The need for innovative educational leaders has never been greater. Funding shortages, economic inequality, and opportunity gaps are challenging K-12 schools, higher education institutions, and nonprofits across the U.S.
To drive meaningful change, today’s leaders must be equipped with advanced skills and strategies. And as these and other challenges become more complex, the solutions that effectively address them will require more sophistication.
Those solutions will be driven by innovative leaders in districts, schools, nonprofits, and organizations — the kind of leaders that the Doctor of Education in Educational Leadership online program at USC Rossier develops. USC Rossier’s online EdD in Educational Leadership is a three-year program designed for working professionals who want to develop the knowledge, skills, and leadership capacity to drive change in K-12 schools, higher education institutions, and nonprofit organizations.
Address Tomorrow’s Challenges with a Doctorate in Education
Because of growing opportunity gaps and economic disparity, tomorrow’s K-12 educational leaders will be tasked with ensuring that access to learning opportunities is inclusive of different needs and varied ways of learning. They must be able to meet the needs of all learners in our schools. For higher education and NGOs, educational leaders will need to address, at minimum, performance gaps, learning loss over time, and mental health. The recent pandemic has only exacerbated those needs.
At the same time, the environments where people are learning and working are rapidly changing. As a result, those learners will need access to new modes of learning and learning opportunities. Educational leaders will be the ones to ensure greater access to opportunities through smarter strategies and designs.
Trust is another growing area of need in our education systems, because there is a general lack of it in our schools, educators, organizations, and organizational leaders. To address issues related to trust, people that have not been involved in conversations and decision making previously, including students and families of those students, will need to be involved as part of the solution — they will be an essential element in rebuilding the trust that education systems require to be successful.
New technologies are also expanding, presenting both challenges and opportunities. Although it’s not possible to foresee every advancement or what opportunities may exist because of them, educational leaders will be in a position to ensure they increase equity and improve outcomes for all learners.
Much of that equity is already in jeopardy, as the country and our world face great divides and polarization. It’s evident in our school systems today. So, leaders need the ability to work across differences, to understand other perspectives, and to look for and rather than either/or solutions. Again, these skills are learned through continual education and development as a leader.
All of these changes are occurring with a rapidity in schools and organizations that offers opportunity in the education sector for innovations and new leadership, but preparation, agility, and credentialing are critical. An EdD in Educational Leadership from USC Rossier uniquely prepares leaders like you to address those issues by establishing a solid foundation based on core competencies of accountability, critical reflection, diversity and equity, ethics, learning organizations, and research and data. At the same time, it emphasizes the importance of adaptability. You will learn to be nimble to better navigate and maneuver within our dynamic world.
Focused Learning in USC Rossier’s Educational Leadership Program Can Improve Outcomes
The curriculum at USC Rossier differs from many other educational leadership programs, whether in California or beyond, because, in part, it is rooted in the school’s mission. At its core, the program prepares leaders to achieve educational equity through practice, research, and policy. And, in doing so, it equips graduates with the knowledge and skills to solve the most intractable problems facing educational systems.
In addition to the core curriculum, as an EdD in Educational Leadership online student at USC Rossier, you will choose a concentration — based on relevant career experience and future goals — for your dissertation in practice. You’ll choose from K-12 Leadership in Urban School Settings, Higher Education Administration, Leading Instructional Change, and Educational Psychology concentrations. And it is here where your skills and knowledge will be honed for real-world application and immediate impact. By using relevant research methods to address practical issues in equitable education, you will be ready to tackle workplace challenges from day one.
A Closer Look at the USC Rossier Educational Leadership Concentrations
K-12 Leadership in Urban School Settings
The K-12 leadership concentration prepares you to become a leader in classrooms, schools, or school districts. The courses within this educational leadership concentration help develop an understanding of how to create high-performing schools that address the diverse needs of all students regardless of school setting and is ideal for those with a background in teaching, administration, or as a professional in PK-12 education at the local, state, or federal levels. This concentration prepares you for employment as an educational leader in the K-12 field, including as a superintendent or CEO of independent and charter schools.
Higher Education Administration
The higher education administration concentration focuses on administrative theory and best practices for leading higher education institutions. Courses in the concentration address policy, economic issues, assessment, student learning, and the history and major philosophical assumptions that undergird the system of higher education. The track is best suited for those with a background in higher education administration at a two- or four-year college or university or secondary and postsecondary college advising. The higher education administration concentration prepares working professionals for employment in senior administration in two- and four-year colleges, academic executive positions, key leadership roles in education-related organizations, and more.
Leading Instructional Change
The leading instructional change concentration focuses on theories, practices and policies supporting curriculum and instruction that foster equitable educational opportunities for students from historically marginalized groups in urban PK-12 and higher education settings. This concentration is designed for individuals interested in leading and teaching teachers and faculty so that they are prepared to provide students with impactful instruction that is anti-racist, culturally relevant, and inclusive. And it prepares you for positions as varied as a university faculty member, professional development specialist, and curriculum developer.
Educational Psychology
The educational psychology concentration focuses on research and practice in the areas of learning, motivation, and development in diverse social contexts. Courses in the concentration explore how people learn, what motivates them, which instructional and motivational strategies are most effective within varied cultural systems, and how the social context of instruction affects learning. This track is not for those wishing to pursue licensure as an educational psychologist. Rather, it prepares you for employment in areas such as instructional design, human performance personnel, school/community counseling, and more.
Advance Your Career with an EdD in Educational Leadership
Educators can be found everywhere — in schools, homes, universities, and organizations. So, educational leaders can come in many forms. But to be a more effective leader, to impact greater change within schools, systems, and communities, requires the skills, the critical reflection, and the strategies that are developed and sharpened in an EdD program like the Educational Leadership online program USC Rossier. Here, you will learn to understand not only our current challenges, but you will be able to look forward to what is possible in our systems of education and learning. And you will be equipped to pursue bolder strategies to improve those systems.
From policy analysts to superintendents, USC Rossier’s Doctor of Education in Educational Leadership online program helps leaders take the next step.
If you’re ready to advance your career and make a greater impact on our educational systems, apply to join our next online cohort today.
