Administrative Endorsement Concentration
Preparing Tomorrows Leaders Today
The Administrative Endorsement program is designed to prepare educators for beginning administrative positions at the K-12 campus or district level. It leads to Tennessee licensure as a Beginning Administrator. Entrance requirements include a bachelor's degree, teaching certificate, and a three years of teaching experience.
Cohorts
All students move through their program as part of an online cohort group. Cohort students will begin the program in the same semester and continue through the program with the same group taking a minimum of 6 credit hours per semester. Each cohort has a site through D2L specifically designed to assist students in advisement with their cohort advisor and other concentration specific information.
Students will take the administrative endorsement exam after the fourth semester of coursework.
Master of Education
The master's degree program of study consists of 36 credit hours taken in six consecutive semesters. Students will also complete an appropriate, supervised internship and develop a professional portfolio.
Educational Specialist
The educational specialist program of study consists of 43 credit hours. The students will also complete an appropriate, supervised internship and develop a professional portfolio.
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Doctor of Education
For students with a valid master's degree, the program of study requires a minimum of 66 credit hours. Students with valid educational specialist degrees have a program of study calling for a minimum of 42 credit hours. The students will also complete an appropriate, supervised internship and submit a portfolio of 10 approved residency activities.
The Qualifying Examination is administered toward the end of the required coursework and encompasses knowledge and ideas from these courses. Upon satisfactory completion of both the written and oral segments, students enroll in dissertation hours and begin their research project.
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Beginning Administrator Endorsement
The applicant for endorsement as principal or district-level supervisor shall hold a teacher's professional certificate. The applicant should have completed the approved master's degree program in educational leadership. The applicant shall have had a minimum of three years of successful teaching experience and/or administrative experience in grades for which the certification is sought. The applicant must successfully pass the examination required by the Tennessee Department of Education. For a "Type B" Beginning Administrator Endorsement, the applicant shall successfully complete an appropriate, supervised, Standard Ninety-Day Internship or Alternative Ninety-Day Internship as part of the planned program. No ninety-day internship program is required to receive a "Type A" Beginning Administrator Endorsement. The State Department of Education adds the endorsement of Beginning Administrator (K-12) to an existing teaching certificate.
Internship Program
While students enrolled in the master's degree program in educational leadership are engaged in relevant fieldwork throughout their program of study, they are required to complete a focused internship as part of their educational experience. The internship may take one of two forms, the Standard Ninety-Day Internship and the Alternative Ninety-Day Internship. In the Standard Ninety-Day Internship, candidates will have a minimum experience of ninety days in a school setting and five days in a non-educational setting (e.g., business or community agency). The Standard Ninety-Day Internship is optional and leads to a "Type B" Beginning Administrator Endorsement at the completion of the master's degree program.
Candidates unable to pursue the Standard Ninety-Day Internship must develop an Alternative Ninety-Day Internship experience in collaboration with their graduate advisor. Candidates will be able to accumulate their 90 days of internship in a school over six semesters through a combination of different activities. The 90 days accumulated over six semesters will be logged and verified by signatures from the supervising mentors and the faculty advisor. The Alternative Ninety-Day Internship leads to a "Type B" Beginning Administrator Endorsement at the completion of the master's degree program.
Students may not finish the master's degree program without completing either the Standard Ninety-Day Internship or the Alternative Ninety-Day Internship. Applicants interested in learning more about the internship program and licensure options should contact the Graduate Coordinator of the ELPA master's degree program.
