Special Education Administrator Training: Meeting Market Needs through Collaboration in Northern New England.

Overview & Synopsis

A joint masters degree program in special education administration was developed through collaboration among Gallaudet University (Washington, D.C.), Plymouth State College (New Hampshire), and Keene State College (New Hampshire). The program was established in 1990 to meet the needs of special educators in rural areas of New Hampshire, Maine, and Vermont. Discussions with potential graduate students resulted in the identification of training needs in different areas of special education and administration. As a result, a summer program of study was established and held at Plymouth State College. Prompted by student discussions of the need for an even more advanced program, members of a joint advisory committee examined the training needs of current holders of master's degrees serving as directors of special education and master teachers. In an effort to expand the program for this potential market, data were analyzed from course evaluations, meetings with special education directors and teachers, and a needs assessment administered to special education directors and parents. Plymouth State College was awarded a state grant to support a series of summer leadership training institutes and to design a Certificate of Advanced Graduate Study program (CAGS) in educational leadership. Efforts are currently directed toward designing a course of study, developing a market plan, writing proposals, and obtaining final approval for the new CAGS program. (LP)