Universityof VirginiaEducation Administrative & Supervision

http://curry.virginia.edu/academics/areas-of-study/administration-supervision

In Administration and Supervision, we understand that it takes extraordinary knowledge, commitment and skill to become effective leaders in education. Partnering together, our students and faculty work diligently to discover and examine the current challenges facing educational leaders at the elementary, secondary and post-secondary levels.

Degrees Offered

Ph.D. in Administration and Supervision [1]

Ed.D. in A&S: Executive Studies in Educational Leadership (ExSEL) [2]

Ed.S. in Administration and Supervision [3]

M.Ed. in Administration and Supervision [4]

Certificate of Endorsement - Administration and Supervision [5]

Schools serve a pluralistic America and future school leaders must understand and meet the needs of students in diverse school communities. Our classes are places where educators can reflect on educational institutions as they are and envision what they could become. We believe that the issues of diversity and equity must be woven into the coursework so that leaders can learn to lead schools with enriched learning environments for all children. Students in School and Community Relations are encouraged to better understand how to engage the families of all students served by the school. Leadership preparation students attend a workshop on multiculturalism which fosters understanding and sensitivity to issues of diversity and the ethical responsibility to ensure equity as a school leader.

It is our collective goal to pursue the creation of solutions to educational challenges through our research, teaching and service to the field.

Elizabeth's Story

I entered Curry with one goal: to become a school administrator that excelled in instructional leadership in order to better serve our schools’ English language learner population. At Curry, I was continually pushed and supported to align research, projects, and my dissertation towards my knowledge and understanding of English language learners. Today, as an assistant principal of an elementary school with a high ELL population, I know I am well prepared. Moreover, the strong relationships I developed with the faculty will allow me to develop a strong connection between research and the field. -- Elizabeth Korab, Ed.D. 2010, Assistant Principal

Program Overview

The Program Area of Administration and Supervision is an integral part of the Curry School of Education’s mission to prepare a wide array of professionals for America’s schools and is ranked by U.S. News & World Report 2011 as the 16th best Administration and Supervision program in the nation. Established in 1932, it is an instructional, research, and service unit of the Curry School of Education. The major purpose of the program is the preparation of educational leaders for the public schools of the Commonwealth of Virginia and the nation, but graduates of the program provide leadership in a variety of settings: both private and public schools, school divisions, state departments of education, and professional organizations. The program additionally seeks to contribute to human understanding and knowledge through continuing inquiry into the nature of educational leadership and leader effectiveness at all levels.

Many alumni now serve in the roles of assistant principals, principals, curriculum specialists, assistant superintendents, and superintendents. Their success is reflected, to some degree, in the number of Curry-trained educators who lead Virginia’s public schools: 56 of the Commonwealth’s 134 school superintendents are Curry graduates.

As our students graduate and become educational leaders performing at the highest level, and as our research results in new thinking about leadership, the work of the faculty and students in the Administration & Supervision program area at the Curry School is, indeed, creating positive change in school districts and educational organizations around the country.