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SLU to Offer First Doctoral Program

Posted on: Sunday, 12 March 2006, 18:00 CST

By BOB ANDERSON

SLU to offer first doctoral program

HAMMOND - Southeastern Louisiana University will offer its first doctoral program this fall.

The education leadership program should be helpful in providing replacements for the large number of school administrators who will be eligible to retire in the next five years, SLU officials said.

The degree offering will be a joint program with the University of Louisiana at Lafayette. The two schools are sharing faculty and providing some classes by remote technology, university officials said.

ULL already offers several doctoral programs, but this is a big step for SLU, said Randy Moffett, president of the university.

Moffett said he has dreamed for years of the university offering a doctoral program and has long had a particular interest in this specific area of study.

The education leadership degree is in a specialty of growing importance, Moffett said.

"This is an applied type program that fills a critical need," he said. "Today's school leaders must be prepared to focus time, energy and attention to changing what students are taught, how they are taught, and what they are learning."

"A survey was conducted in the service region that surrounds the university and the results indicated this program could benefit this area along with the state and region," said Gerald Carlson, ULL's dean of education.

Surveys in the areas around both SLU and ULL showed that about half of school-based administrators are eligible to retire in the next five years, said Diane Allen, dean of SLU's College of Education and Human Development.

"We need to take steps now to recruit and prepare practicing educators in leadership if our schools are going to continue to improve," she said.

Moffett said he anticipates that most of the doctoral candidates will be working professionals with master's degrees. The first graduates are expected in three to four years.

The program will use a combination of traditional face-to-face classroom instruction, as well as distance education technologies such as compressed video, the Internet, and interactive desktop video, Moffett said.

Both institutions will enroll students who will be able to take courses at either university in these settings.

As partners, the two institutions will form a consortium board that will jointly administer the program, offer classes and make decisions regarding program development and student participation, university officials said.

Graduates will receive a joint degree from the two universities, university officials said.

Source: Advocate; Baton Rouge, La.

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