Doctor of Education (Ed.D.)
Educational Leadership Doctoral
What You Learn
This program is for potential and practicing educational leaders who aspire to develop and refine their leadership skills in complex organizations especially at the district office level.
The Doctor of Education Degree (Ed.D.) at Gardner-Webb University in Educational Leadership is a 63-semester-hour program designed for potential and practicing educational leaders who wish to develop and refine their leadership skills in complex organizations. Schools are dynamic institutions whose practice is shaped by powerful and influential interests. As a result, the economic, political, social, and technological environment of schools is always changing. The Doctor of Education Degree program is designed to equip candidates with the knowledge, skills, attitudes, values, and beliefs that will enable them to function effectively in leadership roles in this fluctuating environment.
How You Learn
An Ed.D. program with an integrated curriculum will be offered. Students will take modules consisting of 6, 9, and 12 credit hours. Students will also be enrolled in a 1-credit- hour seminar each semester focused on their clinical internship/clinical experience and their dissertation. Once these modules are complete, two semesters (6 hours and 3 hours) of dissertation conclude the program. The electronic portfolio, a requirement for the degree, will be created and stored online in a product called TaskStream.
Low Residency Blended Format: The majority of the program will be completed online. During the fall and spring semesters, students will have 3 weekend face-to-face meetings along with several (generally 6-8) synchronous online meetings through ZOOM. Summer sessions will have 7 face-to-face meetings, two of which (1 weekend) are held on Gardner-Webb University’s main campus for a Dissertation/Research Summit. Summer sessions also include several (generally 6-8) synchronous online meetings through ZOOM.
Career Outcomes
Upon completion of this program, students will have earned a Doctor of Education (Ed.D.) in Educational Leadership and will be subject to state licensure requirements in order to receive North Carolina state licensure as a Superintendent. At the writing of this document, the licensure requirement is the satisfactory completion of an electronic portfolio.
Prerequisites
Students in the Ed.D. in Educational Leadership program must hold at least a Master’s degree from a regionally accredited institution with a minimum 3.0 grade point average on all graduate-level work. A minimum of 3 years experience in administration or teacher leadership is required. A license in School Administration-Principal is required.
Degree Requirements
| Course | Title | Hours |
|
EDLS 730 |
Strategic Leadership and School Reform |
6 |
|
EDLS 731 |
Seminar/Internship |
1 |
|
EDLS 732 |
Instructional Leadership | 9 |
|
EDLS 733 |
Seminar/Internship |
1 |
|
EDLS 734 |
Human Resource Leadership | 9 |
|
EDLS 735 |
Seminar/Internship |
1 |
|
EDLS 736 |
Research and Program Evaluation | 12 |
|
EDLS 737 |
Seminar/Internship |
1 |
|
EDLS 738 |
Cultural and Ethical Leadership |
6 |
|
EDLS 739 |
Seminar/Internship |
1 |
| EDLS 740 | Managerial Leadership | 6 |
| EDLS 741 | Seminar/Internship | 1 |
| EDLS 742 | Dissertation Module 1 | 6 |
| EDLS 743 | Dissertation Module 2 | 3 |
| EDLS 744 | Dissertation Module 3 | as needed |
| Total Credit Hours: | 63 |
Please Note:
Students will be enrolled in EDLS 714 Dissertation Continuation for 3 credit hours until dissertation is complete.
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