MIDCAREER DOCTORAL PROGRAM
I have been involved in the Midcareer Doctoral Program in Educational Leadership from its inception in 2000, when a group of faculty and administrators began conceptualizing it. The program was Chris Hopey’s idea, and Peter Kuriloff led the initial program development, but as the Division Chair responsible for the program I was the third person deeply involved in planning and launching it. In 2002 I became the Chair of the Steering Committee, the group of faculty and administrators that meets monthly and oversees the program. This committee has built and continues to refine an unusually integrated educational program.
The Midcareer Program is an executive education program, meeting one weekend a month plus an intensive week in the summer. Many question the intellectual rigor of such programs, and I confess that I was at first skeptical myself. But after many years of experience with Midcareer I have seen how the program upholds high intellectual standards while serving a crucial societal need. Having students who are involved in and committed to educational leadership every day enriches the curriculum and also offers the university an opportunity to influence educational practice more directly. I am particularly proud of my association with Midcareer because it insists on intellectual rigor while being deeply engaged in practical concerns and committed to improving educational leadership for underserved populations.
