Since making its debut in Fall 2008, the new Doctoral Program in Educational Leadership at CSU Stanislaus has admitted two cohorts totaling 40 students and is preparing to admit a third in June 2010 at the Stockton Center.

The Ed.D. students come from every level of education, ranging from early childhood education programs and elementary and secondary schools to community colleges and universities. The students admitted to the Ed.D. program represent the highest quality educators and up-and-coming educational administrators in the region. As these individuals complete their doctoral degrees, they will be fully prepared to move into senior educational leadership roles and provide the kind of steadfast and visionary direction necessary during these times of rapid change and challenge in education.

Students like Kay Vang, an Assistant Principal at Apricot Valley Elementary School in Patterson, said she hopes to advance her administrative career and eventually teach in a foreign country. Born in a refugee camp in Thailand after her parents had fled their native Laos in the aftermath of the Vietnam War, Vang came to Stockton with her family as a youngster and credits a sixth grade teacher with helping her to overcome her struggles to learn the English language.

The second of 10 children, Vang went on to excel as a student and earned her bachelor’s degree and then a master’s degree at CSU Stanislaus. Now she has dedicated herself as an educational leader to helping students in multicultural programs experience success as she did.

“I still consider myself an English-learning student,” said Vang, who plans to be one of the first CSU Stanislaus doctorate degree graduates.

The CSU Stanislaus Ed.D. program was developed in response to an overwhelming demand in the Central Valley and Sierra Foothills for an accessible, high quality educational leadership doctoral program. The program has enjoyed the strong support of educational leaders from throughout the region, primarily through the Ed.D. program’s Community Advisory Board.

The Ed.D. program is designed to help address the shortage of qualified individuals prepared to move into advanced leadership roles in the Pre K-12 system and community colleges. The program is a three-year practitioner-based program that is intended for the working professional, and provides a combination of leadership development, research and evaluation skills, and practical fieldwork -- learning opportunities for students who aspire to the highest levels of educational leadership and scholarship. The program takes full advantage of technology and is offered using a combination of online and classroom instructional environments.

Under the leadership of new Interim Director, Professor of Advanced Studies Jim Riggs, the first cohort of students is completing the initial phase of its course work. Upon completing the written qualifying examinations this fall, the students will move into doctoral candidacy status where they will continue their courses in their specialization fields and complete their doctoral dissertations. It is anticipated that many of the students in the first cohort will complete their course work and dissertations by May 2011.

The third cohort scheduled to start in summer 2010 in Stockton is designed to meet the needs of current and future educational leaders in San Joaquin County. For more information about the Ed.D. program and upcoming briefing sessions coming up in November and December, contact Jim Riggs at 209-664-6789 or e-mail edd@csustan.edu.