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Doctor of Education (Ed.D.) in Leadership

Special Education

For school office personnel, principals, directors of special education, and leaders in higher education and faith-based institutions

Special Education

There are close to seven million children with disabilities in the United States. Yet education leaders have had limited training in working with students with disabilities, and most have taken only one special education course during their credential programs. As such there is a tremendous need for education leaders to understand and lead programs for effective special education; specifically, need exists for doctoral programs designed to explicitly train administrators to lead in special education. In A School Leader’s Guide to Special Education, McLaughlin & Ruedel (2012) report only one percent of the doctoral programs available are designed to train special education administrators.

Leaders within special education help make exemplary education accessible to a broad range of students, irrespective of gifts/learning disabilities and physical/cognitive ability. Special Education equips teachers and school administrators with eclectic skills to create culturally responsive learning opportunities in flexible ways that engage all students academically and socially. Featured courses include Leveraging Inclusive Practices and Services for All Students; Advanced Research in Special Education: Legal, Historic, and Current Issues; and Advanced Social-Emotional Skills for Counselors and Educators. We also offer an Advanced Graduate Certificate in Special Education.

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