The Carefully Crafted Curriculum for this Program

CSUN’s online Master of Arts Educational Administration program has a carefully crafted curriculum designed for the cohort format. In this format, one course builds upon the prior course to provide students with essential and versatile professional knowledge, skills and abilities that will enable them to be successful as leaders and managers in a wide range of educational organization and institutions. While the program is delivered entirely online, the instructional approaches to the courses vary to ensure that the educational experiences and the learning outcomes make the overall program a comprehensive learning experience.

Courses

Contemporary Administrative Leadership (ELPS 650)

This introductory course gives participants in the master’s degree program an understanding of what being an effective educational administrator and leader entails. Significant differences exist between the cultures of teaching and that of management and leadership in an educational organization. In this course, participants will gain not only an understanding of the major responsibilities of contemporary practitioners but also what their lives are like as they practice each day. Participants will also gain a sense of the culture of educational leadership as it evolves today.

Principles and Practices of Curriculum Development and Supervision
(ELPS 682)

In addition to the broader duties shared in ELPS 650, this course enables participants to learn about the more specialized knowledge and strategic guidance required to make meaningful improvement in the area of student achievement. Through this course, participants learn how to collaborate with their organization’s instructional staff/faculty to develop, implement and assess aligned curriculum.

School and Community Relations (ELPS 676)

Taught in the seminar format, this course facilitates the development of a multifaceted understanding of community needs – organizational, local, regional and statewide. Participants learn how to work with their organization’s “stakeholders” and clients (e.g., families and  communities) in order to develop, support and sustain vital educational programs and robust and respected educational organizations/institutions.

Legal Aspects of Educational Administration (ELPS 663)

In order to ensure the day-to-day safety of students, faculty and staff, educational leaders must learn to deal effectively with a wide range of potentially disruptive or dangerous problems. Because almost any regulatory or policy decision made by an educational administrator can have legal ramifications and consequences, real-life examples and case studies are used as illustrations throughout this course.

Management of Human Resources (ELPS 672)

In conjunction with the laws and policies shared in ELPS 663, the “HR” or personnel function focuses on the hiring, orientation and supervision of faculty and support staff, the maintenance of employee records, professional development, supervision, evaluation and dismissal. Educational administrators need to be knowledgeable about how to work not only with instructors/faculty members but also with staff members, whose rights are covered by different laws in different states (or nations).

Business and Financial Aspects of Educational Administration (ELPS 664)

When it comes to business and finance, running an educational organization is similar in many ways to running a household in which money must be spent wisely in order to ensure that the physical plant (campus) is adequate to meet the needs of the “family,” which may include hundreds (or thousands) of students/instructors/staff. In addition, “student-centered teaching” requires administrators to be creative in finding ways to equip educational organizations/campuses to manage the responsibilities outlined in the curriculum and human resources areas as well as the changes associated with hands-on learning, center-based learning and the implementation of new technologies.