Central to the mission of the Church is the work of Catholic schools. The National Standards and Benchmarks for Effective Catholic Elementary and Secondary Catholic Schools state that “An excellent Catholic school has a qualified leader/leadership team empowered by the governing body to realize and implement the school’s mission and vision.”

The Loyola University Chicago Catholic School Leadership program is:

• designed to prepare future principals to meet the complex challenges of leading today’s Catholic schools.
• uniquely designed to ensure each principal candidate becomes a mission-driven, faith-based instructional leader within the Catholic School context.

The Unique Coaching Model

This coaching model is based on the foundation of a “support team” to ensure candidates have the breadth of experiences to be able to lead. The support team is comprised of the candidate, the university faculty supervisor, the coordinator of coaches, the internship mentor principal, and the internship coach. The internship coach is a veteran Catholic school administrator with a proven record for leading effective Catholic schools.

CURRICULUM

This two-year program (including summers) leads to a Master’s Degree in Educational Leadership and the option of pursuing Illinois Principal Licensure. Coursework will focus on the unique aspects of the principalship of Catholic schools.

Students admitted to this program must be practicing educators or administrators with at least two years of work experience in the field. The program is 33 credit hours and can be pursued part-time. Catholic identity is infused throughout the coursework.

Courses

Program Features

• Focused in-depth coursework with coaching and immediate application for transforming Catholic schools to create increased student outcomes within a faith-based context.
• Program designed by Loyola’s School of Education and community partners to ensure that all candidates acquire a solid foundation to be a a mission-driven, faith-based instructional Catholic leader.
• Optional two-week summer course at Loyola University’s Rome campus to develop global leadership perspectives.

Optional Illinois Licensure

Students in this program are not required to take any ILTS exams through the Illinois State Board of Education. However, this program's curriculum prepares students to be licensed principals in the state of Illinois.

Suggested Sequence of Courses

The below sequence of courses is meant to be used as a suggested path for completing coursework.  An individual student’s completion of requirements depends on course offerings in a given term as well as the start term for a major or graduate study.  Students should consult their advisor for assistance with course selection.

Continuous Enrollments

Master's students in educational leadership are required to maintain the status of continuous enrollment during their program of studies. This means that during each semester of each academic year (excluding Summer Sessions), each student must enroll in at least one course. A formal leave of absence may be granted upon request and the approval of the School of Education’s Assistant Dean of Student Academic Affairs.

Graduate & Professional Standards and Regulations

Students in graduate and professional programs can find their Academic Policies in Graduate and Professional Academic Standards and Regulations under their school. Any additional University Policies supercede school policies.

LEARNING OUTCOMES

Upon completion, candidates will:

1. Possess the knowledge, skills, and dispositions to be highly effective leaders to promote the spiritual, academic and social-emotional growth of their students.
2. Be able to facilitate data-driven decision making in your school community, and engage in tangible, real-world internship experience to put these ideas into practice.