Educating Leaders

Margaret Blanchard

Executive Ed.D. program stresses leadership, steps up recruitment

The fast-track executive doctoral program in higher education management, launched by the Institute of Higher Education in 2010, is recruiting students for its fourth cohort, which will begin classes in January 2016.

The program schedule accommodates busy professionals, with eight meetings yearly in Atlanta (Thursday afternoon through Sunday afternoon) and two eight-day international trips (currently to the Netherlands and China) during summer sessions. Participants in the program typically have significant responsibilities at universities and colleges and elsewhere in higher education—and have earned recognition for their career potential.

The program is directed by Charles Knapp, whose distinguished career in higher education includes a decade as president of the University of Georgia and, more recently, a year as interim dean of UGA’s Terry College of Business. He currently chairs Georgia Gov. Nathan Deal’s K-12 Education Reform Commission.

“Leadership in higher education has become vastly more complex over the last few decades,” says Knapp, who also directs the leadership module within the program. “I want the students in the executive Ed.D. program to have direct exposure to individuals who have been effective leaders and to learn how they approach difficult problems.”

During each two-year cohort, Knapp brings in diverse leaders from academic, political and corporate worlds to share their experiences. Past speakers have included Michael Cassidy, president and CEO of the Georgia Research Alliance; Ron Jackson, former commissioner of the Technical College System of Georgia; Hank Huckaby, chancellor of the University System of Georgia; and Georgia Lt. Governor Casey Cagle.

Providing such opportunities is critical for success after graduation, according to Knapp. “I believe that effective leadership is the most important skill higher education administrators can have,” he says. “The students also need to have technical skills and understand the background and context of contemporary higher education, but if they aren’t leaders, their careers will be limited.”

Graduates of the program agree that the focus on leadership is one of its greatest strengths. “Dr. Knapp’s leadership roundtables exposed us to leaders not only in the education sector, but also from a variety of industries to discuss their perspectives on managing complex organizations,” says Stu Evans, a 2011 graduate who is now executive director at the McIntire School of Commerce Foundation and assistant dean of strategic initiatives at UVA’s McIntire School of Commerce.

Tim Doyle, who also received his Ed.D. in 2011, credits the program with helping advance his career. Doyle is associate vice president for student life at Christian Brothers University in Memphis, Tenn. Previously he served as director of enrollment management and as a faculty member at The American University of Iraq-Sulaimani.

“I owe so much to the UGA experience,” he says. “I literally wouldn’t have been considered for this job without the degree, and my responses to questions were informed by knowledge gleaned from the IHE faculty and fellow students alike.” Because word-of-mouth from alumni has proven to be a strong recruitment tool, the Ed.D. program hosted a recruitment open house last February that brought alumni together with current and prospective students. The event–billed as “Bring a Friend to Ed.D.”–was timed to coincide with a regular session of the program so that the prospective students could observe classroom presentations.

“The conversations were stimulating,” said one attendee. “It’s apparent the students are passionate about the program, as well as the distinguished faculty.” The open house served as a mini-reunion for Atlanta alumni, who met with Cohort 3 students just embarking on the dissertation process.

“It was great to connect with members of my cohort and get to know some of the current students,” said Kara Robinson, who graduated in 2013 and has agreed to serve as an alumni ambassador for the program. “Having been in their shoes, I know the intensity of the program–especially getting through the dissertation–and was happy to provide moral support.”

"I believe that effective leadership is the most important skill higher education administrators can have. The students also need to have technical skills and understand the background and context of contemporary higher education, but if they aren’t leaders, their careers will be limited.”  — CHARLES KNAPP