At a recent capstone event in one of the education licensure programs, a student noted that great leaders do not set out to be leaders. “They set out to make a difference,” the student said. “It’s never about the role—it’s always about the goal.” Carl Wahlstrom, Ed.D., associate director of the Education Specialist (Ed.S.) program in the School of Education, told this story and said, “The character education and virtue formation initiative will strengthen an already solid program of studies for aspiring school leaders.”
In November 2019, Saint Mary’s received a $1.7 million grant from the Kern Family Foundation. A specific focus of the grant is to support an enhanced curriculum for current and aspiring educational leaders that places a renewed emphasis on character, virtue, and ethics.
“Currently, there seems to be no shortage of challenging opportunities [for school leaders] and these opportunities seem to be only increasing in number and complexity,” said Craig Sundberg, Ed.S., director of the Ed.S. and Educational Leadership programs.
“As we respond, we are reminded that leadership is not about one’s personality, it is more about one’s behavior and character. Enhancing our attention toward character and virtue formation, we further one’s abilities to create and sustain extraordinary achievements.”-Craig Sundberg, Ed.S.
The Education Specialist degree is an advanced degree in education offered in the School of Education at Saint Mary’s. Lynn Albee, Ed.D., dean and department chair, noted the School of Education prides itself in being one of the state’s largest providers of principal, superintendent, and director of special education candidates.
The Kern grant will support the embedding of character and virtue content throughout the Ed.S. curriculum, the creation of dispositional expectations, and an evaluative rubric to be used by students in the program, as well as formative opportunities and professional development for partner schools. The practitioner-focused curriculum is taught by experienced administrators and experts in the field of education.
Michael Hahn, Ph.D., program director of Character and Virtue Education, facilitates a seminar for faculty members. “I have been blessed to have taught alongside many good teachers, but it’s difficult for me to imagine a better place to learn the art of teaching than at Saint Mary’s,” said Hahn. “I always learn something from the thoughtfulness, wisdom, and dedication that my colleagues bring to our seminar conversations.”
A faculty participant in the seminar, Susan Manikowski, a professor in the Ed.S. program, said “My hope for Saint Mary’s is that it continues to influence educational leaders by building character and helping them to share that character with all those who they come in contact with to build a better and more just world.”
Future plans for faculty development, curriculum enhancement, and the expansion of educational opportunities for current students extend through spring 2022.
“At Saint Mary’s, that goal of making a difference will have a sharper focus through the embedding of character and virtue components throughout our course offerings,” said Wahlstrom. “More importantly, our ability to model and foster ethical leadership in the spirit of Saint Mary’s tradition is enhanced.”