Executive Doctor of Education in Organizational Leadership and Innovation, Ed.D

Department Contact Information

Name of Dean: Dr. Tricia McFadden

Name of Ed.D. Director: Dr. Tricia McFadden

Name of Director: Mrs. Sherri Link, Academic & Student Affairs

Estimated Completion Time

    32 months

Program Description

The Executive Doctor of Education in Organizational Leadership and Innovation is an entrepreneurial and transformative 32-month program targeted at individuals who wish to be intellectually challenged and to prepare themselves to excel in their careers at their current employer or to pivot to a new career in multiple disciplines.

The Executive Doctor in Organizational Leadership and Innovation (EdD) is a unique degree program that provides leaders with the capabilities to lead an organization with strategic innovation and sustainability in a competitive global economy. While most organizational leadership programs develop skills needed to successfully lead an organization, this program builds upon strategic planning, environmental evaluation, change management, and leadership methodologies to develop the knowledge and abilities needed to create an environment of innovation through cultural change, outside-the-box thinking, strategic and disruptive innovation, and leadership agility grounded in Franciscan and Catholic spirituality and values. Students walk away with enhanced ability to lead complex organizations in business, education, healthcare, non-profit and public service fields with the aim of improving efficiency, effectiveness and/or competitive advantage. The program provides students with an environment that accelerates, educates, and guides the development of organizational leaders who actively encourage and support creative, and value-based thinking in their institutions.

The program is carefully designed for assertive leaders who are inspired to drive future innovation, using servant leadership as a framework for doing so. Sensitive to the lifestyle of today’s professionals, the program integrates dissertation work throughout the curriculum. The hybrid modality, valuable price-point, and cohort model fit with the lifestyle of today’s motivated leaders.

Student Learning Outcomes

• Apply the theories and principles of organizational leadership and innovation to advance your field of study through research - Dissertation.
• Demonstrate how leadership theory and practices are linked to practical applications in your field of study.
• From an executive leadership perspective, apply the principles of global policy and ethics to a practical organizational dilemma.
• Demonstrate proficiency in ethical executive leadership decision making.
• Create an organizational strategy and/or innovation that advances the organization in a global market.
• Articulate to internal and external stakeholders, an organizational strategy that addresses organizational development, financial stability and growth, and executive leadership decision making in a globally diverse and inclusive organization.

Admission Requirements

• Online application - complete and submit the free online application for consideration of admission.
• Two Letters of Recommendation from professional contacts. One letter must be from the applicant’s immediate supervisor expressing support for the applicant to enroll into the program and to make a full commitment upon acceptance. 
• Essay - no more than 1000 words on why achieving this degree is important to you from a leadership perspective and the competencies and experiences you bring to and hope to gain from this program.
• Professional Resume/Curriculum Vitae (CV) indicating no less than five years of post-baccalaureate work experience.
• Official baccalaureate and graduate level transcripts; minimum master’s level GPA equivalent of at least 3.0 on a traditional 4.0 scale. 

Admission Deadline

• April 30th for fall cohort
• Applications received after the deadline will be reviewed on a rolling basis until the cohort is deemed fully enrolled. Maximum enrollment for the cohort is 25 students. 

 

Waitlist: A program waitlist will be inclusive of qualified applicants in the event the application pool far exceeds the cohort maximum.

Progression and/or Retention Criteria

Degree Progression:  While the above paradigm chart demonstrates the progression of students through the doctoral program, described here is the process that occurs:

• Admission is when a student is accepted based upon submission of each of the following items (as discussed above):
  • Application
  • References
  • Essay
  • Curriculum Vitae
  • Official undergraduate and graduate transcripts

• Upon Acceptance to the Program and Receipt of Deposit

  • Student is Assigned a Mentor/faculty advisor

• Courses and Program:  All courses are taken in sequence as a cohort.  There are two courses and one residency per semester.  Practicum will be completed during the second year. Residency is one extended weekend per semester and is held at the Curry Innovation Center, Altoona, PA.  Attendance is required.

• Satisfactory Student Progression and Retention:  

  • Students must maintain a GPA of 3.0 (B) in the program and obtain at least a B in every course. 

  • The Director, along with a Doctoral Progression Committee (DPC), are responsible for reviewing student progress and ensuring that each student meets the progression standards. This review occurs at the end of each semester.

  • Program requirements include development of a portfolio to demonstrate academic and personal growth as students progress through the program. Additionally, reflections/journal responses will be embedded throughout coursework and residencies. The Program Review Committee will have access to student portfolios to review progress within the program.

  • Students falling below a 3.0 GPA, at any time, and not meeting the required progression standards may be offered the opportunity to remediate their performance with the oversight of the Director and Doctoral Progression Committee (DPC). The primary purpose of the DPC is to review the academic progress of each student in the Doctoral Program and to ensure consistent academic progress and student success.

  • Remediation could include re-submitting assignment(s), repeating a course/semester (This remediation is allowed for not more than two courses throughout the program of study), or removal from the program. 

  • Meetings of the DPC will be held at the end of each semester to address any issues related to student(s) progress through the program. If additional meetings are necessary, the Director will schedule a meeting to discuss issues.

  • The final assessment for the program is the defense of the dissertation. Students will present and defend a concept proposal to their committee during Year 1. Once approved, they will write and then defend their dissertation at the end of the program. The dissertation is the final requirement for the Doctor of Education degree. It is a scholarly document that allows you to demonstrate pertinent knowledge, skills, and expertise in your area of concentration (education, health science, and/or business). It is expected that the dissertation provides a significant contribution adding to knowledge and/or practice in the field of study and demonstrates that the doctoral candidate is well versed in the subject matter and capable of high-quality research. The candidate must successfully defend the dissertation before their committee.

Graduation Requirements 

A candidate for graduation must satisfy the following requirements:

• Complete all requirements for an approved program of study;
• Complete the minimum number of credits as specified in this publication;
• Achieve a cumulative grade point average of 3.0 or better 
• Submit a completed Application for Degree form at least one semester prior to graduation date; and
• Satisfy financial obligations to the University.

Capstone Requirement

Dissertation  

The dissertation is the final requirement for the Doctor of Education degree. It is a scholarly document that allows you to demonstrate pertinent knowledge, skills, and expertise in your area of concentration (education, health science, or business). It is expected that the dissertation provides a significant contribution adding to knowledge and/or practice in the field of study and demonstrates that the doctoral candidate is well versed in the subject matter and capable of high-quality research. The candidate must successfully defend the dissertation before their committee.

The dissertation in the Saint Francis University Executive Doctor of Education is embedded in the program of study for all students with the aim that the dissertation is completed, defended, and approved within the final semester of the program.

The SFU Dissertation Guidebook complements other important resources during this phase of the students’ graduate career, including their dissertation supervisory committee, their academic program leaders, the academic advisors and other University staff members, the Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association (APA style manual), and the other designated dissertation resources. 

Other information to include, related to this program

Doctoral Residency

Define

The Residency is the time within the program that provides for a structured educational experience on the campus or at a designated location. 

The Structure of Doctoral Residency

Students working toward the Doctor of Education (EdD) degree must participate in a doctoral residency. During doctoral residencies, students meet with their peers to learn about the doctoral journey, work with experts on their dissertation topic, and network with faculty and industry professionals. Residencies provide specific tools and resources that allow students to gain a better understanding of their area of study. Residencies provide students with an irreplaceable experience on their journey to earning a doctoral degree. 

There are eight residencies required (one residency per semester) involving approximately two full days and two half days. There is one half-day of in-person learning on both Thursday (4 hours) and Sunday (4 hours) and one full-day of learning on both Friday (8 hours) and Saturday (8 hours).  These hours of in-person learning, split evenly between two courses, provide thirteen (13) hours of learning experience for each course. In addition to this determined learning time, additional time (up to six hours over these days) is allocated to seminars related to a theme or topic of the specific residency.