Welcome
The West Texas A&M University Educational Leadership Program prepares confident, skilled, and reflective leaders of education to pursue excellence and make powerful and lasting impacts in their communities.
Distinguished program characteristics require 60 hours of courses that include an interdisciplinary curriculum, an emphasis on action research, the opportunity for a high-impact experiential residency, and an endowed scholars program. Candidates who qualify can transfer in 12 hours of transfer credit and/or competency credit into the three-year program. The residency requirement will be satisfied when the candidate completes a minimum of 48 hours of classes at WTAMU. This satisfies the residency requirement from the Graduate School.
Features of the curriculum highlight environmental courses (sociology, decision making, and superintendent certification) to ground doctoral candidates in the interface among the community, the individual’s decision making, and the job description. The first year in the Educational Leadership Track also includes superintendent certification courses while the first year in the Leadership in Higher Education Track focuses upon leadership in the university setting. Both tracks are introduced to additional knowledge and skill courses in the second year. For both tracks, the final year focuses on research, writing, and applying theory to practice. Rather than the traditional dissertation, scholarly research throughout the three years at WTAMU results in an extensive literature review and two articles that are publication-ready.
If you are interested in seeking a Doctorate of Educational Leadership (Ed.D.), West Texas A&M is here to help you achieve your goals.
- Dr. Gary Bigham, Program Director