The School of Education’s Equity Certificate program is fully online and prepares contemporary school leaders to engage school communities and elevate the achievements of students from diverse cultural contexts and marginalized populations. Students with a degree in any discipline are eligible to enroll in this certificate program.
Fall Courses (6 credits)
The “Equity and Diversity in Education” course focuses on diversity factors that impact the decisions made by educators and stakeholders for P–12 student learning and development. Specifically, this course addresses the impact of multicultural factors (i.e., race, ethnicity, gender, religion, sexual orientation, etc.) on student learning. This course also addresses culturally sensitive course design and development, delivery methods and teaching methodologies that are culturally appropriate and provide equity and excellence for all student learners.
The “Culturally Responsive Leadership for Marginalized Communities” course provides students with an opportunity to explore the purposes and principles of social justice, advocacy, and culturally responsive leadership, particularly as they relate to public schools and the legal, ethical, socio-political, cultural and economic contexts in which schools operate. This online course will also provide students with a theoretical framework for understanding the dynamics and forms of oppression and afford them an opportunity to engage in self-interrogation regarding the “isms” (e.g., racism, sexism, ableism, and classism). Students will be asked to analyze their personal experiences and the experiences of others from the perspective of what is “just” or “unjust.” After analyzing, students will critique their dispositional reactions to the injustices experienced by themselves and by others.
Students will also examine how social change has been forged in the past, identify current manifestations of “social injustice” and consider how they can advocate for a more just educational system, society, and world. Additionally, students will explore ways to develop and use a shared vision, shared values and shared goals to define the identity and culture of a school.
Lastly, students will examine strategies that develop a sense of efficacy and empowerment among staff, which in turn influences the school’s identity, culture, and performance. The course will provide practical research opportunities to examine the cultures of various schools and their communal origins to learn how to audit and mobilize them for academic and social success.
Spring Courses (6 credits)
The “Leading High-Achieving, Equitable Schools for African American and Latino Students” course introduces students to how democratic life in schools is impacted by social capital, deficit thinking, white privilege, racism, racial identity development, forced race consciousness and social capital. This course will also examine the practices of K–12 principals who lead a regionally or nationally recognized non-magnet school that has significantly increased the achievements of minority students. Students will explore the context of 21st-century leadership, including digital learning, poverty amidst great wealth, increasing racial diversity and the local context of North Carolina. Finally, students will develop equity audits and produce an individual or collaborative plan that works to dismantle an area of racism or privilege.
The “Instructional Leadership for Empowering Teachers” course focuses on the best instructional leadership and school practices for school improvement, facilitated by collaborative structures and professional development within the school to establish and achieve high expectations for students and teachers. An emphasis will be placed on the professional, behavioral, and cultural tasks of supervision related to the following:
This course will also examine the instructional leader’s role in creating learning communities to effectively recruit, retain, and develop quality teachers who can shape the culture and climate of the school to promote shared ownership of the school’s vision.
Because this is considered a graduate certificate program, you will apply through the School of Graduate Studies. Click the “Apply Now” button below to start your application.