Elementary and Secondary Principal Certification (EdSp)
The EdSp program prepares students to become inquiring, reflective school leaders at the school and district levels. We serve a diverse population of graduate students who are making a positive difference in students’ lives.
The program is delivered through a series of authentic learning experiences and formative assessments designed to meet the individual and group needs of students in each class. Students are expected to demonstrate their competence across a broad range of school and district issues such as instructional leadership, organizational development, fiscal and legal compliance, professional ethics and responsibility, professional development, and internal/external interpersonal relationships.
All courses are fully online, and students are not required to come to the main campus. Classes are taught using synchronous and asynchronous modalities and follow a traditional semester format. A full-time course load for Education Specialist students is six credit hours per semester. Summer courses are offered in 4-week and 8-week formats. The 4-week summer courses meet one evening per week synchronously, and the 8-week courses utilize both synchronous and asynchronous formats. Please check MyZou to confirm instructional dates for each course prior to enrollment.
For additional information about the degree program, please visit Mizzou Online.
Learning Objectives
Through the program, students will gain the knowledge to:
- Understand that communication must occur among diverse groups concerning trends, issues, and potential changes in the environment in which schools operate;
- Understand various types of data and translate them into useable information;
- Appreciate differences in students, teachers, parents and communities;
- Articulate a vision of academic and personal success for all students;
- Demonstrate the importance of building and sustaining sincere and respectful relationships with teachers and fellow administrators.
Through the program, students will have the skills to:
- Create and sustain a positive climate and culture based on high expectations for student and adult achievement;
- Manage a building to ensure safety and promote pride;
- Model and promote social justice;
- Foster a disposition of continuous learning and personal improvement;
- Respond to community interests within a school and/or school district;
- Promote an environment in which schools operate that is influenced on behalf of students and their families.
- Make fiscal and legal decisions consistent with Missouri and Federal policies.
Certification and Required Assessment
The University of Missouri does not certify educational administrators; therefore, all students are encouraged to contact the Educator Certification Department at the Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Education to gain a full understanding of all administrative certification requirements. Completion of the Education Specialist degree with an emphasis in principalship will fulfill the degree and course requirements necessary for certification in Missouri. Out-of-state students are encouraged to contact the educator certification agency in their state of residence to verify that the course of study meets certification requirements in that state. All students will complete and submit the Missouri Professors of Educational Administration Principal Performance Assessment as part of their program of study. In addition, students pursuing principal certification will need to take the appropriate Praxis Exam for School Leadership, which can be found on the Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Education website.
The ELPA department will cover the cost for students to take the Praxis Exam for school leadership assessment while enrolled in the degree program, typically during the last semester of coursework. In order to qualify for the cost to be covered, you must notify the department of your intention to take the examination at the start of the academic semester in which you plan to complete the assessment.
Certification Candidate Perfomance DataDegree Requirements
The EdSp degree is a 30-hour or more program of study, which includes the following required courses and a maximum of six internship hours:
There are ten required courses:
- ELPA 8423: Advanced Leadership for Learning Environments
- ELPA 8419: Structures and Processes for Effective Schools
- ELPA 8417: Site-Level Organization and Leadership
- ELPA 9429: Superintendent: Communication, Team Leadership
- ELPA 9424: Superintendent: Instructional Leader
- ELPA 9461: Ethics in Education
- ELPA 9420: Superintendent: Fiscal Leadership and Management
- ELPA 9435: Superintendent: Legal Leadership and Management
- ELPA 8424: Education Politics and Policymaking
- ELPA 8431: Leadership for Data-Driven Change
Internships
Students seeking superintendent certification will take ED LPA 9481: Central Office/Superintendent Internship. Students not seeking certification are not required to take the internship but may need to take additional electives to meet the minimum required 30 credit hours for the degree.
Please note: Students who enter the program with elementary and/or secondary principal certification do not have to take the performance assessment, even if they are seeking principal certification for a different level. For example, if students hold elementary principal certification and want to seek secondary principal certification in the EdSp, they do not have to complete the performance assessment.
Apply
Admission Requirements
- GPA of 3.0 (4.0 scale) in the last 60 hours of undergraduate education from an accredited institution
- GPA of 3.5 (4.0 scale) in graduate studies in education (master’s degree) from an accredited institution
- Teaching experience preferable
- To be eligible for principal certification, teaching experience is required by the state of Missouri.
- To be eligible for superintendent certification, a teaching certificate is required.
- Minimum scores accepted by the MU Graduate School for TOEFL, IELTS, PTE, or the Cambridge C1 Advanced exams for non-native English speakers
- Three letters of recommendation (at least two of which should be from faculty who instructed or academically advised the applicant)
- GRE scores are not required
Application Deadlines
- To start summer semester: March 1
- To start fall semester: July 1
- To start spring semester: October 1
Applications will be reviewed three times each year. Students will be informed of the results in enough time to enroll for the following semester. All materials must be submitted by these deadlines, when application review will begin.
How to Apply
To apply, please visit the MU Graduate School online application system.
For questions about how to apply, please contact us:
Department of Educational Leadership & Policy Analysis
573-882-8221
elpa@missouri.edu
Assistantships
In rare instances, a minimal number of departmental research or teaching assistantships are available for qualified students who are not working full time. Priority is given to PhD students; however, interested EdSp students are encouraged to apply.