Skip to main content Skip to navigation
Washington State University
College of Education

Archives

Master of Arts (M.A.) in Educational Leadership


One degree across all four campuses.

The Master of Arts Degree (M.A.) in Educational Leadership can be completed on all four campuses.

The M.A. is recommended for students who plan to subsequently pursue a doctoral program.

The program of study for the M.A. requires:

  • Thirty semester hours.
  • At least 21 semester hours of graded course work.
  • At least four semester hours of EdAd 700 for completion.
  • Defense of the master’s thesis.

Students who are interested in the M.A. may personalize their program by choosing an emphasis in K-12 educational leadership.

This degree is offered at Pullman campus.

Ed leadership master’s degree handbook

As described in the handbook, applicants must complete the departmental application form as part of the application packet.

FROM SPOKANE PAGE

Master’s in Educational Leadership

Master’s degree options in educational leadership include the Master in Education (Ed.M.), a non-thesis degree designed for professional educators preparing for leadership positions in K-12 schools, and the Master of Arts in Education (M.A.), a thesis degree designed for professional educators who plan to subsequently pursue a research-based doctoral program.

WSU’s master’s degree programs in Educational Leadership have several unique features:

Statewide program delivery

Master’s degree students can access courses and work with advisers through all of WSU’s campuses (Pullman, Spokane, Tri-Cities, Vancouver).

A practitioner-scholar approach

Program content combines the best of both worlds—issues important to professional educators who are preparing for leadership positions in K-12 schools and the scholarship that can help to analyze and address these issues. The program faculty blends the strengths of academic scholars and experienced practitioners; while several faculty members are highly successful, experienced administrators, others are highly regarded academic scholars. Both contribute to the central purpose of the program, to prepare practitioner-scholars for leadership for school improvement.

Alignment with Certification Programs

WSU’s Educational Leadership master’s degree programs are closely aligned with the Principal and Program Administrator certification programs. All required graded courses for these certification programs can be applied to the master’s degree program of study. Course sequences are designed to permit students at any of WSU’s campuses to complete both the master’s degree and the principal or program administrator certification program within two or three years.

Master of Education degree (Ed.M.)

The Master of Education Degree in Educational Leadership is a non-thesis degree program designed for professional educators preparing for leadership positions in K-12 schools. For the Ed.M. degree, the Program of Study requires a minimum of 35 semester hours, including at least 33 hours of graded coursework and 2 hours of EdAd 702 for completion of a master’s comprehensive examination.

Master of Arts degree (M.A.)

The Master of Arts Degree in Education is a thesis degree program designed for professional educators who plan to subsequently pursue a research-based doctoral program (Ph.D.). For the Master of Arts (M.A.) degree, the Program of Study requires a minimum of 30 semester hours, including at least 20 hours of graded coursework and 4 hours of EdAd 700 for completion and defense of the master’s thesis. The application process for the MA degree requires an interview to explore research interests with program faculty.

Application Process

Please note that application is a multi-step process and often takes four to six weeks to complete. Incomplete applications will not be considered.

Steps to application:

  • Apply online to the WSU Graduate School for acceptance to the university.
  • Submit supplemental materials to the department for acceptance into the degree program.

Application deadlines:

  • June 30, last day to apply for fall semester (August start)

For application instructions, please refer to the Checklist and Instructions for Admission Requirements provided with the application packet.

Important note. Programs in Educational Leadership (EdM, MA, principal certification, superintendent certification, EdD and PHD) do not accept state tuition waivers.

 

Educational Leadership Overview


We’re a dynamic statewide program!

Education touches every corner of the state. So why shouldn’t we?

As we help prepare the leaders necessary to meet student needs in our current K-12 landscape, here are a few of the highlights:

  • WSU’s Educational Leadership program is one of 70 doctoral-granting programs nationwide selected for membership in the University Council for Educational Administration, a national consortium dedicated to the improvement of educational leadership preparation and practice. WSU’s graduate students have the opportunity to participate in UCEA’s annual convention and other professional activities.
  • WSU’s administrator certification programs are organized around the National Educational Leadership Program (NELP) standards, which have been adopted as the certification standards for Washington State licensure.
  • Priority deadline is January 10 for fall admission. Apply.

Master of Arts (M.A.) in Education

Master of Education (Ed.M.)

Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.) in Education

Doctor of Education (Ed.D.)

Superintendent Certification

Principal Certification

Program Administrator Certification

COE Graduate Application Checklists/Info


The College of Education applications are program-specific.

We have multiple programs with different application deadlines, priority deadlines, etc. While each application is fulfilled in GradCAS, the information needed on each may vary. It’s vital that the applicant know each program’s dates and information.

Applications received prior to the respective program’s deadline will have first priority for full enrollment consideration, as well as for consideration for assistantships and funding. Applications received after the deadlines may be reviewed on a space-available basis.

Doctoral Programs

Master’s Programs

Graduate Certificates and Administrator Credential

Donor Profile Debbie Killinger


Sept. 2009

For Debbie Killinger, charity is a matter of heart and homework

By Julie Titone

Debbie Killinger has only recently taken an interest in jaguars.  But the Seattle philanthropist has a long history of helping Cougars.

Woodland Park Zoo’s jaguar breeding program is just one of many causes that she supports in her hometown. She also extends her generosity beyond the Puget Sound, notably to Pullman and Washington State University.  This year, she gained Benefactor status for having donated more than $100,000 to WSU’s College of Education.

Most of that money funds annual scholarships, some of which are designated for single mothers. Killinger was moved by a request from Judy Mitchell, late dean of the college, to help single moms continue their education.

“When I agreed to do it, I realized that if I were at a different point in my life when I divorced, I would have been a single mom,” she said. “Judy Mitchell got to me.”

Killinger also supports scholarships for students of color because, she said, “Milt Lang and Sam Smith got to me.”  Lang is WSU’s associate vice president of student life, and helped establish the Future Cougars of Color and Future Teachers and Leaders of Color programs.  Smith is WSU president emeritus and a longtime friend of Killinger and her ex-husband Kerry Killinger, former Washington Mutual Bank president.

“We were among the first people Sam met when he came to WSU,” Killinger said.

Although both of her sons attended Washington State, Killinger didn’t earn a college degree. Instead, she married right after graduation from North High School in Des Moines, Iowa, which has benefited from her contributions. She also supports the arts and several human services agencies, including the Seattle Men’s and Women’s choruses, the Bailey-Boushay hospice for AIDS patients, and the Seattle Repertory Theatre.

Before giving to any non-profit, she researches organizations by reading their tax returns, checking with the secretary of state’s office, and learning how they are ranked by charity rating organizations, such as Guidestar.

“I take giving very seriously,” she said. “Every year I set a budget. I keep records.”

“Debbie’s attention to her giving is so appreciated,” said Kim Holapa, College of Education development director. “The fact that she’s supporting our students through scholarships means that she trusts us and values the students.”

Debbie doesn’t deny the emotional component of her decisions to give. Most gifts result from personal contacts and, often, personal involvement.  For example, she served on the board of a school for homeless children and lent her support to the Foundation for Early Learning because Jeanne Anderson, the former executive director, “was very nurturing.”

She specifically recalls the warmth of Smith, and walking around the Pullman campus with him when he was president.

“People were hitting him up to buy raffle tickets,” she said.  “There’s a small town feel combined with a college that does a great job. That’s part of what draws me to WSU.”

Donor Profile Inga Kromann


With book awards, retired professor still impacts students’ lives

By Sarah Goehri

PULLMAN, Wash. – Though she retired from the  Washington State University College of Education in 2001, Inga Kromann continues to impact the lives of teacher preparation students each year.

She does so by sponsoring the Inga Kromann Book Awards. The contest gives WSU education students the opportunity to develop their own children’s books.  It was created by Assistant Professor Jane Kelley, who succeeded Kromann as a literature professor in the College of Education.

Kromann was already familiar with the idea after creating a similar project in the graduate course, Advanced Study in Children’s Literature, that she taught while a professor here.  The graduate project consisted of an examination of the entire process of book production, including the role of author, illustrator, editor, and designer.  The book writing contest is based on the same process, allowing students to develop a greater understanding for the many requirements needed to create a story.

Contestants research themes and gain a better understanding of elements such as voice, style, and the use of technology to illustrate the text, says Kromann.  “The entire process helps teachers in training to appreciate literature, evaluate the many books on the market, and to determine classroom uses.”

Kromann offers financial support for prizes, the binding process, and book jackets.  She is given a copy of each of the award-winning books and said she feels honored to have the award named after her.

Carly Young, assistant director of development, praises Kromann’s passion and commitment. “Students and faculty are thrilled to be part of the annual book awards,” she says.

Kromann says that, after spending 38 years at WSU building the literature program and the collection of books in the Brain Education Library, she was delighted that Kelley continued to develop the significance of the field after she had retired.  Literature has “become an increasingly important area in teacher education as well as in classrooms throughout the country,” she says.

As a true Coug, Kromann says she has never missed a televised Cougar football or basketball game. She attributes the most fulfilling years of her career to WSU and enjoys visiting Pullman whenever she can.  She divides most of her time, “as the spirit moves me,” between her apartment in Seattle and her home in Oro Valley, Arizona. “I’m not a ‘snowbird.’ I’m a transient–thanks to Alaska Airlines!”

Inga Kromann Book Award


Contest gives WSU students the chance to write, design, and illustrate their own children’s books.

Dr. Inga Kromann was the children’s literature professor at WSU for 38 years. She created an endowment to support the book contest, which was created by her successor, Associate Professor Jane Kelley.

The Inga Kromann Book Award contest is open to all undergraduate and graduate students in the Department of Teaching and Learning on WSU’s Pullman campus. The book selected for the top Medal Award will receive a $1,000 scholarship and a professionally bound copy of the book. The books selected for Honors Awards will receive a $100 Bookie gift certificate.

To be eligible for an award, submissions must be completed by one person.

For more information please contact:

Jane Kelley

(jekelley@wsu.edu)

Kelly Puzio

(kelly.puzio@wsu.edu)

Barbara Ward

(barbara_ward@wsu.edu)

Contest Guidelines and flyer
Award winners
2018

Grace Ku — The Little Bench

2017

Stephanie Sparks — A Pencil Named Benson

2016

Molly Shade — Pierre’s Uncontrollable Appetite…

2015

Sydney Freel — Huckleberry Pie

2014

Julia Melvin

2013

Madison Dissmore

2012

Jessica Peterson

2011

Jessica Dixon and Bradley Tonahill

2010

Marissa Miller and Molly Ward

2009

Katie Shanks and Andrea O’Brine

2008

Christine Macaras and Brittany Sarkesian

Faculty Research Funding


Help shape the economic and social future of our state!

Our research makes, and will continue to make, a huge difference in Washington state.

Our research makes us better teachers and role models. It’s vital we hire and retain innovative, productive and passionate faculty. To do so, we must be able to provide flexible funding that allows them to do significant research and have opportunities for professional advancement. Private donations are crucial to this effort!

You can help by contributing to either faculty awards or faculty fellowships. For more information, please call Andrea Farmer at 509-335-7843. You can also donate on-line to the College of Education Dean’s Fund for Excellence.

Faculty funding awards

These are grants of up to $5,000 awarded to a faculty member or $9,000 to a team of faculty to support research initiatives.  They are focused on developing research programs and generating peer-reviewed journal publications and/or proposals for external funding. The awards are created from a pooled source of funds that includes gifts of private donors.

Faculty fellowships

A faculty fellowship is an award for outstanding faculty and may be used to retain faculty headed for prominence (that is, those most likely to be approached by competing institutions). A fellowship provides salary supplements and research support. Contribution: $10,000 per year for five years.

A faculty fellowship endowment would provide annual funding of $10,000 in perpetuity. An endowment provides long-range support for faculty work. Contribution: $250,000.

What our faculty researchers say

“Overall the faculty funding award is of tremendous value to the research mission of the College.  It was a catalyst for finishing my project, it gave me the opportunity to present at an international conference…it was invaluable to making the project a realization, and getting the exposure it needed and deserved.”—Associate Professor Michael Hayes

“I purchased 8 laptops which students used to type their narrative stories with the help of assistive technology.  This grant funded a component of my research which other grants don’t fund.  If I had not received this award, I would not have been able to do my research project.”—Associate Professor Michael Dunn

“These funding opportunities have been critical.  As I examine my vita, almost every publication can be traced back to one of the funding awards through this program. I greatly appreciate the opportunities it has provided. My current work on a state grant has resulted from this year’s faculty funding awards and others provided in other years.”– Associate Professor Amy Roth McDuffie

Miller-Manchester Mentor Teacher Award


The Mentor Teacher Award is sponsored annually by the Miller-Manchester Endowment in Education.

Eligible recipients are teachers who are involved with practicum experiences of WSU students or teachers who have worked with student teachers over an extended number of years. Recipients are nominated by WSU faculty and staff in Teaching & Learning.

Recipients are honored with: a plaque, a $1500 cash award, a leaf on the Education Legacy Tree, and recognition at the annual Scholarship and Excellence Awards. Travel expenses for the recipient to attend the awards ceremony are also provided.