Principal Licensure Program

The Principal Licensure Program (PLP) is a post-master's, non-degree licensure program leading to a comprehensive K-12 building level administrator's license. The program identifies outcomes and expectations based on current school leadership principles and practices and enables interns to engage in inquiry, research, dialogue, team learning, reflection, problem-based learning, collaboration, and standards-based assessment from a comprehensive K-12 perspective. The program is developed on the foundation of the Department of Education Division of Professional Standards (DPS) Building Level Administration Standards and the Interstate School Leaders Licensure Consortium (ISLLC) Standards. Interns will develop and demonstrate proficiency in relation to the DPS/ISLLC Standards through a variety of field experience activities and performance assessments. The culminating Applied Principal's Portfolio reflects a standards-based emphasis and will prepare interns to pass the School Leaders Licensure Assessment.

The program curriculum consists of three components including some courses earned for a master's degree:

1. 15 credit hours of cognate courses as included in Indiana Wesleyan University's M.Ed. program;
2. 9 credit hours of professional studies courses, one of which is included in the IWU M.Ed. program; and
3. 9 credit hours of school-based learning in the internship phase of the program.

Nine semester hours with a grade of "B" or higher from an approved institution may be transferred in for the cognate or professional studies courses. The internship phase courses must be taken at IWU.

Admission Requirements - PLP

All interns will:

1. be enrolled as a full time M.Ed. candidate or have completed the M.Ed. degree at Indiana Wesleyan University or a master's degree from a college or university accredited by a regional accrediting body or the Association for Biblical Higher Education. The degree must be verified on official transcripts and sent directly to Indiana Wesleyan University.
2. be currently employed in or have access to a K-12 public or non-public school in which the principal is willing to serve as a mentor for the internship phase of the program;
3. hold a teaching license;
4. have a minimum of three years of teaching experience:
5. submit a type-written statement explaining the applicant's desire to pursue a K-12 Building Level Administrator's license through IWU. The statement should include a discussion of the applicant's potential, strengths, and passion to pursue a rigorous preparation program leading to qualification as a school leader. Particular attention is to be given to the clarity of ideas expressed, organization of the paper, sentence fluency, and the conventions of written expression. This statement is to be attached to the application.
6. obtain two recommendations from two school leaders (superintendent, principal, or assistant principal) who are qualified to judge the applicant's knowledge, skills, and dispositions in relation to pursuing the Building Level Administrator's license.

Mission - PLP

The Principal Licensure Program provides a clinical and school-based adult learning experience for aspiring school leaders by encouraging, empowering, and equipping them as visionary servant-leaders who model Christlikeness and who are able to facilitate a culture of optimal social, emotional, and spiritual health and well-being, continuous improvement, and successful learning for all students and adults.

Objectives - PLP

The Graduate Studies in Education department has adapted the DPS/ISLLC Standards as the program objectives for the Principal as Servant Leader conceptual framework. The standards have been incorporated into the objectives of each course, the multiple means of authentic assessment and reflection within the program, and the culminating standards-based portfolio assessment process that runs through all courses in the program. The program objectives are:

1. A Vision of Learning: To facilitate the development, articulation, implementation, and stewardship of a vision of learning that is shared and supported by the greater school community.
2. School Culture and Instructional Leadership: To advocate, nurture, and sustain a school culture and instructional program conducive to student learning and continuous instructional improvement.
3. Managerial Leadership: To ensure management of the organization, operations, and resources for a safe, efficient, and effective learning environment.
4. Collaboration with Families and the Community: To collaborate with families and community members, respond to diverse community interests and needs, and mobilize community resources.
5. Acting with Integrity and Fairness and in an Ethical Manner: To act with integrity, fairness, and in an ethical manner.
6. The Political, Social, Economic, Legal, and Cultural Context: To understand, respond to, and influence the larger political, social, economic, legal, and cultural context.

Program of Study - PLP

Foundational Studies – 15 Hours (These courses are included in Indiana Wesleyan University's M.Ed. core)

Professional Studies – 9 Hours

School-Based Internship – 9 Hours

Principal Licensure Program Competency Requirement

To officially complete the Principal Licensure Program, an intern must finish and formally present the Applied Principals Portfolio. The transcript will not reflect program completion until this requirement is met. Prior to the intern meeting this competency requirement, the transcript will show only courses taken.

Re-Admittance Policy - PLP

Students who have previously withdrawn from a Graduate Education program of study and who wish to be re-admitted to the program are welcome to return to the Graduate Education Department. The following conditions related to re-admission apply:

1. Existing program admission criteria at the time of re-admission apply.
2. The Program Director reserves the right to require that the student audit some courses that the student may have already completed if the Director determines that the material is significantly different than when the student first took the course.
3. The program requirements existing at the time of re-admission are the requirements the re-admitted student must meet prior to program completion.

Matriculation Policy

All interns will have a maximum of three (3) calendar years from their first enrollment in a PLP course to complete all the requirements for recommendation for a Building Level Administrator license. In the event of extenuating or emergency circumstances, exceptions to this policy may be made on the basis of an approved appeal from the student to the Director of the Principal Licensure Program.

Out-of-State Applicants

Successful completion of the IWU Principal Licensure Program (PLP) and attendant licensing requirements results in the intern being recommended to the DPS by the University for an Indiana Building Level Administrator (K-12) License. Applicants who seek administrative licensure in states other than Indiana bear the responsibility to determine whether completion of the IWU Principal Licensure Program will meet the academic and assessment requirements of the state in which licensure is sought.

PLP Attendance Policy

The nature of the Principal Licensure Program requires interns to attend all class sessions. Some courses (EDL-610, EDL-616, and EDL-618) are each comprised of 6 workshops which extend over a specified time period as scheduled by the University. Each internship practicum, EDL-612 and EDL-625, runs for an entire semester and is comprised of 2 seminars and 3 regional team meetings.

Interns are expected to be present when a class or meeting begins and remain for the entire session. To be counted "present", an intern must attend three-fourths (3/4) of the total class or meeting time. Class attendance records are maintained by the faculty member and are recorded on the University database. Faculty members may factor lateness, early departures, and full absences into an intern's course grade, as long as such factors are addressed in the course syllabus.

Under emergency circumstances, an intern may be allowed 1 absence in courses that are five class sessions or fewer in length, or 2 absences in courses that are 6 or more class sessions in length. Interns are to inform the faculty member, in advance if possible, regarding absences and make-up work.

University policy states that if an intern exceeds the allowed absences and does not contact the Office of Student Services to officially withdraw before the last class session, the instructor is directed to issue the grade of "F".

Interns who must miss a course due to unavoidable circumstances must arrange for a temporary leave of absence with the Office of Student Services prior to the beginning of the course. Interns needing to withdraw while in a course may do so by arrangement with the Office of Student Services prior to the end of the course, but the regular refund and academic withdrawal policies apply.

Pre-requisites Policy Related to Internship Phase Courses

Pre-Requisites for EDL-612

EDL-610 must be completed with a grade of "B" or better by the end of the course to be enrolled in EDL-612, Principal Internship. A grade below "B" will require a temporary withdrawal from the Principal Licensure Program (PLP) and a repeat of EDL-610. An intern who requests and receives approval for a grade of "Incomplete" for EDL-610 must temporarily withdraw from the PLP, work to change the grade from "I" to at least a "B," and re-enroll for EDL-612 the next academic year.

Pre-Requisites for EDL-625

EDL-612 must be completed with a grade of "B" or better by the end of the course to be enrolled in EDL-625, Applied Principal's Portfolio Practicum. A grade below "B" will require a temporary withdrawal from the Principal Licensure Program (PLP) and a repeat of EDL-612. An intern who requests and receives approval for a grade of "Incomplete" for EDL-612 must temporarily withdraw from the PLP, work to change the grade from "I" to at least a "B", and re-enroll for EDL-625 the next academic year.

Grades: Maintaining Grades of "B" or Better

EDL-557, EDL-616, and EDL-618

Interns who earn a grade less than "B" in EDL-557, EDL-616 and/or EDL-618 must repeat the respective course earning a grade of "B" or better.

EDL-610, EDL-612, and EDL-625

Interns who earn a grade less than "B" in EDL-610, EDL-612, or EDL-625 must temporarily withdraw from the Principal Licensure Program and re-take that course earning a "B" or better as a requirement for re-instatement to the PLP.

Exit from the Principal Licensure Program

To officially complete the Principal Licensure Program, an intern must finish and formally present the Applied Principals Portfolio. The transcript will not reflect program completion until this requirement is met. Prior to the intern meeting this competency requirement, the transcript will show only courses taken.

When the intern has successfully completed the requirements of the Principal Licensure Program and has passed the School Leaders Licensure Assessment, he or she may complete an application process through which the University will recommend to the Department of Education Division of Professional Standards that the Indiana K-12 Building Level Administrator's initial practitioner license be issued.

Applied Principal's Portfolio Continuation Course

The Applied Principal's Portfolio Continuation course provides a decision point for interns who have completed EDL-612 and EDL-625 but who have not met the competency requirement to complete and formally present the Applied Principal's Portfolio. Interns who have not completed and presented the Applied Principal's Portfolio by the end of EDL-625 must enroll in this course to pursue licensure as a Building Level Administrator. The cost of the course is equal to tuition for one credit hour in the program plus any required fees.

Interns who have not completed and presented the Applied Principal's Portfolio by the end of EDL-625 AND who do NOT choose to pursue licensure may choose not to take EDL-613 Applied Principal's Portfolio Continuation.

Principal Licensure Program - Course Descriptions

Cognate Courses

EDU-545 Contemporary Issues in American Education 3

This course provides an opportunity for students to investigate the influence that contemporary social issues exert on systems of formal education. In particular, students will examine change processes as they occur in education and acquire the basic skills needed to serve as agents of change in the lives of individual students, the education profession, and society at large. They will examine the ways in which current issues and agendas for change require a stable, defensible set of core values. Based on these investigations, students will initiate work which will enable the students to begin planning and preparing a personal/professional mission statement and the Applied Masters Portfolio.

EDU-550 Curriculum: Development and Design 3

This course will enable master teachers to give leadership to the process of curriculum development in schools, kindergarten through high school level. Topics include the theoretical foundations, professional literature and language of curriculum, models for curriculum development, curricular processes, and the role of personnel, governments, and agencies in those processes. In this first of four core courses, special emphasis is given to four roles of the teacher who functions as a change agent. The course is designed to assist teachers in translating theory into practice through development of a Unifying Assessment Project that will synthesize their learning. Activities will be consistent with the Teacher as Agent of Change conceptual framework and its corresponding five outcomes.

EDU-551 Instructional Theory and Design 3

This course explores a variety of accepted theories of instructional design as identified by key writers and researchers in this field. Several teaching models common to these theories are studied and practiced. Candidates will select, use, and evaluate their own use of these models in authentic teaching situations.

EDU-553 Individual Assessment for Student Performance 3

This course will explore current practices and research on effective models of traditional and non-traditional methods of P-12 classroom assessment. Differences between qualitative and quantitative assessment tools will be examined within the context of classroom learning, including references to action research data collected by classroom teachers. Emphasis is placed on measuring and recording P-12 learning.

EDU-556 Applied Educational Research 3

This course is an introduction to educational research strategies with an emphasis on the practical application of research theories and principles. In this course, candidates develop an Action Research Proposal. They then implement the entire action plan cycle in their specific educational context.

Principal Licensure Program Courses

EDL-557 Educational Leadership 3

Educational Leadership provides an examination of the foundational theoretical principles of leadership and the knowledge, proficiencies, and dispositions required for effective leadership in K-12 settings. Problem-solving and decision-making models are explored as tools to maximize educational benefit to stakeholders. Discussions will include teacher and principal roles in leadership, foundational leadership and organization theory, leading change, building a culture conducive to a learning community, site-based management, supervision, evaluation, effective policy decisions, and implementation of school improvement reforms.

EDL-610 Principalship 3

The school principal must be able to facilitate development of a shared vision, positive culture, effective management and school-community collaboration leading to creation of a dynamic community of learners. The principal is an agent of continuous improvement linking improved learning to the quality of life of the individual. The course will include a review of the structure of K-12 education at the state and local levels and examination of current knowledge, principles, issues, trends, models, methods, relationships, and goals of K-12 schools. Focus is on the best practices, duties, responsibilities, and competencies of school principals as instructional leaders. The DPS/ISLLC standards are the guiding principles for this course. Prerequisite: EDL-557

EDL-612 Principal Internship 3

Experiential practice in the specialized duties and responsibilities of the school principal and related problems or opportunities will be emphasized. Instructional leadership, clinical supervision, curriculum development, staff development, program development, and program evaluation will be major areas of proficiency development during the internship. Proficiencies will be exhibited and explained in the Applied Principal's Portfolio. The intern will be coached by a practicing principal (mentor) at the building level and a University Supervisor from Indiana Wesleyan University. Prerequisite: EDL-610

EDL-616 School-Community Collaboration 3

This course will include the examination of models and practices in collaboration between the school and various stakeholders in the greater school community. The focus of study involves developing shared vision, community involvement, school-community relations, utilization of community resources, media relations, power structures, and institutional changes. As a result of this course, the school administrator will promote the success of all students and staff by collaborating with all stakeholder audiences in responding to diverse community interests and needs.

EDL-618 Legal Aspects of School Administration 3

This course is designed to focus on the issues in school law that principals will be expected to know when they take their first position as a school leader. The course will primarily focus on Indiana law, but will also expose potential leaders to case law outside the borders of Indiana and the possible ramifications of that case law. Further, the school administrator will gain working knowledge of the state school code, state and local policies that affect schooling, and the administration of contracts with bargaining units and how they affect the greater school community.

EDL-625 Applied Principal's Portfolio Practicum 3

The professional growth and development of the aspiring building level administrator or supervisor will culminate in the presentation and explanation of the Applied Principal's Portfolio. The intern will show proficiency in the six ISLLC domains and priority knowledge, disposition, and performance expectations of the DPS/ISLLC Building Level Administrator criteria. The intern will demonstrate the fundamental proficiencies to serve as an agent of continuous improvement as a school leader. Prerequisite: EDL 612

EDL-613 Applied Principal's Portfolio Continuation 0

This course provides the intern a ten-week opportunity to complete and present the Applied Principal's Portfolio begun in EDL-612 and EDL-625. This course must be taken immediately following the completion of EDL-625 if the intern chooses to continue to pursue licensure.  Interns who do not complete the portfolio process in EDL-625 and who do not register and complete this course will not be eligible for licensure. The intern continues school-based activities that demonstrate the knowledge, skills, and proficiencies identified in the DPS/ISLLC Standards, builds appropriate portfolio exhibits under the direction of the University Supervisor, and formally presents the portfolio in a professional setting. This course may be repeated once for a maximum of two ten-week continuations. Prerequisite EDL-625

Principal Licensure Program Elective

EDL-617 School Finance 3

This course is designed to prepare principals for the complex area of school finance. The course will focus on the knowledge base necessary for both school building and district business administration including budgeting and accounting. The principal is faced with wearing many hats. These hats range from curriculum and instruction to financial responsibility with many hats in between. The principal will promote the success of all students, staff, parents, and community by having a working knowledge of school finance.