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Academic Catalog 2025-2026
EdD, with an emphasis in Leadership for Change (with optional concentrations)
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The Doctor of Education (EdD), with an emphasis in Leadership for Change is a fully online program designed for professionals seeking to deepen their leadership impact and drive systemic, equity-centered change. Graduates pursue leadership roles in higher education, including community colleges, as well as K-12 education, business, and nonprofit sectors.
Designed to be completed in three years, the program combines live online seminars with 24/7 access to online course materials, offering structured flexibility for working adults. Students develop a personalized leadership praxis, integrating theory with real-world impact. Upon completing core coursework, students earn a Master of Education (MEd) degree.
Dissertation work begins in the first term and is supported throughout the program. Optional concentrations allow students to tailor their studies to their personal leadership development goals.
Program Goals and Objectives
Our curriculum is built to empower you to lead with impact. You will cultivate the knowledge, skills, and reflective practice needed to navigate complex organizational challenges and promote equity and social justice in your field. Graduates emerge as thoughtful scholar-practitioners ready to transform their organizations and communities.
By the end of the program, you will be able to:
- Lead and advocate for meaningful change across diverse settings
- Analyze complex systems and identify opportunities for transformation
- Apply frameworks centered on equity, inclusion, and justice
- Convey ideas powerfully through storytelling and strategic influence
- Design and implement initiatives informed by rigorous research
- Conduct original scholarly inquiry that advances leadership knowledge
- Demonstrate ethical leadership aligned with your values and community needs
Career Paths
Graduates of the EdD in Leadership for Change take on roles that emphasize leadership, advocacy, and systemic transformation. They lead initiatives that promote equity, innovation, and social justice across diverse organizational contexts. Common career paths include:
- Higher Education Administrator or Executive
- Corporate Training and Development Director
- Nonprofit Executive Director or Philanthropy Leader
- University Professor
- Educational Policy Analyst
- Leadership Coach or Facilitator
- Executive Leadership or Education Consultant
- Organizational Development Consultant
- K-12 School or District Leader
- Teacher Education Leader or Administrator
This degree prepares professionals to be change agents who influence policy, practice, and culture within their organizations and communities.
Concentrations
Students may choose to tailor their degree through optional concentrations in:
- Higher Education Leadership
- K-12 and Teacher Education
- Learning and Development
Or select from concentrations offered by the School of Leadership Studies, including:
- Coaching
- Creative Longevity and Wisdom
- Inclusive Leadership for Social Justice
- Media, Technology and Innovation
- Organization Development
- Somatics, Phenomenology and Communicative Leadership
- Sustainability Leadership
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Required Coursework:
Effective date: 09/01/2025 Required Foundations (24 credits)
A pathway MEd degree is awarded after completion of these courses. Dissertation Research and Writing (28 credits)
Electives (12 credits)
Choose any 12 credits from the list below, or from the concentrations. Total Semester Credits: 64
Optional Concentrations
Students can declare their elective studies in one of the concentrations listed below, or take any combination of 12 credits listed below (or from the elective list above) to fufill their electives. Each concentration typically includes a minimum of three tailored courses and access to a community of scholar-practitioners who are passionate about this specialized field of study. Higher Education Leadership Concentration
The Higher Education Leadership concentration focuses students’ doctoral study on the knowledge and skills needed to become leaders and change agents in higher education institutions, including community colleges, universities, and graduate schools. Take your choice of three of the following:
- ELC-747 The Community College 4 semester credits
- ELC-748 Higher Education Leadership, Governance, and Policy 4 semester credits
- ELC-752 Leading in Tribal Colleges, HBCUs, HSIs, and International Schools 4 semester credits
- ELC-755 Higher Education Finance, Ethics, and Law 4 semester credits
- ELC-758 Teaching, Learning, and Student Success in Higher Education 4 semester credits
- ELC-774 Learning Technology, Instructional Design, and Artificial Intelligence 4 semester credits
Learning and Development Concentration
The Learning and Development concentration is designed to equip scholar-practitioners with the skills and knowledge needed to lead and enhance learning processes within organizations and educational settings. This concentration focuses on the application of learning theories, leadership development, and the facilitation of engaging, transformative learning experiences. Students explore how to lead the learning function in organizations, curate dynamic learning spaces, apply constructive developmental theory, and foster motivation and transformation in learners. Take your choice of three of the following:
K-12 and Teacher Education Concentration
The K-12 and Teacher Education concentration provides students with the expertise to lead systemic change in teacher preparation, curriculum development, and organizational transformation. The integration of global perspectives, critical analysis, and leadership development prepares graduates to serve as change agents within schools, districts, and educational organizations, ultimately improving the quality of education and ensuring it is accessible and equitable for all learners. Take your choice of three of the following:
Coaching Concentration
The doctoral concentration in Coaching offers an interdisciplinary approach to integrating research-based coaching theory with professional practice in organizational and individual coaching. Participants will study the core theories that underpin principle practices of individual and organizational coaching and undertake individual research to integrate theory with practice in individual and organizational settings. Creative Longevity and Wisdom Concentration
The goal of the Creative Longevity and Wisdom concentration is to enhance knowledge and practice in areas concerning mid-life and older adults. Inclusive Leadership for Social Justice Concentration
The doctoral concentration in Inclusive Leadership for Social Justice is designed to develop more inclusive scholar-leaders who are knowledgeable about and sensitive to the complex ways that power and injustice manifest in organizations and communities in order to co-create a more just society. Media, Technology, and Innovation Concentration
The doctoral concentration in Media, Technology, and Innovation is focused on the ways in which media, technology, and knowledge networks are transforming our societies, organizations, and ourselves by becoming the dominant driving force for innovation and organizational change. Organization Development Concentration
A doctoral degree with a concentration in Organization Development (OD) prepares students to become scholar practitioners, thought leaders, and change agents in a variety of organizations-profit, non-profit, and public sectors. Somatics, Phenomenology and Communicative Leadership Concentration
This Somatics, Phenomenology and Communicative Leadership Concentration combines and integrates scholarly theory and mastery of embodied mindful awareness (somatics) with substantial grounding in transformative phenomenology (consciousness and deep personal reflection) along with the interpretive and practical dynamics of social constructionism (Coordinated Management of Meaning (CMM), Symbolic Interactionism, and related communication and social construction disciplines). The impact of the artful blending of these three disciplines and bodies of theory is to: (1) reinforce the validity of “essence-based evidence” available through the phenomenological lens, (2) provide insights into improved research and practice through lifeworld analysis (3) improve practice skills through somatic awareness and practices (4) intensify and enhance leadership skills through increase communication practices such as CMM, (Communicative Management of Meaning) which was developed and perfected by the late Barnett Pearce, HOD Professor Emeritus, and (5) increase contemplative skills as related to research and practice based. Sustainability Leadership Concentration
The objective of the doctoral concentration in Sustainability Leadership is to produce leaders in businesses, nonprofits, governments, and educational institutions. |
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