engage in a variety of field experiences to enrich their professional growth, skills, knowledge, and attributes as school leaders. (Texas students will complete this experience in a 15-week practicum experience.) Students will apply academic learning to practice in the field and display competency through a series of projects. Details and requirements related to the experiences may be found in the Internship Handbook. Students will receive a failing grade if the requirements of the internship are not completed by the end of the course. Those students will be re-enrolled in the internship course and will be required to pay all associated tuition and fees.

The Educational Leadership program’s internship requirement is a minimum of 120 clock hours, regardless of the requirements for the state in which the student intends to seek licensure. The Texas approved ACE M.Ed. in Educational Leadership version requires an internship of 160 clock hours. If candidates need to complete additional hours to meet requirements for licensure reasons, they can request additional hours to be evaluated through submitting a request form.

Location of School-Based Internships, Field Experiences, and/or Student Teaching

Internship, student teaching, and/or field experience activities are designed to be compatible with the US school system. In order to best support students, ensure appropriate supervision and equivalent experiences, students must complete all field experiences and/or internship activities in the United States, Canada, Guam, Puerto Rico, or the U.S. Virgin Islands. Students with special circumstances (such as working at a Department of Defense School) may apply for a Clinical Experience Exception Approval.

American College of Education does not offer visas or other types of work permits. Securing any necessary authorization is the responsibility of the student. All admitted students must be eligible to work within and agree to complete all requirements in the United States, Canada, Guam, Puerto Rico, or the U.S. Virgin Islands.

Clinical Experience Exception Approval Process

Clinical experience is defined as any required experience in a school setting including field experiences, internships, and/or student teaching. Students in special circumstances may seek approval to complete their internship, student teaching and/or field experiences outside of the jurisdictions listed above. Special circumstances include, but are not limited to, Department of Defense schools or American-based international schools. Students may not enroll in a course with an internship, student teaching, and/or other field experience component without being granted prior approval for the field experience location by the appropriate department through the process outlined in the applicable handbook.

Students are required to inform the College should their clinical experience location change at any point during the academic program.

Note

This program is designed to prepare students for eligibility for principal/building administrator licensure.
This program has been approved as meeting the principal/building administrator licensure requirements in the states of Florida, Indiana, Ohio, and Texas.
This program does not prepare residents of Georgia for principal/building-level administrator licensure. Residents of these states will be required to sign an acknowledgment form to that effect upon application to the program.
Check availability in your state on the Programs by State section of the ACE website [http://www.ace.edu/admissions/programs-by-state].
State authorization to provide a program related to the preparation of teachers or other P-12 school/system personnel does not indicate eligibility for an Alabama certificate. Applicants for an Alabama certificate based on reciprocity must meet Alabama’s test requirements and submit a valid, renewable professional educator certificate/license by another state at the degree level, grade level, and in the teaching field or area of instructional support for which an Alabama certificate is sought and for which Alabama issues a certificate. Applicants for Alabama certification in an area of administration must also document as least three (3) years of full-time employment as an administrator in a P-12 school system. See: [www.alsde.edu].