Goals
Our goal is to help you build leadership skills by creating models of leadership and learning, helping you develop sharpened abilities in both areas. Specific goals of the online Master’s in Educational Leadership Program include:
A leadership model that is thoughtful and reflective and in which candidates create optimal conditions for teaching and learning by collaborating with constituencies and applying research tools, inquiry methods, and change theory to strategic planning
A leadership model that is collaborative, valuing inclusiveness, teamwork, and information sharing
A leadership model that confronts ethical, social, and fiscal demands while remaining grounded in knowledge of teaching and learning
A learning model that focuses on the implementation of organizational change through the growth and development of all stakeholders
Who Should Apply?
The Educational Leadership Program is ideal for public and independent school teachers who have a desire for advancement and are able to manage the simultaneous demands of work and school. They may identify with Mills’ strong emphasis on public service and may have an interest in effecting change through work with nonprofits and other community-based organizations.
Degree Requirements
Example Spring Term Start Plan
- Term 1
- Jan-May
- Term 2
- May-Aug
- Term 3
- Aug-Dec
- Term 4
- Jan-May
- Term 5
- May-Aug
Course Work
We believe that our students’ ideas have the power to change the world. Relevant subjects, challenging discussion, and creative approaches to course work will help you hone your skills and solidify your ideas. You will tackle and solve real-world problems while developing new ways of thinking, both academically and creatively.
Across all courses and professors, our curriculum is grounded in a coherent vision of educational leadership. Courses may include:
In this course, you will address the realities of curricular planning in a system that privileges standards and testing above holistic intellectual and social emotional development. Through extensive reflection, readings, analysis, observation, and collaborative discussion, you will strategize new ways to design teaching so that it reaches the whole student, increasing their options in school and after.
According to the most recent NCES teacher attrition survey, approximately 16 percent of teachers change schools or leave the profession each year. In this course, you will learn how the handling of evaluations, feedback, and professional development can create or destroy the culture of a school, and you will activate the necessary skills to become an effective human resource manager.
Evaluation is a stalwart of education, but it is not an unbiased process. In this course, you will learn to approach evaluation as a tool for framing pain points and devising interventions, while addressing the messy and ambiguous problems you might encounter in a system with numerous stakeholders.
Grounded in constructivist philosophy, this course will draw connections between youth culture, popular culture, and “liberal” learning while examining the interconnectedness of Hip Hop and community. Because of its ubiquitous academic reach, Hip Hop has emerged in primary, secondary, and postsecondary classrooms as both liberatory and culturally relevant pedagogy. Students will examine educational theories, Hip Hop instructional strategies and their applications in the modern day classroom. Special focus will be placed on critical pedagogies that emphasize education, social capital, race, and ethnicity.
Educational change making is most effective when community participants are drawn into and included in the action inquiry process. In this course, you will learn the why, what, and how of Participatory Action Research (PAR), a mode of inquiry that respects the situated knowledge of local informants to equalize power relationships between the researcher and the researched.
Premised on the belief that the issues confronting urban schools are inextricably linked to key issues in society, this course will prepare you to articulate your own mission and purpose as a leader in this setting, examining the complex challenges found in urban schools in the context of social, political, and economic conditions at the local, regional, and national levels.
In this course, you will examine moral and ethical questions in order to critique conceptions of community, equity, diversity, and democracy, and you will consider the moral and ethical implications of programs and policies as you develop your own strategic institutional vision in a larger context of predominant theoretical and philosophical approaches.
Acknowledging the reality that our students may face or have faced war, poverty, abuse, neglect, chronic illness, loss of a loved one, drug addiction, or any other number of negative experiences in their K–12 years, this course will challenge you to address issues surrounding trauma and social-emotional learning in public schools to develop a trauma-informed approach to educational leadership.
In this course, you will draw from theorists including John Dewey, Paulo Freire, and Sylvia Ashton-Warner to unpack global educational trends in the context of today’s shifting technological and political paradigms. Engaging in a think tank with fellow professionals, you will then apply learnings to construct your own ideal 21st-century learning environment.
With an underlying philosophy that strong leaders are by nature reflective, this culminating experience will ask you to create a professional portfolio based on self-assessment, personal goal setting, and discoveries made throughout your graduate studies. You will demonstrate your readiness to embrace lifelong professional development by articulating your vision for education and your placement within that vision.
Weekly Breakdown of time
3 hrs
Synchronous
Synchronous
Live online classes with remote students in your cohort attended according to a specific schedule.
3 hrs
Asynchronous
Asynchronous
Self-paced courses or work completed according to your own schedule.
8-10 hrs
Assignments
Assignments
Homework, projects, group work, research, etc.
14-16 hrs
Total Per Week
Total Hours Per Week
Course Breakdown
Term 1
EDUC 405: Trauma Informed Leadership
4 Credits
EDUC 426: Ethical/Moral Considerations in Educational Leadership
4 Credits
8
Total Credits
Term 2
EDUC 421A: Inquiry to Leadership
4 Credits
EDUC 432: Curricular Leadership
4 Credits
8
Total Credits
Term 3
EDUC 480A: 21st Century Learning - Global Trends
4 Credits
EDUC 440: Hip Hop Pedagogy
4 Credits
8
Total Credits
Term 4
EDUC 407: HR Management
4 Credits
EDUC 424: Program Evaluation
4 Credits
8
Total Credits
Term 5
EDUC 420: Urban Education
4 Credits
EDUC 417: Individual Professional Development Plan / Capstone
4 Credits
8
Total Credits
Career Services

While enrolled, you will be encouraged to use our full complement of career services, including:
- Individual career counseling with career assessment
- Resume review, cover letter preparation, and mock interview practice
- Managing your online presence
- Internship and job search postings
- Workshops, presentations, and information sessions
- Networking opportunities with employers and alumnae
- Resource library