Superintendent program overview
The mission of WSU’s Field-Based Superintendent’s Certification Program is to prepare school district leaders with the leadership and management skills needed to lead their organizations to the improvement of student learning. The Field-Based Superintendent’s Certification Program is specifically designed to prepare current building principals and mid-level administrators to meet the leadership challenges to be faced by school superintendents in the twenty-first century.
The program content is organized around four major semester topics and four seminar sub-topics for each. The tentative themes and topics are as follows:
First year, fall semester: EdAd 587-seminar in educational leadership (effective leadership)
- Seminar #1: Role & Behavior of Superintendents
- Seminar #2: Focus on All Students Learning
- Seminar #3: Socially Just and Democratic School
- Seminar #4: Dynamic & Distributed Leadership
First year, spring semester: EdAd 587-seminar in educational leadership (quality teaching & learning)
- Seminar #5: High Expectations and Accountability for Adults (Personnel)
- Seminar #6: Coordinated and Aligned Curriculum and Assessment
- Seminar #7: Coordinated & Embedded Professional Development
- Seminar #8: Quality Classroom Instruction
Second year, fall semester: EdAd 581-politics in education (support for system-wide improvement)
- Seminar #9: Effective Use of Data
- Seminar #10: Strategic Resource Management
- Seminar #11: Policy and Program Coherence
- Seminar #12: Governance
Second year, spring semester: EdAd 522-Topics in Education: school superintendent (clear & collaborative relationships)
- Seminar #13: Professional culture & Collaborative Relationships
- Seminar #14: Clear Understanding of School & District Roles & Responsibilities
- Seminar #15: Interpreting and Managing the External Environment
- Seminar #16: Partnerships
Washington State University, the College of Education, and this program share a strong commitment to diversity and social justice. We encourage applications from women and members of minority racial and ethnic groups. We firmly believe that a diverse program cohort will provide an enriched experience for all participants, and will ultimately result in a stronger cadre of leaders for our state’s and nation’s schools.
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The seminars
The field-based program replaces the traditional series of separate classes with a two-year internship completed in conjunction with a series of weekend seminars. Sixteen seminars are held over the two-year duration of the program. Seminars are scheduled in August, September, October, December, January, February, March, and April of each year. Most seminars begin Friday afternoon and conclude Saturday afternoon; however, some seminars are held on other days to accommodate program requirements.
The seminars are structured to lead participants to
mastery of the standards for the superintendency as
defined in Washington State Certification requirements.
Special emphasis is placed upon skills and knowledge
unique to the superintendency, as it is assumed that
cohort members are already skilled educators and
leaders.
The seminars are held in hotel facilities at various
locations around the state, including Spokane,
Issaquah, Vancouver, Pullman and Olympia. Locations are
selected to provide maximum access to resources and to
balance travel requirements among the participants.
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The internship
The two-year internship is the centerpiece of the
field-based program. Interns are required to
chronicle their experiences and reflect upon
them. Each intern works closely with a mentor,
generally the district superintendent. Interns
and mentors meet regularly to share experiences,
perceptions, and progress on internship
activities.
Because of the heavy emphasis on the field-based aspect
of the program, we require a strong commitment by the
participant’s superintendent to serve as a mentor
to the intern during the two-year duration of the
program. The program’s success relies upon
a positive, collaborative relationship between the
program faculty, the intern, and her/his mentor.
Program faculty meets regularly with the interns and
their district mentors to review progress and develop
ways to make the intern experience valuable and
relevant.
Program Application
Materials
We are currently accepting applications for the
2010/2012 cohort.
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