FAIRFIELD, Conn.—The Carnegie Project on the Education Doctorate (CPED) has accepted Sacred Heart University’s Isabelle Farrington College of Education alongside eight other institutions this year.
According to CPED’s website, the project has a membership of more than 100 colleges and schools of education that have committed resources to undertake a critical examination of the doctorate through dialog, experimentation, feedback and evaluation.
David Title, SHU’s director of the doctorate in educational leadership program, said CPED acceptance means Sacred Heart now has access to the project’s resources and its 100-plus members, who are working to focus their doctoral programs more on practice rather than academia.
“Hundreds of schools are revamping their EdD programs,” Title said. “Our advantage is that we’re starting from scratch.” Sacred Heart just launched its doctoral program in educational leadership and is in the process of accepting applicants for the online program’s fall 2019 start. As a new program, there’s much to learn, especially from other colleges and universities that have been running their programs for years.
Title said that, as a CPED member, he will be able to contact other schools about syllabi, dissertations and more. “This is an opportunity for us to learn lessons from other institutions and avoid making the same mistakes,” he said. “We can pick each other’s brains.”
While SHU is new to the educational leadership doctorate program, it has much to offer the CPED, according to Title. SHU’s program is dedicated to preparing school leaders’ with expertise in social, emotional and academic leadership (SEAL) and it’s the first of its kind in the state. Academic leaders often do not get much SEAL training while preparing to lead schools and school communities. As a result, they often are forced to learn on the job. Currently, educational leaders experience limited formal training concerning complex issues associated with leading and managing the social and emotional well-being of the students, faculty, families and communities in their charge. The program aims to change that and Title said he hopes faculty can provide insight and knowledge to its peers in the CPED along the way.
Members of CPED also gather twice a year for professional development workshops. Other schools in the CPED include Boston College, George Washington University, Johns Hopkins University, University of Dayton and Regis College.
PHOTO: Farrington College of Education Dean Michael Alfano - Sacred Heart University photo by Mark Conrad 2019
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About Sacred Heart University
As the second-largest independent Catholic university in New England, and one of the fastest-growing in the U.S., Sacred Heart University is a national leader in shaping higher education for the 21st century. SHU offers more than 80 undergraduate, graduate, doctoral and certificate programs on its Fairfield, Conn., campus, which is located about an hour from Manhattan and 2.5 hours from Boston. Sacred Heart also has satellites in Connecticut, Luxembourg and Ireland. More than 8,500 students attend the University’s eight colleges and schools: Arts & Sciences; Communication, Media & the Arts; Computer Science & Engineering; Health Professions; the Isabelle Farrington College of Education; the Jack Welch College of Business; Nursing; and St. Vincent’s College. Sacred Heart is rooted in the rich Catholic intellectual tradition and the liberal arts, yet at the same time develops students to be forward thinkers who enact change—in their own lives and professions and in their communities. A spirit of service, entrepreneurship and social justice is the essence of who we are and can be seen inside and outside the classroom as students learn how to make a difference far beyond Fairfield. The Princeton Review includes SHU in its Best 384 Colleges–2019 Edition, “Best in the Northeast” and Best 267 Business Schools–2018 Edition. It also placed SHU on its lists for “Happiest Students” and “Most Engaged in Community Service,” each of which comprises only 20 U.S. schools. Sacred Heart has a Division I athletics program. www.sacredheart.edu