University Relations
June 26, 2008 Communique
New master’s in education approved at June regents meeting.
The CU Board of Regents approved a proposal that will allow the UCCS College of Education to offer a Master of Arts in Leadership in Education at its June meeting.
Pending final approval by the Colorado Department of Higher Education, the new program will have tracks in leadership for P-12 schools and student affairs in higher education.
The Master of Arts in Leadership in Education emerges from a reorganization of two existing tracks within the College of Education, the Master of Arts in Curriculum and Instruction and the Master of Arts in Counseling and Human Services.
“Reorganizing these two separate programs into one new program is innovative and will allow the College of Education to continue to build and expand its demonstrated excellence in serving the needs of both students and the community,” said La Vonne Neal, dean, College of Education. “I wish to complement the faculty for their work in developing this proposal.”
The impetus for the change was three-fold.
- The college recently identified demand for the program through a needs assessment conducted in El Paso and other counties in southern Colorado. Respondents said the newly configured degree would better fit their needs than separate tracks.
- The implementation of the program for a doctoral degree in leadership, research and policy last year makes the Master of Arts Degree in Leadership in Education a more logical foundation for the leadership in P-12 schools track.
- As school districts in the immediate Pikes Peak region continue to service more than 100,000 students, programs are needed to develop practitioners who can assume leadership roles within those organizations.
The new degree will not require any additional resources because the college is able to re-deploy existing resources. Following approval by the CU Regents, the degree must be reviewed by the Colorado Department of Higher Education.