Courses - EdD in Organizational Leadership

This course examines classical and contemporary theories and styles of leadership and their application to a variety of professional and global settings. The role of vision, persuasion, mobilizing constituencies, and other dimensions of effective leadership are examined from a theoretical and practitioner perspective. Students conduct research on leadership theories and practices relevant to their particular academic and professional interests.

In this course, students engage in direct study and one-on-one mentorship to develop and improve their scholarly writing and academic voice, advancing their skills in conducting literature reviews utilizing university resources and improving digital literacy skills that are conducive to the successful completion of the doctoral program. Students may petition to take a writing proficiency exam in lieu of taking this class. In order to complete the class requirements, students must receive a score of 80 or higher on the Education Division provided writing proficiency exam.

This course introduces students to the study of ethical leadership and provides the foundation for value clarification, ethical decision making, and responsible leadership in diverse organizations and communities. Elements of ethical leadership such as cultural proficiency, social justice, equity, and privilege are examined. Other topics include developing a personal vision, establishing a proactive stance, service, self-esteem, emotional intelligence, creating a context for innovation, and maintaining happiness and personal well-being. Students will investigate applications and practices relevant to their academic and professional interests.

EDD 734 is a foundational course that provides an in-depth introduction to quantitative methods and integrates quantitative research skills with practical applications in research. Students learn to frame quantitative research questions, select appropriate methodologies, design and conduct data collection, and analyze findings using statistical software. Emphasizing the application of empirical evidence in research, the course covers quantitative data collection methods and strategies, core statistical concepts, techniques in descriptive and inferential analysis (including parametric and nonparametric techniques), and the presentation of findings for various organizational issues and scholarly pursuits. Students will develop the ability to assess studies critically, apply statistical analyses to real-world scenarios, and create evidence-based recommendations relevant to their academic and professional interests.

This course introduces major theories and approaches to leading the effort and developing policy in local and national settings. Students explore complex issues in management and leadership. Students will have an opportunity to understand and practice policy development at local and national levels. Students are required to participate in a trip to Washington, DC, or a similar location. Students will incur travel costs (which vary in relation to airline, hotel, food, venue, and materials).

Students learn to apply theories and principles of international leadership, micro and macroeconomics to analyze, design, and evaluate policies which address business, political and educational challenges in other countries. Additionally, students will observe and study the leadership and cultural practices of other countries studied. Students will visit an international location, meet local and national leaders, and observe and examine industries and organizations such as healthcare, schools, universities, and manufacturing, as well as cultural norms and practices and contrast them with those of the United States. Students will incur travel costs (which vary in relation to airline, hotel, food, venue, and materials).

This course immerses students, as future global learners, in a dynamic exploration of technology-integrated learning tools and solutions available to global organizations, learning communities, and educational settings. It explores current and future-ready technologies and their intentional application for experiential, collaborative, social, and blended learning across organically or formally developed learning organizations and online communities in K–12, higher education, and private and public sectors. Students will investigate applications and practices in virtual learning relevant to their academic and professional interests.

This course examines legal, political, and regulatory processes and issues confronting organizations. Topics in the course include intellectual property law, educational law, torts, criminal and contract liability, the laws regarding electronic communication, encryption, internet security, and ethics in cyberspace. Dispute resolution and negotiation techniques are also included. Students conduct research on legal principles and practices relevant to their particular academic and professional interests.

This course focuses on analysis, design, development, implementation, and assessment of learning-based solutions to organizational challenges in a variety of learning organization environments including K–12, higher education, and private and public sectors. It introduces models and methods of learning theory and cognition and learning assessments as a response to identified needs and gaps in intended organizational results. Students will investigate applications and practices of learning design, cognition, and evaluation relevant to their academic and professional interests.

This course introduces theories and strategies related to leading organizational change within organizations. The course will include theories and practice of organization change; the impact of organizational culture and processes, including strategies and methods employed in forecasting and in implementing change; and strategic planning related to organizational change interventions that increase an organization’s effectiveness. Research literature and best practices in sustainable change efforts in education, health care, social enterprises, for-profit and not-for-profit organizations, and related disciplines are examined.

This course introduces students to the theory and practice of designing, conducting, analyzing, and interpreting qualitative, quantitative, and mixed methods approaches for organizational research. Students will learn to assess the credibility of published peer-reviewed research and become familiar with relevant research tools and software. Throughout the course, students will apply various research approaches to evaluate robust empirical studies and use that knowledge to develop comprehensive research plans intended for academic and professional audiences.

This course introduces students to research designs within the qualitative tradition. Topics include the collection and interpretation of qualitative data and methods of minimizing threats to the trustworthiness and authenticity of qualitative studies. Students learn specific techniques for the analysis and interpretation of qualitative data. Students will be expected to utilize appropriate software to conduct content, semantic, and sentiment analysis relevant to their academic and professional interests.

Higher Education Professions Preparation is a doctoral-level course designed to introduce students to various professions in Higher Education. Information will be provided to familiarize doctoral students with the roles and general expectations for teaching, research, service, and leadership responsibilities in higher education environments. Designed to introduce the future academic professional to careers in higher education, topics include: types of higher education institutions; varied occupations, e.g.: administration; tenure-track faculty vs. non tenure-track faculty; the academic portfolio including the curriculum vitae (CV); peer-reviewed vs. non-peer-reviewed writing, research, and publishing; funding, grants, etc., and why it all matters.

This course addresses organizations; alignment of organizational structures; and intended outcomes and how they deal with culture, employee behavior, and values. Students will examine strategies designed to create and evaluate knowledge, including the psychological basis for human action, individual and organizational learning, communicating across cultures, and intellectual capital. Students will research and examine organizational theories and practices relevant to their particular academic and professional fields.

In this course, students will explore challenges and opportunities as it relates to global and local settings. Students will explore the fields of cultural intelligence, cross-cultural change and development, global expansion, change management constructs and cultural alignments. Moreover, students will explore integration of global change strategies, managing global communication and associated risks. Scholars- practitioners will have the opportunity to study the drivers for change in their field of study, working with stakeholders, creating coalitions, and assessing best practices for communication. Finally, researching the importance of monitoring and evaluating change (performance metrics) and sustaining global change.

Students examine a broad range of advancements in theory and practice in their respective areas of interest. Examples of possible areas may include social innovation and entrepreneurship; school safety; institutional advancement; innovations and future of learning technologies, such as AI, 3D learning and virtual worlds, aerial, cloud, and mobile technologies; financial management of public institutions; open-source electronic platforms; interactive gadgets or media mashups; managing in technological environments; pre-K–12 administration; private and charter school administration; societal factors affecting education and equity; nonprofit management and leadership; mixed-methodology research methods; and other similar topics.

The course examines the affordances and dynamics of games and related simulations, 3D, artificial intelligence, and virtual worlds as places where learning occurs. It explores games from different perspectives such as serious games built to teach, “game mechanics” adapted to educational settings to improve engagement, and the potential of popular games as sources of curricular content. These experiential and playful structures allow students to embed activities in more fully realized contexts for learning and provide opportunities for learner-players to think about choices, take action, and see the impact of their decisions.

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Technology is a ubiquitous part of our everyday lives that mediates the way we work, learn, and function as a society. Already recognized as rapidly changing, technological advances are nevertheless certain to accelerate at rates even faster than in the past, and in ways that will reshape virtually every sector of society, especially including the jobs of the future. This course surveys key technological drivers from a global perspective. The course seeks to help students form understandings of how and why advances are reshaping society and the future of work. In broad terms, it helps students address two questions: How do we prepare the current and future workforce to navigate an unpredictable future that will require continuous learning, adaptation to new technologies, and jobs that do not yet exist replacing those that have been fixtures in society? And, what are the moral and ethical dimensions of navigating that future?

Students examine a broad range of advancements in theory and practice in their respective areas of interest. Examples of possible areas may include social innovation and entrepreneurship; school safety; institutional advancement; innovations and future of learning technologies, such as AI, 3D learning and virtual worlds, aerial, cloud, and mobile technologies; financial management of public institutions; open-source electronic platforms; interactive gadgets or media mashups; managing in technological environments; pre-K–12 administration; private and charter school administration; societal factors affecting education and equity; nonprofit management and leadership; mixed-methodology research methods; and other similar topics.

This course provides a conceptual and a practitioner’s perspective in the process of understanding that resources, social progress, technological advancement, and health are created through a sound and continuously improving Pre-K–12 educational system. The bureaucratic or political systems that support these processes require resources, most notably among them is adequate funding. This course reviews and examines the sources and processes of obtaining educational funding. Additionally, the political and bureaucratic challenges around how funding is acquired, administered, and dispersed by the federal government, states, communities, and local school districts are described.

Students investigate the historical context and multiple traditions of participatory action research (PAR) and its application to leadership in the private and public pre-K–12 settings. Students will select and complete a PAR project within their schools. Students also explore their individual and collective leadership talents, strengths, beliefs, values, assumptions, and practices. Learning experiences engage students in imagining a better future, developing greater intentionality, becoming more proactive, and maximizing talent and strengths to build individual and learning community capacity

Students examine a broad range of advancements in theory and practice in their respective areas of interest. Examples of possible areas may include social innovation and entrepreneurship; school safety; institutional advancement; innovations and future of learning technologies, such as AI, 3D learning and virtual worlds, aerial, cloud, and mobile technologies; financial management of public institutions; open-source electronic platforms; interactive gadgets or media mashups; managing in technological environments; pre-K–12 administration; private and charter school administration; societal factors affecting education and equity; nonprofit management and leadership; mixed-methodology research methods; and other similar topics.