Urban Educational Leadership Program

Program/Degree Overview & Mission

The Urban Educational Leadership Program provides an experience that will prepare doctoral candidates to assume leadership roles in urban school systems and other educational agencies including, but not limited to, positions as educational administrators and/or planners, social policy researchers, fiscal officers, and development officers.

Goals of Program
The program of study in Urban Educational Leadership is designed to help students:

• Develop a realistic and functional philosophy of urban educational administration and leadership, combined with the skills needed to translate that philosophy into the effective operation of educational institutions;
• Develop skills in identifying, designing, and implementing innovative programs geared to improving the nature and quality of teaching and learning;
• Develop and refine technical skills necessary for the effective organization and management of urban educational institutions;
• Develop skills in integrating the broad spectrum of educational community resources, toward the end of creating and sustaining wholesome and rewarding learning environments; and
• Develop skills in the creation and utilization of empirical research findings in the solution of urban education problems and in the design of innovations for the improvement of urban educational systems.

Prospective students can access specific program information below:

EdD in Urban Educational Leadership

            Use the information currently on this page

 PhD in Education with a concentration in Urban Educational Leadership 

            Use the information above

Program Admissions Information

NOTE: Applications are reviewed on a rolling basis from August 1 to March 1 for admission the following Fall. Applications for Fall 2024 are accepted between August 1, 2023 and March, 1 2024. The application process/portal is closed from March 2 to July 31 each year, and no applications will be accepted during this time.

To be eligible for admission to the Ed.D. Program in Urban Education, an applicant must provide:

• complete academic transcripts documenting an earned Master’s degree from an accredited institution;
• evidence of scholastic ability as demonstrated by the achievement of a 3.0 cumulative graduate point average (GPA) for all graduate study;
• an autobiographical statement stressing commitment to urban education. In particular, the candidate should be prepared to explain how earning a terminal degree in educational leadership will facilitate the individual’s professional goals.
• A minimum of three written professional recommendations.
• An individual interview by the Doctoral Admissions Committee
• An impromptu expository writing sample is a part of the interview process.

Meeting the minimum eligibility requirements and submitting all the required documents does not guarantee that an offer of admission will be made to the applicant. The decision of the Doctoral Admissions Committee involves a review and analysis of all the elements of the application as well as the availability of positions in the program. The committee then recommends to the Dean of the School of Graduate Studies that an offer admission should be made based on that review.

General Requirements

Candidates for the Urban Educational Leadership degree must complete a minimum of 51 academic credit hours, pass the comprehensive exam, and submit and defend a dissertation.  

Program Course Requirements

Total Minimum Requirement: 51 credit hours, plus dissertation credit hours

C Grade Policy
All students are required to pass the research courses at the level of B or better. Courses for which a student has earned a C must be re-taken. A student will not be allowed to take the comprehensive exams until such courses have been re-taken and a grade of B or better has been earned. The courses to which this rule applies are indicated by a double asterisk (**).

Core Curriculum - 15 credit hours
ASLF 601 Educational Economics and Finance
ASLP 600 Introduction to Doctoral Studies
ASLT 632 instructional Systems Analysis
EDPL 702 Theories, Practices, and Contemporary Issues in Urban Educational Leadership
EDPL 703 Education and Society

Specialization: Administration and Social Policy – 12 credit hours
EDPL 801 Policy and Politics in Education
EDPL 802 Seminar in Administration and Social Policy
EDPL 804 Race and Public Policy in Education
SFED 651 Social Policy and Futurism

Research Concentration - 15 Hours
The following courses must be taken in sequence
EDSR 604 Introduction to Educational Research**
EDSR 719 Quantitative Data Analysis I **
EDSR 819 Quantitative Methods II** (Prerequisite EDSR 719)
EDSR 810 Qualitative Research Methods** (Prerequisite EDSR 604)
EDSR 822 Mixed Methods Research**

Electives: 3 hours
Internship: 3 hours
EDPL 805 Clinical Studies/Internship: Administration and Social Policy
ASLP 691/791/891 Special Topics in Education (optional)
*Can be repeated if necessary

Dissertation - 9 hours
EDUC 997* Dissertation Guidance
ASLP 993 Pre-Doctoral Candidacy (optional & dependent upon timing of comprehensive exam)

**Subject to C Grade Policy
Students should contact their advisor to request waiver or transfer credit.

Program & Affiliated Faculty

Dr. Dia Sekayi, Associate Professor 

Dr. Rhonda Baylor, Assistant Professor

Dr. Gretchen Rudham, Assistant Professor