Higher Education Spotlight

The College of Education and Human Services recently announced its newly revised MA in Higher Education (HIED), housed in the Department of Educational Leadership. The high-quality program focuses on developing an administrator’s holistic knowledge of Higher Education while concentrating on theory and practice.

This unique program emphasizes leadership and administration across all functional areas of colleges and universities, such as Student Affairs, Academic Affairs, and general university administration. Courses in the program integrate theory, research, and practice to provide students with a comprehensive graduate experience. Our program does not limit a student to a particular field, but allows them to use their electives to investigate a variety of fields within Higher Education Leadership.

Students complete an eight course core requirement that covers history of higher education, organizational theory, diversity and equity, finance and economics, student development theory, supervision in higher education, leadership, and research and evaluation. The electives that are available include examples such as Community College Leadership, Student Services in Higher Education, and Crisis Management in Higher Education.

In the Colleges’ continued commitment to excellence, the Department of Education Leadership recently hired Dr. Román Liera, previously from Pullias Center for Higher Education, University of California, an experienced qualitative researcher and scholar with extensive higher education and racial equity experience. Dr. Liera shared “I am excited to join a program that is dedicated to mentoring students to become higher education practitioners with the theoretical and practical skills to address issues of equity and justice in colleges and universities.”

The faculty and staff connected to the program provide consistent support to students and provide varied networking and professional development opportunities. October is Careers in Student Affairs Month, and the Higher Education Graduate Council sponsored a series of professional development events featuring guest speakers, diversity round table conversations, and social activities. The HIED Council advisor, Sherlene Ayala, stated, “Graduate students in our program receive ongoing professional development at no cost. This allows them to make connections in the field of Higher Education and/or Student Affairs that we hope will lead to an internship or job opportunity in the future.”